Which records say his mother was a Richmond??? If it's somebody's family history, that's not reliable. Find primary sources -- ones that were filled out by people who knew. Marriage licenses are more reliable than obituaries, for instance. Look for his parents' marriage license. Remember that either or both could have married more than once. I was confused about one of my ancestors. I thought she was a Bradley (that's what the marriage license said). Someone else said she was a Boatwright. The final answer: she was born Boatwright, married a Bradley who died and then married my Brown. Look for more than one record to confirm and explain. The land tax records, for instance, showed that my Brown held land as guardian for an Elizabeth Bradley (his wife's daughter) and held his wife's dower lands. Those confirmed the two marriage licenses: Bradley-Boatwright and then Brown-Bradley. The Probate records cinched it: They named "widow Bradley, now wife of Brown." Don't quit too soon. Sometimes there's more than one Elizabeth married to a Reuben Bragg. Just because you find an Elizabeth-Reuben marriage, doesn't mean that's the one who's actually the mother of your ancestor. Keep looking. I have a Sarah Ann Hensley born in a particular year. So I went to the 1850 census to find her parents. I found 2 Sarah Ann Hensleys, born the same year, living in neighboring counties. Which is mine? And which set of parents? I don't know yet. Both are possible, neither proved yet. Another relative stopped when he found the first one and declared that was the right Sarah and right parents. He didn't know there was another candidate. Have fun working it out! Lynne Hundley -----Original Message----- From: VivHy@aol.com <VivHy@aol.com> To: WVGREENB-L@rootsweb.com <WVGREENB-L@rootsweb.com> Date: Friday, March 09, 2001 9:08 PM Subject: BRAGG - RICHMOND - MARTIN??? Desperate plea from a confused family researcher... James BRAGG was born 14-Nov-1839. Records state that he is the son of Rueben BRAGG and Mary "Polly" RICHMOND........however, his obit states that "he was connected with the MARTIN families in Greenbrier County. His mother was a MARTIN." Can anyone shed some positive light on this matter? Peace, Vivian ============================== Add as many as 10 Good Years To Your Life If you know how to reduce these risks. http://www.thirdage.com/health/wecare/hearthealth/index.html