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23 April 2014

Are Locations Approximate?

Just because a record indicated great-grandfather was born in Quincy, Illinois, that doesn't mean he was actually born there. It may be that "in" needs to be replaced with "near." And there is always the chance that the person gave the county seat as the place of birth instead of the village or rural farm where the event actually took place.
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4 comments:

  1. Patricia TaylorApril 24, 2014 at 7:56 AM

    My father's Social Security info states his place of residence at the time of his death was an area that isn't even a town more like a subdivision located east of town. He actually lived west of town. Never lived in the area mentioned. It puzzles me. Where did they get this information?

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  2. KatApril 24, 2014 at 9:45 AM

    It is quite common for folks to give the name of the largest place near their home. "Papa said he came from Quincy, Illinois," was the extent of my father's knowledge about his family. It was not until years later after all my father's generation was gone, did we discover that the family was living about two miles East of Liberty in Adams Co., IL before they decided to move to Yazoo County, Mississippi in 1877.

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  3. KatApril 24, 2014 at 9:47 AM

    The SSDI gives the place where the last SS check was sent, NOT the place of death.

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  4. Patricia TaylorApril 24, 2014 at 4:15 PM

    My father's mailing address at the time of his death was not anywhere listed on the SSDI. He never lived there or received mail there. That is why it is puzzling. There's not even a post office. It is kind of like a subdivision and not even a town.

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