Originally Posted by
Jaiade
Anniedeb......lol, twisted branches, lol. I know what you mean. Don't we all? I love the research also. Did she mean that about the changed regarding her tree? I know that in the census Ancestry offers the opportunity to change that if you find a mistake. I don't know what's involved or if just anyone can make changes because I didn't try it. I was searching for my widowed great-grandmother whom my mother said she knew and the time period I was looking in my mother hadn't been born yet. I eventually found her as living with her youngest daughter and her husband. I think they were living with her in her home as far as I could tell. So she was the 'head of house' and they should have been listed as they were related to her. And then I never found her in the census again and I would not have looked for her except my mother said she knew her. The hunt is very exciting. And, oh my, when you find a good connection!
Yes, Ancestry allows you to submit "changes". Say you are looking in the 1910 census, for a John Fiviur. The census shows you a Jon Fever. Everything else matches, location, wife, etc. You save to your tree. When you then click on the source, 1910 Census, you have the option to view record, or view image. If you view record, you have the option to submit a "correction". I then submit a correction on the surname that says "Fiviur, rather than Fever". That does not change the census. It is added under the view image, with any other corrections that have been submitted. This makes it easier for other searchers. Early censuses were all hand written. The person writing the info often wrote the name phonetically---thus so many spelling variations to wade through. PS....that's a made up name!! I know that no one can edit my tree without authorization. I don't know what happened in her case.