[Ger-Poland-Volhynia] Experienced Help needed with changing names

gpvjem gpvjem at sasktel.net
Sun Jul 30 08:28:06 PDT 2006


Karl:
    After assembling family groups from 23 years of Lodz Trinity parish records, I still don't consider myself an expert, but I have encountered many records for individuals where first and second given names, even third names were freely interchangeable.  Similarly, but fortunately rarely, as in the example you have given, a surname may suddenly change without an understandable reason, such as a possible death and the husband's subsequent remarriage to another woman
     I  base my decisions regarding family connections based on at least three factors, among them,  place of residence, place of birth, age, spouse's name and the person's occupation.  It makes life considerably more enjoyable when the person's parents are given of course, as in marriages.
    In respect to these Lodz records when I finish the project, I will still strongly recommend that everyone carefully examine the source films before accepting the work as being correct.   I know there are errors the original records, and most assuredly I have made mistakes, as has the original translator.
    Where I have encountered instances or relationships that in my mind are doubtful, I insert general notes explaining what the problem is.
    In summary then, I must say that I would follow the same procedure in my own family research.  I would treat unverifiable instances with suspicion, but record them in any case with appropriate comments.  Sometime later a door may open that will shed light on the situation

John Marsch

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  I am in a bit of a dilemna. I have been studying a group of Taron families I believe are probably derived from 3 brothers who settled during the founding of the town Michelsdorf. From the church in Lublin I have received quite a number of records concerning this town. In EWZ I can trace some lineages of people who survived in 1940 back to inhabitants of the early Michelsdorf days. With the relative wealth of records I have I can make good educated guesses on the composition and lineages of the 3 Taron families I am studying - at least so I thought until I recently got a few more records from the Lublin church. Two of these records raise some big questions in my mind. I wonder if any of you out there have seen a similar predicament that I will now describe.
     
    One of the second generation couples in Michelsdorf is named Samuel Taron & Julianne Fitz. Unexpectedly the recent records I received show a completely new couple I have never seen a hint of before in all the records I studied - Samuel Taron and Julianne Taron. Ages correspond reasonably closely as I have only their ages as parents on birth records to go by. At about 1862 a couple moves from Michelsdorf to Wanda (where the Fitz family was) and now I see a couple as Wilhelm Taron and Julianne Fitz.  To summarize here is what I have compiled according to chronological order of births.
     
    1852 - Wilhelmine Taron born to Samuel Taron & Julianne Taron (Lublin birth record)
    1856 - Julianne Taron born to parents unknown but later lives in Wanda (EWZ)
    1858 - Wilhelm Taron born to Samuel Taron & Julianne Fitz (Lublin birth record)
    1861 - Ludwig Taron born to Samuel Taron & Julianne Taron (Lublin birth record)
       previous births in Michelsdorf - subsequent births in Wanda
    1863 - Emilie Taron born to Wilhelm Taron & Julianne Fitz (EWZ)
    1865 - Friedrich Taron born to Wilhelm Taron & Julianne Fitz (Lublin birth record)
     
    I have seen no other instances of any combination of this/these couple(s)
     
    The problem I have is Julianne Taron  and Wilhelm Taron pop out of no where among the rather extensive list I have from Michelsdorf prior to this. My hypothesis is the transcriber in Lublin was getting sloppy with Julianne's surname, or for some odd reason twice indicated her maiden name as Taron (incorrectly?). While living in Michelsdorf Julianne Fitz is married to Samuel while now suddenly when she is in Wanda her husband is Wilhelm.
     
    My hunch is this is all the same couple correctly named as Samuel Wilhelm Taron & Julianne Fitz. Notice how nicely all these kids are spaced out with different names. While in Michelsdorf, Samuel would not be called Wilhelm since there were several other Wilhelm Tarons (one who I believe is his older brother). Could it be that when he moves to Wanda and now becomes the only Taron in town that he prefers to be called by Wilhelm?
     
    What do some of you with more experience in working with parish records feel? I have found the transcriber in Lublin to be quite reliable but this chaniging surname of Fitz/Taron for Julianne has me concerned.
     

    



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