His wife said he died in 1893 of lung fever and his doctor said he died in 1893 of pleuro-pneumonia. They provided the same date and place of death. The only difference was the cause and their causes really weren’t different. One was an informal cause given by a spouse and the other was the formal cause given by the doctor. Both appeared on records in the widow’s application for a widow’s pension and the individual viewing the widow’s application was likely more concerned that the causes were consistent instead of them agreeing one-hundred percent.
No two sources agree entirely. There will be differences. The genealogist should only be concerned when the information provided is inconsistent–then there’s a problem.
And…if possible more sources should be obtained. Evaluation should concentrate on the sources that are most likely to have provided reliable information.
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