If you use the hints at various online genealogy sites, remember that they are hints. You should confirm that the person in the hint is actually your person of interest. Make certain you’ve read the original image to confirm the transcription made by the website. If the name is not the same, is the difference a reasonable one (perhaps due to a variant spelling, variant interpretation of the handwriting, translation of the name, or a diminutive)? Is the person in a place where you would expect them to be or where they could reasonably be given the time period and what you know about your person of interest? Is it possible there were two distinct people with similar names living in the same place and time period?
Remember that the hints are often based on searching for entries that “match” your person of interest using the sites search functionality (which may be different from how users actually search the site) or on records that others have tied to individuals in their database who appear to be your ancestor of interest.
The hints are not facts. They are not perfect.
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