[Genealogy] Recent Tips, One Universal Spelling and Consultations

[Michael John Neill]

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10 July 2026

Genealogy Update

** Recent Genealogy Tips
** One Universal Spelling
** Consultations

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Recent Genealogy Tips
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Check out our recent genealogy tips from Genealogy Tip of the Day:

   -
      -
      - What Kind of Deed Copy Is It?
         <https://genealogytipoftheday.com/index.php/2026/07/24/what-kind-of-deed-copy-is-it/>
         - Those Precise Dates
         <https://genealogytipoftheday.com/index.php/2026/07/23/those-precise-dates/>
         - Do You Have Genealogy Goals?
         <https://genealogytipoftheday.com/index.php/2026/07/22/do-you-have-genealogy-goals/>
         - Changing Collections?
         <https://genealogytipoftheday.com/index.php/2026/07/21/changing-collections/>
         - Grandma’s Yearbook Writing
         <https://genealogytipoftheday.com/index.php/2026/07/20/grandmas-yearbook-writing/>
         - Children’s Stories
         <https://genealogytipoftheday.com/index.php/2026/07/19/childrens-stories/>
         - Willy-Nilly Research
         <https://genealogytipoftheday.com/index.php/2026/07/16/willy-nilly-research/>
         - Did Time?
         <https://genealogytipoftheday.com/index.php/2026/07/15/did-time/>
         - Temporary Maiden Name Reversion
         <https://genealogytipoftheday.com/index.php/2026/07/14/temporary-maiden-name-reversion/>
         - Not Done and Not Perfect
         <https://genealogytipoftheday.com/index.php/2026/07/14/not-done-and-not-perfect/>
      -

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One Universal Spelling
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In a word: no.

Many last names get spelled in a variety of ways by clerks, priests,
newspaper reporters, and others. Sometimes the variant spellings are
because the person who has the last name does not know how to spell it or
has no preference for how it is spelled. Even when the holder of the name
has a preferred spelling, the clerk may spell the name incorrectly (which
is sometimes referred to as a “Scrivener’s error”). Some names are even
spelled in a variety of ways by the person who actually has the name and
who chooses to spell it differently in different records.

There’s a Latin phrase that addresses this concern over variant
spellings: *Idem
sonans*.  Taking a somewhat simplified view, if the other spelling sounds
the same, then it is reference to the same person. James Rampley cannot
avoid a loan he signed where his name was written as James Ramply instead
of James Rampley. The two spellings sound alike. He probably also could not
avoid a debt where his name is styled as Jim Ramply.

When searching records, it’s not about how the name is spelled as much as
it is how the name sounds. That’s why it is important to know how your
ancestor probably said his name. That’s why when searching for my John
Michael Trautvetter, I need to search for Troutfetter, Trautfetter, and
Troutvetter which all pretty much sound the same. I also need to search for
Troutfelter, Trautfelter, Trantvetter, etc.

I transcribe each record as it is written. I do not modify spellings of
names on documents when transcribing them.

I may choose to standardize the spelling of a last name of an ancestor when
writing about that person. My ancestor Augusta Newman is referred in a
variety of ways in various documents. When I am discussing him in any
research report or summary, I use the name Augusta Newman. I don’t refer to
him as August Neuman in one sentence, Agusta Newmann in another sentence,
Guste Neumann in another, etc. That’s simply too confusing.

In reporting standardize the name. Generally have a reason for the name
choice other than “it is is the one I like.”
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Consultation Sale
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What is a consultation?

It’s a chance to discuss your specific problem with a professional
genealogist, one who can look at your problem family with a fresh set of
eyes. It can help you get started if you are just getting started with your
research or continue if you’ve reached a point where you do not know what
to do. It’s like having a problem-solving class devoted to your family.
We’ll look at see if there any additional clues or leads in the records you
have already located and discuss what the next steps are in your genealogy
journey on your family of interest. It’s also a time for you to ask
specific questions about the materials you have found.

More details on our consultations page
<https://genealogytipoftheday.com/index.php/consultations-with-michael/>.

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The Whys That Are Not There

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The records our ancestors left behind only tell us a part of the story. One
has to be careful reading more into documents than is actually there.

Johann George Trautvetter and his wife Sophia Elisabeth (Derle) Trautvetter
immigrated from Wohlmuthausen, Thuringen, Germany, in June of 1853 with
their three sons and one daughter. They arrived in July of 1853 in
Baltimore and immediately settled in Hancock County, Illinois, where they
purchased property. Approximately in 1869 Johann George returned to Germany
and died there in 1871. His funeral entry in the church register at Bad
Salzungen indicated that he had returned to Germany and left his wife and
family in America.

He and Sophia sold their farm to their youngest son in the late 1860s.  No
reason is given. It could have been as simple as they were retiring, wanted
to avoid the eventual costs of an estate settlement, and needed the money
from the sale.

And I really can’t speculate as to why he returned. There’s no diaries,
family letters, or records that provide any specifics. Did he return for a
visit and become too ill to return to his family? Was he unhappy in
America? Was the marriage an unhappy one? Did he want to return to Germany
while Sophia refused to leave her children? While the biography of one of
their sons simply says Johann George “returned for a visit” to Germany and
died there, that explanation may have been one that put a positive spin on
his travels and looked better in publication than the actual situation.

All I have are records. I don’t have reasons.

And I’m hesitant to spin a story explaining someone’s behavior when that
person is dead and gone and did not leave reasons behind.

There are times where it’s a little easier to see the probable reasons
behind someone’s behavior even if those reasons are not stated.

It’s slightly different when a woman with small children is widowed by her
husband in the 1850s and remarries in short order. In that case it’s
reasonable that economics forced her hand. The same is likely true of a
widower in a similar situation during the same time period.

A young male who leaves Prussia in the late 1860s probably did so to escape
serving in the Prussian Army. Probably. But is there anything specifically
stating that he did? Such a story may be in a biography, obituary, or
family story passed down through the generations. And even the family story
may have been started by relatives long after the immigrant himself was
dead.

Try and stick with the facts as evidenced by records as much as possible.
In some cases there is an amazing amount of detail in what records *are* left
behind without trying to “figure out” what else happened without any
sources to back it up.

Would you want your descendant taking the documented details of your life
and spinning stories around them?
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