BellaOnline Forums Family Genealogy Conflicting Stories and Strange Coincidences

I've always wanted to know more about my grandfather. He is shrouded in mystery as he died when my mother was 11 and now my grandmother is gone.

I found who I thought was his son by his first wife on ancestry.com. I contacted the guy whose tree it was and was my possible uncle's grandson. He said that it could not be the same person because his grandfather was born in texas and then wouldn't talk to me anymore. This sounds about right because there was a lot of resentment from that side.

I still felt that they were the same person, but my grandfather's name on his tree was different but with the same initials, same birthday and date of death, and same place of birth. But he has a story attached to his tree that contradicts everything he has in his tree yet is very similar to my grandfather's story with some things slightly different.

Should I assume that this is the right connection and use the information the man has such as the first wife's name to help get leads?

Hi Rebecca,

I would use the information he has as a clue. In this case you will need to either prove it true or prove it false. Don't assume it is your grandfather until you have done an exhaustive search. Hopefully, along the way you will find something that ties it altogether.

When I spoke to my mother she remembered her half-brother's wife's name. But she had forgotten that she had died and he had remarried. I remember his second wife. When I did more research, this man was married to a woman named Jo and a woman named Bobbie. Births and deaths all match but the name of my grandfather which is different.

Either he changed his name for some reason or this man who is my grandfather's great-grandson has got all the names mixed up. Talk about being a detective!!

Some other people on the research site suggested that my grandfather had more than two names and when by different ones at different points in his life. That could be.

Rebecca, I am just reading this interesting family story. I agree with Angie, use the other family information as a guide and use sources to either prove or disprove his data.

Please keep us updated, and as always, please feel free to contact me via email if you need any help.

Tina, thanks. I'm just hoping to find something with all of his names. It took me forever but I found the marriage license of him and my grandmother. You'd be proud of me. I pumped my mother for info and found out a lot of things I never knew. That is the only reason I found that.