Kitty's words rang so true with me.
"so two years ago I ordered a new one from Richmond.  They had computerized records; so what I got was someone's data entry".

I worked in the Bureau of Vital Records as a college undergrad.  It was in 1972 that they began the transcribing.  I begged to be allowed to do the reads but I had no seniority.  They allowed clerks with no interest whatsoever in genealogy, and I suspect considered it just a job, to read the data into a microphone in the back of the "shelves" as we called.  They were bored and droned on and I cringed even as a 19 year old that so many errors were being made.  I loved those shelves and would spend time back there, when I could get away with it, reading the old documents.  I now only wish I had done more of my own family stuff when I was there (I can see all of you turning green with envy).  A young woman came in saying her name was Princess L-louise and wrote down where she was born; she told us she was going to be sacrificed to the Scientologists the next day and needed her birth certificate (I'm telling you the truth, no intention to offend).  I begged to be allowed to find it and they let me because they wanted the woman out of the front office (she had a long machete hanging from her belt).  I found dear old Eloise whose father had the unfortunate first name of King George.  btw, I was the one who located George C Scott (actor)'s birth certificate when his agent called knowing almost nothing to locate it; he was getting his first passport to do the movie "Patton".  And, even that didn't impress the director to let me do the transcribing.

Hope you liked the story.  It's raining here in Washignton, DC.

Katie