Yes, it has happened before. My uncle is listed in the family Bible as: Samuel Ulysses S. Grant Stoots. He is known as James Stoots. He wasn't born by the 1930 census so I can't report how he was listed in census records yet. My grandfather used his stepfather's name although he was not adopted. So he is listed in the census records of 1910, 1920 and 1930 as William or Will M. Stoots. I found his mother in the 1910 census with her son, listed as Lizzie Stoots, widowed. I finally found her in the 1900 census listed as Lizzie Swaker, widowed, living with my grandfather in the home of another family that I don't think is related to her. Her death certificate gave me her maiden name as Swacker. I finally found her marriage certificate in a neighboring county (not the ones in which my grandfather lived, [he lived on the border of 2 counties]). His name was Burrell T. Foster. He is never listed in the census records with his second wife, Lizzie, Swacker. In 1880, he is living with his first wife and a son, William, who is 2. That is not my William as the child is too old based on the census of 1900, 1910, 1920 and 1930. I think that not only his first wife, but also his first son, William, died. In 1900 and 1910 he is in a different STATE. In 1900 he is listed as widowed and in 1910, he is married to his third wife. In other words, both my great grandfather and my great grandmother listed themselves (or were recorded) as widowed instead of divorced in census records. But another interesting aspect of this family is that my grandfather had an older sister, Leona, who stayed with her father and is listed in the 1900 census with him. Cynthia McDaniel From: Research and writing about Virginia genealogy and family history. [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of [log in to unmask] Sent: Tuesday, March 15, 2011 9:48 AM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: [VA-ROOTS] Wrong Records I wonder if this happened more than a few times. When starting my . To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe, please see the instructions at http://listlva.lib.va.us/archives/va-roots.html