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I have a second great aunt who in the 1880 census is listed as Adeska Splawn.
I can find neither hide nor hair of her after that. Of course, doesn't help that 1890 census is gone, but no grave, no marriage etc.
I also cant find anyone else ever named Adeska. Makes me wonder if there was a misunderstanding of the name.
The penmanship is clear on the census. But, maybe the census taker misheard it.
For example, I have another relative named supposedly Avanda which also no one else on the planet has ever been named. Someone in another genealogy forum suggested its probably Evander. That didn't get me anywhere yet, but I suspect its correct.
So anyway, this thread is to ask for ideas on what else Adeska's name might have been. Keep in mind this was in South Carolina, so a southern accent would have been involved.
Also, the thread can be for anyone else who has similar issues with regards to names.
I can't find Adeska Splawn anywhere except that 1880 census.
Try local newspapers from Beech Springs, Spartanburg, South Carolinathat may have had obits or marriage announcements. Try checking the local public library. They may have an index, or the newspaper may have been digitized by now.
What about old city directories for the town?
Maybe one or both of Adeska's parents left a will (probate record.) That could list Adeska's married name.
Can't help with Adeska, but I chuckled when I found a mystery relative in one of the censuses in Georgia with the odd first name "Vonneter". In a later census the normal spelling was revealed: "Juanita."
I can't find Adeska Splawn anywhere except that 1880 census.
Try local newspapers from Beech Springs, Spartanburg, South Carolinathat may have had obits or marriage announcements. Try checking the local public library. They may have an index, or the newspaper may have been digitized by now.
What about old city directories for the town?
Maybe one or both of Adeska's parents left a will (probate record.) That could list Adeska's married name.
Could "Adeska" be "Jessica"? Even so, I don't get any results on that from searches.
The census is a great tool, but I've found lots of errors. My aunt Josephine was listed as "Dorothy" in the 1930 census (at least the vowels were correct), and a distant cousine Gonzalo was listed as "Gonziller." Quite a few other doozies, too.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Blondy
I have a second great aunt who in the 1880 census is listed as Adeska Splawn.
I can find neither hide nor hair of her after that. Of course, doesn't help that 1890 census is gone, but no grave, no marriage etc.
I also cant find anyone else ever named Adeska. Makes me wonder if there was a misunderstanding of the name.
The penmanship is clear on the census. But, maybe the census taker misheard it.
For example, I have another relative named supposedly Avanda which also no one else on the planet has ever been named. Someone in another genealogy forum suggested its probably Evander. That didn't get me anywhere yet, but I suspect its correct.
So anyway, this thread is to ask for ideas on what else Adeska's name might have been. Keep in mind this was in South Carolina, so a southern accent would have been involved.
Also, the thread can be for anyone else who has similar issues with regards to names.
Whats in a name?
I have some truely horrifying names in my mother's families & a couple of doozies on my dad's side. Census takers & county clerks did remarkable things with those names.
Is Avanda male or female? Can you get that family back to the previous census? The reason i ask is that in 1850 one of my families had a little girl named Almira. Apparently, she died shortly afterward. In 1860, Almira was gone from the family, replaced by a little boy, born in 1851, named Almiron.
Could Adeska be a middle name? One of my g-great grandmothers was Mary Jane Mercy. I've never found her listed by the same name twice. Her daughter had the same 3 names, but she usually was listed as Jenny.
Just because Adeska is pretty awful wouldn't prevent the family from using it. One of my g-g-great uncles was Walter Asa. He always went by Acey.
Just because Adeska is pretty awful wouldn't prevent the family from using it. One of my g-g-great uncles was Walter Asa. He always went by Acey.
Why is that awful? I think it's pronounced Ace-uh (hence the nickname), not like a$$-uh, if that's what you're thinking. I don't see what's awful about Adeska either - it's strange, but not ugly sounding if you ask me.
Could "Adeska" be "Jessica"? Even so, I don't get any results on that from searches.
The census is a great tool, but I've found lots of errors. My aunt Josephine was listed as "Dorothy" in the 1930 census (at least the vowels were correct), and a distant cousine Gonzalo was listed as "Gonziller." Quite a few other doozies, too.
Sounds like yesterday's census takers are today's Starbucks cashiers. I tell them my name is Tracy, and I'm lucky if what they write even starts with a T. Maybe it was a way bored census takers entertained themselves.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by PA2UK
Why is that awful? I think it's pronounced Ace-uh (hence the nickname), not like a$$-uh, if that's what you're thinking. I don't see what's awful about Adeska either - it's strange, but not ugly sounding if you ask me.
Well, since Uncle Acey died the year that my mother was born, I heard about him from plenty of people who knew the old Civil War veteran when he was alive. Yes, Asa is pronounced ace-uh, but acey was a common "nickname" for Asa. The man's first name was Walter. He didn't go by Walter or Walt. He went by the nickname of his middle name.
Now try saying Adeska out loud including with a southern accent & a mountain accent. It doesn't come close to anything commonly recognizable as a 1st name. It could be a surname that would probably be a middle name for a female, or if it is a first name that person might have used a middle name except on that census.
Maybe you've never spent exorbitant amounts of time trying to track someone because of flights of fancy on the census, but I have. The census man usually got the job the same way that the county clerk got his. It was usually a political payback, or they were family. These people were literate, but not necessarily the sharpest tool in the pack. Add accents & all bets are off. If you don't think that accents play into it, one set of my great grandparents were named John & Alma. The official record of their marriage says John & Elmer.
Last edited by southbound_295; 08-26-2016 at 11:01 AM..
FWIW, the SSDI has 40 ADESSA first names, most with birth dates in the late 1800s or early 1900s. Also 4 as AUDESSA.
No ADESKAs.
Also, have you seen the SPLAWN family tree at Rootsweb.com. It is 7 year old , but has ADESKA listed with no addl info (probably just what they got from the 1880 Census) However there is an e-mail address for the contributor that you might try contacting.
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