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Question: When doing your family tree, do u ever think "his" father might not be his real father!?
and your whole tree would be wrong!

My dads side of the family are from a small welsh village, years ago there would be a lot of incest!. Do you ever wonder this!? your whole tree could be wrong because who knows "Johns" father was really "william"!?Www@QuestionHome@Com


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There is always that chance when you are dealing with so many people!. We have a problem finding out any info on my husband's paternal grandfather's family!. We know who he was raised by but can find no verification of his birth records!. His name is James Matthew Walker, born Mar 1847 in Noxubee County Mississippi!. He was raised by Lawrence William Walker at least from some time after the 1850 census!. He was not listed on the census with Lawrence in 1850, but was listed with him in the 1860 census!. He was treated as the child of Lawrence!. Not only can we not find his birth records, nor can we find his death records, neither when or where he was buried!. There is a mystery surrounding him and no one knows for sure if he was Lawrence's son or was adopted, or maybe a stepson!. Lawrence's first wife died in 1855!. There is a possibility he married again to a woman that already had a child name James Matthew and Matthew took the Walker's name!. We know that the Walkers went back to Sumner County TN after the Civil War and Lawrence married again in Tennessee!. You see the dilemma we have!.!.!.!.lol

Centuries ago, people died young, children were left orphaned and were taken in by neighbors or family members!. They took on the names of the ones who raised them whether there was an adoption or not!. And of course there is a possibility that someone down the line was unfaithful and may not be the biological child of the father who raised them!.

LOL!.!.!.!.!.so the answer is yes, you can never really know what happened in the past!. There are a klot of possibilities!.

We actually did the DNA test to try to tie his(James Matthew's) ancestors in with the family who raised him!. Well, according to the test, my husband and son are not related to any of the Walkers from the other tree, so we still do not know anything more than we did!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

I think you may be mixing up infidelity with incest!. One of the risks to any genealogist is that the documented parents aren't the actual biological parents for one reason or another!. There are actually a lot of ways this can happen, infidelity being the simplest and probably most common!. Others might be adoptions or something like adoption before there were birth certificates!. An older married sister might claim her younger unmarried sister's baby for example!. Or for a more modern example, a baby might be born to an unmarried couple, the mother chooses to leave the father off the birth cert, then files to have it amended later!. There's no requirement for proof in this case, so the amended father could theoretically be anyone (real example from my own family) just like with a regular birth cert (it's all based on the mama's word)!. This has nothing to do with people's sexual involvements with family members which is what incest is!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

I have just that query hanging over my Gt!. grandfather William Colley - I have been unable to find a baptism for him; I know when he died but can't find a burial!. I know he was born in Bath circa 1831 and his father was Joseph a boatman (Census & Marrage Cert); I've found a likely couple to be his parents 1841 in Bristol, a Joseph & Maria + 1 son William (not quite the right age- an only child!?; unusual); I've found 1851 a Joseph (barge captain) & Maria in Gls, nr!. Bristol (then no trace after)!. No William anywhere 1851!. I have his marriage 1852 in Bath!.
I've found a Joseph and Maria Colley emigrating to Oz in the 1850's; then they disappear!.
On top of that I have family legends of "a big scandal", an illegitimate birth linked with the name Austin of Glastonbury and Australia!.
Could Gt!. gramps really be an illegitimate William Austin brought up by relatives!?
If so, it completely messes up my Family Tree and I'm not who I thought I was! I just need the use of a time machine for an hour to sort them all outWww@QuestionHome@Com

Of course and it happens all the time, especially as people don't trace through looking and searching primary records and instead ask online and copy other peoples trees without knowing the research they have done, have no reference numbers or even check the information for themselves!.

A wise man knows his own father!!!!! Only his mum knows that and even then some don't!

Even primary records are written by people and they don't always tell the truth or they make mistakes!.

My Great Gran; 4 primary records all giving different ages

My Great Great Grandfather; bap!. with one name, on 3 census returns is down under different names, married swapping his name around, buried in another name!.!.!.that one took me 15 years to find and he also moved counties!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

No, I never think of it at all!. Now I might if I already had a good reason to believe paternity might be doubtful in a particular case!.

Incest is marriage between close relatives and is defined by laws or each country or in the U!.S!. each state!. Why do you think just because your father's family came from a small Welsh village that the paternity of someone would be doubtful any more than someone from London or New York City!?Www@QuestionHome@Com

Yes, they say my Grandfather was illegitimate and his real father was just a fling!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

Now you know why the Welsh fit in so well with the MormonsWww@QuestionHome@Com

Yes, with three of my cousins, because they are adopted!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

hahaha noWww@QuestionHome@Com