Your Favourite Census Mistranscriptions!

[pinefamily]

I daresay the transcribers for the 1911 census would not have been paid much at all (in India).

[groom]

I guess we will never know. At least she had a baptism, albeit in the eyes of God she's Thomas 

Maybe the minister had drunk all the communion wine that day 

claire

Presumably during the ceremony, which is the bit that counts, she was referred to as Clara and was baptised in that name. I expect it was just a careless bit of recording on behalf of the minister. I wonder how many of us may be recorded under a different name? I have my Christening certificate but have never looked at the original records. 

[Andrew Tarr]

... I think the problem comes back to unfamiliarity with copper-plate handwriting as very many surnames beginning with L are suffixed on the transcription with S. There may of course be similar errors on other letters.

And oddly enough, capital T can be read as L.  A misread capital may be the most difficult error to allow for when searching an index.  My grandfather Tydeman could only be found from his children's first names when he was indexed as Lydeman - not normally a 'similar' name any search system will think of.

[..claire..]

38 years later Clara and my Grandfather baptised their fourth son, my Dad. I have his birth cert. and his birthday was always celebrated 14th September, birth year  1937.
LanOPC however transcribed his date of birth as the fourth of September.
Obviously not transcribed correctly, but I did get a bit of a shock when I found that record that day

[Redroger]

... I think the problem comes back to unfamiliarity with copper-plate handwriting as very many surnames beginning with L are suffixed on the transcription with S. There may of course be similar errors on other letters.

And oddly enough, capital T can be read as L.  A misread capital may be the most difficult error to allow for when searching an index.  My grandfather Tydeman could only be found from his children's first names when he was indexed as Lydeman - not normally a 'similar' name any search system will think of.

Yes indeed, You have reminded me of incidents which occurred regularly with my late father's handwriting copper plate (b1899), his signature Luffman was often taken as Tuffman which led to endless complications.

[suey]

... I think the problem comes back to unfamiliarity with copper-plate handwriting as very many surnames beginning with L are suffixed on the transcription with S. There may of course be similar errors on other letters.

And oddly enough, capital T can be read as L.  A misread capital may be the most difficult error to allow for when searching an index. My grandfather Tydeman could only be found from his children's first names when he was indexed as Lydeman - not normally a 'similar' name any search system will think of.

Several of my Tuckey's are indexed as Luckey among other things, I think they've been one of the most difficult to find.

[jaybelnz]

I guess you could count yourself as "Luckey" then suey!! 

[myluck!]

Not quite transcription more literacy as it is transcribed as on the original
The informant on my gggrandfather's death certificate was "son of the diseased"!
Presumably should read "deceased" or maybe not!!