Sydney,
That was a great message on the CATE/CATES name issue! I think you
laid out the evidence very well and I tend to agree with you, given
the evidence that I have seen. However, just to throw another variable
into the works, the Virginia Colonial Records Project has a probate
record dated 1654 (predates Robert CATE) for Michael Sparke. In it,
Michael leaves "to Ellen CATES, widow, a ring inherited from her
husband." (survey report #4315) Does anyone have any additional info
on this Ellen?
Also, how does everyone deal with the CATE/CATES name in their
databases? Do you try to enter it exactly as recorded in documents
over time, with the variation? Obviously, when a line has been CATE
right up to now, it makes sense to enter it as such. In other cases,
it seems to make sense to just record it as CATES to avoid the
confusion of duplicate entries and so forth. Are there database tricks
that I should know about to handle this?
Again, thanks for your message! I'm anxious to see what others think
about this.
-Ken Cates (plural now, but admittedly singular once)