Quote Originally Posted by cajunscot View Post
Remember that even family stories can be wrong. In fact, I would say that family stories are some of the biggest pitfalls the beginning genealogist faces.
Absolutely. Especially if there were political concerns at the time of immigration. People have been known to change their names or even alleged nationalities when relocating their families, often in order to avoid some manner of persecution. I recall hearing about a family of Hebrew descent who only discovered their heritage because a rare genetic issue that only affects people of Hebrew blood. Their ancestors had erased all traces of who they really were as soon as they entered the US and fabricated a new family history.