So our ancestors often did change their names and over the years they could apply to various courts or levels of government to request this change. I nterestingly the court required her to inform the public of this name change by “publish this decree once a week for three successive weeks in the newspaper called the Salem Register, printed in Salem…” and then report back to the court “under oath that such notice has been given.” Simonds, mother of Thomas Batchelder Simonds petitioned her local Probate Court to have her son’s name legally changed to Thomas Stanley Simonds. It was printed by the Salem Register (Salem, Massachusetts), 8 August 1870, page 3. Take a look at this old name change record example.
I have even found name change records examples where a person applied to have only their middle name legally changed. This name change record was printed by the New Hampshire Patriot & State Gazette (Concord, New Hampshire), 6 July 1848, page 3. There were a number of other people in New Hampshire who wanted to change their names at this time, as shown in the following historical newspaper article. In 1848, members of the Dore family petitioned the New Hampshire State Legislature to change their surname from Dore to Richmond. Sometimes entire families legally changed their names. If your ancestor arrived in America around this time, perhaps he legally changed his name for the same reasons Kaplansky did. Kaplansky’s experience was something many immigrants with foreign names went through as they tried to fit in to turn-of-the century America. In 1901 he went to the New York Supreme Court to request that his name be changed to Max Kapell because “Kaplansky” had become an obstacle, costing him “many opportunities” both “in a business and social way.” Court Justice James Aloysius O’Gorman agreed with him and granted his petition to change his name. He had become a naturalized citizen of the United States and a businessman, but found that his surname caused him “much annoyance in the society of Americans” and that he was “subjected to much ridicule.” Russian immigrant Max Kaplansky decided he needed to legally change his name. This can explain why you can’t find records of your ancestors but with this information, you can learn more about your genealogy by understanding your last name origin.ĭaily People. Sometimes when researching your family history, it is difficult to find a relative-they just seem to have fallen off the face of the earth.ĭid they go into the witness protection program?ĭid they go on a cruise through the Bermuda Triangle?Īfter all, many people did opt to change their last name to start anew.
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