I was raised in Columbus, Ohio, after getting married moved out of the area to the great big country outside of Johnstown, Ohio. I started researching my family after wanting to know when my in-laws had their birthdays. Those birthdays and birthplaces turned into a lot of needed paper, hours pouring thru microfilm and books, then to the internet, visiting places like courthouses, libraries, and cemeteries.
There have been comments about me getting names wrong, I see what is on a stone, and I can see what is located in any record available to anyone. Practically all records are handwritten at some point and then maybe typed, but not without mistakes or typos. One name could have many spellings, but be one person. So when a researcher finds different spellings and uses backslashes or dashes that means they found more than one spelling . Also remember everyone's handwriting is not always legible.