When William J. Pryor isn’t William J. Pryor, Part Two
In the last post, I introduced you to my Great-Grand Uncle William Julius Pryor, and I return now to Researcher Jane, who is focused on finding evidence to support her Indian roots.
Tuning In:
Researcher Jane Makes a Discovery
First, I think I should clarify something, lest you think I harbor ill-thoughts about Jane. Nothing could be farther than the truth! Researcher Jane is a cousin that I have corresponded and actively collaborated with. She is the sort of public tree researcher that makes it truly easy for the rest of us. Her tree is heavy with documentation, and that which is is uncertain of is clearly marked as a potential lead, not an actual fact.
All of Researcher Jane’s research was sound. She followed all the clues the way a researcher should. So how did her facts become so derailed?
She fell victim to public trees, much the same way we all do. All of us, even the professional genealogist with all the fancy letters listed after their names have at one time or another, come across some knowledge that looks completely vetted. And with the advent of “Click To Add” whole branches, facts that look vetted become overlooked. Sometimes, we never get a chance to correct it before “it goes viral.”
Introducing William J. Pryor, Osage
All of the hints that appeared on the public trees painted William Julius Pryor as an Indian. He is enumerated as an Indian on the 1930 U.S. Federal Census, specifically a Cherokee, so there were many attempts to prove this heritage. And one of those documents used was the following record, a household found on the 1900 U.S. Federal Census. (The first census conducted that included the enumeration of the Native population of America)
1900 U.S. Federal Census: “William Pryor” Household
William Pryor, born in Oklahoma Aug 1875. Married less than a year. Ettar Pryor, wife, also born in Oklahoma, Jun 1878.
Now, to understand where Researcher Jane went off the rails, you need to realize how difficult it has been to locate the 1900 and 1920 census records for William Julius Pryor. I have eye strain from searching through all the Oklahoma records, page by page scrolling, and the best I can figure, so far, is that the William Julius Pryor family is enumerated on one of the pages that has degraded to the point of illegibility. Not ruling out that the family could have moved to Kansas or even back to Texas during this time, though both locations seem unlikely.
How exciting it must have been, then, to stumble across this record. The right names, married, in Oklahoma. And Indian! Like the 1930 census. I know I was excited at first glance. I quickly realized some key differences however.
William J. Pryor vs. William J. Pryor
Comparing the census information:
Note the differences
So these are differences I spotted when I opened the record to view the scanned image of the 1900 U.S. Federal Census. Not only is there a 6 year discrepancy between years born for the Williams, there is also an age discrepancy between the Ettas. The States of their respective births are also off. Not to mention the years married and the number of children born. It was clear to me that W.J. and Mary E. Pryor are not the same people as William and Ettar Pryor.
Ordinarily this would not have become an issue. You have simply crossed of an avenue of research, and you move on to the next, right?
The problem though, came in the corrections. Researcher Jane, certain she had found her Great-Great-Grandfather William at long last, made corrections to the transcription of the document.
AN APPLE CORE TIP: When conducting research online at websites like Ancestry and Family Search, pay close attention to the transcribed information and the “corrections” contributed by other hands. Missing information filled in after the original transcription can be extremely useful, but beware. The extra information is only as good as the original research was to obtain it. Don’t just look at the transcribed/corrected tab of your hint. Open the document to see what information might be missing. You might be surprised at what you find!
In looking at the transcription history, it is clear that the original transcriber skipped the many categories that would have made this information evident. The names weren’t even linked as husband and wife. The dates of birth, the years married, number of children born, all very clear in the image, weren’t transcribed at all. These were left blank. So Researcher Jane “added” everything the transcriber “missed.” She added the information she knew to belong to William Julius Pryor and Marryetta Johnson Pryor, their exact dates of birth, their states born, their parents’ states, marriage year, etc.
I spoke to her about the suggested corrections not long after Jane had made them, about my concerns that the three children: Della, Tennie, and Ethel weren’t present in the household. About the vast differences in the ages of the husband and wife and about the leap from Cherokee as listed on the 1930 census to Osage.
A retraction has been done, but it took a long, long, very long time before the 1900 census ceased showing up as a leafy clue at the online site.
So, Who is the Second William J. Pryor?
So glad you asked. The above excerpt of the 1900 U.S. Federal Census belongs to a man named Wah-Tse-Kah-Wah or William John Pryor and his 2nd or 3rd wife Wah-Huh-Sah or Etta (Westbrook) Pryor. Despite a discrepancy in the month of his birth, this record is in keeping with the many Osage Reservation censuses that were taken annually, as well as the U.S. federal censuses that occurred in the following decades. He was a man known to his people, acting often as an official interpreter for the Osage, and was among the delegation sent to Washington D.C. His final resting place can be found in Fairfax Oklahoma. Here is a link to his Find-A-Grave memorial page.
A Lesson Learned
I know, because I have been there, that the excitement of finding that one elusive clue to that frustratingly missing person can give us a giggle-high for days, but as most researchers who are after the singular John Smith in an orchard full of John Smiths can attest, do the due diligence to ensure the path you’re on is still the correct one. And if it turns out that you are researching the wrong ancestor, hold on to that information anyway. Perhaps one day, the research you did will help someone else find their missing apples.
Shaking Down The Apples 
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