Almost everyone has experienced the aggravation of seeing incorrect information posted in someone else's family tree.  The so-called 'fact' seems to spread like a virus as it's copied to more trees without critical review.

I've blogged previously about my Stahl ancestors, who came to Iowa from Pennsylvania via Ohio. My paternal great-great-grandparents, John and Mahala (Davis) Stahl, had ten children who grew to adulthood near Cherokee, Iowa (confirmed by census records and John's 1891 obituary). Nonetheless, at last count over 20 Stahl family trees on Ancestry include an additional child: Mercy Stahl (1842-1925). No one has posted a source other than "Ancestry family tree." I don't know exactly where the entry originated and haven't tried to contact the tree owners.

First I wanted to be certain the details in my tree were correct. I've found no historic records referencing a Mercy Stahl. I've concluded "Mercy" was born Mercy Benedict in New York in April, 1842. She married William Dolph there in 1858. Their daughter Amarilla was born in March, 1860. The Dolph family later moved westward and settled near Cherokee, Iowa. Mercy Dolph died in August, 1925 and is buried in Cherokee.

So what does any of that have to do with the Stahl family? In October 1876 Mercy's daughter, Amarilla, married John Stahl (Jr). Born in August, 1854 to John and Mahala Stahl, he was one of the ten adult children referenced in his father's obituary. John (Jr.) and Amarilla's 1876 Iowa marriage record reflects the bride's name as "Emma" although other records indicate Emma and Amarilla were the same person. John and Amarilla had two daughters, Dove/Dovey born in September, 1877 and Bessie born in April, 1880.

What caused the confusion about Mercy Dolph's maiden name? It may have started with a series of untimely deaths:

• Mercy's son-in-law, John Stahl, died (age 25) of typhoid fever in August, 1879. (The 1880 census shows widowed Amarilla and Bessie Stahl living with William and Mercy Dolph.)
• Two-year-old Dovey Stahl died of diphtheria in May, 1880.
• Amarilla married William Dick in September, 1882. William Dick died (age 43) in January, 1890.
• Amarilla died (age 30) in June, 1890.
• Mercy's husband, William Dolph, died (age 59) in July, 1896.

Showing Mercy as a "Stahl" was a simple mistake. Census records show Bessie Stahl living with her grandmother, Mercy. Someone doing family research drew a bad conclusion, and others copied it mindlessly. Why does the error matter? Because I want my family tree to be complete and correct. Because I don't want other Stahl researchers to waste their time going down the wrong road in the belief that Mercy was a Stahl sibling.

Revisiting a family tree can be worthwhile. My most recent research uncovered several productive sources/online formats I hadn't used before:

1. 1880 U.S. Federal Census Mortality Schedule, showing dates and causes of death for John and Dove Stahl, who'd died within the prior 12 months;
2. Oak Hill Cemetery (Cherokee, Iowa) burial records, now online at http://www.cherokeeiowa.net/oak_hill_cemetery.htm;
3. Cherokee newspaper archives, now online at http://www.cherokee.lib.ia.us/NewsPaperArchive

If Mercy Stahl is in your family tree, you may want to check out the details and sources in my "StahlAncestryII" family tree.