Taking Issue With the Issue

issue - n., 14th century: the descendants of a person; offspring; progeny
 
Comments after the jump.

 WILSON FUGATE (1853-1929)

 Children with Polly Clemons

 Alexander Fugate (b. 1881) 

 Alfred Fugate (b. 1882)

 George Fugate (b. 1886)                              

 Caloway Fugate (b. 1888)                             

 Benjamin Fugate (b. 1890)

 Cordelia Fugate (b. 1895)

 Charles Arnold Fugate (b. 1897)

 Robert Fugate (b. 1906)

 Andrew Fugate (b. 1908)

 Children with Unknown Spouse(s)
 Thomas Young (b. 1878)
 Thomas A Robinson (b. 1890)
 John Kelly Robinson (b. 1892)
 John Kelly Robinson (b. 1892)
 Walter Robinson (b. 1894)
 Bradley Young (b. 1895)
 Dora Robinson (b. 1896)
 William Mullins (b. 1897)
 Bradley Robinson (b. 1898)
 Chester Mullins (b. 1899)
 John Sherman New (b. 1900) 

ⓑⓐⓡⓚⓘⓝⓖ  ⓤⓟ  ⓣⓗⓔ  ⓦⓡⓞⓝⓖ  ⓣⓡⓔⓔ

At a glance Wilson's family with Polly looks to be in order. There is a question with the first and last children listed, Alexander and Andrew. Alexander was born just after the 1880 census which means he could be married and out of the house by 1900. There are no records attached to him in this tree. Andrew is not listed with the family in the 1910 census, has no records attached to his profile and there is no clue as to why someone thought there was an Andrew... but we'll leave those and look at the larger issue (pardon the pun). Who are all these other children with different surnames? Why are they listed as children of Wilson FUGATE?

Looking at children's profiles, they each have one record attached. There's a 1900 US Federal Census record for each one. For each surname - Young, Robinson, Mullins, New - there is a different household. For each household there is a father - Ben Young, Daniel Robinson, Walter Mullins, William New. Yet someone believes their ancestor fathered all the children on four neighboring farms.
We've had people insinuating their ancestors were bigamists, polygamists, and now the town stud. I wonder what they would do if they knew that 50 or 100 years from now someone entered similar information for them?


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