Twenty or thirty or more years ago, I would write to a distant relative who didn’t know me, and that person would answer my questions just based upon my statement that I was compiling a family tree. Now with people being concerned with the protection of personal information, it is getting very difficult to get a reply, let alone answers, even about people who are no longer living. 

 

I certainly understand people’s concern. Every time I contact a company by phone and they ask for my mother’s maiden name to “prove” that is me, I cringe considering how easy it is to find that information on line. (I know someone once posted that one should make up a phony maiden name for this purpose.)

 

 

I was going to explain why I am asking this question at this time, but the I decided that it probably distracted from the question.