I am devastated. I started my family tree when I was about 14 years old, and 40 years later, I am still researching. One of my first lines was the Gorton line, as my great grandmother was Liona Gorton. I found Thomas Gorton's book, Samuel Gorton of Rhode Island and his descendants and Liona's name was in it. All these years, I never caught an error in his book until last Sunday when someone had posted alternative information. This error is huge for me. It completely erases my eligibility for DAR, of which I have been a member of for years based on this line. I want to cry.
Basically, Liona's father was Myron Gorton, but there were two Myrons very close in age living in Sullivan County. The Gorton book shows that her father was Myron E. Gorton, but after digging more, it seems that her father was Myron W. Gorton. Myron E. Gorton's father was James Davenport Gorton, a civil war vet. I even went to visit the battlefield in Georgia where he was wounded. James' mother was a Davenport and her father was Jacobus (James) Davenport, a member of the Ulster County Militia during the Revolution. I have thought this was my family line for about 40 years. Even DAR approved the sources!
I have not given up hope yet, but it is looking grim. If anyone finds anything that can help with this situation, I would be greatly appreciative. To everyone else, this is a cautionary tale as to why it is a bad idea to believe everything written in those large genealogy tomes, eventhough they look so official!
