born: 1 Apr 1889 - Fertigs, Venango County, Pennsylvania
died: 18 Feb 1950 - Toledo, Lucas County, Ohio
My first posts will feature the man we generally consider the head of our collective families, Ula Truby.
While most of us think of him as Ula Jacob Truby, he was actually born Jacob Eula Truby. He also went by Eula Jacob Truby and E. J. Truby over the years before settling into the use of Ula Jacob Truby when he filed his Social Security Application in July 1937.
Some members of the family have argued that Eula is the feminine spelling of the name, and while that may be true now, documentation shows that he did, in fact, start out spelling his name "Eula".
Prior to Social Security, there was no standardization of names or even the spelling of them. So you will find people using several forms of their names before the 1940's.
When Ula was born in 1899, birth certificates were not in use. Pennsylvania did not require the registration of births until 1906. (Ohio did not require it until 1908, just in case you're wondering.) The Social Security Act was passed in 1936. Keeping these things in mind will help you to understand the confusing aspect of the various records.
Most members of our family will tell you that Ula was born in Oil City, PA. In fact, he was born in Fertigs, a very small town in Venango County. Oil City is the closest "big city" to Fertigs. It was quite common for a person, when asked where they were from, to answer with the name of the closest city rather than the small town they truly came from. This was simply because the other person was more likely to know the location of the larger city rather than the little town.
Ula obtained a "Delayed Birth Certificate" because he needed it to register for the draft during World War II. He required two people to file affidavits regarding his birth. His mother's sisters, Sarah Katherine Karnes Davis and Lyda Karnes Fye, provided these. Below you will find Ula's Delayed Birth Certificate issued March 2, 1942.
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