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Family Names
I went to the West family reunion last weekend. Ironically, only one person there was named West, and he was adopted.
Other last names in my family are Wilharm and Beckner. I don't even recognize Beckner. And I'd always thought that Wilharm might have come from the German Wilhelm, but not Americanized very well. Not so. There are Wilharms in Germany, and there are some in Ireland. According to someone who heard it from someone who heard it from a guy who had done genealogical research, there are about 2,000 Wilharms in the United States and they are all related. So if you see one, you are quite possibly meeting one of my relatives.
One of my uncles thinks there are even fewer than that because he always checks phone books when he travels, and he never finds any.
Other last names in my family are Wilharm and Beckner. I don't even recognize Beckner. And I'd always thought that Wilharm might have come from the German Wilhelm, but not Americanized very well. Not so. There are Wilharms in Germany, and there are some in Ireland. According to someone who heard it from someone who heard it from a guy who had done genealogical research, there are about 2,000 Wilharms in the United States and they are all related. So if you see one, you are quite possibly meeting one of my relatives.
One of my uncles thinks there are even fewer than that because he always checks phone books when he travels, and he never finds any.