Calling ALL researchers of Needham Lee Sr. and Jr. of Shelby Co, AL or any related Lee lines - - -

if ANYONE has a source / sources for one or both men with the middle initial H. or middle name of Henry, OR a source / sources for Sr.'s name as "Judes,"
I want to hear from you!!

I have seen these for years now, with NO reputable, original sources to back up
either of them.

I personally think that "Judes" originated as a typo for Needham Sr.'s occupational title as JUDGE, and I wouldn't swear that it wasn't even my own original typo (possibly dating to ca 1992-1996 when I was new to research and naively plastered my research all over the internet and which became the Broderbund, now Ancestry, infamous WFT World Famous Trees CDs and database).

I have NO idea where the middle initial H. or name Henry came from but DO know it did not originate with me in any manner.

Most seem to have the H. initial for father and son, but I have seen some have gone so far as to name Sr. as Henry. Again, I have seen no reputable sources for either the H. initial or Henry name for these men. At best, it appears to have been perpetuated from researcher to researcher and no one has been able to tell me where it came from.

In looking over my notes tonight, I did find one possible origin for the middle initial as H. (though not the name as Henry). I have an old ca 1998 note or 2 that references various researchers claiming this came from the "Lee Family Bible at the VA Archives."

One of these researchers, however, contacted me by phone many years ago, it seems around the same time and he tried very hard to convince me that a well-known (now deceased) LEE researcher from the Birmingham or Shelby Co, AL area some years ago had either deliberately and maliciously or inadvertently and naively (unclear) FALSIFIED that original Bible record so that it was filled with misinformation, though he did not elaborate on whether this was done on purpose or not and what the nature of those errors were. It may be simply that he amended entries with dates or complete names etc. based on his own flawed research. However, if that is even remotely filled with a grain of truth, it makes me wonder why this man also told me the H. initial as it would call into question all facts from the Bible entry unless and until other sources proved them or refuted them accordingly.

So at best, we have ONE possible, flawed, falsified Bible record that MAY have originated the H. middle initial, but even if that was on the original (& not an erroneous entry by the man in question), if even one item on that record was falsified, we cannot be sure the accuracy of this. Furthermore, I have never seen any other sources which would back it up and even Bible Records and other primary sources like birth records and death records can be wrong.

If anyone has any sources for either of these factoids, Sr.'s first name as Judes (vs. his occupational title typo of Judge) or his and Jr's middle initial as H. or middle name as Henry, please contact me.

I can be located on Ancestry, user name Briana5555, or contacted by email:
my first name then last (no spacing or punctuation) @me.com.

Or snail mail is great also. (No phone calls please).

Briana S. Felch