My great great grandfather was born ???? he appears as both Milton D Myrick and once as Milton D Wheatley, lumped in with the neighboring Wheatley family I believe.

my question here, is that the family story is he was adopted by the Wheatleys, but born as a Myrick. He appears once at 12 with the Wheatley name, then Myrick in every census and death. The above Wheatley appearance is the only one, and also the first appearance. There was no Myrick appearance that census. Also, the good ol' family story is he came over from ireland during the potato famine. considering if I stick to just Myricks, he doesnt actually appear until he's 22, so this is plausible. Does anyone have any suggestions about locating adoption records from this timeframe?