First Name Typo on Pennsylvania Birth Certificate

[afecad]

So when my Grandfather born in PA, they misspelled his first name, call it a loss in translation or typo, it appears I need to have it amended. Since he is deceased the state of PA told me I need to get a court order to change it, so that's the next step.

Just wondering if anyone else has done this, besides finding a Lawyer in the county he was born in to take this in front of a judge, what documents would suffice for proof? His DL was discarded after he passed away and I do have his certified death certificate with the state that shows his name correctly. Also requested official military records to prove. Is there anything I'm missing, any suggestions? Thanks!

[afecad]

Bump

Anyone?

What documents can I used for my deceased Grandfather, family has no DL or Passport records, nothing was saved apparently. I did request his Military records that show the correct spelling, would this be enough to get a Judge to permit a change?

[mler]

How egregious was the typo?

[afecad]

How egregious was the typo?

Bad enough that I have been told it needs to be corrected by my Italian Lawyer who is handling my case. I just received an update that they will be finding me another Lawyer who has processed other birth certificate typos, so hopefully it will be resolved through them.

[afecad]

Update, ICA put me in a touch with a Lawyer in Pennsylvania that they have used with success prior. The petition is currently in process, so I hope to have my Grandfather's birth certificate updated shortly.

[qualdom]

Let me know how it goes. I also have to make major changes to a deceased relative's BC in PA.

[afecad]

Let me know how it goes. I also have to make major changes to a deceased relative's BC in PA.

Petition and all supporting documents were all approved by me today. They have done this prior because they even went as far to note some other things that should be corrected on the long form BC form the state. Just make sure you have all certified copies of the birth, marriage and death records for your ancestor and/or parent(s) if using them. I gave them a scan of my Great-Grandmother's birth record in Isca to connect the dots on the names.

I did get a quick turnaround from Vitalchek for everything, except marriage records have to be requested from the County Courthouse your ancestor lived in, this took a little longer due to Covid.

Not sure on how long the process takes, but I'll post an update once I receive word.

[qualdom]

I have a few questions:

1. Will birth records from Italy be enough to correct names and ages for the parents of my US born ancestor?

2. My US born GGM started using a different first name and different spelling of her last name at some point during her childhood. Logistically, it will be much easier to change only the birth certificate from PA; however, will that even be possible? Will the courts insist on using the b/c as the source document and force me to change her marriage, death, and my grandfather's b/c? I would prefer to only be forced to correct one record.

[afecad]

I have a few questions:

1. Will birth records from Italy be enough to correct names and ages for the parents of my US born ancestor?

2. My US born GGM started using a different first name and different spelling of her last name at some point during her childhood. Logistically, it will be much easier to change only the birth certificate from PA; however, will that even be possible? Will the courts insist on using the b/c as the source document and force me to change her marriage, death, and my grandfather's b/c? I would prefer to only be forced to correct one record.

1) Not sure to be honest? My Lawyer asked for my great-grandmother's: birth record (from Italy), marriage & death certificate (from PA) to correct the long form of my Grandfather's birth certificate as her name was spelled incorrectly on top of my grandfather's first name, the Lawyer and ICA both noted it might cause issues. I just happen to have all of these records because of the require documents for getting Italian citizenship, so it made it easy to provide supporting documentation. My Lawyer also pulled military records as my Grandfather served in WWII, proving his name spelling.

2) I think as long as her name is the Americanized version of an Italian one, some records should be okay. I take it her birth certificate is incorrect as you previously stated. I think you will need something to prove her name only to connect the dots to your Grandfather, for my case in example, not only was my Grandfather's first name spelled incorrectly, my Great-Grandmother's first name is the shortened version of her birth name and her last name (maiden) was spelled "Nistico" when all records said it was "Nestico".

If you know your GGM's full real name and can support it with documentation, I think you can get the birth record corrected in PA. Supporting the last name would be finding the Italian birth record of her father to start, likely that would give you validation.

Would suggest you reach out directly to a Lawyer, I can recommend the one I'm using as they have been great to deal with.

[Ash21]

My grandmother's parent's last names are misspelled on her birth certificate and we were told we need a court order to correct it (all are deceased). My father has contacted several attorneys in western PA and none of them are able to help. We are trying to get our Italian citizenship recognized and are concerned this will be a problem at the consulate. Please send your recommendations for attorneys who can help with this. Many thanks in advance!