Item: Arthur Aylesworth

Language: en-US

Type of Problem: Incorrect_content

Extra Details: There's no incorrect content. I'm creating this report to explain some things for future reference.

Mr. Aylesworth's IMDb profile indicates he was born on 8/12/1881. His Wikipedia article states he was born on 8/12/1883. I've checked historical/genealogical records and determined that the 1881 date is accurate, and what we need to go with, as it's supported by both Mr. Aylesworth's Rhode Island delayed (created in 1942) birth certificate, and his WWI draft registration card (filled out in 1918) that he personally signed.

Following are the images of those two documents:

https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-99WY-74XV

https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-L1J1-N8W?i=250&cc=1968530&personaUrl=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AK6J9-ZS4

The reason Wikipedia indicates 1883 birth year clearly is that Mr. Aylesworth's California death certificate (that of course he wasn't around to provide any of the life details for) indicates 1883. I'm a genealogist, and old-time (of before strict standardized record-keeping like we have today) death certificates VERY frequently get a decedent's birth date/year, or age at death, wrong (not to mention various other life details, such as one or both parents' names, or birth place). Thus, a death certificate indicating a wrong birth year is definitely no rarity, and nothing to be concerned about.

I've presented a modified (now with no problem issues [including how full name is presented]) version of Mr. Aylesworth's Wikipedia text. I've locked all lockable fields so no one will change accurate details. Fellow mods, please keep the bio and other fields locked and unchanged, if anyone requests that any details be altered; I've personally already carefully checked everything out (see cited sources mentioned throughout this Content Issues report) and verified the now-presented and locked details. Thanks.

Incidentally, IMDb indicates wrong spelling, "Apponaugh", of the birth place. Correct spelling (which I've verified via multiple sources) is "Apponaug" (like the delayed birth certificate, as well as IMDb, shows), and that place is not a city/town in its own right, instead is a neighbourhood of Warwick, R.I. - which I've adjusted birth place, in Mr. Aylesworth's TMDb profile, to show the accurate birthplace "Apponaug, Warwick, Rhode Island, USA".

NOTE: The delayed birth certificate (which of course is a secondary, not a primary, document, as it was created when he was 60 years old, thus decidedly is not from contemporary to birth) presents birth day of the month as 10, rather than 12. But since Mr. Aylesworth is known to have, throughout his lifetime, gone by 12 as his birth day of the month (and it's also what he signed off on, on his WWI draft registration card), I'm entirely comfortable presenting 12 as the day of his birth. See (simply as an FYI) this image of the note, by his older sister Maude, stating that she was vouching for Arthur's birth date. (If I find any record, from during Mr. Aylesworth's lifetime, that shows he ever personally opted to use "10" as his birth day of the month, then I'll adjust, on TMDb, his birth day of the month to 10 accordingly. Meanwhile, 12 feels like what we should go with.)

FYI: Here's his California death certificate. His birth and full legal name was always Arthur Preston Aylsworth (no "e" in the last name), he also, in regular (non show biz) life, went by "Arthur P. Aylsworth" and "Arthur Aylsworth", however solely his professional name was Arthur Aylesworth (with the "e", but never any middle name or middle initial). I point out those facts to make evident the alternative names field is currently accurately presented, and that "Arthur Preston Aylesworth" should not be added as it never was a used form of his name. (See this image of his father's and stepmother's tombstone, that clearly illustrates and confirms that the family surname was spelled Aylsworth - which indeed was Arthur Preston Aylsworth's last name's spelling all throughout his lifetime. Meanwhile, likewise here's his mother's tombstone, further providing confirmation that the accurate surname spelling is never in doubt; Wikipedia and IMDb both are wrong when they indicate that Arthur's birth name was Arthur Preston Aylesworth [with the "e"]; it was not. Note that 100% of the documents I've linked to this report consistently present Arthur with last name spelling Aylsworth; there's not even one exception.)

After writing all the above, I just now did some additional sleuthing and found Mr. Aylesworth's 1905 Census listing - which spells out his birth date as "1880 Aug. 11". That of course is one year off from the accurate 1881 birth year, and one day off from either the Aug. 10 that appears on the delayed R.I. birth certificate or the Aug. 12 on the WWI draft registration card and the death certificate. Therefore, all the more reason to stick with "12" as birth day of the month that we present for him, since 12 is the date Mr. Aylesworth personally opted to go with (regardless of whether possibly either 10 or 11 may be accurate). The 1900 Census (see line #97), meanwhile, presents his birth date simply as Aug. 1881 (doesn't indicate day of the month). Incidentally, be aware that regarding his sister in 1942 stating Arthur was born on the 10th, her recollection simply may have been a couple days off, as after all she was providing the information nearly 61 years after the fact, and it's easy to misremember a day of the month.