2026-06-22    Finding Alternate Surname Spellings: If your ancestor is not coming up in searches where he or she should be, the answer may be a simple issue with spelling. In this Thoughtco article, genealogist Kimberly Powell offers 10 practical suggestions for using alternate spellings in your online searches, such as substituting vowels, letter transposition, working with silent letters and more. For additional tips and strategies on spelling and surnames, see Goal 6 in Project 4: Discover.