Talk:Pendleton Vandiver

Initial "M."

In the first chapter of his book, Smith calls him Pendleton M. Vandiver. I don't have access to the other book, but his tombstone shows no James, so I'm going to BE BOLD and change it. Unfortunately, I don't know what the M signifies. Ragityman (talk) 22:54, 10 March 2011 (UTC)

I've changed my mind. I've now seen Monroe's grandmother's name spelled 4 different ways, and have also seen the genealogy page, which contradicts itself concerning spelling, so I will revert all changes I have made in names and spelling. Hope things are correct: I think Smith stated somewhere in that first chapter that Manerva and Pen were illiterate. As we delve into genealogy, we learn early on that spellings, and names themselves, weren't "cast in stone" until they were carved in stone.

Ragityman (talk) 00:01, 11 March 2011 (UTC)

I am also unsure what should be written Wikipedia's electronic stone. Original source for calling him "James Pendleton Vandiver" appears to come from this website, now archived <http://web.archive.org/web/20040131120336/http://www.geocities.com/la_warren_01/d56.htm>. On the other hand, a biography calls him "Pendleton M. Vandiver" <http://www.nytimes.com/books/first/s/smith-callin.html>. Both are from relatively modern sources, relatives and journalists piecing together the past.Jacqke (talk) 07:40, 26 December 2011 (UTC)

I'd tend to trust the New York Times before Geocities. Just sayin'. --Jayron32 18:26, 26 December 2011 (UTC)

I would agree, but it wasn't a times article, just a chapter printed from an autobiography on their booklist.Jacqke (talk) 06:15, 1 January 2012 (UTC)

Birthplace

Was he born in Butler County, Kentucky? If so, why not add that basic information to the opening paragraph? 173.88.246.138 (talk) 19:16, 17 September 2023 (UTC)