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Research object · BT-CLM-00331

Who was named as father on the founder's original birth certificate, and why?

Family Tradition· 0 sourcesNot yet reviewed
Research & Interpretation byAmberly R. Carter-Mills— Founder, Creator & Descendant Archivist

The Claim

Because Magnolia "Maggie" Carter was still legally married to David Harris at the time of the 1985 birth, Illinois marital presumption required his name on the original birth certificate. He is not recorded here as a parent. The certificate was later amended to name Michael Carter following the adoption.

Public Summary

A name on a birth certificate can be a legal presumption rather than a statement of parentage. The original certificate named the mother's then-husband because Illinois law required it. The archive records this as a legal record fact and makes no parentage claim from it.

Evidence Reviewed

No evidence has been reviewed into the archive for this claim yet.

The Evidence Trail

Step 1 · Claim

Who was named as father on the founder's original birth certificate, and why?

Family Tradition· 0 sources

BT-CLM-00331

Because Magnolia "Maggie" Carter was still legally married to David Harris at the time of the 1985 birth, Illinois marital presumption required his name on the original birth certificate. He is not recorded here as a parent. The certificate was later amended to name Michael Carter following the adoption.

Step 2 · Evidence & Source

No evidence has been weighed into this claim yet.

Step 3 · Conclusion

Family TraditionVersion 1 · Current · High confidence

Researcher interpretation · Amberly R. Carter-Mills

David Harris appears on the original certificate as the mother's husband under Illinois marital presumption. The archive records his presence on the document and records no parentage from it. Biological paternity is separately attributed to Tyrone White on founder testimony.

What is not known: Neither certificate has been obtained. Nothing documentary supports or contradicts the stated biological paternity.

What could change this: Obtain both certificates. Any original remains in restricted storage.

How the Evidence Sits Together

No evidence has been weighed for this claim yet.

Research Conclusion

Family TraditionVersion 1 · Current

David Harris appears on the original certificate as the mother's husband under Illinois marital presumption. The archive records his presence on the document and records no parentage from it. Biological paternity is separately attributed to Tyrone White on founder testimony.

What is known: That the original certificate carried the name of the mother's then-husband, and that it was amended after the adoption.

What is not known: Neither certificate has been obtained. Nothing documentary supports or contradicts the stated biological paternity.

Future research: Obtain both certificates. Any original remains in restricted storage.

Amberly's Research Notes

No research note has been published for this claim yet.

From the research notebook ofAmberly R. Carter-Mills— Founder, Creator & Descendant Archivist

What We Still Need to Find

Obtain both the original and the amended certificate so the legal sequence can be cited from documents rather than testimony.

Provenance, Access and Use

Source creator
Varies by record — see each source
Who made the original record.
Researcher of record
Amberly R. Carter-Mills — Founder, Creator & Descendant Archivist
Located, transcribed, weighed and interpreted the evidence.
Publishing archive
BEFORE TILL: The Living Evidence Archive
Holds the object, its identifiers and its revision history.

No source metadata has been published for this claim yet.

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