I have found quite a few transcription errors in the CSR's mainly with misinterpretation of names and then the misspelling of those names. Sometimes it is to the point of not even the same name. Also, inverted names like Eldridge Sawyer for Sawyer Eldrige etc. One other thing to remember as well are the soldiers told the enlisters what they wanted to hear (age for instance) then we look at census and it doesn't match but we know it is the same person. Also, men with same name (usually related and from same area) but different ages. Good example are two Elias Elrods. One was under age but enlisted and later discharged the other was of age and an officer which requires more research to find middle initials. Then the issue of the census taker not being totally accurate, missing a home etc etc and it creates challenges to the research for "proving" things. I am having issues with this with getting some memorial headstones from VA. First they won't do them now unless you can prove decendancy but you also have to prove their "death and no burial or mass grave." I want to tell them that the Yankees didn't ask the corpse their name before they threw them in the mass grave at Shiloh, but their CSR states killed April 6, 2 pm left center. They ain't the sharpest knives in th drawer up there. But yes there are a few incorrections on CSR's because the govt transcribers had issues just like us in "reading" what was actually written down.

Just some rambling thoughts.