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The oft repeated statement that people used to write double 'ss' as 'fs' is a fallacy which has led to many errors in census transcription and other all manner of other documents. The 'long s' used when 'ss' occured was written by making the upper loop counter clockwise and the lower loop clockwise. When 'f' was written whether single or double, both the upper and lower loops are made counterclockwise (the pen moves forward to the right to create both upper and lower loops. Unfortunately transcriptions are filled with errors due to not distinguishing the 'long s' from the 'f'. Thus we see frequently Ross transcribed as "Rofs" etc.

If you wish to see a clear example of 'long s' versus 'ff', compare
'Long s' Ross (transcribed as Rofs) - 1852 / Canada West / Huron (county) / 133 Hay township / p. 4d, 5a, (9)
Double ff - Moncrieff - Canada West / Huron (county) / 133 Hay township / p. 1d, 2a, (3)

Sheila

heila,

All the "Rofs" in the 1852 census have been checked and corrected to "Ross"

Thanks,

_________________
Alain