State of Ohio
Cuyahoga County,
State of Ohio
John Rae Tough and Mary Sinclair Tough, being duly sworn depose and say:
That they are the parents of Harold Winston Todd, formerly Harold Winston Tough, said name being used by their son because he did not like the name Tough on account of his being embarassed by his friends and acquaintances by calling him "Tough" and their son had intended to take court action to make the name "Todd" legal.
Deponents state that they live at 1273 West 117th. St., Cleveland, Ohio, and Mrs. Mary Sinclair Tough's name was Mary Ingram Sinclair,
Subscribed and sworn to before
me this 22nd day of August 1942. Mary Sinclair Tough
John Rae Tough
George J.W. Mathews
George J.W. Mathews
Notary Public, Cuyahoga County, Ohio
5703 Detroit Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio
My commission expires April 19, 1944
As Harold and his siblings were the first generation of Toughs to be born and to grow up in the United States, they had to deal with the teasing of their peers throughout their youth. Strangely this letter was written when Harold was 27 years old. He also had already been in the US Army for a year and five months.
I believe all of the other siblings changed their surname to Todd and eventually so did John and Mary. Although I don't have any evidence of this except all of the males in the family (and Mary) have Todd for their surnames on their gravestones.
I think a call to the Cuyahoga County Courts will be in order this summer.
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