Wow, I listened to a podcast episode about something similar. It was about how family stories and small town rumors from back in the day, the stuff never written in the official records, totally change how we see local history. They found out a missing person case was basically buried because of who was involved. Makes you wonder how much we really know.
Dig into local records and chat with the old folks... they hold the stories that never made the official history. Then try to match those tales with any paperwork you can find to piece together the truth.
Honestly, I'd probably mess up the town rumors if I tried to tell them. My memory is like a sieve with all that stuff. Makes you think how stories get twisted over time.