Sunday, June 08, 2014

52 Ancestors - #14 Patrick GRAHAM

In Search of our Missing Uncle Patrick

Did you ever have a relative tell you about someone that you just couldn't prove was real? or maybe your family believes are related to someone famous! I do! He is my Grandmother's fabled Uncle Patrick.

When I first asked my Grandparents about their parents, Grandparents, Aunts and Uncles, I was  11 years old and had just started secondary school (For those of you not familiar with Secondary schools it is a school for children aged 11 to 16/18, kind of like combining Middle school and High School).  In the first month we were issued homework by three separate teachers to produce family trees. At the time I knew my Parents and Grandparents generations but nothing further back.  My parents gave me the information they remembered but my Grandparents were the goldmine.

My Grandmother recalled that her father had a brother called Patrick and a sister, Lil. She also remembered her mother writing to an Aunt Rose who was from her father's family. At the time I did not know how to go about researching my tree properly and relied solely on the information provided by my family.
Recreation of my Grandmother's branch of my original tree that was submitted to the teachers.
My Great Grandfather was from Ireland and until recently there have been few Irish records available online, therefore this line was sat on the back burner for many years.  In 2011 I decided that I would have a look at what was available online. A general internet search lead me to a number of sites that claimed to have Irish records. One of these was RootsIreland.ie at the time it was pay to view although now it is credit based. I quickly signed up for a free account and plumbed in what I knew about my Great Grandfather.  I had learnt that when my Great Grandfather married in England he signed himself as Jack William GRAHAM and gave his father's name as John GRAHAM, unfortunately English marriage certificates do not list the mothers' names.

I went to the search box and selected the record type Birth/Baptism then entered;  Name: John GRAHAM, Birth: 1899 +/- 0 Fermanagh.  My Grandmother remembered that her father had always said his birthday on 1 May 1899 so this is where I would begin. The search returned two results: John GRAHAM and John Robert GRAHAM.  Since the person I was looking for had signed himself as Jack William I felt it was unlikely that he would have been given the middle name of Robert as a child.  I then added the father's name into the search and found that both results remained.  I bit the bullet, requested to see the record and paid the fee; when the image appeared on my screen I felt as if I had just struck gold! I saw John GRAHAM born 1 May 1899 in Enniskillen, Fermanagh, Ireland just where my Grandmother would expect him to be with parents John GRAHAM, Private 1st Batt RIF and Eleanor Jane McCARDLE. Heading back to the search box I typed in just the parents names along with birth 1899 +/- 20 in Fermanagh - sadly no results. Next I tried just the parents surnames with the same time and place in hopes that something would be available.  Now I had three results; John, Francis and Anne. Ordering the 2 new record reveals that Francis and Anne were born in Derrylin, a town not far from Enniskillen, their father John was a labourer and their mother was Ellen.  I realised that in the 8 years between the first 2 births John must have left the army and that Ellen could be a diminutive of Eleanor.

As time passed I located the 1911 Ireland Census online and soon found an entry for John and Ellen GRAHAM and their four children: John, Delia, Lillie and Anne. John was listed as a soldier pensioner.  The census also showed that Ellen had had five children but one had sadly died. As their was no Francis on the census I concluded that he must have been the child to have died but also Patrick must have been born after 1911. My search had been carried out for births between 1879 and 1919, surely Patrick wouldn't have been born after 1919 ans why had Delia and Lillie not shown up?  Opening the image for the census answered one question - Delia and Lillie had been born in Scotland and therefore their births would have been recorded there and not in Ireland.  This just left Patrick.
Revised branch post 1911 census and birth entries being located


Over the years I have looked as various sources for Irish records and have seen no sign of Patrick Graham.  I had stated to believe that the Uncle Patrick that my Grandmother knew of was not her Uncle but her Granduncle.When the General Records Office of Northern Ireland launched a service to search their Civil Registration Records earlier this year I once again tried to search for the children of John and Ellen. I was still only getting the same three results.  I soon found that life has a way of hiding things from you until you least expect to find them.

Having given up looking for Patrick I turned my attention to looking for the marriages and deaths of Delia, Liilie and Anne.  I came across a death entry for a Delia GRAHAM who would have been the right age for my Great Grandaunt. Having purchased the image I not only found that this was my Delia but that the informant was her brother Patrick.  Delia died in 1923, this narrowed my search for Patrick to 1911-1923, but why had all my earlier searched failed to find him?  I concluded that one of the names must have been misspelt, most likely Ellen's.  This was now my starting point.  I tried the variants of McCardle that I had seen then the wildcard McA* all to no avail. in the end I used the nothing ventured nothing gained logic and tried McC* as a wildcard for the mothers name. This gave me one hit.  The birth record was for Patrick GRAHAM born December 1911 in Derrylin, Fermanagh, Ireland to John Graham a Labourer and Ellen McCarrol.  I compared Patrick's birth entry to those of Francis and Anne, I am now sure that he is their brother despite the discrepancy on the mother's maiden name.

In conclusion, my Grandmother was right that her father had a brother Patrick. He was born in December 1911, two years after Anne and two years before his father's death.

You can read about Patrick's parents John Graham and Ellen McCARDLE by clicking on their names.

Mission Accepted! - How Many Cousins Do You Know You Have?

While reading my way through this weekends blog updates on my reading list I came across Randy Seaver's Challenge: Saturday Night Genealogy Fun -- How Many Cousins Do You Know You Have?

1)  Take both sets of your grandparents and figure out how many first cousins you have, and how many first cousins removed (a child or grandchild of a first cousin) you have.

Answer 1: This is the easiest one for me to answer.  
From my Paternal Grandparents I have 4 First Cousins and 4 First Cousins Once removed.
From my Maternal Grandparents I have 3 First Cousins and 2 First Cousins Once removed.

Total: 
7 First cousins
6 First Cousins once removed
2)  Extra Credit:  Take all four sets of your great-grandparents and figure out how many second cousins you have, and how many second cousins removed you have.


Answer 2:   

From my Paternal GrandFather's Parents (William Harold ANDREWS and Rachel Ellen SAUNDERS) I have 7 First Cousin's Once Removed, 16 Second Cousins, 2 Second Cousins once removed

From my Paternal GrandMother's Parents (Henry James John WYATT and Elizabeth Ann OSBORNE) I have 12 First Cousin's Once Removed,  6 Second Cousins (that I know of), 3 Second Cousins once removed

From my Maternal GrandFather's Parents (Donald WILLIAMS and Ida Lucy WALTERS) I have  19 First Cousin's Once Removed, 17 Second Cousins, 0 Second Cousins once removed (at last count)

From my Maternal GrandMother's Parents (John GRAHAM and Hilda Kathleen KING) I have First Cousin's Once Removed, 0 Second Cousins, 0 Second Cousins once removed

Total: 
39 First Cousins once removed
39 Second cousins
5 Second cousins once removed

3)  Tell us the grandparents and great-grandparents names, but don't give the name of living cousins unless you want to.  


See above for Great Grandparents. I will not mane my Grandparents as some are still with us.

4)  Are there any of those lines that you don't know all of the cousins names?  Do you care? 

I know all my First cousin's as I was fortunate to grow up with them, I also know 4 of their children and get to watch the other 2 grow up through social media.

I have met all bar 5 of my parents cousins. I have no children or spouses recorded for those 5  and 2 that I have never met as we lost contact with those branches due to a  rift long before I was born. 

On my Maternal Grandfather's line my tree was updated at the last family gathering 4 years ago. Although no-one has said that any other children have been born into this part of the tree this needs to be double checked and updated if necessary.


Grand Total of Cousins

7 First cousins
45 First Cousins once removed
39 Second cousins
5 Second cousins once removed
 
5)  Tell us about them in your own blog post, in a comment to this blog post, or in a Facebook or Google+ post of your own.  Be sure to drop a comment to this post to link to your work.  

Answer 5: Done!

Monday, May 26, 2014

52 Ancestors - #13 Louisa JUKES

Louisa JUKES is my 2nd Great-Grandmother. She was born in March 1871 in East Knoyle, Wiltshire, England to James JUKES and his wife Kitty JOLLIFFE. The 1871 census was taken when Louisa was 3 weeks old and reveals that at the time she had not been names. Instead she was recorded as N.K. JUKES. In 1871 Louisa was the youngest of 8 children, although I would later discover that there was another older child who had died as an infant, making Louisa the youngest of 9.

Louisa spent her childhood in East Knoyle but at 20 years old the 1891 census shows that she was staying with her married sister Martha (wife of Ton UPJOHN) in Blackwood, Monmouthshire, Wales.  Within the year she would marry Henry ANDREWS and have her first child before moving to her husbands homeland of Devon, England where her 4 remaining children were born.  Henry's family had been miners, although they would take labouring employment when needed. This accounts for the moving back and fore between counties.  The 1911 census reveals that the family had re-located to Gilfach, Glamorganshire, Wales which was within walking distance to a number of deep cast coal mines.  The census records that Louisa had 5 children all of which were still alive. On census night, 4 of Louisa's children were at home while the eldest daughter, 17 year old Alice Maud, was recorded as a domestic servant at the home of her employer (some 30 minutes away by train today) in Cardiff, Glamorganshire, Wales.

Although I have yet to find a record of Louisa's death, she is commemorated on her eldest daughter's headstone. The inscription reads:

"In Loving Memory of Emrys Harding died. Dec 4, 1954 aged 62. Also Maud his dear wife died. Jan 26, 1977 aged 83. Also Henry Andrews and his wife Louisa and his son Ernest at rest with the Lord"

A quick appology

I want to quickly apologises for my absence the past few weeks. I have been writing post for 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks, however they are all currently in a notebook. I will endeavour to get them typed up and posted as soon as possible.

Thank you for your patients.

Tuesday, May 06, 2014

52 Ancestors - #12 Ellen McCardle

The Facts

Ellen is my Maternal Grandmother's Paternal Grandmother (my 2nd Great Grandmother and number 29 on my Ahnentefel chart). Born in May 1876 in Knockninny, Fermanagh, Ireland to Andrew McCardle and Anne Sweeny.  I have been able to identify that Ellen had 5 sisters and one brother from the birth and baptism records, although there may have been others that are still waiting to be found.

In May 1899, Ellen gave birth to her first child, John.  If you were to look at John's birth certificate you would be forgiven for thinking that Ellen was married to John's father (also called John). However, the marriage did not occur until September 1899. The marriage certificate records that Ellen was a spinster and a servant while her husband John GRAHAM was a Soldier and a bachelor. Within a month Ellen would have to wave her husband farewell and send him off to ward in South Africa.  I cannot imagine the fear she must have felt watching her husband go to war so far away with a five month old baby in her arms, not knowing if or when she would see him again.  Her fear and dread would have increased when reports arrived by Christmas that the Battle of Colenso had claimed many lives, injured others and that John was among the missing.  Fortunately he was located and returned home to recover from injuries in February 1900 then discharged at Christmas.

Ellen and her infant son were not recorded on the 1901 census, however her husband was recorded at home. I can only resume that she was travelling on census night and was missed.  Before long the whole family was on the move and Ellen went from Army wife to Labourer's Wife.  Between 1903 and 1905 - give or take about a year either way) Ellen and her family were living in Maryhill, an area of Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Scotland; where the next two children were born. In Scotland, birth certificates record the marriage date of the parents although this is very useful, sadly the date is was recorded incorrectly of the birth certificates of Ellen's daughters.

The 1911 census records Ellen, her husband and 4 children in the townland of Corratrasna in Fermanagh, Ireland, and that their was a fifth child that had died.  A year later, tragedy struck when John (the husband) fell from a bridge and drowned in the river below. Ellen would eventually remarry in 1920 to Patrick Fitzpatrick.

The Oral History

The oral history and memories that my Grandmother, Ellen's Granddaughter, has recounted to me are:

  1. The existence of an Uncle Patrick
    My Grandmother has always been adamant that the Uncle Patrick that her mother use to write to in Ireland was her father's brother, making him Ellen's son. Until recently I was convinced that Patrick was her father's uncle (as Ellen's brother was Patrick) as I had been unable to locate a birth or baptism for a Patrick Graham with the mother's maiden name is McCardle or a variant of McCardle. Now I must admit that my Grandmother was correct and as I eat my slice of humble pie, I hear you ask how I found this. This is a story of another time but in a nut shell includes finding a death record that listed Patrick as a sibling to Ellen's children and a hut for a birth certificate that had a spelling error.
  2. Ellen died twice.
    Yes, you did read that correctly. My Grandmother recalls being told that Ellen died twice. The story is that Ellen died and was laid out in her coffin on the dining table. Then on the day of the funeral, the family heard knocking and set about to investigate what was causing it.  Imagine their shock and horror when they realised that the knocking was coming from inside the coffin.  They quickly opened the coffin to find that Ellen was alive and well, although probably scared and shocked to wake up in a coffin.  My Grandmother does not know when Ellen 'died' or even in this event occurred before or after her second marriage. 
As I write this entry, I have to date failed to find a death certificate  or either this false death or her later real death nor a newspaper report of the miracle of a dead woman being resurrected.

Monday, April 21, 2014

52 Ancestors - #11 Absalom WYATT


Date
Age
Event
Place
Occupation
Source
Notes
1869, 12 May
0
Birth
West Harptree, Somerset, England

Birth Cert1

1869, 20 Jun
0
Baptism
West Harptree, Somerset, England

Online Index2

1871, 2 Apr
1
Census
West Harptree, Somerset, England

1871 Census3

1881, 3 Apr
11
Census
West Harptree, Somerset, England

1881 Census4

1886, 13 Oct
18y 5m
Joined Army
Bristol, Gloucestershire, England
Private
Pension File5
Age should be 17y 5m
1887, 8 Feb
18
Posted
Aldershot, Hampshire, England

Pension File5

1887, 4 Jul
19
Posted
Weedon, Buckinghamshire, England

Pension File5

1889, 7 Sep
19
Posted
Colchester, Essex, England

Pension File5

1890, 15 Sep
20
Posted
Newcastle Upon Tyne, Northumberland, England

Pension File5

1891, 5 Apr
21
Census
Newcastle Upon Tyne, Northumberland, England
Driver
1891 Census6

1892, 24 Aug
23
Posted
Exeter, Devon, England

Pension File5

1893, 22 Aug
24
Posted
Hampton

Pension File5

1893, 5 Sep
24
Posted
Exeter, Devon, England

Pension File5

1893, 12 Oct
24
Transferred

Reserves
Pension File5



Marriage



No index record found
1894, 18 Aug
25
Child Born
134 Penrhiwceiber Road, Mountain Ash, Glamorgan, Wales
Tipper at Colliery
Birth Cert7
William G
1894, 2 Sep
25
Child Baptised
134 Penrhiwceiber Road, Mountain Ash, Glamorgan, Wales
Collier
Parish Register8

1896, 6 Feb
26
Child Born
11 Vaughn Street, Mountain Ash, Glamorgan, Wales
Coal Tipper at a Colliery
Birth Cert9
Emily G
1896, 14 Feb
26
Child Baptised
11 Vaughn Street, Mountain Ash, Glamorgan, Wales
Collier
Parish Register10

1897, 5 Feb
27
Child Born
12 Woodland Terrace, New Tredegar, Monmouthshire, Wales
Railway Platelayer
Birth Cert11
Henry J J
1897, 3 Mar
27
Child Baptised
17 Gas Street, Tirphil, Glamorgan, Wales
Platelayer
Parish Register12

1898, Jul-Sep

Child Born


BMD index13
Lydia B B
1898, 30 Aug
29
Child Baptised
14 Queen Street, Cwm, Glamorgan, Wales
Platelayer
Parish Register14

1900, Oct-Dec

Child Born


BMD index15
Eliza E
1900, 20 May
31
Child Baptised
87 Queens Road, Cwm, New Tredegar, Glamorgan, Wales
Charger?
Parish Register16

1901, Jan-Mar

Child Born


BMD index17
Francis I D
1901, 31 Mar
32
Census
87 Queens Road, Cwm, New Tredegar, Glamorgan, Wales
Cocker in Coke Ovens
1901 Census18
Should be 31
1901, 3 May
31
Child Baptised
87 Queens Road, Cwm, New Tredegar, Glamorgan, Wales
Charger
Parish Register19

1902, Jul-Sep

Child Born


BMD index20
Ellen E
1907, Jul-Sep

Child Born


BMD index21
Emily P
1908, 24 Nov
39
Child Born
3 Usk Street, Bargoed, Glamorgan, Wales
Labourer at Cake Ovens
Birth Cert22
Martha M
1909, 27 Dec
40
Wife Dies


Death Cert23
Antepartum Haemorrhage
1911, 2 Apr
42
Census
3 Usk Street, Bargoed, Glamorgan, Wales
Coker
1911 Census24
Should be 41
1946
77
Death


BMD index25



References
1.       General Register Office(1869) Certified Copy of Entry of Birth: Absalom WYATT, London England
2.       Family Search (2013) England, Births and Christenings, 1538-1975: Absalom WYATT [database on-line], Salt Lake City, Utah
3.       Ancestry.com. (1871) 1871 England Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA. Class: RG10; Piece: 2467; Folio: 43; Page: 7; GSU roll: 835190.
4.       Ancestry.com and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. (1881) 1881 England Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA. Class: RG11; Piece: 2425; Folio: 36; Page: 4; GSU roll: 1341583.
5.       Brightsolid (2012) Chelsea Pensioners British Army Service Records 1760-1913:Absalom WYATT [database and images online] Available at: http://www.findmypast.co.uk [Last Accessed: 14 April 2014] London England
6.       Ancestry.com. (1891) 1891 England Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA. Class:  RG12; Piece: 4207; Folio: 79; GSU Roll: 6099317
7.       General Register Office(1894) Certified Copy of Entry of Birth: William George WYATT, London England
8.       Brightsolid (2012) Wales Glamorganshire Parish Registers, 1538-1912:William George WYATT [database and images online] Available at: http://www.findmypast.co.uk [Last Accessed: 14 April 2014] London England
9.       General Register Office(1896) Certified Copy of Entry of Birth: Emily Gertrude WYATT, London England
10.   Brightsolid (2012) Wales Glamorganshire Parish Registers, 1538-1912:Emily Gertrude WYATT [database and images online] Available at: http://www.findmypast.co.uk [Last Accessed: 14 April 2014] London England
11.   General Register Office(1897) Certified Copy of Entry of Birth: Henry James John WYATT, London England
12.   Brightsolid (2012) Wales Monmouthshire Parish Registers, 1538-1912:Henry James John WYATT [database and images online] Available at: http://www.findmypast.co.uk [Last Accessed: 14 April 2014] London England
13.   FreeBMD(2014) Search Results for Birth: Lydia Beatrice Bessie WYATT 1897-1899 Glamorganshire or Monmouthshire [database and images online] Available at: http://www.freebmd.org.uk [Last Accessed: 14 April 2014] UK.
14.   Brightsolid (2012) Wales Monmouthshire Parish Registers, 1538-1912:Lydia Beatrice Bessie WYATT [database and images online] Available at: http://www.findmypast.co.uk [Last Accessed: 14 April 2014] London England
15.   FreeBMD(2014) Search Results for Birth: Eliza Ella WYATT 1899-1900 Glamorganshire or Monmouthshire [database and images online] Available at: http://www.freebmd.org.uk [Last Accessed: 14 April 2014] UK.
16.   Brightsolid (2012) Wales Glamorganshire Parish Registers, 1538-1912:Eliza Ella WYATT [database and images online] Available at: http://www.findmypast.co.uk [Last Accessed: 14 April 2014] London England
17.   FreeBMD(2014) Search Results for Birth: Francis Ivor David WYATT 1901-1901 Glamorganshire or Monmouthshire [database and images online] Available at: http://www.freebmd.org.uk [Last Accessed: 14 April 2014] UK.
18.   Ancestry.com. (1901) 1901 Wales Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA. Class: RG13; Piece: 4942; Folio: 97; Page: 15.
19.   Brightsolid (2012) Wales Glamorganshire Parish Registers, 1538-1912:Francis Ivor David WYATT [database and images online] Available at: http://www.findmypast.co.uk [Last Accessed: 14 April 2014] London England
20.   FreeBMD(2014) Search Results for Birth: Ellen Elizabeth WYATT 1901-1904 Glamorganshire or Monmouthshire [database and images online] Available at: http://www.freebmd.org.uk [Last Accessed: 14 April 2014] UK.
21.   FreeBMD(2014) Search Results for Birth: Emily Prudence WYATT 1905-1909 Glamorganshire or Monmouthshire [database and images online] Available at: http://www.freebmd.org.uk [Last Accessed: 14 April 2014] UK.
22.   General Register Office(1908) Certified Copy of Entry of Birth: Martha Mary WYATT, London England
23.   General Register Office(1909) Certified Copy of Entry of Death: Emily WYATT, London England
24.   Ancestry.com. (1911) 1911 Wales Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA. Class: RG14; Piece: 32414; Schedule Number: 196.
25.   Ancestry.com. (2007) England & Wales, Death Index, 1916-2007 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: