Adoption - help needed

[North Country Boy]

Hello,

On the 1891 census, my g-grandfather, Thomas Bradley is listed as the adopted son of my g-g-grandfather, John Bradley.

The census lists Tom's age at 8 and place of birth, Sheffield, Yorks (the Bradley family reside in Eckington, Derbyshire at the time). I've found two Thomas Bradley's listed in the Birth index from 1883 born in Sheffield, but realise that Bradley may not be Tom's surname at birth.

Does anyone know if there are records relating to adoptions from the 1880s/1890s?

Many Thanks

Ian

[behindthefrogs]

There was no legal adoption before 1927 and so no records.  Adoptions before that date were usually within the family and there is unlikely to be any legal agreement.  If there was it would be personal to the family.

David

[Valda]

Or the child can come through the poor law system or a children's home and be fostered by the family and they choose to make him one of their own family.

There were actually three births registered in Sheffield in 1883 because there was an Ernest Thomas Bradley as well. However the just Thomas Bradley child doesn't come into the frame because his death was registered in Sheffield in the subsequent quarter and Ernest Thomas appears on the censuses, which just leaves you Thomas Knight Bradley. The Knight might be an indication of the father's name if the child was born illegitimately - FreeBMD picks up no further Thomas Knight Bradleys. I can't see any Knight Bradley marriages in the time frame either.

The downside (other than the main one which is he might not have been registered a Bradley at all, which you have already mentioned) is that unfortunately a birth in Sheffield doesn't necessarily mean a birth registration in Sheffield since there was up to 6 weeks from the birth to register the child.

Regards

Valda