William Percy BERRY

[Greaves]

I have a development to report. Following up the suggestion that "a" on the electoral register denotes an absent voter due to military service, I looked up William Percy Berry on FindMyPast's military record set. To my surprise, it told me that William Percy Berry signed up on 24 Sep 1916 for 12 yrs service in the Royal Navy. His DOB is given as 24 Sep 1898, born in Wandsworth.

So I now have his DOB and place of birth, as well as a physical description, thanks to the RN. Yet I still can't find him on the BMD.

Any suggestions on how I now go about finding his birth certificate from the data I now have. I assume that the problem arises from some variation of his name.

[avm228]

Well in that case the birth reg in surname Barnes found for you by keyboard, Sep qtr 1898, looks all the more possible, especially as Barnes was his mother's maiden name.

[Greaves]

The problem with the Barnes suggestion is that William Percival Barnes shows up on the 1911 census as the son of a very different family. So I have serious doubts.

If no one can come up with a better suggestion, I suppose I will have to bite the bullet and check the certificate out. But I can't understand why it is so difficult to find certificates for William Percy and his older brother Christopher John.

[avm228]

Have you tried looking for baptisms on Ancestry?

[Greaves]

I have tried on Ancestry and FindMyPast, both to no avail.

Given that I now have an exact DOB (24 Sep 1898), why can't I find the BMD certificate? Surely he must have been registered?

This is very frustrating.

[keyboard86]

Hi again, here are a couple of interesting births on Freebmd?

Christopher John Bellinger Dec qtr 1895 Wandsworth 1d 638
William Percy Bellinger Dec qtr 1898 Wandsworth 1d 709

Keyboard86

[keyboard86]

Hi again, it may be productive if you check out the Militia Record in British Army Service records 1760-1915 for a Christopher THOMAS Berry his attestation on the 29th October 1890 showed his age as 17 years 11 months b Cirencester, and living with a Mr Shrubb in Pitch Place, Worplesdon, Guildford Surrey his next of kin was mother Emily Berry, and he was in the 3rd Battalion Royal Surrey Regiment.

Keyboard86

[avm228]

Hi again, here are a couple of interesting births on Freebmd?

Christopher John Bellinger Dec qtr 1895 Wandsworth 1d 638
William Percy Bellinger Dec qtr 1898 Wandsworth 1d 709

Keyboard86

Very interesting. A family alias perhaps?

There is this in the 1911 free index for Christopher John:

https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/XW8X-FGL

He seems to have found his way to the Old Bailey in 1915. 

[keyboard86]

Hi if I recall this Cristopher marries a Rosina and their is a record of a voyage to NY when aged 55 with Rosina I think!
Keyboard