Thank you for your prompt replies. I am impressed.
I agree that the John Hamilton age 68 Naval Pensioner is a possibility. However, without any children present it is difficult to know how to proceed, especially as he may not have been settled anywhere for long when he was in the Navy.
I also agree that this is not the family of the John Hamilton from Droum who died in 1917. I have that John's birth certificate showing his parents as James Hamilton and Margaret (nee McCarthy). I also have his Naval record showing that he died aboard HMS Pheasant.
The "navy guy in Queenstown age 49 born England" was the subject of some research a little while ago. He was born William Claud Arthur Hamilton 1861 Q2 Stoke Damerel (near Devonport).. On the 1871 census he is in the household of Elizabeth Cumming at Babbacombe, Devon and shown as Nephew. In 1874 he joined the Navy (how young!). 1892 Q3 Gateshead he married Edith Annie Hodgson (b 1868 Newcastle on Tyne). Edith Annie died 1899 at Weymouth age 30. I do not know whether they had any children as i have not found him on the 1901 census yet. 1903 Q4 St Faiths he married Isabel Hartcup, a solicitor's daughter. I haven't found any children for this marriage yet.
I do not know whether my John Hamilton's father came from Scotland or was the child of Scottish parents. My grandmother told me many tears ago that he was a harbour Master at Dundee but research failed to confirm this. Here is a reply that I received regarding this:
Regarding heresay that John Hamilton’s father was a Harbourmaster at Dundee:-
.. Dear Mrs Montgomery,
I apologise for the delay in responding to your enquiry concerning your husband's great-grandfather. Dundee trade directories provide the names of the harbourmaster and the other principal Harbour officials. I have looked at the pre-1895 directories but have been unable to find any Hamiltons listed. I assume from the information you give that he must have been comparatively young when he left Scotland which would, on the face of it, make it rather unlikely that he would have reached one of the top posts. He may well have worked at the docks but perhaps in a lesser capacity. There were also a number of other smaller ports and harbours near to Dundee…
.. Dear Mrs Montgomery,
I have checked the directories back to 1861 and could not find any Hamilton associated with the Harbour. There appear to have been only 3 Harbourmasters in the period - Charles Yule, William Robertson and John Jack…
My grandmother also said that John Hamilton had sisters, Eileen and Kathleen who she briefly met in England. I have not been able to confirm this either.
Elwyn, regarding the possibility that his name was not John Hamilton is a scenario that I have considered, along with the possibility that he may have been illegitimate or adopted, though if he was, my grandmother nor my mother were aware of this. My mother does remember him saying (tantalisingly) " what would you think if your name wasn't Hamilton but (and I cannot remember exactly what she said) O'Hara " or something like that. My mother replied to him saying " I would like it better if it had been Rogers " (her mother's maiden surname).
I have many letters sent from him to my grandmother whilst they were courting and he was in the army and not one of them mentions any member of his family. Mostly they just relate what he and his pals were doing in their spare time (page after page of rambling about nothing in particular!).
The last avenue of research that occurred to me was what evidence of date of birth did he provide when he reached pension age. I remember my gran had to send off her birth certificate!
Shaun
