I'm Doubting My Grandmother's Line

[antiquesam]

In 1882 Jethro Coomber (RN Gunner) married Elizabeth Anne Cocks in Devonport having three children, James W (1883), Annie Eliza (1886), and Charles J P (1889).
In 1890 the birth of Edith Mary Cocks was registered by the mother Elizabeth Anne Cocks (formerly Coomber) naming the father as Charles Cocks, a dockyard labourer.
The 1891 Census shows Annie Cocks living with her parents James and Jane Cocks, the son in law Jethro Coomber, the three Coomber Children and Edith Mary Cocks aged 4/12.
By the 1901 Census Jethro is a lodger in Cuckfield, Sussex. Annie Coomber is still living with her parents and children, including Edith "Coomber" in Devonport.
The 1911 Census sees Jethro still in Cuckfield and Elizabeth Ann now called Russell and living in Cornwall with Joseph Edward Russell and her deaf and dumb son Charles John Coomber and Edith Coomber living with her grandmother and brother William in Devonport .
Edith then went on to have three children, including my father between 1912 and 1916 in Devonport without fathers shown on the birth certificates.
After this the only reference I can find is an Edith Mary Coomber marrying John Donoghue (RN Stoker) on the 4/11/1920 supposedly aged 24 with a father called Frank Coomber (deceased RN pensioner).
I cannot quite believe that there could be two Edith Mary Coomber's in Devonport, but on the other
hand think she must be a very lucky girl to find a 22 year old groom in the years after WW1 with three kids in tow.
I can't find a Naval Record for either John Donoghue or father Frank Coomber, nor can I find any thing later.
I'm now questioning  whether I'm following the same person throughout

[ciderdrinker]

Hi
I f it helps there is an online tree on Ancestry with exactly the same conclusions and there is no sign of a Edith Mary Coomber born 1896 on the GRO.
It does look like the ame woman.
Have you got John and Edith Donoghue's deaths? The ages on that could help.
There are records for a John Donoghue born 1897 Royal Navy on FindMyPast but I don't have a sub.

Ciderdrinker

[aghadowey]

Perhaps a baptism record for Edith might show either father's name or as illegitimate.

Possible scenario to expalin the records for Edith (agree, seems to be same person)-
Mother Elizabeth Anne (Cocks) Coomber goes to register birth of child (husband in navy so perhaps he was away from home for long stretches). Registrar asks for child's name then gives her maiden name as surname. Gives Charles as father's first name- either he a dock labourer named Charles ? or she made up the name.
Edith is brought up by the family using surname Coomber.
1920 Edith gets married (using surname Coomber) then when asked father's details doesn't want to appear illegitimate so sticks 'Frank' on for his first name and occupation of mother's husband (Jethro Coomber, RN).

[antiquesam]

Hi Ciderdrinker
Thanks for the Findmypast lead, I have a free month with them and found it, but it doesn't match with his father's name.
The Ancestry tree is mine I think
I can't link anything after the marriage, mainly because there aren't any matching deaths in the Devonport area and I haven't really got a clue where they could have moved to.
The doubt set in with this marriage, her age is 6 years out and I haven't got a clue who Frank is. Having said that both my father and his sister used an uncle's name as father on their marriage certificate, so I know people lie.
Hi Aghadowey. Your theory is feasible, but I would have thought Jethro would have upped and left straight away rather than stay in the In laws house four months after the birth, mind you he did leave later.

[aghadowey]

It's possible that Jethro never saw the birth registration but still wonder if baptism record (if one exists.is found) would shed any light on the problem.

Added- as a married woman the mother could simply have gone to register the child's birth giving her haband as the father but she didn't do that in this case.

[JaneyCanuck]

The three kids born in Devonport all have extra given names -- the initial "J" as a third or fourth given name for the first two and initial "H" as a third given name for the third -- if I'm spotting the right ones.

Do you know what those names were? It was quite common for a mother to give a child the father's surname as a given name when the parents weren't married.

This doesn't help with who Edith was, but it might be interesting on the more recent end.

Is there any chance that the second given name of the first child is connected with Edith's parentage? One of the children also had a child with that name.

As for Jethro being there in 1891 ... maybe he wasn't really there, and was just recorded by the family as being there.

They certainly seem to have done it once before -- in 1881 he is recorded both on vessels and in the Cocks household before his marriage to Annie (transcribed at Anc'y and appears to be written as Comber).