My father in law (Dominic Michael Stringer) was a bit of a mystery and trying to find anything about his childhood is very frustrating! He attended St Joseph's Primary School in Raglan Street and then apparently because he was considered very bright St Aloysius, but not the fee paying one He claimed several things: that he was brought up by his grandmother after his own mother and twin (sister?) died when he was born; that his father hated him because of the circumstances of his birth; that he skipped school as soon as he found out they were trying to turn him into a priest and that his brother "Jack" got him out of Glasgow in a hurry when he got into trouble with the police. He said that Johnny Ramensky was "family" though I seriously doubt that - unless maybe if they were both members of the same gang and the gang members considered themselves as family. I do not know for sure that he was a member of a gang. I know a fair amount about his service in the later war years,but not how he got to Singapore just in time for to escape. He was friends with John, Mary and Joe Gough who also grew up around that area. He had connections with Benny lynch and several other Glaswegian boxers and also some footballers, most noteably Archibald MacPherson
He returned to Glasgow twice - once shortly after his problems when he deliberately sought out the policeman that had been after him and boasted to him that the copper "could not touch him now" and once about 1956 ish when he discovered that his father and brother were both dead. One quite recently and one many years earlier. The incident with the policeman made us wonder if he joined the forces but we have been unsuccessful in proving that.
He does not have a birth certificate that we can find. Some official papers from late in the war from the Merchant Navy give his date of birth as 14.4.1919 Eire. I have his marriage certificate 30.1.1943 Bridgetown, Barbados which says his father's name is John Patrick Stringer. I cannot find a birth or death certificate anywhere for John Patrick! Dominic Michael died in London in 1986
I have tried through this site and many others, to track down information about him without success. I am hoping someone here might be able to provide further clues to this elusive man's childhood.
Thank you for reading!
