The Strange Great Grandfather

[Jessica Aldred]

I am looking for information on how to locate the birth father of my grandmother Freda Swan born 29th Apr 1931.

Her birth certificate names her mothers husband as the father (Reginald James Arthur Swan), however in his divorce petition of 1939 (after emigrating to New Zealand in 1932) he states:-

The petitioner further says that there was to his said wife the following children, namely Stella Ellaline Swan born on the 4th day of August 1926, and subsequent to the agreement to separate mentioned in Paragraph 3 hereof, Freda Swan born on the 29th. day of April 1931, and Richard Thomas Swan born on the 10th. day of December 1932, and that such children are not the issue of the marriage of the Petitioner with his wife.

The divorce was Decree Nisi and as far as I am aware, it was also uncontested. This suggests that Stella Ellaline Swan nee Addison accepted that the children were not her husbands.

If anybody could give me a hand with working out who the father is it would be appreciated.

[nanny jan]

Welcome to Rootschat. 


Did Stella re-marry after the Decree Absolute?

[Milliepede]

and that such children are not the issue of the marriage of the Petitioner with his wife.

Would that mean the children were born before the marriage or just not an issue to be sorted out in the divorce, I don't quite understand the wording - what year did the "parents" marry?

Has anyone got birth certificates for the other children to see if the same father is listed.

[Lisajb]

Welcome to Rootschat. 


Did Stella re-marry after the Decree Absolute?

I think Stella is the child of the marriage, not the ex wife. At least that's my reading of it.

[Milliepede]

Found the marriage

Sep 1925 Mutford

Stella E Addison
Reginald J A Swan

All children have MMN Addison, it seems unlikely the mother had 3 children and Reginald wasn't the father of any    Not impossible I suppose - what was his reason for divorcing?

[Jessica Aldred]

Answers to your requests for more info.....

There reason for separating was 'an oral agreement for separation by mutual consent'.

There was an older child John Henry Swan, named after Stella's father.

(Stella Ellaline Addison had a daughter also named Stella Ellaline - she married in 1945 to a Mr Bishop)

I cannot find records for any re-marriage.

[groom]

I read it that he was probably the father of Stella who was born a year after the marriage, but not the father of Freda and Richard who were born after he and his wife separated.

[Greensleeves]

Are we discussing living people here?  It's still possible that the children might be alive, albeit rather elderly.

[Milliepede]

If he emigrated in 1932 then he was around to father all the children.  I suppose it depends how long they had been physically separated.