Marriage lookup - William RANDALL and Florence NICHOLAS

[avm228]

If William had his mother listed as next of kin in 1914 would that indicate that his father had died by then, or would it have been normal to have listed mother?

I'd think he was probably not around for whatever reason.

It looks like Henry's in a large all-male lodging house in Poplar in the last census.

The daughter Abigail married in 1917 in Enfield, naming her father as Henry Randall, coach-maker.  However as he was not one of the witnesses that doesn't tell you whether or not he was alive by then.

[Silvercup]

Would you say that this is the right family to research? It seems more probable.

[avm228]

You really need that marriage certificate to identify the right family.  At present I can't place Sarah at either of the NOK addresses on the army record.  She's in Hornsey in the last census with daugher "Sarah Jesse" (registered as Sarah Jescina in 1887).

It looks likely to have been a disrupted family; most of the children were in an institution (Forest Gate District School) in West Ham in 1901 (this facility was apparently used by Poplar as a "training school"*):

Sarah Randall 13
Abigail Randall 12
William Randall 10
Arthur Randall 7
Albert Randall 7
Richard Randall 4

(All births registered in Poplar with mmn Stone).

*Interesting stuff here about the relatively benign treatment of inmates in this institution at the time:

www.e7-nowandthen.org/2017/01/forest-gate-industrial-school-1890.html

[heywood]

Florence F Randall is living at 113 Leighton Road Enfield with William J until 1957. After that WJ is not there which is probably the 1958 death.
There is a James H Randall with them some years.
There is also David P and Audrey for some years.
Are these family names?

[Silvercup]

Yes that'll be right, James was my mum's Uncle Jimmy.

[heywood]

I added another couple of names.

[Silvercup]

Yes, Audrey, David and James - all the right children

[heywood]

I would agree that you need the marriage certificate. There is no point in researching a family when you are not sure.

[KGarrad]

Just on the off chance, I had a look at BathBMD.org.uk; transcriptions of the registers from Bath and North-East Somerset.

But, no Florence, and no William

It's a shame, because that might have told you in which church they were married.