RootsChat.Com
General => The Common Room => The Lighter Side => Topic started by: Gone. on Tuesday 18 April 17 14:53 BST (UK)
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Having read a few posts in the WW1 forum about grandparents who fought in WW1 (who, leaving aside underage recruits, would have been born in Victorian Times) I wondered how far back into the Victorian era any of us could go with the birth of a grandparent.
To start the ball rolling (hopefully, a big ball), one of my grandparents was born in 1869.
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My earliest is my Maternal Grandfather born 1886.
Carol
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My maternal grandfather was born 1863 :)
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1879 and 1881 on paternal side, and both maternal grandparents born 1882.
Added: My maternal grandfather fought and died in WW1.
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1875 & 1876 on the paternal side (they married aged 18 & 19) and 1863 & 1869 on the maternal side. Neither grandfathers fought in WW1, both being in poor health and a bit too old (39 & 51 in 1914.), though my maternal grandfather became a Special Police Constable during that war
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My paternal grandparents were born
G.pa - 1871
G.ma - 1876
G.pa died in 1915 so never fought in WW1
Maternal grandparents
G.pa - 1887
G.ma - 1886
G.pa was a welder in the ship yards and didn't fight guess his was a reserved profession. Although all his brothers were in the same trade and two of them went off to fight, but were quite bit younger than him
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Not me, but my husband's grandmother is living and her oldest grandparent was born 1847. He died a year before she was born.
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My maternal grandparents were born in 1893 and 1896. My paternal grandparents weren't born until 1905 so late compared to other posters. My mum's earliest born grandparent was born in 1849.
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My dads earliest grandparents were born in 1833 & 1838.
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My paternal Grandparents were born in 1877 and 1885. My Grandfather served with the Grenadier Guards in Gibraltar , Egypt and South Africa, where he was wounded at Belmont in 1899. He also served overseas in WW1 and survived to live to the grand old age of 89. My maternal Grandparents were both born in 1901 - a different generation in many ways.
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some way off for me, even some of my great grandparents weren't born then
Maternal Grandparents - 1926 and 1929 (so my grandfather just scraped into end of WW2)
Paternal Grandparents - 1908 and 1907 (so too young for WW1 and not sure about WW2, he died when my dad was 11 - there is a gap in births between 1942 and 1946 with kids every year to 18 months between 1938 and 1951 so I suspect he was away then and probably in the Army)
Great grandfathers
1901 (New Years Eve) - so still 16 at the end of WW1
1900 - so he may have just at the end - haven't been able to find records but that doesn't mean
anything
1886 - again no records but a common name
1859 - he did join up but due to his age he was on homeduties (56 but claimed 50) had been in the miltary in the 1881 census too
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Husband great great grandfather died in WW1 (then his wife died in the flu epidemic - leaving his children orphaned - their youngest daughter (his great grandmother) only died 2 years ago (2 years on Sunday to be accurate) - strange when you realised you were talking to someone who was born before the start of WW1 - though she didn't really remember it
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Three were, one not.
Paternal gf: 1884 - He died before I was born.
Paternal gm: 1895 - She lived overseas, but she saw me about 3x in total, max, oldest when I was about 6. She died when I was 13.
Maternal gf: 1886 - Never knew him, no idea when he died (yet), I've only known his name 2 years.
Maternal gm: 1905 - Knew her, she died when I was about 30.
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On behalf of my husband I claim the earliest grandparent (so far). His maternal grandfather was born in 1858.
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Do you have proof👻
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Sticking to the title of the post 'your grandparents' - we can all go back beyond Victorian times if we start considering greats.....
paternal: grandma 1880 & grandpa 1883
maternal: grandma 1873 & grandpa 1882
sadly I only ever knew my paternal grandmother.
Definitely a culture of marrying a younger man ;D still going strong Mr Josey is 6 years younger than me ;)
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My maternal grandmother was not only born in Victorian times (1887) but when she was 10 saw the Queen at the time of her Diamond Jubilee. I asked her what the Queen was like and she just said 'a little old lady in black, looking fed up'!!
Melbell
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On behalf of my husband I claim the earliest grandparent (so far). His maternal grandfather was born in 1858.
Did he have a much younger wife like my maternal grandfather (bn 1863) My maternal grandma was born 1883 ;D
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On behalf of my husband I claim the earliest grandparent (so far). His maternal grandfather was born in 1858.
Did he have a much younger wife like my maternal grandfather (bn 1863) My maternal grandma was born 1883 ;D
Yes, his first wife died. He re-married and his daughter, my husband's mother, was born when he was in his 60's.
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Did he have a much younger wife like my maternal grandfather (bn 1863) My maternal grandma was born 1883 ;D
Yes, his first wife died. He re-married and his daughter, my husband's mother, was born when he was in his 60's.
[/quote]
The same happened with mine, no children from the first marriage but 7 from the 2nd. ::) ;D
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My Paternal Grandparents were born in 1869 and 1871.
My Maternal Grandparents were born in 1887 and 1889.
Now I feel old ;)
sami
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My Paternal Grandparents were born in 1869 and 1871.
My Maternal Grandparents were born in 1887 and 1889.
Now I feel old ;)
sami
But you're still here :D My attitude these days is "I'm still here, still causing chaos, and quite frankly I don't give a ......... " ;)
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My Paternal Grandparents were both born in 1891. Grandad survived the Battle of Jutland.
My Maternal Grandparents were born in 1896 and 1899. Maternal Grandfather died early 1918 without knowing that he was to become a father later that year.
Dorrie
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I think I am taking the lead at the moment. ;D
My paternal grandfather was born during the reign of William 1V, 17 months before Victoria came to the throne, he was born 7th January 1836 and died 7th November 1893, he was 50 when my father was born from his second marriage. My father in turn was 56 when I was born, also from his second marriage.
My paternal grandfather 1836-1893, grandmother 1845-1935
My maternal grandfather 1881-1916, grandmother 1881-1951
Jebber
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Wow Jebber! :D That didn't seem possible, I had to sit and do the calculation and it is!
So maybe my family are tied second place with JenB at the moment?
My other half's paternal grandparents were born in the 1850s. Grandmother was born in Halifax, West Yorkshire, 16th September 1858. We have a copy birth cert. Grandfather's death record (Ontario, Canada death records on Family Search) gave his birth date 22 December 1858.
Their youngest son, OH's father, was born in 1899 and OH himself was born 1952. Our youngest son was born in 1998, so we didn't quite manage 100 years between those two generations.
:) Barbara
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My favorite story in the "men fathering children late in life" vein is that US President John Tyler, who was born in 1790, still has two living grandsons. https://www.usnews.com/news/us/articles/2017-02-20/president-john-tyler-born-in-1790-still-has-2-living-grandsons
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US President John Tyler
Hmm, I wonder if anyone has ever checked the DNA to prove that these old codgers really were the fathers of their alleged offspring. Throughout recorded history, young wives have been known to seek outside entertainment.
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My four grandparents were born: 1882, 1885, 1903, 1905.
All four of them had siblings born earlier - and I have memories of all of them - and also two of my great grandmothers! Whilst some of the family died at a young age, those I remember lived well into their 80s - hence the overlap with me and my siblings.
Although some of them did see War Service in the Great War - it was never talked about. Nor was the second war, which even more of them experienced.
FS
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My maternal grandparents were born in 1891 and 1894, grandad served in WW1. My paternal grandparents just scraped into the Victorian era, they were both born in 1900, I don't think grandad saw any fighting but was in Germany with the DLI.
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But you're still here :D My attitude these days is "I'm still here, still causing chaos, and quite frankly I don't give a ......... " ;)
;D .........agree completely
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Maternal: grandfather - 1866* grandmother - 1873 ( the day after her parents married!)
Paternal: grandfather - 1875 grandmother - 1878
I never knew my maternal grandparents - they died in the 1920s but Mum and her siblings told lots of stories about them,
My paternal ones died when I was 4; within 6 months of each other. Gran was lovely and cuddly and always joking. Taid was quite stern.
* forgot to say that he and his 2 elder sons served with the RWF in WW1
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My maternal grandparents are in my avatar picture. Grandpa born 1893, grandma 1894. Picture taken about 1953. What strikes me is how old they look compared to me and my husband ( 62 and 65 respectively).
Isobel
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My maternal grandad was born in 1871 and maternal granny in 1872. Anna
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My paternal grandma was born in 1876 - as mentioned in previous post and died in 1968 - sadly I never knew her as my father never mentioned her and I only found out about her from my cousin when I found her! I missed 17 years of any time with her.
My maternal grandfather born 1887 died in 1978 and he was a lovely chap with a propr naughty twinkle in his eye! Both my children saw him when he was alive which was lovely.
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paternal grandmother 1881 died aged 81
paternal grandfather 1873 - fought in WW1 after volunteering, survived after being wounded, died just before his 80th birthday
maternal grandmother 1891 died aged 78
maternal grandfather 1890 fought in WW1 survived, had damaged lungs due to the gas, died aged 69
Remember them all. Dad was the baby of his family my mum the 2nd eldest, there are nearly 30 years between my eldest cousin and the youngest, 1933 - 1960. There are only 2 younger than me on my paternal side, I'm the eldest on my maternal side.
My maternal gt grandfather born 1862 also served in WW1 in the labour corps - he was a master bricklayer.
:)
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Maternal Grandmother 1889
Maternal Grandfather 1877
Paternal Grandmother 1876
Paternal Grandfather* 1878
*Served with RWF and was awarded DCM.
Regards
Roger
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Paternal Grandmother 1884 - 1982
Paternal Grandfather 1881 - 1963
Maternal Grandmother 1879 - 1963
Maternal Grandfather 1879 - 1934
Both my mother and father were the youngest of 6 children, so we were the youngest grandchildren and our grandparents always seemed old to us.
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I am in the "I don't go back" that far group :)
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Paternal Grandfather. 1880-1961
Paternal Grandmother. 1884-1935
Maternal Grandfather. 1900 - 1981
Maternal Grandmother .....born a few months after the death of Queen Victoria.
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Paternal grandfather 1897 - 1966 (fought on the Eastern Front)
Paternal grandmother 1896 - 1992
Maternal grandfather 1910 - 2000
Maternal grandmother 1910 - 1981
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My paternal grandfather was born 1858 , died 1917 but not in WW1; paternal grandmother born 1888 died 1941, so I did not know either of them. Unfortunately no photos exist either so have no idea what they looked like.
My maternal grandmother born 1890 died in 1968; my maternal grandfather was born 1893 and died in 1985. He fought in WW1 and survived the Battle of the Somme, also served in Palestine and Egypt.
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Paternal Grandfather 1898 - 1963
Paternal Grandmother 1898 - 1968
Married Christmas Day 1920
My grandmother died weeks after I married (1st time) we had brought the wedding forward because our house was built ahead of schedule, she wouldn't have seen me married with the original date.
Maternal Grandfather 1892 - 1951
Maternal Grandmother 1895 - 1965
Grandad was injured and on crutches when he married my Grandmother in 1917
I don't remember my Maternal grandfather despite the fact we lived with them. How we all got into their tiny house I don't know.
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I thought someone would have kicked me into second place by now. ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
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I think yours is a stunning victory! How can that be beaten? I don't know what you get as a prize, but I expect there are those who will have some brilliant suggestions!
It's strange that, on the one hand, the Victorian era was such a long time ago, but, on the other hand, with grandparents who were born in that era, it just feels so much closer. (To me, at least.)
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That is the thing about family history, it brings history closer and makes it seem more relevant.
For me, there was a big disadvantage of having grandparents born so early, I missed out on knowing all but my maternal grandmother, and she died when I was nine. Also, my father missed out on seeing his two grandchildren, he died six days before my first son was born.
I have reversed the order, Marrying in my teens has meant that at least I have been able to enjoy my grandchildren, they range in age from 25 to 31.
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Wonder if mine are the youngest then...1941 and 1948 ;) (maternal side)
Lisa
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Maternal grandfather 1870 and grandmother 1878
Paternal grandfather 1892 and grandmother 1888
Carolyn
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Paternal grandfather 1859 although he fibbed all his life and claimed to have been born in 1865, his brothers birth year. Granny was born in 1872. Grandpa died aged 97 granny at 101.
Maternal side much later 1871 and 1879.
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Paternal grandfather born 1856. His age was different on every census but it's correct on his tombstone. His parents married 1840. His father was allegedly born in 1810. His mother didn't know when she was born.
Paternal grandmother b. 1867 (late enough for an Irish birth certificate, so I can claim to be officially Irish).
They both married twice. Granddad's eldest son from his 1st marriage served in WW1.
Grandma's eldest grandson was born 1920 and served in WW2.
Maternal granddad born 1889. Served in WW1.
Maternal grandmother born 1894. She survived Spanish 'flu at end of war. Her dad signed up for the Boer War and was discharged unfit 18 months later. He probably wasn't fit for WW1. Her uncle had been a professional soldier. He was in Boer War and joined up again for WW1. That makes 3 generations of my family in WW1.
Am I on the shortlist for oldest grandparent?
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Do you have proof👻
Hmm,
If your ? is directed at JenB.....
I suggest you read her history on helping others with genealogy queries & that's got to be the strangest question to an experienced RC'r I've ever read ::)
I will answer for her, yes she will have proof :P
Annie
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I'm a bit confused as to actual dates referring to 'Victorian' times.
According to Mr Google that would be 20 Jun 1837 - 22 Jan 1901.
So, going by those dates (her reigning years)....
Paternal G/mother b 1882 (Only g/parent I ever knew)
Paternal G/father b 1888
Maternal G/father b 1896
Maternal G/mother b 1901 (Nov which was after QV's reign)
All, apart from my paternal g/mother were deceased prior to when I was born (many yrs later) ;D
Annie
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All, apart from my paternal g/mother were deceased prior to when I was born (many yrs later) ;D
Annie
Me too, two of my grandparents died 17 years before I was born.
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Paternal grandfather 1889 - 1961
Paternal grandmother 1884 - 1973
Maternal grandfather 1860 - 1928
Maternal grandmother 1870 - 1954
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\My \parents were born in Victorian times!!Mum 1896 and dad 1897
Grandparents 1860`s --both sets.
My Mum remembered Buffalo Bill coming with his Wild West show.
The Boer war etc. Titanic, Queen Victoria`s funeral.
Oh the stories they told us, real social history.
Viktoria.
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Wonder if mine are the youngest then...1941 and 1948 ;) (maternal side)
Lisa
Potentially, your grandparents are older than my parents. One of my colleagues has a Gran born in 1962, which makes me feel very old.
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Wonder if mine are the youngest then...1941 and 1948 ;) (maternal side)
Lisa
One of them is younger than me :-X
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I am still hoping somone will come up with a grandparent born before mine in the reign of William 1V ???
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Dad's Dad was born in the first quarter of 1863. However I've been wondering for some time how far back one can go in looking at the birth of a great grandparent who was living in one's own life time AND knew you?
In my case it would be my great grandmother Jane Oliver who was born in 1855, but I was only 4 when she died so I don't remember her. But I do remember her husband, my great grandfather William Dent who died in February 1945.
Meeting and knowing an ancestor who was born so far back feels like it connects one personally to that long ago era, even though great Grandma Jane couldn't possibly have remembered the news coming in from the Crimean War.
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I can recall my grandparents discussing whose family had suffered or sacrificed more in the Civil War which was fought by their parents' generation. They were brought up with war stories, I suppose. Their own fathers did not serve in the war [one was too young and the other was designated to stay home and look out for the wives and children] but some of their uncles did. It did seem to me like a living bridge to the past.
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Dad's Dad was born in the first quarter of 1863. However I've been wondering for some time how far back one can go in looking at the birth of a great grandparent who was living in one's own life time AND knew
My great grand nephew knows all of his great grandparents and also knew two of his great great grandparents (he's a teenager)
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My grandad's cousin born in 1914 said in 2006 that he remembered his granny born in 1851. She died in 1941. So he had a spoken memory of someone born 155 years before he spoke of her.
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My mother, who died in 2014 spent a lot of time with her great grandfather ( George ) born 1842. She should also have known her gt grandmother ( Margaret ) born 1838 but Margaret was estranged from her descendants with George - a long story !!
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Had a senior moment ! My gt gt grandmother born 1838 died 1911, Mum wasn`t born until 1916 !!!!
But George when he died was the oldest man in the town.
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My grandparents were born 1911, 1914 & 1916(x2).
Jay
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My maternal grandfather born 1867 died 1957 aged 90- in WW2 was he helping his two firemen sons fight fires in his 70's in Sheffield blitz and I use to sit on his knee as a young child. Mum had me aged 42 and my granddad had mum aged 41.
Maternal granny b 1874
Mum born 1908
Paternal grandfather 1872
and Paternal grandmother 1876
Dad born 1911
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My maternal grandfather was born 1857 and grandmother 1858.
My paternal grandfather was born 1851 and grandmother 1854.
My parents are Edwardian as they just missed out on being Victorians as mother was born in March 1901 and father was born in December 1901, both the youngest children of large families. Queen Victoria died in January 1901.