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England (Counties as in 1851-1901) => England => Derbyshire => Topic started by: Bella1900 on Monday 09 July 18 19:08 BST (UK)

Title: Ridgard Family from Derby
Post by: Bella1900 on Monday 09 July 18 19:08 BST (UK)
Hello,

I am looking for information about John (Jack) Neville Ridgard born 1900 in Derby.

He married Dorothea Williams in 1926 in Derby (St Anne's Church) and they had 5 boys:

Robert born 1926 (died 1926).

Frederick

George

Albert

Derek

After 1936 he and his family seemed to have disappeared from official records.

I would love to know what happened to them all.


TIA,

Isabella.
Title: Re: Ridgard Family from Derby
Post by: suzard on Monday 09 July 18 19:55 BST (UK)
do you know the middle names of the children ? and Dorothea's d.o.b.

Suz
Title: Re: Ridgard Family from Derby
Post by: groom on Monday 09 July 18 19:58 BST (UK)
We need to be a bit careful here as some of the children could still be alive.
Title: Re: Ridgard Family from Derby
Post by: suzard on Tuesday 10 July 18 12:43 BST (UK)
I can'teven find the parents ??
Suz
Title: Re: Ridgard Family from Derby
Post by: groom on Tuesday 10 July 18 13:33 BST (UK)
At least some of the children had middle initials on their birth registration. I wonder if they emigrated as I can't find any sign of them either.
Title: Re: Ridgard Family from Derby
Post by: Bella1900 on Tuesday 10 July 18 17:51 BST (UK)
Hi, I'm afraid I don't know the children's middle names and I couldn't find Dorothea's d.o.b. either :-(  Jack's birthday was 5th February 1900 and he was a twin.  I know a lot about his parents and siblings but have no clue as to what happened to him.  The family thought he had left Dorothea and emigrated to Canada in the 1920s - but it was later found out that he hadn't done either of those things.  My Mother searched for him via the Red Cross in the 1960s but they couldn't find him either.
Title: Re: Ridgard Family from Derby
Post by: suzard on Wednesday 11 July 18 11:45 BST (UK)
If he left Dorothea in the 1920's how come children were born in 1930's??

What ages are given on the marriage cert and what was Dorothea's father's name??

Suz
Title: Re: Ridgard Family from Derby
Post by: groom on Wednesday 11 July 18 11:49 BST (UK)
Hi, I'm afraid I don't know the children's middle names and I couldn't find Dorothea's d.o.b. either :-(  Jack's birthday was 5th February 1900 and he was a twin.  I know a lot about his parents and siblings but have no clue as to what happened to him.  The family thought he had left Dorothea and emigrated to Canada in the 1920s - but it was later found out that he hadn't done either of those things.  My Mother searched for him via the Red Cross in the 1960s but they couldn't find him either.

He can’t have left in the 1920s as they didn’t marry until 1926 and all the children were born after that!

Maybe they changed their name, not unheard of.
Title: Re: Ridgard Family from Derby
Post by: Bella1900 on Wednesday 11 July 18 14:30 BST (UK)
Sorry - its a very long story and I was trying to shorten it (especially as some of the people involved may still be alive).  But, (briefly) Jack had a row with his Mother and Father (Harriet and Fred) and told them he was leaving Dorothea (but this was before any children were born).  He told his Mother he was emigrating to Canada and leaving everything behind.  He left their house that night and was never heard of again apart from sending them a photograph of himself supposedly on a ship bound for Canada.  In the 1960s my Mother got in touch with The Red Cross and they searched for him in Canada but they couldn't find him.  That is where the story ended until I started to research my family tree a few years ago.  I discovered that Jack hadn't left England at all and that he had stayed with Dorothea and they had had five boys.  When I told the older members of the family about this situation they were completely astounded.  None of them knew anything about it and they felt deeply sad that they had never known the boys.  I can't find out anything about what happened to any of them (or their offspring) but I would love to find them all.  They are a missing part of my family.  :(
Title: Re: Ridgard Family from Derby
Post by: groom on Wednesday 11 July 18 19:42 BST (UK)
Without wanting to pry into details are you 100% certain that Jack did stay with Dorothea? If she had children by another man after he left, they would still be registered as Ridgard (as that was her legal name) and with Williams as as their mother's maiden name.
Title: Re: Ridgard Family from Derby
Post by: Bella1900 on Thursday 12 July 18 10:44 BST (UK)
No, I am not sure of anything at all - but even if they weren't Jack's sons I still can't locate either him or them  :(
Title: Re: Ridgard Family from Derby
Post by: groom on Thursday 12 July 18 10:53 BST (UK)
A thought, if they weren’t his sons, although registered as Ridgard, they may have been known by their real father’s surname as they grew up. You can call yourself anything you like as long as it isn’t to defraud! Dorothea may also have taken a new partner’s name.
Title: Re: Ridgard Family from Derby
Post by: Bella1900 on Thursday 12 July 18 11:32 BST (UK)
I hadn't thought of that ... but if so, I have no hope of finding them as I have no idea what the name could be ...
Thank you for taking the time to help me  :)
Title: Re: Ridgard Family from Derby
Post by: suzard on Thursday 12 July 18 23:39 BST (UK)
If you could possibly send for a copy of the marriage cert that would tell us the age Dorothea gave and who her father was -witnesses may hold some clues too.
If we could find Dorothea's birth and famiy and even her death reg it may help locate her and the children and may lead to other discoveries

Suz
Title: Re: Ridgard Family from Derby
Post by: Annette7 on Friday 13 July 18 22:40 BST (UK)
I think groom was correct in saying that unless she'd changed her surname any children she had after Jack had left would still be Ridgard since that was her legal name.

I suspect that possibly son Robert b.1927 may possibly have been Jack's son but have found out that the other 4 sons were also registered with another surname.  Using vol./page no.  Frederick was also registered as 'Beresford' and next 3 sons also registered as 'Steele'.

So she had at least 4 children by 2 different men and 'Jack' may indeed have gone to Canada.

Annette
Title: Re: Ridgard Family from Derby
Post by: groom on Friday 13 July 18 23:36 BST (UK)
Quote
I suspect that possibly son Robert b.1927 may possibly have been Jack's son but have found out that the other 4 sons were also registered with another surname.  Using vol./page no.  Frederick was also registered as 'Beresford' and next 3 sons also registered as 'Steele'.

So she had at least 4 children by 2 different men and 'Jack' may indeed have gone to Canada.

That's a brilliant find, Annette. So it does look, as we suspected, that the marriage broke up.
Title: Re: Ridgard Family from Derby
Post by: groom on Friday 13 July 18 23:42 BST (UK)
Possibility that Frederick died as a baby

Frederick Beresford
Death Age:   0
Birth Date:   abt 1930
Registration Date:   Dec 1930
Registration district:   Derby
Volume:   7b
Page:   650

Title: Re: Ridgard Family from Derby
Post by: groom on Friday 13 July 18 23:46 BST (UK)
Derek's death:

Derek Samuel Steele
Age:   58
Birth Date:   18 Oct 1936
Death:   May 1995
Derby Derbyshire
Register Number:   B32C
District and Subdistrict:   3941B
Title: Re: Ridgard Family from Derby
Post by: suzard on Friday 13 July 18 23:54 BST (UK)
George's death

Death reg
George John Steele
26 May 1933
Death reg Nov 1985
age 52
Derby

Suz
Title: Re: Ridgard Family from Derby
Post by: Bella1900 on Friday 27 July 18 07:15 BST (UK)
(Sorry late reply - I haven't been well).  But oh my goodness!  Thank you SO MUCH for all of your hard work on this.  I really appreciate it.  Does it look as though Dorothea married again or was there never a divorce from Jack?  ... in any case, I now have to look for Jack in Canada again don't I?!  ::) Thanks again - this is great info  ;D
Title: Re: Ridgard Family from Derby
Post by: suzard on Friday 27 July 18 12:20 BST (UK)
if you could possibly send for a marriage cert of Jack and Dorothea that would give an idea of her age and father and we could maybe from that find further information on her

Suz
Title: Re: Ridgard Family from Derby
Post by: Bella1900 on Sunday 29 July 18 15:03 BST (UK)
Hi Suz ... I could do that but it looks like Dorothea and her children are nothing to do with me if they were not Jack's family.   I am going to try and find out what happened to Jack - although I have already trawled the Canadian passenger lists and come up with nothing  :(
Title: Re: Ridgard Family from Derby
Post by: Edmund f j s on Friday 30 November 18 21:46 GMT (UK)
Would the Ridgard's of Spondon be of any use to you Isabella  ;)
Title: Re: Ridgard Family from Derby
Post by: Bella1900 on Tuesday 11 December 18 08:20 GMT (UK)
Have sent you a PM.