RootsChat.Com

Hi!
Sorry for the late response, I somehow missed your post!
I don't have anything that I'm sure about on Thomas McKenzie between the 1901 census and his marriage in 1919. I have his passenger record for the journey to Melbourne, Australia on the Largs Bay on 10th May 1927, with Elizabeth. I am sure that it is his death record from Australia. On the record it states:
He was 85 years old at his death in 1970.
He was born in Ross, Scotland, to John McKenzie, Shoemaker, and Mary McKenzie(nee Munro).
He married Elizabeth Hall at the age of 28 in Glasgow, Scotland.
It also states that he was a widower at the time of his death, had no children, and had lived for 45 years in Victoria, Australia.
Have you found him in the 1911 Census?
Did you find his Military records?

Belinda

Thanks Guy!

Interesting link! I shall definitely not rule out the possibility of a paper trail.

Bee

Thanks Portybelle and Hemmy!

My grandma did drop her biological mother's surname, but she always believed that the father that raised her was her biological father and that her mother was dead (2 of her father's wives died when she was young)

I will have a look for poor relief records.

Bee

Hello!

My great grandmother was a domestic servant in Glasgow from 1901 and at least until 1917. As far as I can tell she had 3 illegitimate children, one being my grandma. I understand that it would have been very difficult/impossible to raise children as a single mother while working as a domestic servant. Therefore all the children were raised in other families.
The first child, born in 1909, is with a family in the 1911 census as adopted son with his biological mothers surname.
The second child was born later in 1911 and has her biological mothers surname, and the surname of the first child's adoptive family as a middle name. Does anyone know whether the middle name would have been chosen because that family were intending to raise the child, or would it have been the father of the child's surname?
The third child (my grandma) was born in 1917, and her middle name was the surname of the family that raised her.
Would it be unlikely that the father of the child would raise the child in his family? The couple that raised my grandma had been married for 17 years with no children, but the other family had a child of their own. Why would the middle names have been chosen?
The first 2 children later reunited with their mother, but my grandma never knew her.
Am I correct in thinking that formal adoption wasn't around then?
Hope that makes sense and someone can figure out what I'm asking!

Thanks,
Bee