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Hello. Haven't been here for a long time.

I have finally done a DNA test and the ethnicity came back as 3/4 British and 1/4 Eastern European.

I did some checking to see what Eastern Europeans might have been in Invercargill in the 1930's and I came across this wikipedia page which named a few families who settled in Southland.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hungarian_New_Zealanders

My mother was born out of wedlock in Invercargill in 1937, and she was later adopted out when she was 2 or 3 years old. (I call it being thrown away - and if that is how she sees it, no wonder she doesn't want to know anything about her biological family.)

MY DNA test says I am 1/4 East European - I have yet to upload my raw data to My Heritage, but I will do that soon - and this wikipedia page mentions Hungarians in Invercargill Southland around the right time.

I am hoping my mother will be able to do a DNA test by the end of this month, but I am still working on that.

In the meantime, I was wondering if any Kiwis here have any connections to the following Hungarian names - Szivak, Racz, Kokely and Kollat, (as mentioned in the wikipedia page above) and any other Hungarian names that might have settled in Southland before 1936.

Thank you.

Edited to add - I guess I should add my GEDmatch number - T076658

And hello Rootschat - I am back again - Long time no see or hear. For those of you who dont know me, I joined up here at Rootschat, way back around 2005 and have been popping in and out over the last few years whenever I have a genealogical puzzle to work out, because you people are just SO GOOD at working out my puzzles 

OK This time I have Walworth (or Wallwork), Howe and Ridley families that are all distantly connected by marriage to my family, which is why I am doing this. These families are living in Newcastle-on-Tyne in Northumberland.  I am going to post the links to the census details on Family Search - I hope that is acceptable.

In the 1841 census Lydia Wallwork (Later called Walworth) was living in Newcastle with her family and was aged 7 - no problems there.  https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M7WF-1FY

In 1851, Lydia was 17 years old and working alongside her mother Jane and her sister Mary Jane as servants in the home of a man named Thomas Ridley - in Newcastle. Her father Charles Walworth (he was a Mariner) was visiting on that same day. Thomas was listed as a Glass manufacturer. He was also widowed with one son named John.
https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:SGXW-1S8


In 1861, Lydia married Thomas Howe (possibly from Kilrea in Northern Ireland) and gave birth to a daughter Blanche Ridley Howe in 1864. When Blanche grew up, she moved to Australia but that is not relevant to this story.

In the 1861 census Thomas Ridley was still listed as a widower. His married son John was still living with him as was his servant Jane Walworth and her Mariner husband Charles. I dont know who John was married to at this point. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M7FT-JJ7


It is the 1871 census where things start getting confusing. Thomas Ridley is still a widower and is now described as both an Alderman (on the city Council maybe?) and a Glass Bottle Manufacturer. His married son John still lives with him as does his servant Jane Walworth and her mariner husband Charles.  But there are now 2 new names. A new servant named Jane Carins (or Cairns - they seem to be interchangeable) and a 10 year old girl named Lidia Ridley. Is she John's daughter? I don't know.  If you go back to the 1841 census for the Wallwork family, there is a man named Thomas Carins living with them, and also what looks like his 4 year old son Matthew Carins. If Jane Walworks maiden name was Carins, then Jane Carins (the new servant) could be a niece. Who were her parents?
https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:V5BX-72G

In the 1881 census Thomas Ridley is now listed as a Magistrate, an Alderman and a Glass  Manufacturer. Lydia (Is she his grand daughter?) is now his ward. John has gone - possibly died. The Walworks have also gone. Have they died or just moved out? https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q271-14GC

I also eventually found Thomas Ridley back in the 1841 census through his son John. There is a second son named Henry. This was the only census in which I found Thomas to be listed as married. If his mother in law was living with him, her surname was Magdny - I'm sure that spelling is wrong!! And there is also another young lady named Margaret Magdny working as a servant in this household. Occupations are not listed, nor are relationships so we dont know for sure how they are connected. Who was Thomas Ridley married to?
https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M7WF-YP3

And the reason I am asking all this - is because Blanche Ridley Howe was given the middle name of Ridley as was her brother Thomas Ridley Howe. But their parents were Lydia Walworth (Walwork) from Newcastle, and Thomas Howe from Northern Ireland. No obvious Ridley connection.

Would children have been given the names of people who were benefactors but not biologically related? After all Thomas Ridely employed Lydia's mother (Jane) as a servant for many many years.

If anyone can find a legal (Marriage) or biological connection between these two families, I would love to hear about it and see the details.

There is also a family tree for the Walworth (Walwork) & Carins family posted under the Family tree section of Family search. I don't know accurate it is. You do have to register but otherwise it is free. https://familysearch.org/tree/pedigree/MQSW-XKZ/portrait

If anyone can help answer some of my queries, I would be very happy.

Thank you.

Burrow Digger

I was doing my own little personal genealogical project today - tracing the family and descendents of the Retailer Timothy Eaton who started the famous Eaton Departments stores in Canada. They eventually went out of business in 1999 but that's not the point.

It was several hours before I eventually discovered the Eaton family post on wikipedia which has the entire family with some descendents down to the present time listed. These include Nancy Eaton who was raped and murdered in 1985.

Anyway during my hunt through the Family Search website, I came across the record of a child named George Jeffrey Eaton born 7 August 1881, and with parents named Timothy Eaton and Margaret Wilson. On the birth record is also mentioned that the father was a Dry Goods merchant and underneath that is a word that possibly looks like Eatons, but I cannot be sure.

Now it is well known that Timothy Eaton did marry a woman named Margaret Beattie Wilson.

Dry Goods were what the Eaton stores were selling - as opposed to food.

George Jeffrey's birth record is at the bottom right of the page - see link below

https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:9Q97-Y3S4-BWD?cc=1784212

Since He is not listed on the wikipedia page -and if George Jeffrey is NOT part of the famous Eaton family - who and where were his real family?

If someone could look at it and tell me what that extra word (underneath Dry Goods Merchant) is on the birth record, I would appreciate it. 

I will try to attach a copy of the record as well. Thank you.

I'm back again!!   

Gotta new name to find. 

I am looking for Tui Walker's maiden name. Tui was born in Dunedin NZ, 5 Nov 1916, and died in Mosgiel NZ, 1 Sept 2012, aged 95 years. These details were obtained from her birth and death records on the NZ govt BDM website and the DCC cemeteries website.  She was married to Frank Walker (1912-1991) also from Dunedin.

Since her name was Tui, she MAY have been of Maori descent, but I have no way of knowing for sure.

The BDM website will not allow any searches for marriages less than 80 years ago, which means no marriages more recent than 1935. But in 1935. Tui would have only been 18 years old. She would have turned 19 in November.

I am unable to locate any record of a marriage for Frank Walker before 1935, so I have to assume that this marriage happened after 1935. Is there any way SKS in NZ would be able to locate it for me? This marriage most likely took place in or close to Dunedin, since they were born and died there.

And most probably it happened between 1935 and 1940 - especially if Frank went off to war. Again I dont know if he did or not.

I am asking for Tui's maiden name because there is a connection between Frank Walkers family and my Burrow family.

Thank you!!

BD

Hi Guys,

This is me Burrow Digger - Long time no see. I haven't been here for a very long time. 

Anyway I am now looking for a birth record in Scotland, in connection to the ancestor of a relative of mine - because a descendent of this relative just recently got in touch with me.

I have no idea where in Scotland he was born. His death record says only that he was a Native of Scotland.

Pringle Archibald Walker was the father of William Bruce Archibald Walker (bn NZ 1896) who married my grandmothers sister - Jessie Burrow. So yes there is a Burrow Connection.   

Name - Pringle Archibald WALKER
Born - 1868 Scotland
Died in Dunedin NZ - 1944 Aged 76 years

Notes from Cemetery record
Occupation:- MILL WORKER
Native of:- SCOTLAND
Years in NZ:- 62
Place died:- DUNEDIN


My maths !!!
1944 - 76 = born 1868 - Scotland
1944 - 62 = left Scotland - 1882 - aged 14

So if anyone could find Pringle Archibald Walker's birth record, his parents names, or even just the county of birth, I would be ever so grateful. Also was there any census done in 1870 or 1871? Would he and his family be listed on that?  I still cannot afford to use Scotlands People.

I found the above details from his death record located at the Dunedin Cemetery Search website (for Dunedin City Council)

Thank you.

BD