Show Posts

This section allows you to view all posts made by this member. Note that you can only see posts made in areas you currently have access to.


Topics - sandy.l

Pages: [1]
1
Travelling People / Gypsy Fairs during World War II
« on: Thursday 23 July 15 00:27 BST (UK)  »
I am still trying to find information about my elusive grandfather, George Alfred Davies who was said to travel with the Gypsy Fairs, certainly in the 1930's. I wonder if it is possible to find out whether there were known fairs/festivals at certain locations in order to try and track him down to a specific group of show/fairground people?

I have George documented at the following locations:

Sep 1934 - Lodging House - 30 Bridge Lane, Lancaster, where my father was born.
approx. July-Dec 1936 - Carnforth - Mill Bank
Jan - Aug 1937 - Lodging House - 117 St Leonardsgate, Lancaster (where my grandmother died)
Sept 1938 - March 1939 - Lodging House - 8 White Lion Yard, Kendal
March 1939 - Aintree - Grand National Race
17-20 Mar 1940 - Lodging House - 28 Clerke Street, Bury
29th June - 12th July 1940 - Lodging House - 24 Clerke Street, Bury

These dates and locations are listed on my fathers care home records after his father deserted the family in March 1939. There is no historical information noted for either of his parents. George's wife, my grandmother, was called Emily or Helen or Nellie Cunningham.

I have also been wondering why he was not called up in 1940, could this be perhaps because he was too old? I do not have any knowledge of his date of birth or place of birth but I estimate he will have been older than conscription age because when my grandmother died in 1937 she was 39, so born about 1898. If he was a similar age he will have only just been too old for conscription.

I am of course eagerly awaiting the release of the 1939 ID card register!!

Any help offered received with huge gratitude! I am heading off to bed but will be back online tomorrow.

Many thanks xx

2
Travelling People / George Alfred Davies - Emily Cunningham - Clara\Lena\Rhoda Lock - O'Shea
« on: Saturday 11 August 12 00:06 BST (UK)  »
Looking for anyone with a connection to this possible travelling family:

My father, Brian Davies, was born 4th Sept 1934 at 30 Bridge Lane, Lancaster, England. The house was a lodging house. I have his birth certificate. It names his mother as Emily Davies formerly Cunningham and his father as George Alfred Davies, General Hawker.

Dad was baptised on 16 September 1934 at Lancaster Parish Church document reference PR 3262/1/63 (date of birth given as 4 September). The parents were George Alfred (labourer) and Nellie; their address was 30 Bridge Lane. (I haven't physically seen this record is it possible to obtain copies?)

In 1937, my grandmother died aged 39 and was buried as Helen Davies (I have got a copy of this certificate). This suggests she was born circa 1898.

George Alfred Davies then turns up in Kendal in 1938, co-habiting with a woman called Clara Lock who was deaf and mute, they had twin daughters, Rhoda & Lena Lock born 11 Sept 1938, I have copies of these certificates, no father named but it was accepted that GA Davies was the father (on my fathers papers). They were living in lodgings with my father Brian, then aged 4.

The following year, 1939, George Alfred left Kendal to go to the Grand National races, and he never returned, deserting Clara and all three children. During the course of the investigation by the authorities, it was said that George travelled with the Gypsy fairs, that he had a half-brother named Brian O'Shea, and that he had lived or travelled through Carnforth and Bury as well as Lancaster and Kendal. I have got my fathers papers from the record office with the correspondence between Lancaster & Kendal authorities.

Dad was placed in the Abbey Home childrens home at Staveley. The reports say that Clara Lock intended to 'return' to Ireland with the twin girls.

You may notice that I have no dates or places of birth or any marriage information for either George Alfred Davies or Emily/Nellie/Helen Cunningham or Clara Lock (with the exception of the brief mention of Ireland), so I have been searching blindly for years. I have recently returned to starting from scratch and focussing my search on Kendal and Lancaster, basically tracing family trees of like-named people to rule them out, but really I have no idea. I have access to Ancestry (UK not Worldwide), I have searched on Familysearch (LDS) and on FreeBMD, and more recently, the Irish Census's 1901 and 1911 that are available online.

Please, if anyone can offer me any suggestions or are able to search in other areas, then I would be most grateful.

Pages: [1]