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Topics - Graye

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1
Worcestershire / Batsons
« on: Sunday 10 January 21 12:57 GMT (UK)  »
You have given me help before in researching this part of my family but I think I need someone to give me ideas on where to go next.  My great grandmother (born Caroline (or Carrie) Batson 25 Nov 1883) had three much older brothers, William Henry (b.1865), George Alfred (b.1867) and Charles (b 1869), all in Redditch.
Unfortunately she could be a fantasist so we have learned to take some family stories with a large pinch of salt, although very often some of her more outlandish tales turn out to be true so I'm trying to prove what went on from definite records.
From what I can see, William was in Croydon in 1891 and died there in 1941.  I can't see any other census entries, marriage or 1939 Register entries.  She suggested he worked as a companion/translator for people travelling to the Far East (she did have a lot of porcelain she said he brought back for her) but I can see nothing to really suggest that was true. Also that he went on to be an antique dealer.  Any idea where I might look?
George Alfred was registered at birth as Alfred, called himself George Alfred when he married and just George on the 1911 census.  I'm reasonably happy with his info although I'm not sure why I can't find him on the 1939 Register. His wife was Ellen Andrews, a relative of Caroline Batson's husband.
Charles seems to disappear after the 1881 census, although he may have travelled to Canada in 1908 with a wife and five year old son.  I can find no definite UK records for him after 1881 and nothing in Canada either.
She had other brothers and sisters who have been easy to trace but these three eldest have turned into an enigma.  Any pointers would be very gratefully received!

2
Cumberland Lookup Requests / Whitehaven look ups please?
« on: Sunday 09 February 20 22:00 GMT (UK)  »
Is there anyone able to do a look up for two Whitehaven B/Cs and a M/C please?

I haven't quite got to the bottom of why but I have Thomas Brown and Elsie Capener (Thomas firmly from the Barnt Green area of Worcestershire and Elsie living just into Birmingham) marrying in Whitehaven, Cumberland in 4th quarter 1913.  Their first child Louis George was also born there 21 April 1914.  They then moved back to Barnt Green and Leslie was born 1st qtr 1919 followed by Charles H who was born back in Whitehaven in 1921.  Their last child Gertrude was again born in Bromsgrove in 1929.

I'm trying to trace children of any of the three boys, I know that Gertrude never married or had children.  Louis George married Violet Griffiths in 1943 but I don't think they had children, so it leaves me with Leslie and Charles but I can find nothing about their marriages/deaths etc.

I'm thinking that once I can establish their actual dates of birth I should be able to trace info on their deaths (does anyone know I can do this sort of reverse searching?) and see who did the notifications etc.  I just want to do a double check on the M/C to be certain I have the right people but I'm probably 99% sure I do.

3
Worcestershire Lookup Requests / Look up for Bromsgrove records please
« on: Sunday 09 February 20 21:57 GMT (UK)  »
Is there anyone able to do a look up for Bromsgrove a B/C please?

I haven't quite got to the bottom of why but I have Thomas Brown and Elsie Capener (Thomas firmly from the Barnt Green area and Elsie living just into Birmingham) marrying in Whitehaven, Cumberland in 4th quarter 1913.  Their first child Louis George was also born there 21 April 1914.  They then moved back to Barnt Green and Leslie was born 1st qtr 1919 followed by Charles H who was born back in Whitehaven in 1921.  Their last child Gertrude was again born in Bromsgrove in 1929.

I'm trying to trace children of any of the three boys, I know that Gertrude never married or had children.  Louis George married Violet Griffiths in 1943 but I don't think they had children, so it leaves me with Leslie and Charles but I can find nothing about their marriages/deaths etc.

I'm thinking that once I can establish their actual dates of birth I should be able to trace info on their deaths (does anyone know I can do this sort of reverse searching?) and see who did the notifications etc. 

4
Roxburghshire / Browns of Roberton/Hawick/Jedburgh
« on: Wednesday 29 January 20 10:38 GMT (UK)  »
I'm wondering if there is anyone on here researching Michael Brown (1833 to 1896) who was married to Jane (?Jean) Dickson.  I'm particularly interested if anyone has had a DNA test done...

5
Ancestral Family Tree DNA Testing / Impossible task?
« on: Tuesday 28 January 20 23:43 GMT (UK)  »
I'm helping someone with their DNA link to me as she has no idea who her father is but he's obviously reasonably closely related to me.  She and I have 113cM of shared DNA.  I know this isn't a huge amount but I've found with this sort of length I can usually place someone in my tree or at least have a clue about which part of the tree they belong to.

By crossmatching etc with trees she has various DNA links with, I've discovered we have a link via my 2 x greatgrandparents.  She is younger than me so I will obviously have a much longer cM of shared DNA with her father but even then I think we would have a two generation gap.

We have located DNA information on descendants of various children of those 2 x greatgrandparents and, for each of us, people who would be placed in more or less our respective generations have much shorter cM matches with each of us. 

Could anyone else agree with my thought that it's likely she and I are actually both descended from the next generation down, ie my great grandmother?  If that's the case it would make it very easy for us to ascertain exactly who her father might have been.

I'm usually quite good at finding my way through this but it's a strange situation when she really is fighting in the dark as no one can tell her about her family history. She's thrilled with finally finding information on her "family" and has no intention of contacting anyone else with her findings.

Looking through other threads, I can see mention of DNApainter.  Could anyone say whether this might be something worth experimenting in this type of case please?

6
World War One / Albert Bailey DLI
« on: Sunday 05 January 20 09:54 GMT (UK)  »
I'm usually good at extracting what I need from Ancestry but I'm stuck with this one. Any ideas please?

Albert Bailey was born 25 June 1893 in Crook, County Durham.  I could not find him on the 1911 census and eventually tracked him down to the DLI 4th Infantry barracks.  I hadn't even known until then that he had any service history.   I've since found a photo of him in a smart, dark uniform - not the usual khaki WW1 outfit so I'm assuming it was taken before the war broke out. I don't have a service number for him but it seems family stories suggest he may have spent time in India.

Can anyone suggest where I can look to find out any more info please?

7
As I say, not sure where to start with this so I'm looking for pointers.

My favourite uncle, Horace Westwood (born 1912 in Redditch, died 1976) was crippled for the entire time I knew him.  Today over lunch my mother explained that he had been a farm worker for a Mr Palmer and was injured when he fell from a horse in the 1930s/1940s.  This triggered some sort of Parkinson's type illness (I remember he used to take Dopamine tablets).  For the entire time I knew him he had a very long scar down his spine and was crippled on his right side with zero feeling on his left side.  He actually led a happy life, getting married in his 60s. Mom was explaining that the operation scar arose because he went to the USA (she thinks this will have been early 1949) for a pioneering operation.  This was only partially successful and did away with the violent shaking he had suffered from, but did then leave him with the partial paralysis and lack of feeling.  I would love to know more about that trip but have no idea where to look.  He doesn't appear in the Immigration/Emigration records.  Does anyone have any clue where I might find records or information?  Mom thinks the Red Cross may have been involved with arranging his transport etc but can't be sure.

8
Roxburghshire / Browns in Roberton and Hawick
« on: Thursday 25 January 18 18:31 GMT (UK)  »
My grandfather's family came from the Hawick area but moved to Birmingham for work. My great grandmother was Elspeth Bell Brown (nee Telfer) who died in Birmingham in 1899.  Her husband was Walter Brown (1859 - 1928), an artist and also Master painter and decorator.  I have traced information concerning Elspeth but I'm drawing a blank to a large extent with Walter. He had a sister, Mary who married a Thomas Michie, also from Hawick.  They moved to Birmingham after the death of Elspeth to care for Walter's children.  His father was Michael Brown, born in Roberton around 1836.  By 1841 I believe Michael was probably an orphan and living with a relative, Agnes Balmar (nee Brown) with his siblings. He spent three years in the army and he later married Jane Dickson, also in Hawick on 28/1/1859. I can find nothing to tell me who his parents were, his date of death, or how he was related to Agnes.

I've looked on an interesting site about the Borders area but can find no mention of Brown in Roberton.  I will be visiting Melrose shortly, which I understand is not far away.  Can anyone suggest somewhere where I might be able to search parish records etc please?  Also, does anyone already hold any information on "my" Browns please?

9
Ancestral Family Tree DNA Testing / I need someone who likes a challenge!
« on: Monday 04 December 17 15:44 GMT (UK)  »
I have been looking at my family tree for some years and have recently been thrown a total curve ball in that the three closest relatives showing via DNA testing have no connection with my known tree at all.
 
They are all female and I’ll call us Jane, Evelyn, Kylie, and Penny. I’ll be Jane. The other three all have the same line in their tree, I’ll call that Smith.  Edwin Smith is in all their trees, for Kylie he is her 4 x great-grandfather.  For Evelyn & Penny he is their 3 x great-grandfather.  He had eleven children and each of these three come down from a different child.  So I’m thinking I have to be a descendant of one of the other eight, and probably a male (see later).
 
Using all the other DNA connections I have, I’ve managed to exclude quite a few of my other lines.  In fact I’m now JUST left with my father’s line.  From a lot of questioning of old family members I think the “culprit” is another of those children who seems to have had an ongoing affair with my late grandmother.  I'm not 100% sure it was the one I have my eye on but he's the prime suspect.  I’ll call him Edgar Smith.  They lived directly across the road from each other.  As my father and his older brother were as alike as twins I’m imagining it involves him too, and his daughter is also taking the test to see if she fits in the puzzle too. I’ve been unable to trace any other children Edgar had.  There was a son killed in WW1 and a daughter whose line seems to have disappeared after marrying and having one daughter.  So there is not really anyone there to help.

I have done a One to One compare via Gedmatch.  On the charts below the first figure is the actual amount of DNA match, then the longest DNA thread in that match, then the generational difference, then the X specifies X DNA or not.  Only Evelyn has the X DNA link with me, although I have no idea why at the moment.

This is my DNA connection to Evelyn, whose ancestor is a daughter of Edwin
148.6   32.1   3.3       X   22.2   7.9

To Penny it is this, her ancestor is a son to Edwin
146.6   37.6   3.3       X   0   0

And to Kylie it is this, her link is also a son of Edwin's
70.6   21.5   3.8       X   0   0

Evelyn and Penny are the same generation, Kylie is another generation away and I am in fact the closest to Edwin if my reasoning is correct.

Just as another point, if I compare us all with each other, there does not seem to be any DNA link from Evelyn to Kylie and I just can’t see how that can be the case when we can see the links via the trees and we are all closely linked otherwise.  If Edgar (or any of the other sons) is my grandfather (making Edwin my great-grandfather) then obviously I’m nearer to him in relationship terms than any of the other three.

Can anyone think of any other tests I can try to see if I can prove my point that this has to be my ancestor please?   Or come up with other theories?  I'm sure there are people out there who are more au fait with this than me!

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