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Yes so many stories and never knowing which ones are relevant. My Aunt who has just passed away said to me he was an Officer. He was already a Solicitor working in Edinburgh, which I have details of. The family tree is my family tree that I put on Ancestry.

A very elusive Grandfather, and when you go down one line it does not match so I battle on. No records of his Army career. The one thing that does not fit is that he signed his Brother's death certificate in Edinburgh in 1942 and he had been dead himself from 1939 in the February.
At least I now know that he was not on this ship as a RAMC person, but civilian, as I did not know they carried passengers as well as other things.

I have him on a ships passenger list when he was in his 30's going to Innisfail to his Sister's in Canada and that read he was a Solicitor and that was in 1911 according to Ancestry. I have no record of him coming back, so the plot thickens.

Will have to plod on for another 20 years I suppose.

Thanks for your help.

Faith

Hi Martin - My Grandfather's full name was James Maclean. From all the family history that I have done all his family members were Maclean, and not Mclean. He was born in Nairn in Scotland in 1877, and his parent's were Alexander Maclean and Elizabeth Black. They lived at Park Lane, Balblair Road, Nairn, but he went to Edinburgh I am sure. My Mum is the only one left now and her Father talked very little of his life, and more so not to his children. I was told he must or may have led a double life, but cannot totally say he did as there was a lot of talk, as there was in those days.
The story was that he was found floating in the sea on some wood and he had lost his memory and did not know who he was, and was lucky to be alive. On his death certificate my Grandmother Edith Clarke, put this name on their and it read- James Maclean, otherwise Holden. I have no documents apart from this with that name on, but he may have used it to get away from people, as that is what I feel, but  for what I don't know.
He had family in Canada. A Sister Elizabeth and another Sister Margaret Alice. I was told also he was in the RAMC., so that threw me a bit as why was he on this ship. The ship must have been torpedoed. It would be between the first world war years, but cannot pin point a date for you.
There has been talk of him having a lady in Canada that had one child and was expecting another and she had a Haberdashery shop. Again I would not know where to look for any of this.
I do not have any medals, or any information on his regiment and have looked for many years for a medal card at the archives here in UK., but without that it has been at a loss to find him. I know a lot of WW1 records were destroyed by the bombing in London and it is a possibility that his was in there. He was very well spoken my Mum said, and could speak many languages.

I have one side of him being born in Nairn, to the parents I mentioned and then going onto being a Solicitor in Edinburgh and going to Innisfail in Canada around 1911 on a ships passenger list. His Sister Margaret Alice went there in about 1901. He was married to a Jessie Smith Shand, then on another note we have this story of him being in the RAMC., and he must have been as he had a number of medical books in his home, and he was in receipt of an Army Disability pension, as he suffered shell shock,so sometimes I am not sure what to believe.

I do not have an answer to when he used  the name of Holden, only that it was on his death certificate.

Thanks for helping.

Faith

Hi thanks for getting back to me.

James Maclean born July 1877 to Alexander Maclean and Elizabeth Black. Born in Nairn in Scotland.

He led a double life I am sure of it as I have him on a Census working in Edinburgh as a Solicitor and then told he was in the RAMC.,

His ship went down in the Atlantic I know that for sure as he was found literally floating in the water nearly dead.

I have a faded newsdpaper copy of him and he looked quite tall. He also suffered shell shock quite badly my Mum tells me.

He was one of 11 children.

This is all that I know personally about him, although I did find him on a ships passanger list in 1912 heading to Innisfail.

Thanks very much for your help.

Faith

Does anyone have any photos's of the "Long", family, my Gt.Grandfather James Long living at 73 Wardley Street. I have one of his second Wife Rose Wright, and some of their children but ot one of him.

Maybe a neighbour prehaps might have had one as is often the case.

Many thanks in advance.

Faith

I am trying desperately to find a photo of my Great Grandfather, James Long. James lived in Wardley Street Wandsworth for many many years with his first Wife Lousia Lamb and his second Wife (my Gt.Grandmother) Rose Wright/Long. They lived at number 73, but before that according to Census returns James lived at two other addresses in Wardley Street.
I have managed to trace a photo of Rose Long, but still not James Long.
Is there anyone out there that might remember his name or know of him or his family. James died either in 1945 or 1947.

Sometimes I often find that friends or neighbours often might have one and not the direct family.

I have a photo of Wardley Street where they lived but would be the icing on the cake as I am trying to get photos to put in a scrap book for my Dad's 80th in August.

Many thanks in advance.

Faith