RootsChat.Com

I know. I use them all, and it was great to have access to British, Irish and US in one handy place. Now I'll need to think about whether to get a subscription somewhere else.

Pam, this is a very old message, but I'm curious about the tragic story of Henry SOUTHGATE and Mary BENSON who moved to Australia. I'm trying to connect a young child (b.c.1855) to this BENSON family, and I suspect an adoption of some sort, for reasons I can only guess at. Would you be willing to share any further details?

Sami, thanks for your suggestion. My understanding is that sometimes when they recorded tattoos they would - rather than describing them - actually draw letters in the style of the tattoo, so I'm guessing this is one of the instances. I'm still inclined to think it was an image of a female who was dear to him at some stage, and that MW were her initials.
Cheers,
Gina.

Thanks, Heather. It's beginning to sound like a consensus.

On reflection, the person who was surveying the identifying marks would be recording everything on the face first, before moving onto other parts of the body. So it would make sense to be noting scars on the nose and eyebrows, before arms and hands. It's completely consistent.

I've been looking at this for months and wondering about it, I'm so glad I asked. Thanks for your help!

Wondering if anybody would have any ideas about the scars this fellow (a convict from England to Australia in the 1820's) was carrying? I read it as :

Perpendicular scar on tip of
nose Diagonal scar on [?]
Scar left side of upper and lower lips
Woman MW inside lower right arm
Scar ball of left thumb

Presumably he had a woman with initials MW in his life, possibly a sweetheart, and the scars on his face and hands could have come from his work as a carpenter or he might have been a brawler or just involved in an accident. But what puzzles me is the bit I've marked with [?], which is presumably a part of his anatomy. It doesn't look like "back", but I can't think what else it might be.

All suggestions gratefully received.