William Ronald Miles c1905 London area England

[redwing]

Ronald William Miles "Bill" as he was known, marrried my aunt Martha "Molly" Hayes we think in 1951 in either Rhodesia or Tanganika.  We were told that he came from the London area, he was a bit older than Molly (she was born in Oldham Lancashire 1914) and he was a garage mechanic.  She was working as a nursing sister midwife.  Her letter to my mum in 1952 said that she was married and expecting a child and that she could not tell us earlier as they did not allow married nurses. We subsequently had letters from Kitwe, Lusaka, Bulawayo all places where he worked in garages and then left over some fall out or other.  His daughter Roslyn knows very little about his background and aunty was very quiet about him after he died.  A lot of documents including a marriage cerificate got burned in a kitchen fire.  Is there anyone out in SA who worked with Martha "Molly" Hayes  in Durban in or elsewhere in the late 4o's or who met her husband or worked with him in the garage trade  in the late 40's to early 60's  and could give us some background

[nanny jan]

Hi,

Welcome to Rootschat. 


Was he Ronald William (as in your posting) or William Ronald (as in the heading)?

There is a possible birth registration (Free BMD) for a Ronald William Miles, JunQ 1907, Brentford.           



Nanny Jan

[redwing]

That was quick.  We can't be sure,  on his death certificate that another cousin found when sorting out aunties affairs on her death in England he was William Ronald .   I have been on Ancestry and pulled out all the possible William  Ronald Miles 15 years older than Molly and less and tried to follow their trees because the story goes that he had a brother   and there was some money held  for Bill from a garage business  and when he got back from his war service is was not there so he said to hell and went  abroad to SA