Does anyone have any information on Francis KIFT 1854 Georgeham please..

[patval]

Hello,

After years of serching for my husbands great Grandfathers life before 1881 where he is found to be living in Glasgow, we discover - with much help - that he was born Francis Kift in Georgeham in 1854 to Thomas Kift and Mary Cullamore..... has anyone any information on Francis.. he is living with grandparents Samuel Kift (Kieft) and Mary Coneybear at the time of the 1861 census...

Has anyone any knowledge of what happened to Franks parents, as we would love to know if Frank had siblings.... We know lots about his life in Scotland but nothing of his childhood in Devon...

Thomas and Mary were married on 19 July 1854 in Morthoe.

any help would be appreciated...

Patricia

Moderator Comment: Certificate Removed - Only a small portion of the Certificate may be displayed for help with handwriting.

[Old Bristolian]

Hi Patricia

I had a look at the transcriptions of Parish Registers held at the NDRO in Barnstaple today. Unfortunately the ones for Mortehoe stop before the marriage and there is no microfiche for the period either. They do cover Georgeham baptisms, so I checked Francis Kift & he was baptised on 10th September 1854, the father given as Thomas Kift, soldier NDMA, abode unknown.

There don't appear to be any Kifts there before this date - although there is a family there in the 1880s and later. I couldn't read the occupation given to Thomas on the certifictae - does it say "carpenter"? All very mysterious - did Thomas abandon his family I wonder. I can't find the meaning of NDMA - the local militia were the North Devon Yeomanry I believe. You did not say where Samuel Kift was in 1861 - was it in North Devon?

They do have the original registers at Barnstaple, so if you like I could check the marriage (or do you already have the certificate?) for further details & also the baptism to see if NDMA is in full. Let me know if you'd like me to do this

Regards

Steve

[DOB7]

The 1851 census shows Samuel & Mary KIEFT living in Braunton with 2 sons - George aged 25 and Thomas aged 16 - both are described as Ag Labs born in Braunton.

[Pastmagic]

http://www.rootschat.com/links/0hkz/
Quite an interesting account of this surname in Devon
PM
http://www.rootschat.com/links/0hl0/
Possible Samuel(s) relatives
The old familysearch gives these spelling variants:
Kfit, Keft ,Kieft, Kifft, Cift, (99 individuals in Devon, mostly 1600's to mid 1800's
PM

[Old Bristolian]

I've found Samuel & young Francis in 1861 now - living in Knowle, a small village just north of Braunton (same as 1851, but Samuel is now a farmer). There is a death of a Thomas Kift in Mar q 1857 in Bath - could this be him?

Steve

[patval]

Thanks everyone, I didn't expect such quick - or helpful responses...

Yes Old Bristolian, Samuel and young Francis in Knowle are the correct family.. I too found the death for Thomas in Bath but not sure if it is him.. I do have a copy of the marriage cert for Thomas and Mary (attached)

The birth cert gives Thomas' occupation as Carpenter. The fact that a few months later he is recorded as a Soldier is interesting.... NDMA any help is appreciated in locating them... I have been unable to find a death for Mary Collamore either.... they just disappeared...

Francis was known to family as Frank and this caused many problems as there was also a Frank Kift b Braunton c 1858... originally I got the two mixed up.... Frank married in Glasgow he gave parents names as William Kift and Mary Coneybear which proved to be incorrect (Mary Coneybear was his grandmother, married to Samuel Kift.... so this leads me to believe that he had nothing to do with his parents from an early age.... And the different spelling variations has been no help at all...

Thanks pastmagic I shall follow up those links..

Patricia

Moderator Comment: Certificate Removed - Only a small portion of the Certificate may be displayed for help with handwriting.

[Old Bristolian]

I've just noticed that a Mary Kift married in Bath in Sep q 1858 - it may just be a coincidence (there is a nother Kift marriage in Bath in 1861). I'm intruiged by the Glasgow marriage though - the Frank Kift born in Georgeham c1859 was the son of a William Kift. He married Jane Squire in Georgeham in 1880.

Steve

[patval]

Oh dear.....This has been a constant problem during my search for 'our' Frank.... the 'other' Frank keeps cropping up!  they are related but hard to decide which one is which in the early years

'Our' Frank married Helen French in Glasgow, they had one daughter Annie Lauder Kift, my husbands grandmother......  he makes his first appearance in Glasgow in 1881, where he is lodging with a family, his occupation is clerk in a steelworks, we can then follow his progress with marriage, birth of Annie and census, in fact his Scottish existance is well recorded, but not his life before.

Thank you for finding the Mary Kift marriage in Bath, it is a possibility that they may have moved there, if so the death of Thomas may well be correct.. I will send for the relevant certificates to see if it is in fact Mary....


Patricia

[Old Bristolian]

As you say, Patricia, it sounds as if your Frank/Francis didn't have any contact/memory of his parents - truly very sad, but not uncommon. I didn't get a chance to view the certificate before the Mod whipped it away! What age did it give for Frank? It certainly looks like the one married in Georgeham in 1880 (and who stayed there) was definitely the one born in 1858/9. Strangely, although he too gives a William as his father, it looks like he was in the household of Richard & Elizabeth Kift in 1861, described as their son - more & more mysterious - I can't believe there's another Frank Kift waiting to trip you up.

I can't find a death for Samuel's wife Mary on BMDs either - there were no Kift burials at Georgeham, but I'll look again at Braunton PRs (if Barnstaple have a transcript or fiche). Knowle is very much closer to Braunton than Georgeham

Steve