Skeleton in the Closet

[ringwarrior]

So far I have found -
My great grandfather fell in a canal and drowned on the way home from the pub, the worse for drink.
Another great grandfather (a butcher) was imprisoned for his 4th offence of selling
meat unfit for human consumption and using dodgy scales. He also gave evidence against the village schoolmistress who was dismissed for insobriety and immorality.
His evidence was hilarious including admissions that he regularly kissed his lady customers, was generally 'merry of a Saturday night' and that he watched the schoolmistress and her gentleman friend copulating in a field - 'Bridgewater couples often do that!'. This was rural Somerset in the 1850s!
I have also found several ancestors in the workhouse lists.

[helenw]

We've got several illegitimate children in our family line, unfortunately we've not had the chance to go through the bastardy bonds yet to see if we can trace anyone.

Jessie was my mums great aunt through her father and until her 100th birthday when she had a party and my mum and Nan were invited along. When my mum was being introduced around to family she'd not seen in years Aunt Jessie's niece was doing the introduction as 'This is Jessie's only living relative.

The story goes that her mother was a house maid to a family in St Albans, the story goes that she had an affair with the master of the house or one of his sons and got sent home pregnant.

The other one was more funny than anything else. Although it was always common knowledge when my uncle was born no one had ever connected the date my Gran got married (August) to his birthday(the next November), only when mum and i started doing the family history did we corner her and ask her about how she got married pregnant. She wasn't upset that we'd asked only questioned the intelligence of my uncle as he has never realised LOL

We always find the stories the best though. Mum and I have found my grandparents the best source for these.

My grandfather's, who is actually my fathers step dad, mum travelled half way across the world from London to Burma to be with the man she'd fallen in love with, we'd always been told that she had left with him. She was only in her 20s and left her whole family, in the 1920's it wasn't looked upon to well i dint think as women weren't suppose to be so free spirited however as we're finding out that wasn't the case with my family they seemed to do as they pleased

My Great-great grandma used to 'supply' the local community with the herb that assisted 'girls who got themselves into trouble' as my gran put it. Also at this point she decided to tell us that the same lady was thought to have had an affair when her husband went away with a German man who lived down the road with his family.......

I'm lucky in that non of these are particularly hurtful to anyone, my Gran is quite happy to tell us if we ask the right questions and tap the right memory.

[nora T]

My dad age 84, tells me his grandad, on his mothers side, was found dead in the cellar, lying under a barrel of ale, He was a successful builder and brick layer, but he drank away all the money and left the family pennyless, I remember his wife my great granny, dressed all in long black widows weeds, proud but poor. nora.

[rover]

<img src="http://www.creativecyberspace.com/greetingcards/thumbs/skeletondance.gif">

Of course we're talking Family Research

Have you found too many ?

I've dug up another this week !!

[/b]

[kim ter-horst]

I reckon two of ours rate a mention:

one: a ggggrandmother who poisoned herself by soaking a few packets of phosphorus matches in water and drinking it - nasty way to go by all accounts.  She was in an asylum at the time.  That came as a shock to the matrons of the family.

the other: a boy born out of wedlock to sister number one - no death record or marriage for him anywhere.  But later a boy with the same first and middle names turns up as son of sister one's married sister - no birth record for this one, but death and marriage there are - one boy - two mothers.  Wonder if he knew? 

oh, and another ggggrannie, whose death was "bought on by intemperance" .... in a boarding house which was well known to the police (and other young men of the town)

Most of the family just hold their breath for the next skeleton and I have to admit I really enjoy finding them.

kim

[yorkierose]

My 3rd great grand uncle murdered his niece and nephew in a state of madness.  From the London Times 1849 he apparently told his mother "I have killed them both, as I thought it better to do so than to let them pine to death." stating that the reason was they were going to have to go into the workhouse and death was the better option???  He got off with murder on the grounds of insanity and was recorded in the 1861 census (12 years later) living with his parents and working as an agricultural labourer......times haven't changed much huh?

[webster]

Not sure if it is exactly a skeleton in the cupboard but I am the direct descendent of a "mangle woman" and a "pauper"
both from Wymondham in Norfolk.

[snowwhite77]

It is my sheer nosiness that got me into all this to start with. So far i have found quite a few illigitimate children.
My great Aunt has ignited my curiosity even more by saying that my endless questioning about her "mysterious" grandfather were too upsetting for her! 

I have since found out that he was in fact illigitimate and born in a poorhouse. Don't know if she knew aobut this, but i daren't mention it too her! Funny, as he ended up disowning his daughter (greta aunts mum) for marrying an "unsuitable" match. Ironically turns out he was right. He abandoned the family( unsuitable amtch) for Australia and only returned to die some years later! Nice!
Proving a bit of a nightmare to find more about him!

Amanda