Another Smith (sorry to Bore)

[Terry Smith]

I'm new to this site & find it completely baffling, so I am probably doing something wrong. I am trying to find some details of my grandfather Thomas Smith died in 1936 aged 65 in Middleton nr Manchester. Spent his early years in Padiham nr Burnley married an Elizabeth McNeeley of Rochdale (don't know when.) & served in the Boer war. His eldest son Joseph was supposedly born in Joseph St. Middleton in 1901 but I can't find any trace of them in the census or in fact any trace of the street. This will be my first step on tracing my family roots.
Anyone any ideas were to start?

[sillgen]

Hi
A good place to start is www.familysearch.org   You might manage to find him in 1881 which is free to search.   Once you have a few more details then publish it and ask for a search for other census years.   How about looking for the birth certificate for Joseph?  Was he born before or after the census?   Try writing to the local office and ask for a search.  You know his mother's maiden name so that should eliminate all those other Smiths!
Army records should be informative too.  Lots of Boer war sites out there!
Andrea

[Arranroots]

Hi Terry and welcome to Rootschat!

You have done the hardest part - your first posting! 

You have also done the groundwork, finding out what you can about your family before starting research.

I think these are records for your family, from freebmd:

Birth March quarter 1877 Rochdale ElizabethMCNEELEY Vol 8e Page 66

Marriage June quarter 1897 Burnley Elizabeth MCNEELEY Vol 8e Page 531 - other names on the page include Thomas SMITH

You could order these certificates, which will give you details about addresses, father's names and occupations etc.  then you are better armed to start sorting the SMITHs! 

Also have a read of the Beginners board, if you haven't already.

kind regards, Arranroots 

[Wendi]

Welcome Terry, just wanted to say that as the 1901 Census was taken on the night of 31st March and as Joseph could have been born after March, there is only a 1/4 of a chance of finding him on it. 

If Thomas was in the Boer War he was probably not in the country when the Census was taken, and therefore not on it either.

As you have both parents names and an approx. year of birth it may be worth posting a request on the Lancashire board asking which registry office covers Middleton, then contact that office with a view to obtaining Joseph's birth certificate? They might also have Thomas' death certificate

Good Luck with your research
Wendi



 

[Terry Smith]

Thank you for the replys I am staggered at the speed.

[kgeraghty]

Hello Terry Smith

I am very interested in Thomas Smith of Middleton and his family. His wife Elizabeth McNeeley was the daughter of John McNeeley and Nora Geraghty.  Nora in turn was the daughter of Martin Geraghty and Margaret Walsh of Headford Galway. Martin was one of several brothers, two of which settled in the US and two of which remained in Headford. Martin and his wife moved to Rochdale in the 1850s.  I have been tracing Martin's family for years and have concluded that they had only two daughters that survived to adulthood. Elizabeth married James Sheehan of Wigan and Nora married John McNeeley at Rochdale.  John and Nora had two daughters Mary and Elizabeth.  Margaret married John Carruthers of Heywood  and died in 1903 (John remarried and died in a Turkish prison camp in WWI) .  Elizabeth married Thomas Smith a plasterer by trade and settled in Middleton.  They apparently had several children together:  Joseph, Herbert, Norah,  John, Mary, Eileen Bernard, Winifred,  and Kathleen.     

If you have a connection to this family, we are distant cousins through the Geraghty line.  I do not have much information after 1911.  I think Thomas died about 1936  and would like to know when Elizabeth died.  I am also interested in finding out what  happened to the children.  I was also somewhat aware of Thomas Smith's involvement inn the 2nd Boer War but do not have any confirmation of this.  Have you located any service records ??

[Terry Smith]

Hello,
Thank's for your answer. My father was John known as Jack Smith (d.1985). My grandmother Elizabeth died in 1959. Herbert worked on Guernsey on war damage with my dad & uncle Joe just after ww2. He married a local girl & stayed on the island. He lost contact with the rest of the Smith's. He was a bricklayer My dad & Joe were plasterers. Joe died in 1969 he had two sons John & Thomas. My dad John had me Terry, my older brother Mike and sister Julie. Norah had four sons I think & a daughter. She died in 1971 I think, around the same time Kathleen a spinster died. Mary I have never heard mentioned. I know two sons died of whooping cough. Thomas who died while the boer war was on (my grandfather never saw him) & Bernard.  Winnie also a spinster died in 1973 or 4. Eileen had a son Brendan. She died in 1982. My dad was the last of them. Interestingly the maiden name of one of my aunt's on my mums side was  Geraghty. Her father came from Ireland & settled in Healds Green, Chadderton Fold, Chadderton. He worked as a farm labourer around the area for many years. Maybe we are related along another line too. My grandad who obviously I never knew served as a sapper in the Royal Engineers in the boer war. My brother still has his bar of chocolate the troops were given by Queen Victoria. They were inedible & there are still lot's of them about.   That's all I have on him I'm afraid. When your'e a teenager you turn off when elderly relatives go on about the old days. Wish I had listened more.   

[kgeraghty]

Thanks Terry for you quick response

Our common ancestors were Thomas Geraghty and  Winifred Newell who farmed at Corrinradra , about five miles west of Headford.  Several members of the family are buried at Ross Abbey.

My GG grandfather was Timothy Geraghty  one of Martin's brothers. He spent some time in the U.S and returned to Ireland in the 1850s. His son, my great grandfather  John C Geraghty returned to the U.S in 1870 and settled in Minnesota where I currently reside.  John had a brother Thomas who became a catholic priest and served at  Staleybridge and later at Birkinhead.

I only know of one relative that ended up in Chadderton. In the 1870s Mary Geraghty married Patrick Garvey at  Staleybridge and moved to Chadderton.  They had one child together before Mary died.  That child, also named Mary married William Dooley and they raised a family in Oldham.

Do you happen to know the names of the spouses for you aunts and uncles ?  and do you recall any references to the Sheehans   or the Carruthers family

 

[Terry Smith]

Hello,
Different Geraghty then. Sheehans I have never heard of. My uncle Joe used to hang around with the Carruthers kids when he was young but that's it really. My brother was plastering a job in the 70s , there was an old chap on the job asked my brother if he knew Joe & Jack Smith plasterers as he was some kind of relation to them. He was a Carruthers still living in Heywood. Sorry I know nothing about who Herbert married. John married Irene Carr (d.1990). Joe married Hilda Finnegan (d.1987) Norah married Harry Mills who disappeared in the 50s. Eileen married Norman Waterfield (d.1985)