Violet Mary Coenen

[Chris Brice]

My mother Violet Mary Coenen born c1916 but no traceable birth cert prob a child of Central European Jewish immigrants abandoned by parents aged 11 brought up in Cambridge foster home then a nurse at Oxford Radcliffe married Geoffrey Brice in 2nd WW has NO ROOTS I CAN TRACE
PLEASE does anyone know anything of her roots/early life/family - now deceased but would tell us nothing sometime friend of monarch palmer and st eddy steaman

[Rudolf H B]

Hello Chris,

welcome to RootsChat.

Cohen would be Jewish -
but Coenen might be a family from the Netherlands or Belgium, they could have been Roman Catholic, because of the Limburg area:

"Coenen is a Dutch patronymic surname meaning "son of Coen" (Conrad). It is particularly common in Dutch and Belgian Limburg" see:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coenen
There are two links.

Regards
Rudolf

[heywood]

Hello and welcome,

I just did a search on Free BMD 1912-1930 for all 3 events and there are several.
The only Violet M is a death -aged  6 yrs in 1921

Heywood

[avm228]

Welcome from me too

Did Violet give a name and occupation for her father when she married in 1941?

[jorose]

There appears to be a school record for her (or another Violet Mary Coenen!) on Ancestry.
Is it possible that the Violet we are looking for was born in Europe and came over with her family when she was young?

Relating to the 1921 death:
http://www.lib.utexas.edu/taro/uthrc/00788/hrc-00788.html

Baga, Constantine. Circumstances surrounding the death of his granddaughter, handwritten manuscript, 2 pages undated. Enclosed with this: newspaper clipping re death of the child, Violet Coenen.

An Alex W Coenen married Celeste M Baga or Palle in 1919 in Rochford.
Celeste M Baga m. Hans O M Palle Jun q. 1914
Violet M Palle born March 1915 Islington
Her parents divorced 1917.
I think the 1921 death is for the child born as "Violet M Palle".

[heywood]

Thanks Jorose.

The school entry, St Paul's Bentinck, Lisson Grove, gives a birthdate of 9th May 1913 - no parent given but 'musician' as occupation and an address of 72 Park  Road. Admitted 30th October 1916

There is also a Nellie A D Coenen of the same address - parent/guardian Mary Jane Gay.
Nellie's birthdate is 31 October 1916 and admitted 11 May 1920.

The dates may provide the reason for no parent name for Violet?

[heywood]

Birth registration
Nellie A D Coenen mother maiden name Nowell December quarter 1916 Marylebone
This person marries in Cambridgeshire.

[avm228]

Thanks Jorose.

The school entry, St Paul's Bentinck, Lisson Grove, gives a birthdate of 9th May 1913 - no parent given but 'musician' as occupation and an address of 72 Park  Road. Admitted 30th October 1916

There is also a Nellie A D Coenen of the same address - parent/guardian Mary Jane Gay.
Nellie's birthdate is 31 October 1916 and admitted 11 May 1920.

The dates may provide the reason for no parent name for Violet?

9th May looks right for the birthday - on the death registration for Violet Mary Brice in 1993 her birthdate is recorded as 9th May 1916.

[heywood]

9th May looks right for the birthday - on the death registration for Violet Mary Brice in 1993 her birthdate is recorded as 9th May 1916.

Wow - looking good