Military Headstone Help Needed

[Jacquie in Canada]

In case you don't have it, there is a Frederick Rolfe (born Leytonstone) on the 1911 England census listed as an inmate at the West Ham Union Scattered Homes which would tie in with the Frederick who was a home child.

Jacquie

[mikegall]

Thanks Jacquie, that certainly looks like him.  The birth certificate arrived yesterday and shows that that Frederick was born in the Sub District of Leyton, so it's a good match for this chap in the home.

It does however show that the father was Arthur and not Frederick as I had believed from what was recorded on my Grandmothers marriage certificate.  I suspect that my Grandmother perhaps didn't know the name of her father, or didn't want to use it as she gave her age incorrectly, and used the name of her brother instead.

[Flattybasher9]

I hear the copyright police ah comin 

Regards


Malky

[Jacquie in Canada]

Thanks Jacquie, that certainly looks like him.  The birth certificate arrived yesterday and shows that that Frederick was born in the Sub District of Leyton, so it's a good match for this chap in the home.

It does however show that the father was Arthur and not Frederick as I had believed from what was recorded on my Grandmothers marriage certificate.  I suspect that my Grandmother perhaps didn't know the name of her father, or didn't want to use it as she gave her age incorrectly, and used the name of her brother instead.

It's certainly not unusual for people to lie on the marriage registrations. My grandfather did on both of his regarding his parents. Thankfully for me, there was more truth with the names he gave on the registration for his second marriage.

I found the family of Arthur and Martha Rolfe* on the 1901 census and it had a number of boxes ticked. Arthur was a dock labourer, Frederick C. was the right age and there was a daughter named Florence who was 1 month old. The differences were there was another son (George), not daughter and Florence's middle initial was "M". Here's a link to the transcript from the Family Search site:
https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X9NZ-G4S

*They are listed as Ralph on various census but that could be explained away as the enumerators misspelling it.

I found Martha Rolfe on the 1911 census in Stratford but Frederick and Florence aren't with her and she has two more children. She's listed as married but no Arthur is listed. If this is the correct family, I wonder if she had to give up two of her children because she couldn't support them all. The eldest son was working too so he could help but Frederick and Florence were at that in-between age.

There is a marriage in West Ham for Arthur Albert Rolf and Martha Jane Nicholls in the first quarter of 1896 (vol 4a, page 86).

Jacquie

[IMBER]

That's not a CWGC headstone. Similar but perhaps a private stone or erected by an ex-serviceman's organisation? In the UK similar post war headstones are an MOD responsibility. Perhaps there's something similar in Canada? If so then it's possible that CWGC might maintain this on a repayment basis given that there are plenty of war graves being maintained in the same cemetery, just as they sometimes do in the UK.

Imber

[mikegall]

Hi Jacquie

that street in the census is just down the road from the address I have on Frederick's birth certificate, so I guess it could be them.  I also found a christening record for a Nellie Elizabeth Rolf born to an Arthur Albert Rolf and A Martha Jane in Harrow-Green Essex, but that's a few miles from the family you found.

Thanks for the tip on the marriage index record?  I can't find it at all on Ancestry but managed to find it on FindMyPast.

I think I need to visit the Waltham Forrest Library Archives to see if I can find an admission record for Frederick into the Scattered Homes in East Ham, which might hold additional clues.

[RunKitty]

Thanks Jacquie, that certainly looks like him.  The birth certificate arrived yesterday and shows that that Frederick was born in the Sub District of Leyton, so it's a good match for this chap in the home.

It does however show that the father was Arthur and not Frederick as I had believed from what was recorded on my Grandmothers marriage certificate.  I suspect that my Grandmother perhaps didn't know the name of her father, or didn't want to use it as she gave her age incorrectly, and used the name of her brother instead.

Might be a good idea to get your grandmother's birth certificate too.

RK

[mikegall]

Latest update is that I have had a response from Barnardos.

Reads.

Frederick Rolfe was born 24th March 1898. He was emigrated to Canada with the Annie Macpherson Home on 26 July 1912 aboard the SS Corsican and arrived Quebec on 3rd August 1912. His records show that he had been with the West Ham Union (workhouse) for eight years in 1912 prior to emigration.  His last known whereabouts was in 1930 when he was living in Calgary Alberta. There are no parents or other family members recorded on file.

The problem I have now is that this birth date doesn't match the Frederick Charles Rolfe I have the birth certificate for and I can't find a Frederick Rolfe born as suggested by Barnardos.

[mikegall]

Hi RK

unfortunately I haven't been able to locate my Grandmother in any birth index and nothing much is known about her family origins.  This is part of the reason why I'm dedicating so much effort into researching Frederick in the hope that it will lead me to her.

M.