Do you become emotional doing family history?

[Mart 'n' Al]

Annie, Rosinish, unfortunately I can't even claim much of an achievement in what I found out.

3 years ago I mentioned the names of my father's parents on my website. I was contacted by a lady in Australia who told me that they were her great-grandparents. We dug a bit deeper together, and she found out that the aunt with whom I had many holidays was actually my father's mother and that my father was brought up by my "aunt" 's parents. This meant that my new found cousin in Australia and I shared the same great-grandparents. It seems that my naughty aunty, in the Twenties and thirties gave birth to three different children with three different men. I knew her when I was between 10 and 15 and she was about 60 and she was just like anybody's lovely aunty. Little did we know what a fiery life she had before the Second World War.

Martin

[Jomot]

I've become emotional a few times, and often wonder at how on earth so many young people coped with such difficult lives. 

My (illegitimate) Great Grandfather, for example, was deserted by his mother as a baby, lost his two infant children on the same day when he was just 22, and then shortly afterwards his wife ran off with another man.  How utterly alone he must have felt.

The one that really upsets me though is my GG Uncle, a member of the US Navy who was shot dead on the street in Oregon following a minor argument when he was just 25 years old.  This was in 1913, and every time I hear of a gun death in the US I get so angry that 100 years on and still nothing has been learned.

[Davedrave]

I’ve just come across another sad episode since posting this. Mary Lea married in 1832 and that was all that my rels who originally started the FH knew of her, apart from her baptism (the marriage taken from a family bible). I’ve just found her husband John Barber, on his father’s farm in the 1841 Census, no Mary Barber. Now I’ve just found her buried in her home village, aged 21, and on the line below, same date, Mary Barber, “aged under 12 hours”. So she died giving birth to her first baby.

Correction: I misread the age, it said under 12 months. Baby Mary was baptised on 11 January and both were buried on 15th January. Still very sad.

[Rosinish]

unfortunately I can't even claim much of an achievement in what I found out.

It seems that my naughty aunty, in the Twenties and thirties gave birth to three different children with three different men.

Ohh! I think I'd be a bit shocked etc. but it's intriguing at the same time.
Who brought up the other 2 kids & was there any contact or mention of names which now fall into place, now knowing the story?

Annie

[Rosinish]

I’ve just found her husband John Barber, on his father’s farm in the 1841 Census, no Mary Barber. Now I’ve just found her buried in her home village, aged 21, and on the line below, same date, Mary Barber, “aged under 12 hours”. So she died giving birth to her first baby.

Correction: I misread the age, it said under 12 months. Baby Mary was baptised on 11 January and both were buried on 15th January. Still very sad.

Still sad regardless as both were very young.

Annie

[jaybelnz]

When I'm focusing on my Scottish (New Cumnock Ayrshire) coal mining ancestors and their families, yes, I do get quite emotional. Many of them died in mining accidents, some of them not much more than children.  I have an old book about the Knochshinnoch Mining disaster in 1950, that many of my relatives were lost in, that was sent to my mother.  On the fly sheet, she has written that her "grandfather was working in the mines from the time he was 8 years old"!  It's just so hard to imagine a wee lad working underground in those conditions.  It was outlawed by that time, but it still happened, the money was needed to feed and clothe their big families!

It also makes me sad to know so that many of my older maternal relatives were injured or lost their lives in the mines, and that he and other young people were working in coal mines (and other dangerous places) at such a young age!

Also the thought that the wives were widowed, with big families to keep on little or no income!  Although I was told that they did get a little help from the Union, and the Church!  Pretty sad though!  😥
Modified to add......  I can't believe how many of my ancestor's children were born out of "wedlock" and how young the parents were!  Particularly as they were all very devout Baptists!  😃

My paternal 2xGreatgrandfather died at sea bound for Australia, the cause of his death was Sunstroke, date of death was only 10 days out from his departure from London!  Recently widowed, he was going to visit (or maybe live with) his daughter and son-in-law who lived in Melbourne!  As this death was in February, I can't fathom how he got sunstroke, when it was probably still the English Winter! 

A very kind Rootschatter who was following my Scavenger hunt at the time, found him for me on the Deaths At Sea Marine Register!

[iolaus]

unfortunately I can't even claim much of an achievement in what I found out.

It seems that my naughty aunty, in the Twenties and thirties gave birth to three different children with three different men.

Ohh! I think I'd be a bit shocked etc. but it's intriguing at the same time.
Who brought up the other 2 kids & was there any contact or mention of names which now fall into place, now knowing the story?

Annie

I believe my grandmother did the same, it is only believe as my father thinks she had a stillborn son prior to marriage to his father in 1938.  I know she had two daughters, one was adopted the other I believe she raised (my father knew her as his eldest sister but she was married at 19 before his birth so she didn't live with him), she then married while 7 months pregnant with my aunt

[iolaus]

On the fly sheet, she has written that her "grandfather was working in the mines from the time he was 8 years old"!  It's just so hard to imagine a wee lad working underground in those conditions.  It was outlawed by that time, but it still happened,

I remember taking my elder children down big pit in south wales, my son was 6 or 7 at the time and they pointed out he would have been old enough to work down there, and had him opening doors etc as that is what they would be doing at that age - but made us all turn off the head lights we had - as at that age they would be considered too young to be trusted with a candle/lamp so would be there all shift in the dark, waiting to hear sounds of the cart to open the doors - fun for a few minutes with plenty around you - petifying for a 12 hour shift on your own

[Jackiemh]

Yes, I often wonder how they coped with the terrible loss of life. A couple of months ago, I found a press report on a fire which occurred in Moorgate, 1912, in which 8 girls died. Sadly, one of my relatives accidently started the fire. I can't imagine how it must have affected him but he lived until 1976.
Jackie