Hans Behr - possibly in the Beccles area of Suffolk in the 1940's

[robson1]

I've posted this in the Europe chat room as well but I will post here as it could be more specific.

I'm searching, on behalf of my mother, for a 'Hans Behr'. He was German and had a relationship with my Grandmother Daphne in the 1940's. Daphne was from the Beccles area but moved to Glasgow. My mother resulted from this relationship and was born in 1948. We don't know if this relationship happened in the Beccles area of Suffolk, England, or if this occurred in Glasgow, Scotland, as the move happened around this time.

We only relatively recently found out that Hans Behr was the father of my own mother, her name being Carol, and that for a time he was sending money and letters to my grandmother, but this didn't continue beyond a few years. As a result we know very little.

We would really love to find out any information about Hans, any family he may have, and the life he lived, and so on.

If anyone could help, or help usher me in the right direction, as I've never done anything like this before, that would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

Moderator comment: Other posts (all now locked to prevent duplication of effort):

https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=806628.0

https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=806625.0

https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=806638.0

Please make any replies here

[mosstrooper]

If Hans was in Perthshire during WW2 he would have been detained here :-
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultybraggan_Camp

This Prison Camp was near Perth and still stands today very much like it was then, I have photos.
I'm sure there will be records somewhere for you to search and start your story.
I won't quote the story here and leave you to read the contents. Hans might have been a very naughty boy.

James.

[Gibel]

There was a German POW camp at Ellough Airfield Beccles from 1945 to 1948. Do the letters have an address on them?

[robson1]

Hi and thanks for your replies.

We have no idea about the letters as they weren't kept, or at least, weren't kept for long. The family never got chance to see them, only my grandmother, so the only thing we knew of them was when she told one of my siblings about them some time ago. My grandmother has since passed so we cannot ask her for any more information any longer.

The POW avenue is one I am thinking could be possible and is perhaps the most probable as well. There were a lot of camps but it certainly looks like that search can be narrowed quite a lot by keeping it to the Beccles or Perth areas. I will be trying the International Red Cross in the coming days to see if they have any record of him.

I'm also aware that what we could find out may not be the nicest of things, but we want to find out the truth, so even if the truth hurts, so be it. We just want to put the pieces of this puzzle together.

Thanks again.

[keyboard86]

Hi only a thought, could he have been a refugee in 1939, as I can see a Hans BEAR in a refugee camp?
Keyboard86

[robson1]

Hi. I honestly wouldn't know and I suppose the more things that are brought up the more things I can look into and investigate whether or not it's our guy or not. We have been told that the spelling is 'Behr' (pronounced 'Bear') so I'm thinking, could this have been something that somebody wrote down as a misspelling? I suppose that's possible as I've already found that spellings aren't always 100% accurate on family history searches.

Can I ask where abouts you found this Hans Bear?

[keyboard86]

Hi again, he is an Upholsterer Refugee looking for work b 1913 in a Refugee camp in Shardlow, Shropshire in 1939?
Keyboard86

[robson1]

Thanks. I shall look into it.