Looking for info on Romani community in north Sheffield c. 1910

[gilliengro]

Hi,

My great-grandfather, Albert Boyes, was born to Ellen (Nellie) Boyes, an unwed single mother, in 1910. On the 1911 census Nellie and baby Albert are listed as visiting someone in Hillsborough; Nellie's family home was in Brightside.

Genetic testing that I've undergone has suggested that Albert Boyes' father was at least partially Romani. I know of the Darnall Feasting Grounds from the "The Romani" site but as I'm new to Romani genealogy and from the south of the city I don't have much knowledge of the Romani community in north Sheffield around the time Albert was born. Where were the encampments, for instance?

For what it's worth, Smith, a common Romani surname, is my top surname match on 23andme. The 1901 census lists an Isral (Israel?) Smith, the batchelor son of Mama Smith born in 1878, as living at the Darnall Feasting Ground but of course given the nature of the Romani it's unlikely he lived there in 1911. Smith is also a common surname amongst English-speaking people as a whole so this confuses the situation somewhat.

Any help would be appreciated! 

[gela]

Hello

My family are Smiths and they settled in Ecclesfield and lived at Attercliffe before that.I have had my DNA done but it is with Ancestery and my tree is on there to .

[amandski]

Hi

I’m also from Sheffield and know a bit about stopping places from doing my own family history. I do know there was one in Hillsborough and one in Crookes. As well as the Darnall feast grounds, there were quite a few in and around Attercfifle. Also Dore, Ringinglow and Bramall Lane. There were Boswell’s in Beighton, I think mostly in houses, but probably is a stopping place somewhere.
Perhaps we are related somewhere down the line!
All the best
Mandy

[Joel Therrien]

Wow, it's nice to see some others who have ancestry in the Midlands. My great grandparents, Harry Higginbottom and Sarah Smith emigrated to the States around 1919. They previously lived in Sheffield. Both families settled in the Sheffield area between 1840-1860. Prior to that my Higginbottoms and Leatherbarrows travelled through the west Midlands from Sheffield to Liverpool. The Smith family travelled the eastern Midlands. Almost 100% of the Higginbottom men were listed as tool grinders from my g-grandfather going as far back as I can in the records. Interestingly, the entire extended family emigrated to Millbury Massachusetts to work for Buck Brothers Tools. The company had expanded and built a housing complex called "Buck Village". According to my grandmother, almost every house in the village was occupied by a relative either from the Higginbottom or Smith side. All the men worked as edged tool grinders.

I would love to chat with anyone who has Romani family from the Midlands. Sadly it appears the family decided to hide their ancestry from their kids when they came to the US. I only uncovered our real history in the past few years.

[Orphan63]

Hello

My family are Smiths and they settled in Ecclesfield and lived at Attercliffe before that.I have had my DNA done but it is with Ancestery and my tree is on there to .

Gela/everyone, my ancestors were Howells who settled in Stocks Hill, Ecclesfield in mid 19th Century.  Elizabeth Howell was born Brown, daughter of Francis Brown, also known as Elless I think.  I believe that her maternal grandmother was Charlotte Allen. All these came from Lincolnshire but prior to that I have strange unverified information that they came from further south.  I have just sent off for mtDNA and if this is right Charlotte Allen will be my direct matrilineal ancestor so it's an important line.  I'm on Ancestry and have done mtDNA with a lot of matches but my tree is out of shape (I can't remember where I got the information and my documentation is not great) so I am looking to compare notes/DNA matches.  Just so you know these Howells were same family as Rabbi Howell the footballer.