Hi everyone, I have been recommended to ask here as apparently you love a challenge!
I have spent time recently trying to trace my grandmother’s family. It’s been very hard not least to due to the fact that she and her younger sister were in care after their mother died and whilst there their surname was altered. I have worked through that but I have hit a real wall trying to find out about my grandmother’s brother and sisters. My gran lived most of her life in north Devon but was born in London as were all her sisters and brother.
The family is as follows:
Lilian Frances Baggs B: 24 April 1904,
Edith May Baggs B: 27 March 1901 (my grandmother) D 3 January 1981.
Elsie Annie Baggs B: 6 September 1897 Died 20 June 1909,
William Francis Baggs B: 16 February 1895
Alice Louise Baggs B: 8 June 1893,
Charlotte Elizabeth Baggs B: 4 October 1891
Parents: William Walter Baggs died March 1933. and Lettice Elizabeth Susan Sharp(E) died 3 Jan 1909).
Her mother died in January 1909 and sister Elsie in June 1909 both from TB. At some point thereafter my gran and her sister Lilian were put in to care and whilst there had their surnames changed from BAGGS to BIGGS. My Gran always knew herself as Biggs and I suspect the same probably would apply to her sister. I have reason to believe they probably went in to care in late 1910 but don’t know that. They were in care homes known as Miss Steers Homes for Little Girls on the 1911 census.
At the moment I have all their birth certificates. Charlotte, William and Alice all appear on the 1901 census with their mother and aunt. After that absolutely nothing. Similar with Lilian who is on the 1911 census as in care (as Biggs not Baggs). I’m on Ancestry and checked Find My Past, My Heritage and Family Search and trawled through the General Register Office to no avail. I’ve no idea if any of the older children went in to care or not. They would have been aged from 17-13 at the time of their mother’s death. Given I know two of them had their names changed anything is possible. I have traced 8 additional half brothers and sisters after her father remarried.
I have virtually no personal family knowledge to help as my gran never spoke her about family and had no contact with them once she moved to north Devon.
This is probably long winded enough! but I will provide any other information I have if it helps at all.
Thank you for any help or advice you can give me.
