Where else to search...

[HM1992]

Hello,

I hope everyone is well and keeping safe?

To set the story...
I have a great, great uncle, Thomas Charles Raven who was born in Southam, Warwickshire, UK in 1878. He was one of twelve children and has (kind of) fallen off the face of the earth and I am unsure where to look next.

He was the first born to Edward Raven (1857-1941) and Kate Gardner (1861-1944) and Thomas is last recorded as alive on the 1891 Census as 13 years old living in Offchurch. By 1901 I assumed he may be living with a partner or off travelling and a spelling mistake may be why I can't find him. Then by 1911 census, it was written that Kate had 12 children, 6 living and 6 who had died. I counted the 6 alive in 1911 and knew then that Thomas had now passed somewhere between 1891 and 1911.

I cannot find anything. I'm stumped. There's no death record (i'd order a few a few years off that were a dead end), no parish record or even thinking it wasn't far off the time of the Boer war any enlistment record(s). I'm wondering where I could turn to to look next?

Thank you!

All the best

Hannah

[Treetotal]

You could try online Family trees on Ancestry, or, he could be using his middle name, also newspapers may maybe another thing that you could try. Immigration records/passenger lists are also worth a look.
Carol

[Rena]

Can you give his occupation(s)?   Quite often a person's occupation can give a clue to a disappearance from home.

[HM1992]

Thank you Carol. I think newspapers may be the way to go. Looks like I'll need to book an appointment at my local archives. I did wonder if he went by his middle name but he had a brother called Charles born a few years later and they lived together on the census but will try searching that.

Hi Rena, it said on the 1891 census he was a labourer but no indication of type.

[mirl]

There are a couple of online trees that give a date of death as 29 Nov 1972 but have no location or source references.

[Girl Guide]

I wonder if this may be Thomas in the 1901 census?

Living here 19, Bell Street, Wolverhampton, Staffordshire

Transcribed as Thomas Roven, born 1879 in Birmingham.  His occupation is musician street pianist.

Registration district Wolverhampton
Piece number 2671
Folio 79
Page 4

I had a look at the original image and it does say Roven.  However there does not appear to be a birth record for a Roven covering the relevant years.

You have to bear in mind that people did not always have their place of birth correctly stated in census records.

Anyway something to consider.

[Girl Guide]

Have you thought about getting his birth certificate for an exact date of birth?

RAVEN, THOMAS  CHARLES     GARDNER 
GRO Reference: 1878  M Quarter in SOUTHAM  Volume 06D  Page 705

Cost is £7 as a pdf from the GRO.

I see that he was baptised on 3rd February 1878 so probably born in January or right at the end of December 1877.

[Girl Guide]

I had a look through the BMD for births, deaths etc.

By 1911 five had died, Archibald, Mercy, Alice E, Daniel and Kate Elizabeth. 

Charles Edward married in 1910 in Rugby and he is on the 1911 census living at Lawford Road New Bilton, Bilton, Warwickshire.

So the implication is that Thomas has died somewhere between 1891 and 1911 but where and when is the problem 

[HM1992]

There are a couple of online trees that give a date of death as 29 Nov 1972 but have no location or source references.

He would have died before 1911 according to his mothers children still living column.

I wonder if this may be Thomas in the 1901 census?

Living here 19, Bell Street, Wolverhampton, Staffordshire

Transcribed as Thomas Roven, born 1879 in Birmingham.  His occupation is musician street pianist.

Registration district Wolverhampton
Piece number 2671
Folio 79
Page 4

I had a look at the original image and it does say Roven.  However there does not appear to be a birth record for a Roven covering the relevant years.

You have to bear in mind that people did not always have their place of birth correctly stated in census records.

Anyway something to consider.

Thank you! will look into this as piano playing runs in the family!

Have you thought about getting his birth certificate for an exact date of birth?

RAVEN, THOMAS  CHARLES     GARDNER 
GRO Reference: 1878  M Quarter in SOUTHAM  Volume 06D  Page 705

Cost is £7 as a pdf from the GRO.

I see that he was baptised on 3rd February 1878 so probably born in January or right at the end of December 1877.

That may be the next step, the family moved around a lot of the parishes in the area too, so I'm going to go do some searching and see if any records weren't added or were damaged.

I had a look through the BMD for births, deaths etc.

By 1911 five had died, Archibald, Mercy, Alice E, Daniel and Kate Elizabeth. 

Charles Edward married in 1910 in Rugby and he is on the 1911 census living at Lawford Road New Bilton, Bilton, Warwickshire.

So the implication is that Thomas has died somewhere between 1891 and 1911 but where and when is the problem 

Yes, it's quite the mystery, I thought he may have travelled abroad, (cant find any records yet) but then the family still would of been notified of his death meaning you'd hope someone would know something. I'm thinking he may have signed up for the boer war, but again, hoped someone would know something / some record indication. Looking at workhouse records too.