Millicent Alice COX/BELLAMY born 1875ish

[ValJJJ]

Pity.

I'll see what Salford library has in its archives for its workhouses.  Shame the admission registers were destroyed, but there might be something in the minutes about packing off children with Maria Rye.

[Maiden Stone]

On July 16, 1984 Millie married George Francis Prescott in Winnipeg. Millie lists her parents as Francis Cox (I don’t know who this is) and Sarah Parson (her adoptive mother - Richard Bellamy’s wife).  Census records indicate they moved to the US in 1986. 

Typos with dates. 

1876 an Alice Cox was registered in Newton sub-district /civil parish, Manchester, mother's maiden surname Cox.
2 births registered in Preston district with mother's maiden surname Cox:
 1875 Mary Cox
 1876 Mary Cox
(Lancashire BMD)

[Maiden Stone]

Liverpool University has a Mary Rye collection.

[ValJJJ]

Thanks Maiden Stone.  I've edited those date typos - I noticed them myself today too.  They were as sent to me and I didn't take much notice as not relevant to her origins.

Well spotted re the Alice Cox birth, and Mary is another angle.  I had been searching for Millicent, thinking Alice might have been a later middle name and not registered.  It's quite possible Alice was her registered name and then Millicent an afterthought.  I've found quite a few in my family using names that were not given at registration.  I'll see if that Alice Cox is recorded later than 1880 anywhere in England - if so then it won't be the mystery Millicent.

Re the Maria Rye collection at Liverpool, I think my genetic relative X has wrung all she can from that source, via the researcher.  I think the passenger list is interesting as the children's names are not particularly in alphabetical or age order, so one avenue is to see if any of the other children came from a particular workhouse.  Unfortunately the passenger list is very faint but just about legible.

I'm wondering about Francis Cox, alleged father.  This could be a red herring or something to chase. 

I'll also check the newspaper archive when next at a public library as there might just be something connected with these names. 

The biggest clue is the DNA link, probably leading back beyond Charles Holmes with his father John born in Broughton, Lancs rather than his wife Eliza Cox.

[ValJJJ]

1876 an Alice Cox was registered in Newton sub-district /civil parish, Manchester, mother's maiden surname Cox.
2 births registered in Preston district with mother's maiden surname Cox:
 1875 Mary Cox
 1876 Mary Cox
(Lancashire BMD)

Alice Cox 1876 shown on FreeBMD as registered in Prestwich (which did swallow up Newton) but the birth was registered in Q1, whereas Millicent Alice Cox always gave her birthday as in August.  Usually children know their birthday but perhaps that wasn't always the case?

I haven't found her in the death index up to 1880 so she is a possible.  There are too many Alice Cox entries to see if this particular one married in England, which would eliminate her.

[ValJJJ]

I’m revisiting this puzzle after some while.

I did look at the other children in the party to see if there was anything they had in common but the ones that I could find in birth records were from all over the country. Of course they might not be the right girls.

[additional info edit] https://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/immigration/immigration-records/passenger-lists/passenger-lists-quebec-port-1865-1900/Pages/image.aspx?Image=e003539365&URLjpg=http%3a%2f%2fcentral.bac-lac.gc.ca%2f.item%2f%3fid%3de003539365%26op%3dimg&Ecopy=e003539365

Odd that the party includes a [edit] 70 72-year old, unless that is a clerical or transcription error. [edit]The transcription says 'Isabella, WA??, Female, 72'.  Why was she with them?  A nurse? A companion for Maria Rye? Has her name popped up before? [edit] I’m assuming WA are initials for her surname or perhaps I’ve misread the entry. Looks like it could be the first two letters of her name?  Walker perhaps?  I tried looking in the 1871 census but not got anywhere using LDS [edit] with WA.

The passenger list is hard to read- perhaps she was Canadian.

[Maiden Stone]

Odd that the party includes a 72-year old, unless that is a clerical or transcription error . ...  Why was she with them?  A nurse? A companion for Maria Rye?

Perhaps a matron type person to help look after the children on the voyage . She may have been an employee of the charity or been connected to it, or she may have been recruited for the voyage if she had already planned to travel. Those are just suggestions. Was her occupation recorded?   
How many children were in Maria Rye's party?

[ValJJJ]

36 including some boys. [edit] think I’ve misread the columns so all girls and perhaps ticks are for different age groups. The headings are blurred.

I’ve just been to the library to access the passenger list images in the hope of seeing trancsriptions but Ancestry doesn’t transcribe them. The Canadian website does but I haven’t worked out how to see a list for one page yet. Perhaps it’s not possible.

[edit] there aren’t any details such as occupation.

[ValJJJ]

I found the line and it could be Isabella Walker or Baker. It does look like 72 not 12 but she is amongst the list of children (who are not in alphabetical or age order). Those in their thirties are at the end of the list.