Loppy I will be sending the info for ordering the overseas records via the private message system, as the names are potentially living folks, which cannot be put in this forum. You should get an email alert; or just check MY MESSAGES in the dark brown bar at the top of any forum page.
So far the best possible fit previously posted for a Walter Welfare born around London shows a birth date of 1892, but several army records are saying his birth was in 1903, London, and the nearest to 1903 birth that could be found was the wrong area (per the army).
There is one entry that Freebmd has for 1903 in Stepney that works, but there was no info, other than see "S/31". Fortunately the transcriber has put a note that it appears to be a late entry, and is in the GRO for 1931! The transcriber could see the mmn as Cowell, but the GRO is not listing that. (See below)
see here:
https://www.freebmd.org.uk/cgi/information.pl?r=110049791:5576&d=bmd_1677511478There is a marriage of William Welfare to Sarah Maria Cowell in Bethnal Green, in 1892:
Jun 1892
COWELL Sarah Maria Bethnal Green 1c 485
WELFARE William Bethnal Green 1c 485
I literally went around in circles for hours trying to peg this family down, and think I have figured it out. The problem in searching them is, Sarah Maria started going by the first name of Caroline at some point between daughter Caroline's baptism, and the 1901 census.
The children I could find are as follows - the early ones don't seem to have Birth registrations, most have baptisms (images on Anc*), but haven't posted them all here:
Caroline: 1892 - baptism gives dob as 05 Dec 1892 to parents William and Sarah Maria
Thomas: 1894 - dob from school records and various censuses. Possible death record states 25
Mar 1894 (baptism as an adult in 1907)
Harriet: 1885 - date from her marriage.
Frederick - WELFARE, FREDERICK WILLIAM COWELL
GRO Reference: 1900 J Quarter in STEPNEY Volume 01C Page 419
Walter - WELFARE, WALTER
GRO Reference: 1931 S Quarter in STEPNEY Volume 01C Page 434
WELFARE, ALICE LOUISA COWELL
GRO Reference: 1907 J Quarter in BETHNAL GREEN Volume 01C Page 176
WELFARE, JOHN COWELL
GRO Reference: 1909 J Quarter in BETHNAL GREEN Volume 01C Page 170
Baptism to parent William and Caroline, dob 08 Mar 1909
One would think that Sarah Maria passed away, and William remarried a Caroline, but the 1911 states they were married 18 years. The baptisms for the youngest children, with GRO mmn Cowell show parents as Caroline and William....
Sarah Maria appears to be born a few years before her mother, Catherine Dobinson, married Thomas Cowell, and.....
Catherine also started using the name Caroline in the 1891 census....
If this is the right family, they are all easy to trace forwards and backwards with the exception of some of their birth registrations. I can't really explain why the mother and daughter both changed their first name to Caroline.... baffling!
And to make matters worse, the only GRO for a birth of Sarah Maria Dobinson, that fits (so far) has a mmn of Spickett.
Apologies for the long confusing post! Hopefully someone can see if I deviated somewhere!
