Genealogy Chat

I HAD NOT BEEN DOING MY TREE LONG WHEN I ASKED MY HUSBAND TO TRY AND SORT HIS SIDE OF THE FAMILY OUT... WHAT A SURPRISE WE ALL GOT WHEN HE RANG HIS FATHER UP AND FOUND OUT.... THAT A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO HIS FATHER HAD TO GET A NEW BIRTH CERT FOR HIMSELF BECAUSE HE HAD LOST THE OTHER ONE, AND THE NAME ON IT WAS HARMON/HARMAN AND NOT JONES. HIS MOTHER HADN`T TOLD HIM THAT SHE HAD AN AFFAIR WITH HIS FATHER WHILST SHE WAS STILL MARRIED, SO INSTEAD OF LETTING THE HUBBY KNOW SHE PUT THE KIDS IN HIS NAME. HOW BAD IS THAT. LYN.

My mother always told me that her own mother died when she was eight years old. This would have then been 1919. I searched high and low for the death date of my grandmother only to discover a few weeks ago through the BMD site that instead of dying my grandmother remarried..... 1919 My grandmother had 8 children from her belated husband. I have never heard the name of her second husband mentioned in the family at all..... Unfortunately there is no one left to ask and my older cousins had never heard of this marriage either...... I wonder why we were all left in the dark. Eventually found my grandmother died 1922, so I might have one or two aunts or uncles I do not even no about. Elizabeth

My husbands GG Aunt left letters of family facts, however she forgot to write down a fair few important dates etc such as her Grandmothers name ( only recorded her as Miss Ashwell ) forgot to write down her Grt Grandmothers BMD's and just wrote her name Lena Ashwell - the list is endless it's like a big fishing net with a HUGE whole!! Very frustrating My own grt grandmother forgot to mention that although born Grivinnia her mother and step father called her Tabithia and recorded her as such on the 1891 & 1901 census.......... she was recorded as Grivinnia on her BMD's....... she died in 1978 at the ripe age of 91........ I'm glad I had the chance to know her. Much happiness Debi

My Dad who died two years ago at 87 'forgot' to mention that his Mum (my Gran) had been married before she married my Grandad and had three children with her first husband. The strange thing is I met them all when I was growing up. Nothing was ever mentioned of them being half brother and sisters. They all live in Canada now and I have just found out the name and address of one of my relatives about the same age as me and wrote to her last week. Apparently they all knew about it. Waiting for reply with anticipation. Linda

Therer were 3 older daughters, so who know. (they were def his and legit as as it were) I was always told that he 'never knew his father'..and from what i have heard of his mother i guess the girls wouldn't have dared tell! Jess

Jess, I wonder if it was difficult for George's mother to follow through with her lie? Would anyone else have been able to point out the truth, for instance? My gran managed to get her husband and children to believe that her true mother was her stepmother even though she had two full siblings who might have blurted the truth at any time. No wonder she was in a state of constant stress!! Sarah

I hunted high and low for my Maternal G Grandfathers death, - it had to be around the time or just after his son Georges birth, Didn't it? It seems G Grandmother forgot to mention that the man she named on Georges B Cert Was Deceased ....and had been for 5 Years.... This 'George' is still alive(aged 92) and to this day doesn't know this fact that his mother 'failed to mention'...and yes, it is true! Jess x

Excellent stuff Linda! My gran told me her father was ''chief librarian'', but she forgot to mention he worked on his own...... Sarah

HI, I ALWAYS REMEBER MY DAD TELLING ME THAT MY GREAT GRANDAD HAD HIS OWN CLOTHES BUSINESS I ALWAYS THOUGHT HE WAS A TAILOR IN FACT HE TURNED OUT TO BE A ONE LEGGED IRISH RAG AND BONE MAN. HOWS THAT LOVE LINDA

Nudge... As I've changed the original message..... Also....My uncle forgot to mention that whan he said he was standing at his dying father's bedside, he was actually living in Australia, whilst his dad was in Bristol.........No, I can't work it out either!! He wasn't here on a visit! Sarah

My Great-Grandfather, born in 1864, died when I was three. My brother, who is younger than me, is most annoyed that I did not ask him who his Grandfather was when I had the chance - would have saved us five years searching (so far). His wife, my Greatgrandmother, had three sisters, who moved in with GGF after his wife's death in 1919 to look after him. We visited them twice-weekly until I was ten. Then we moved away and I never saw them again, although the last one to die was in 1974. (I am ashamed of this). They never talked of their lives - or maybe I just didnt ask! Marjorie

Ooh Bev, My nan completely forgot to say that the woman she refered to as her stepmother was, in fact, her real mother!! Sarah

The problem with the old uns that I have found is the 'selective memory'! My nan, bless her, totally 'forgot' to mention to ANYONE that she had a stepmother .....................! Bev x

Hi my great Grandmother used to tell me stories of her father Rowland and her Granfather George mutlow Abell who was born 1826. So thats 6 generations back. Her father Rowland apparently ran off with the servant and his father George disowned him. Unfortunatly the census's do not cover the year in which she would of been there to be able to prove it. Although my great grandmother was born in Salford rather than Gloucester where the family came from. Julie

Blimey Heather - I am Totally amazed!! Sarah PS I have a distant cousin aged 93 who remembers her grandparents, but I don't know when they were born (shame on me lol)

I am still in this competiion - I thought you had to have a live rellie who had actually met the ancestor! So, Dad - 91 this year actually met his grandad born 1852 but can still tell stories about his Great Gran who was a washerwoman at St Mary Church Rotherhithe and who saw the ghost of a Roman Solidier when she was crossing the churchyard at 4 in the morning!

My father was born in 1890 and used to tell us about spending summers with his aunt in Cross Michael. She was born in 1840. We don't go in for close-packed generations in my family or my husband's - the last five tiers of our McMeekings average 42 years per generation (usual average I believe 25-30 years)! My late husband's do even better (or is it worse?!) The last five generations of them average 46 years between births and his 3 x gt grandfather was born in 1695! One of his cousins (a lovely gutsy old girl!) has just had her 106th birthday and some of her recollections were published in one of her national newspapers. I'd recount one but the article is in Portuguese! Liz Mardel(-Ferreira) Whoops, senior moment - of course that first sentence doesn't count as my father died many years ago and the part about the generations is off-topic so perhaps I should delete the lot!

Sarah.. thank you for those kind words. I don't want to hijack the thread, but will say that my nan does seem quite comfortable. Its a difficult situation whereby the family obviously want to keep her here with us - but we don't want her to be in pain too. I've written down everything she has told me... scanned photos so as I can write on them who is who... She will be leaving some wonderful memories for us all.

Judith, I think you may need to open that bottle right now lol Sarah - PS there's a thought for another thread - ''What started you on family history?'', but suppose it's been on here many times before?

Oh Sarah, if only someone HAD asked him about his grandparents! I have his baptism and his parents' marriage in Islington but can't trace anything before that. And this old boy seemed so real to me because of Dad's stories that it was him who set me off on the family history trail.