You say, " if this is even the right Ralph Mellor!"
Yes, I was wondering about that! Where did you find the medal info you quoted in your opening post? Do you have the medals? Or did you just look for army records for any Ralph Mellor on a genealogy website and assume that was him?
Do you know for a fact that R Mellor 8268 is the same person as R Mellor 4909?
Looking again at R Mellor 8268 -
Ralph Mellor in the UK, WWI Pension Ledgers and Index Cards, 1914-1923 View Original Image on Fold3. Name: Ralph Mellor Gender: Male Rank: Pte Birth Date: 1869 Residence Place: Fenton Staffs <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< Military Service Region: Midlands, England Discharge Date: 26 Mar 1917 Service Number: 8268 Regiment: N. Staffs Title: Pension Record Cards Description: Pension Record Ledger Reference Number: 6/MM/No.865
There was a Ralph Mellor in Fenton in 1911:
Ralph Mellor in the 1911 England Census Name: Ralph Mellor Age in 1911: 38 Estimated birth year: abt 1873 Relation to Head: Son-in-law Gender: Male Birth Place: Draycot In Clay, Staffordshire Civil Parish: Fenton County/Island: Staffordshire Country: England Street address: 18 Park Road, Fenton <<<<<<<<<<<<<<< Marital status: Married Occupation: Coal Miner and Hewer Registration district: Stoke upon Trent Registration District Number: 361 Sub-registration district: Fenton ED, institution, or vessel: 8 Household schedule number: 197 Piece: 16578 Household Members: Name Age Elizabeth Wild 66 Joseph Thomas Wild 44 William Wild 42 Ralph Mellor 38 Henrietta Mellor 34 Henrietta Doris Mellor 1/12
Ralph Mellor in the 1881 England Census Name: Ralph Mellor Age: 8 Estimated birth year: abt 1873 Relationship to Head: Son Father: William Mellor Mother: Ruth Mellor Gender: Male Where born: Draycott, Staffordshire, England Civil Parish: Draycott in Clay County/Island: Staffordshire Country: England Street address: Stubby Lane Occupation: Scholar Registration district: Uttoxeter ED, institution, or vessel: 5 Neighbors: Piece: 2752 Folio: 53 Page Number: 3 Household Members: Name Age William Mellor 53 Ruth Mellor 51 William Mellor 25 Clara Mellor 10 Ralph Mellor 8
Births Dec 1872 (>99%) MELLOR Ralph Uttoxeter 6b 335
Marriages Dec 1908 (>99%) MELLOR Ralph Stoke T. 6b 308 WILD Henrietta Stoke T. 6b 308
But then again, other medal records for R Mellor 8268 give his YOB as either 1864 or 1869.
He had several siblings, including a Clara (1870), who apparently died unmarried - but no Thomas.
In case it's relevant - Fenton Ralph's sister Clara:
MELLOR, CLARA mms WATSON GRO Reference: 1870 D Quarter in UTTOXETER Volume 06B Page 312
Clara Mellor in the 1871 England Census Name: Clara Mellor Age: 4/12 Estimated birth year: 1870 Relation: Daughter Gender: Female Where born: Draycott Staffordshire England Civil Parish: Draycott in the Clay County/Island: Staffordshire Country: England Registration district: Uttoxeter Sub-registration district: Sudbury ED, institution, or vessel: 5 Household schedule number: 43 Piece: 2895 Folio: 80 Page Number: 9 Household Members: Name Age William Mellor 43 Ruth Mellor 41 William Mellor 15 George Mellor 6 Eliza Mellor 4 Ann Mellor 1 Clara Mellor 4/12
Clara Mellor in the 1881 England Census Name: Clara Mellor Age: 10 Estimated birth year: abt 1871 Relationship to Head: Daughter Father: William Mellor Mother: Ruth Mellor Gender: Female Where born: Draycott, Staffordshire, England Civil Parish: Draycott in Clay County/Island: Staffordshire Country: England Street address: Stubby Lane Occupation: Scholar Registration district: Uttoxeter ED, institution, or vessel: 5 Neighbors: Piece: 2752 Folio: 53 Page Number: 3 Household Members: Name Age William Mellor 53 Ruth Mellor 51 William Mellor 25 Clara Mellor 10 Ralph Mellor 8
Clara Mellor in the 1911 England Census Name: Clara Mellor Age in 1911: 38 Estimated birth year: abt 1873 Relation to Head: Servant Gender: Female Birth Place: Draycott, Staffordshire, England Civil Parish: Derby County/Island: Derbyshire Country: England Street address: Oaklands Duffield Road Derby Marital status: Single Occupation: Tarlen Maid (Domestic) Registration district: Derby Registration District Number: 435 Sub-registration district: Derby ED, institution, or vessel: 14 Piece: 20885 Household Members: Name Age Robert Baker Chambers 61 Florence Jane Chambers 51 Clara Mellor 38 Sarah Ellen Rouse 23 Sarah Elizabeth Woodward 3
Clara Mellor in the 1939 England and Wales Register Name: Clara Mellor Gender: Female Marital status: Single Birth Date: 2 Dec 1870 Residence Year: 1939 Address: 111 Residence Place: Swadlincote District, Derbyshire, England Occupation: Retired Domestic Duties Unpaid Schedule Number: 66 Sub Schedule Number: 2 Enumeration District: RBXT Registration district: 434A/2. Household Members: Name Annie Lea - 2 July 1869 Clara Mellor Doris Mellor - 5 April 1894
Annie Lea is Clara's sister (see 1871 above), and Doris is their niece (see 1901 below).
Annie Lea in the 1901 England Census Name: Annie Lea Age: 31 Estimated birth year: abt 1870 Relation to Head: Head Gender: Female Birth Place: Draycott, Staffordshire, England Civil Parish: Burton Extra Ecclesiastical parish: Burton upon Trent All Saints County/Island: Staffordshire Country: England Registration district: Burton upon Trent Sub-registration district: Burton upon Trent ED, institution, or vessel: 21 Neighbors: Piece: 2644 Folio: 35 Page Number: 12 Household schedule number: 71 Household Members: Name Age Annie Lea 31 Constance Lea 3 William Lea 1 Lewis Mellor 40 - brother, widowed Joseph Mellor 12 - nephew Lewis Mellor 11 - nephew Doris Mellor 6 - neice
Marriages Sep 1897 (>99%) Lea William Burton 6b 583 Mellor Annie Burton 6b 583
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Than you for so much info on Ralph and Clara. I had searched myself and come across some of this info, but I was trying to connect it all to Henry and Thomas. And as you can see it dose not seem to fit all three children I know about to the supposed father Henry. The medals are in the possession of a cousin who copied the info on them for me. I realise that they were campaign medals, but we could not understand why the medals were in Thomas's branch of the family which is a long way from Staffs and where Ralph was [we thought still living] and why had they not gone to his wife and or children. My great grandfather Thomas did not seem to have much contact with his siblings or speak much of them. Clara as far as I know only visited her nephew [my grandfather] the once in 1936 when her brother Thomas had been dead for over 20 years. The story of the desertion was mixed up with another story that was true and proved to be, the trouble was that happened in the 1850's Australian gold rush. So even the timing of the events was out by at least 40 years! It seems that the mystery around Thomas and his siblings is set to continue!!!. Once again I thank you for your great efforts to unpick the tangle that is my family tree.
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