Success Stories

THANKS TO ALL WHO HELPED I JOINED GENES REUNITED AND DECIDED TO TRY AND FIND SOME FAMILY HISTORY OF MY HUSBANDS FAMILY. I FOUND SOME OF HIS DISTANT RELATIVES AND CORRESPONDED WITH THEM. I THEN STARTED TO THINK ABOUT MY OWN ROOTS, (I AM AN ONLY CHILD AND MY FATHER HAS BEEN DECEASED FOR OVER 30 YEARS). AND REMEMBERED AS A CHILD WHEN MY FATHER HAD ENQUIRED ABOUT TAKING OUT SOME LIFE INSURANCE FOR HIMSELF AN INSURANCE AGENT CAME TO THE HOUSE, ONE OF THE QUESTIONS THEY ASKED HIM WAS HIS OWN PARENTS” CAUSE OF DEATH”, AND I VAUGELY REMEMBERED HIM SAYING “MY MOTHER WAS MURDERED”. I KNEW NOTHING MORE ABOUT THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF HER DEATH, BUT WHAT I DID HAVE WAS A BOOK OF LONGFELLOW POETRY THAT HAD BEEN PASSED ONTO ME WHEN MY FATHER DIED, IT HAD BEEN GIVEN TO HIS MOTHER FROM SUNDAY SCHOOL AS A CHILD, IT HAD HER NAME LOUISA SAVAGE AND THE DATE AND PLACE IT WAS GIVEN. I ALSO KNEW THAT SHE HAD BEEN MARRIED TO MY GRANDFATHER ROBERT GATES, AND THAT THEY HAD LIVED IN WALWORTH IN LONDON. BUT WHERE COULD I BEGIN. --- I PUT A NOTICE ON GENES REUNITED AND ASKED FOR HELP TO TRACE THE DATE OF BIRTH OF A LOUISA SAVAGE, AND ALSO THE DATE OF HER DEATH THAT I KNEW HAD OCCURRED WHEN MY DAD WAS ABOUT TWO YEARS OF AGE. I FOUND THE YEAR OF HER DEATH TO HAVE BEEN 1918. I ALSO KNEW HER NAME AT THE TIME OF HER DEATH I RECEIVED REPLIES FROM A FEW PEOPLE AND THEY MANAGED TO HELP ME TRACE HER DATE OF BIRTH 1895 AND ALSO THE DATE OF DEATH 1918. THEY IN TURN ADVISED HOW TO APPLY FOR COPIES OF HER DEATH CERTIFICATE. I APPLIED FOR A COPY OF HER DEATH CERTIICATE AND FROM THAT I FOUND THE CAUSE OF DEATH WAS MURDER BY PERSON OR PERSONS UNKNOWN, (SHE WAS 23 YEARS OF AGE). I THEN TRIED TO OBTAIN COPIES OF LOUISA’S INQUEST, THE FUNNY THING WAS AS I WAS TOLD BY BERKSHIRE RECORDS OFFICE MOST INQUEST REPORTS BEFORE 1930 HAD BEEN DESTROYED AND THIS ONE WAS THE ONLY ONE REMAINING. I OBTAINED COPIES, AND ALSO NEWSPAPER REPORTS OF THE TIME, RECORDING THAT THERE HAD BEEN TWO INQUESTS, EVIDENCE FROM THE POLICE AND WITNESS REPORTS, AND WITNESS STATEMENTS. I LATER FOUND THAT SHE HAD 2 CHILDREN UNDER THE AGE OF 4)... WILLIAM, MY FATHER BEING THE YOUNGEST, AND GEORGE 2 YEARS OLDER. (I had never heard of George until reading the inquest report.) I FOUND THAT ON THE DAY OF HER DISAPPERENCE SHE HAD TRAVELLED BY TRAIN TO SUNNINGDALE IN BERKSHIRE TO MEET AN AMERICAN WHO WAS STATIONED IN THE UK WITH THE CANADIAN EXPERDITIONARY FORCE. (HER HUSBAND MY GRANDFATHER WAS AWAY SERVING IN THE WAR). AND ON THAT DAY SUNDAY 18TH AUGUST 1918 WHEN SHE FAILED TO RETURN TO HER ROOMS, HIS MOTHER AND HER AUNT WENT TO HER ROOMS AND FOUND A LETTER ADDRESSED “ DEAR LOUIE”, ARRANGING A MEETING AT SUNNINGDALE TRAIN STATION FROM A SERVICEMAN IN THE CANADIAN ARMY NAMED VANCE. HER BODY WAS FOUND FIVE WEEKS LATER BY A FARM LABOURER WHO WAS CUTTING FERN; IT WAS IN A WOOD ON THE CHARTERS ESTATE. THE WOOD WAS ENCLOSED ON THE ROAD SIDE BY A WOODEN FENCE ON THE LAND SIDE IT WAS OPEN, THE BODY COULD NOT BE SEEN FROM THE ROAD, VANCE WAS QUESTIONED BY THE POLICE BUT SAID IN HIS STATEMENT “HE HAD ARRIVED LATE AT THE STATION AND THAT LOUISA WAS NOT THERE SO HE LEFT”. LOUISA WAS FOUND IN A WOODED AREA LESS THAN ONE MILE FROM THE STATION—SHE HAD BEEN GAGGED WITH HER HANDKERCHIEF AND STRANGLED WITH HER OWN MACKINTOSH BELT, HER HANDBAG WAS MISSING. THE POSTMORTEM EXAMINATION WAS CARRIED OUT IN THE OUTHOUSE AJOINING THE “NAG’S HEAD” PUBLIC HOUSE (by Robert Donaldson MD) pathologist at The Royal Berkshire Hospital. VANCE TOLD THE POLICE THAT AS SHE HAD FAILED TO MEET HIM ON THE DATE IN QUESTION THAT HE DID NOT TRY TO CORRESPOND OR MAKE ANY OTHER CONTACT WITH HER. A PERSON NAMED EMMA GAGNON A FRIEND OF LOUISA ALSO GAVE EVIDENCE, “SAYING THAT LOUISA HAD VISITED HER HOUSE IN SUNNINGDALE ON PREVIOUS OCCASSIONS AND THE ONLY VISITOR SHE HAD WHILE AT THIS FRIEND’S WAS VANCE. EMMA SAID SHE HAD TOLD LOUISA THAT HER HUSBAND OBJECTED TO THESE MEETINGS AND THAT SHE WAS NOT TO MEET HIM THERE AGAIN. THE POLICE NOTES SAY VANCE WAS A SUSPECT AND THAT THEY HAD MET AT SUNNIGDALE ON PREVIOUS OCCASIONS BUT I EXPECT THAT AS IT WAS SOME FIVE WEEKS BETWEEN THE DATE OF DEATH AND THE BODY BEING FOUND THE POLICE EVIDENCE WAS NOT ABLE TO SHOW VANCE AS COMMITING THE MURDER, AND DNA MATCHING WAS NOT AVAILABLE AT THAT TIME. Whether it was Vance or a passing stranger who had committed the murder that will never be known. LESS THAN ONE YEAR LATER IN 1919 VANCE TOOK A YOUNG BERKSHIRE BRIDE WITH HIM TO THE USA, HE DIED THERE IN 1962. Vance N******, spouse Florence P***** March 1919, married at Maidenhead Berks. SO THE MURDERER IS UNKNOWN! BUT WITH THE HELP OF OTHERS I HAVE MANAGED TO TRACE THESE DETAILS OF THE GRANDMOTHER- I NEVER HAD. I HAVE TRIED BUT WAS UNSUCCESFUL IN TRACING WHAT HAPPENED TO HER BODY,