Genealogy Chat

This gets stranger - a couple of weeks ago, I wrote to my godmother's (my dad's cousin) last employers as this was the only place I had to contact her - the last time I know she was there was about 1988 - anyway tonight when I got home from the gym (about 9pm) my neighbour stopped me and pressed a piece of paper into my hand. Her surname (the neighbour) is the same as mine, and the piece of paper was my godmother's phone number - her employer had passed on my email to her, she had tracked down my address, but unfortunately as I am ex-directory, the number she found was for my neighbour not me - so tonight is a big night, I will speak to my godmother for the first time in almost 20 years - wish me luck!!!!!

I have been looking for info on my father’s family for quite a while now – I am the oldest living rellie on this side, so it’s down to me and my memory and a few family snapshots (no info on the back of most unfortunately!). I have been going through the album trying to put names to faces, and am driving a friend mad with questions like “Does that look like his son?”, “Do you reckon that’s the same person?”, etc. Anyway, I was stuck with one of my dad’s great aunts – I have pictures of her wedding – but no idea who the groom was – pictures of her son and daughter, one dated 1934 and one 1939 – met the son once about 20 years ago, didn’t even know she had a daughter(!) – pictures of the son’s wedding in 1983, but no location – that’s about it – so without a surname nothing to go on. That is until today – and I swear with all my heart this is true – I have been cleaning out a storage drawer under my bed – probably hasn’t had a complete empty and replace for about five years – and there at the bottom I found a little box that I swear I have never seen before. Inside it, all the gift tags, copies of the invitations and telegrams from my parents wedding – lo and behold – a telegram from the great aunt and her husband with their surname – also a great aunt on the other side’s husband’s name (I’d always believed she never married!) – and various other ‘answers’ to questions I’ve had for ages. I really do believe that sometime’s you find things when you’re meant to – I just wish ‘someone’ would give me inspiration to find my parents wedding album – then the collection would be complete! I’m sorry to bore everyone with this, but I had to share this with someone who wouldn’t just say ‘there, there dear, very nice, but they’re all dead now’. I must admit, when I found it, I just stood there and cried!!!! – but in the last hour, I’ve now found refs for two marriages, three births and two deaths!! and am back on a roll with this line again. Trudy

How wonderful! Me and my mum are both 'horders' and I regularly go through stuff incase I missed anything the last time. Only today I went through a box and re discovered some old pics of my grandfather. :o) I hope you get a lot of pleaseure from your find, and you can further your research. Claire xx

you're lucky you found that Box I believe in fate - but the only thing in my tree which i put down to fate is: in 1910 my great grandparents married but way back in 1861 grooms grandmother lived next door to bride's grandparents

Thanks Claire When I stop crying long enough, I'm going to have a good read of all the telegrams and cards. Trudy

Quick update - managed to find the elusive g'aunt's marriage ref, both her children's births, my grandparents marriage ref, another great aunts marriage (was looking about 6 years too late for it!!!!!) and another second cousins birth - whoever decided I should find that box today THANK YOU!!!!!!!!! Trudy

Just to say it was mean,t to be iam so glad for it,s so hard to search Good luck in all you do . June......

I guess knowing you were their last hope of being found they made sure you would be able to find them! I'm sure that's why its so emotional. I'm tearing up just reading about it! Keep hunting!

I have now checked with both my sister and brother, explained what the box looks like and what it contains, and both of them swear they have never seen it before in their lives!!!! This gets wierder. Trudy

Yes I definitely believe in it - so many things have happened to me over the years that I know someone has got a hand in it somewhere.

Yes, strange things do happen. I bet you are SO excited. I could do with a bit of luck on that front at the mo, with dead ends all round. ENJOY

Thanks Heather - by the way - how's the 'pig' and his extension?

They obviously wanted to be discovered!!! What a find!!!

sure do. When I went to high school in 1949 I used to call at my friends house a couple of streets away and I thought his house was so friendly and happy. As I grew older and starting taking the girls out, my favourite pub was the Stanley Arms, such a friendly atmosphere, so warm and cozy. It was only after 50 years later when I started with family tree I found out that my g/granddad JOSHUA actually lived in my friends house, 100 years earlier AND one of my g/aunts married the guy who owned the Stanley Arms. Is that fate or isn't it. TED.

Ted - you should write a book!! Very spooky indeed..... Merry

Absolutely brilliant Trudy. Isn't it wonderful when things start fitting into place when you never believed they ever would. Best wishes jan xx