General Chat

Erm.... My aunty was eaten by the cannibals in 1955-ish. My uncle told me so, so I just knew it was true.

I believed that until I was 15... and had a very rude awakening.

The truth? Well, she was a teacher and died just outside Dar es Salaam of malaria. She is buried there. Somewhere... I do hope to find her one day.

Love

Daff xxx

Now in our family respectability was our Name. However, my Grandmother used to move house regularly when the rent man was due (this was told to me by my Aunt). When this was going on my Grandfather was with his fancy piece.

I have no proof of this, but what the heck - that's life!

Mum always said that we could have been circus folk as her grandma came from the famous Sanger circus family. She even told me they were French! But after years of family research going back to the mid 1500s I have not found any link to the Sanger circus folk at all! Grt Grandma came from a line of tin plate workers! Sangers, yes, but circus folk - nope! And as for being French ... well I've no idea where that rumour came from - they were Wiltshire folk from the 1500s to the early 1800s before moving to London.

Tsk tsk - to think I believed that tale for the last forty something years!

Athena

My grandma, when questioned by my mum, could never remember her wedding anniversary, which my mum always thought a bit odd.

Turns out Grandma got married on 27th Feb 1949. My mum was born about five weeks later . . . no wonder Grandma "couldn't remember". The really odd thing was, Grandma apparently always made a big thing of the fact that she was in hospital for two weeks because my mum was overdue.

I wonder what she'd say if she knew about the internet. No, actually, I suspect she'd tell us the GRO had filed it under the wrong year or something!

My cousin told me our Grandfather walked from Bedford to find work, in Ilford, Essex.

I told him the truth, Grandfather came as a two week old baby with his family, as our Great Grandfather, already had a job lined up in Ilford.

This was one of my Grandfather's tales. I said to my cousin- Walk at two weeks old!!

My Gt Grandfather walked from Ooop North to London to find his fortune!!

No he didn't he moved there aged 9 with his sister who was 23 and married after his mother died!

;o)

Update,

from jotting notes,,,,,,,,

he went to be a music hall entertainer,*** we think*** ,no such person in his name ever did......!!maybe a sweeper upper,,,,,,,,,,)))

Hayley,
Have you googled for the Accident?I did for my father's train accident in 1953,I even got a picture that I have printed off that looks like him and a report.
Just a thought!

I can remember the big crains still working in salford docks in the early 70's as we used to watch them from my aunts window she lived in a high rise tower just nearEccles library...My GGrandfater was killed on the docks he fell of the side and was trapped between the side and a ship..

Correction........
Lascars were from India,and East of the Cape of Good Hope,and were coloured folk.When I said Russian,IIt didn't tie up with what my gran told me,as she said they used to go and look at them as they were different.
I suppose they were cheaper labour for them to employ.
Salford docks was very different to what it is now.even in the 40's when I was young we visited my g aunt and the houses were really Victorian terraces,2 up 2 down,and they brought up big families in them.
The ships would bring the cotton for the mills.so it is feasible that your rellies were sea captains.

Ha Ha Merlin!!

Hayley, the ship canal and docks at Salford used to have ships coming in from all over the world.
My grandma,before she married,lived in Salford,near the docks,and talked of Laskers,which I think were Russian seamen(may be wrong,but must look it up)
I know a couple of her brothers worked on the ship canal.
They were certainly busy in those days,and not just for pleasure!

Two tales my Mum always said was

1. Grandad had six children by his first marriage that were put in a home when his first wife died in 1905.When grandad married Nan in 1909 .they had been married 3 weeks when the home sent them a letter,which nan opened,saying we understand you are know married please make arrangements to collect you six children .Well the eldest child aged 10 had been sent to Canada in Aug 1909 as a Home child,that was true, but I tried looking for 5 more children between 1898 -1905 and wasted money on certs to find that it wasnt six but 3!!

2. Mum always said she was born Nov 1908 and there was 13 months between her & dad. Dad was born dec 1907.
When Mum passed in 1980 I queried her age on the coffin plaque with elder sis who arranged the funeral .to be told mum was born 1909 and she lied to protect nans name cos she was pregnant when she married end Aug 1909. Mum was premature wasnt due to Jan 1909 BUT if she wanted to protect nans name she went the wrong way year wise , she should have said 1910!!
She even carried on the lie when she married in 1929 her marriage cert says she 21 when she was just 20

To be fair Hayley, the Manchester Canal was built for ships, not barges, so they still could have been....

Brenda, The Hatters in Hayleys Family used to Hold "Tea Parties" and I think they were mentioned in a Book.**M**.:o)>

Hmmmmmmm was also led to believe that my Mothers family ( she is such a snob ) where sea captains.....considering they were from salford .....but we have the Salford docks and surely the Mancheser canel runs out to sea.....are canel boatman sea captains ?

Some great tall tales here....pmsl...keep them coming please...

well I have an --Artist,?

Yes I have because elderly aunts remember waving him off at the station to catch the boat/ship..where to ,America we think,? in the 20s.

what sort of Artist,?

Painter ?
Stage,?

well he could draw and he could play a violin,,,,,

Still looking,,,,,,,,,,

Maternal side.....

2xgreat granddad came from Poland/Denmark/Russia. He belonged to a wealth shipping family. Left home as he wanted to start at the bottom of the ladder. Went to sea, landed in Dundalk, Ireland, met a sweet colleen married her and came to the east end of London.......

No no no no...and 100 more no`s. One census
states him as coming from Germany and he was dock worker, married a girl from Poplar, who was illigitimate.

The same rellies.......She from Dundalk had an illigitimate baby by a black seaman.....but the new husband took it on and treated it like his own.....

No no no no.....how many more no`s can I type.


On the paternal side, greatgrandma`s second husband was a Mayor of Liverpool.......no no no...I have checked the records.

Was it the victorians way of "keeping up with the Jones`s" !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have said this before; my lot seemed to have an inherent lying gene!

Been up so many blind alleys I cannot list them all!

If I could get hold of them today.....aaaargh

Sue x

My Father told me he was a millionaire when he was stationed in Italy during the war and had to leave it all there along with a girlfriend ......found out years later that the Italian Lira was at such a low value that you had to have millions just to have £5.....

.Hmmmm Wonder if I might have some Italian half siblings.....nah!....couldn't have!.....Could I?

They probably died from chest ailments through the conditions at work!