Missing Parents and Missing Records

As an Online Parish Clerk (OPC) I get a number of requests each year for information about people who lived in one of the parishes I look after. Because I have a large database of births, baptisms, marriages, deaths, burials, censuses that span centuries, I can generally put together a reasonable answer about the families in question. It helps to know what documents are available and what are missing; it is also valuable to be able to look at the relationships of family members over several generations.

One recent query involved the birth/baptism of a girl in 1871, in Cornwood parish, Devon. The researcher wanted to know who the mother was for a Clara Jane Greep who he thought was illegitimate and baptized in Cornwood.

1871 baptism record for Clara Jane Greep in Cornwood parish, Devon (Note: all images used courtesy of the Plymouth and West Devon Record Office)

Little Clara Jane was indeed baptized in Cornwood, on 6 October 1871. She was a base child of Eliza Jane Greep. Nothing else is on the entry that would tell anything about Eliza Jane: how old she was, where she lived or originated, who her parents were or what she did for a living. I looked further into the records and found an Eliza Jane Greep baptized in 1846, in Cornwood, to parents John and Charlotte (Crispin) Greep. Eliza's age in 1871 made it likely she was the mother of Clara Jane. (Just as an aside, Charlotte was my 3^rd great-grandaunt making Eliza Jane a 1^st cousin, 4X removed and Clara Jane a 2^nd cousin, 3X removed. It’s a small world!)

1846 baptism record for Eliza Jane Greep in Cornwood parish, Devon

Now the story gets interesting. Eliza Jane’s family can be found on censuses in 1851 and 1861, living in Cornwood parish. But there was nothing from 1871. What I found out as the OPC, in reviewing and transcribing the census records for the parish was that there were two pages of that census that had not been preserved. And wouldn’t you know, the Greep family was likely recorded on one of those pages.

Skipping along in time, we find John and Charlotte Greep on the 1881 census, living in the same little village of Lutton where they had been since they had married and where their families had also lived. With these two 70-year olds was a nine-year old girl name Clara J. – but no Eliza! Clara was shown as the granddaughter of John and Charlotte.

So what had happened? Had Eliza gone off to work or get married, leaving her child behind with her parents? That was possible and not uncommon for the time.

Eliza was not found on any census past 1861, at least with the name of Greep. There were a few marriage entries for an Eliza Greep and Eliza Jane Greep on FindMyPast – none in or near Cornwood – but they did not seem to fit the right time frame. I looked further in the Cornwood records and found a burial for Eliza Jane Greep, age 26, on 28 August 1872. So, in fact she had died, which explained why I could not find her on the censuses.

1872 burial record for Eliza Jane Greep in Cornwood parish, Devon

Clara Greep was recorded on the 1891 census, working as a domestic servant in Ugborough, a nearby parish. By that time, Charlotte had died and John was still in Lutton, by then a pauper. He died there a few years later.

In 1893, 21-year old Clara Jane Greep married 25-year old Eli Lethbridge in Ivybridge parish, which is next door to Cornwood. Her father is shown as John Greep, labourer. A George Greep was a witness to the ceremony, undoubtedly her uncle.

1893 marriage record for Clara Jane Greep and Eli Lethbridge in Ivybridge parish, Devon

While some information could be found in databases such as FindMyPast, the whole family story would not have become readily clear except for someone like an OPC, who had BMD data covering several generations and in a form that could be reviewed easily and quickly.

Without having the detailed background information of the Cornwood parish records, over several decades, one might miss the connections and not know the proper relationships between all of the Greep family members. In just looking at the marriage record for Clara, we would not have learned that John Greep was by then 83 years old. From that document, but without her baptism and the census records, we might have assumed she really was John’s daughter. We might not have realized that the witness to the marriage, George Greep, was probably her uncle. We might have missed the fact that Clara was orphaned and raised by her grandparents.

Clara and her husband went on to have seven daughters, all born in Ugborough parish. The name Greep lived on as the second name of one of them, although, interestingly, none had the forenames of either her mother or grandmother. She died in 1935.

In this case my knowledge of and immediate access to the records available concerning families in Cornwood over decades helped to find details about Clara Jane.

Have a problem like this? Consult an OPC. If there is not one in the area you are searching, consider becoming one.

Wayne Shepheard is a retired geologist and active genealogist. He volunteers with the Online Parish Clerk program in England, handling four parishes in Devon, England. He has published a number of articles about various aspects of genealogy in several family history society journals. Wayne has also served as an editor of two such publications. He provides genealogical consulting services through his business, Family History Facilitated.

Natural Disasters and Family Misfortunes 2: Tornadoes

This is tornado season in the United States and reports have been frequent informing us of carnage and death. The most recent, as of this date, was a storm that struck several mid-western and southern states resulting in the deaths of 16 people. One series of storms in Texas cut a swath over 30 miles long and 15 miles wide – fortunately (though not for those whose properties were damaged) mostly in rural areas where fewer people might be affected.

Tornadoes are common on the North American plains, and world-wide for that matter. Reports from long ago are not abundant but we do know that such events were recognized as far back as the middles ages. One of the earliest reports from Britain’s is of a F4-strength tornado that struck London, England in 1091. Many buildings and bridges sustained significant damage.

An apparent tornado was reported to have occurred in what is now the Mexico City area in 1521, two day before the Aztec capital was taken by Hernán Cortés.

The deadliest tornado in recorded history struck Bangladesh on 26 April 1989, killing approximately 1,300 people. The most extensive outbreak occurred in 2011 when 362 tornadoes were counted in the southern, mid-western and northeastern United States (the 2011 Super Outbreak). Over 300 people died. The deadliest storm in America happened in 1925 when almost 750 people lost their lives.

There is a great deal of information about tornadoes from recent centuries, as they have played a huge role in the settlement of the central part of the North American continent. The United States leads the world in the number of these storms. More storms have been counted in recent years although that may have more to do with the great numbers of people and communities inhabiting the areas in which they hit and in the more developed technical methods of observing the storms. There is no trend in the numbers for at least the last 55 years in which there have been detailed statistics kept. If anything, the strongest tornadoes have decreased in frequency.

Tornadoes and other major storms have always been part of weather patterns and human history. I mentioned the hurricane that flattened Galveston, Texas in 1900 in a previous blog post - Natural Disasters and Family Misfortunes: Galveston 1900. This was just one of many large and deadly storms that have affected lives around the world over the centuries. I wrote about the consequences of one severe storm that devastated southern England in 1703, in an April 2014 blog post on The Pharos Blog – Natural Disasters and Their Effect on the Lives of Our Ancestors.

Sometimes it does not take a major weather event to disrupt families and cause them to make changes. One of my uncles came to Alberta from Oregon to try his hand at farming in 1931. He settled with his new wife on land he leased in the Crossfield area, just north of Calgary, and set out to become fully Canadian. His oldest child, my cousin, was born in the Irricana area in 1932. Unfortunately, in the summer of his first year a hail storm, not uncommon in that region, destroyed his entire crop. My uncle decided there and then that farming in Alberta was not for him and he moved his family back to the United States. This was just one minor incidence in the history of our family but it had profound effects on the people involved as well as impacting future generations of people in some family branches. My cousin grew up and made his life in a country he was not born into.

All of this is to say that family historians searching for information about their ancestors might be advised to pay attention to natural phenomena, perhaps in particular how events such as major storms impacted the lives and livelihoods of people and communities. How many family lines were affected or even ended when a tornado touched down?

Wayne Shepheard is a retired geologist and active genealogist. He volunteers with the Online Parish Clerk program in England, handling four parishes in Devon, England. He has published a number of articles about various aspects of genealogy in several family history society journals. Wayne has also served as an editor of two such publications. He provides genealogical consulting services through his business, Family History Facilitated.

Music is in Our Blood

Music has been a big part of our family activities through the generations.

My grandfather sang in the church choir before he came to Canada in 1907 and was an entertainer at many social events in the communities of Keoma and Irricana, Alberta. In 1925, he was the star vocalist and comedian in the comedy, Nothing But the Truth, an event held to raise funds to purchase a piano for the new community hall. He also sang at many social events at the local school. Neighbours remembered hearing him singing at full voice as he worked outside at his farm.

As a child I took music lessons for many years, learning to play the baritone (horn). From that I could play anything with valves. For many years I was one of the smallest kids with one of the biggest horn. I also tried (not very hard I’ll admit) to learn the violin in a short and painful series of lessons for me and everyone around me.

 

1956 – students of Joseph Hopkins in an early brass ensemble. Wayne is second from the right. Mr. Hopkins is standing in front of the picture hanging on the wall.

My music teacher, Mr. Joseph Hopkins (1904-1981) was a marvelous musician and teacher who could play and teach others to play almost every instrument. He assembled both a brass band and an orchestra featuring all of his students that played at local concerts and competitions. There are many photos and personal certificates related to his career in the Glenbow Archives in Calgary, with this short description of the man: Joseph W. Hopkins, 1904-1981, was born in Prague, Bohemia and graduated from the Prague Conservatory of Music. He immigrated to Calgary, Alberta in 1927 and became the founder and principal of the Hopkins School of Music. He organized classes in the towns of Innisfail, Olds, Bowden, Red Deer, Sylvan Lake, Lacombe and Calgary. Students from his schools formed a student symphony, brass band and Hawaiian orchestras. His students won many awards at the Kiwanis Music Festivals in Calgary, Edmonton and Lethbridge. He was a member of the Alberta Registered Music Teachers Association.

I was very lucky that my parents found Mr. Hopkins. He was an excellent teacher and a dedicated professional in giving all his students the opportunity to play with others in larger bands and orchestras.

 

1959 Hopkins School of Music brass band composed all of students of Joseph Hopkins

In high school I played in the band (baritone) and a small four-piece combo (valve trombone). While attending university I played in a pick-up Dixieland band organized by one of my geology professors.

 

1969 – some members of the Prospectors, a pick-up Dixieland jazz group. In all there were over a dozen musicians from all walks of life who dropped in to jam on a regular basis.

I bought my first grandson an electronic piano when he was a small boy. This six-foot high school student now plays an upright bass in the school band, orchestra and jazz ensemble as well as being a pretty good piano player. His brother is taking up the piano and guitar. My granddaughter is an accomplished ballerina at the tender age of 13. We hope she will be able to pursue dance in her adult life. Her little brother is learning the saxophone.

 

2017 – Shepheard grandchildren musicians and performers

Music is in our Shepheard blood although it was not a main pursuit of every generation. I like to think my ancestors also had musical talents – where else would I have gotten mine – but there is no way to know if that was true to any great extent.

In past centuries people certainly were entertained by and participated in musical activities. We can’t hear them sing or dance, so we have to guess at what entertainment they liked based on stories and songs that have been preserved in print. With luck we can hear present-day performers tackle the old versions to get an idea of how they sounded and were received by audiences hundreds of years ago. The church was generally the central gathering place in many communities, especially in the rural areas. Choirs would lead the congregation on Sundays but these same people might also be highlight singers as other social events and encourage many residents to join them.

I searched for information on music from the 17^th to 19^th centuries to try to find out what people listened to, primarily in Britain as most of my ancestors come from that region. I am sure that readers could find many examples from other countries.

A few websites worth visiting include:

Widipedia (of course):

Classical period (music)

This is a brief outline of the development of Western art music written during the Classical period between 1730 and 1820.

Early British popular music

Commercial music enjoyed its origins in the music halls of the 16^th and 17^th centuries.

British music through the ages

This is an article by Gavin Dixon published in Limelight Magazine 2013 in which he comments on music evolution from the Middle Ages onward. Gavin discusses music of all types from classical to jazz.

When UK pop was born: the 18^th century

This blog piece was published in The Guardian by Suzy Klein in 201. Suzy points out that popular music, for the masses, as it originally conceived, began as the middle class grew in Britain through the 1700s. It is a very good introduction to the rise of performance art in many venues from pubs to music halls.

Folk Music of England, Scotland, Ireland, Wales & America

The originator, Lesley Nelson-Burns, has assembled songs from many regions and sources. Both lyrics and musical accompaniment can be experienced. Folk music was probably the hit parade of the day with songs sung and played in many venues from local pubs to community social gatherings.

I am sure there are lots more sites to investigate. And maybe one day I will find out more about whether my ancestors were musical.

Wayne Shepheard is a retired geologist and active genealogist. He volunteers with the Online Parish Clerk program in England, handling four parishes in Devon, England. He has published a number of articles about various aspects of genealogy in several family history society journals. Wayne has also served as an editor of two such publications. He provides genealogical consulting services through his business, Family History Facilitated.