Thread: Need research help - Father adopted & given new name

Hi,

I'm researching my family history to answer questions that my children will want answers to - and I want those answers too! As this is the my first time, its been something of a night mare to get going!

First, my Father. My Father was originally born as Henry Gordon DAVIS. Born on 22 SEPT 1933, he was the son of an underage encounter between an unnamed father (who would be my real Grandfather) and one Dorothy Ellen DAVIS. My father was immediately given up for adoption and we believe, placed into the Cleveland House Hostel in Sutherland Place in Wolverhampton where he lived for 5 years. My Father was finally adopted in 1938 (aged five years) by one John Archibald JAMES and lady he married in 1916, one Frances Alice HILL. My father's birth certificate shows Dorothy Ellen DAVIS as his mother, with NO Father listed and a new name - John Edward JAMES. I have no idea if this name change was legally made in any official way or just applied at the time of the adoption.

There is the suspicion that John Archibald JAMES was actually the real father of John Edward James (formerly Henry Gordon Davis) and he married Frances Alice HILL and adopted my father. Dorothy Ellen DAVIS later married one Elijah PAYNE in 1937.

I have confirmed the marriage of John Archibald James and Frances Hill and have ordered a copy of the certificate from the GRO at a cost of £9.25. I have a copy of the marriage certifcate of Dorothy Ellen DAVIS to Elijah PAYNE. I also have a copy of the adoption certificate showing my father's adoption by John Archibald James and Frances Hill in 1938 in Birmingham.


Looking at FindMyPast.com, I can find no birth or death record for John Archibald JAMES. If I could find a birth record and get the Certificate, I could trace further. I cannot find any record of a birth or death for Dorothy Ellen DAVIS. Since she is my father's real mother, it would be good to find out about her.

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This is just part of my challenge. My grandmother on my mother's side committed suicide when my mum was six years old, we believe due to post natal depression. Her husband, my grandfather on my mother's side then remarried.

Right now, I can only find a birth record for my grandfather on my mother's side - Thomas William JACKSON.

Any help or comments on how I should proceed would be great! Also any comments on which Family Tree software is the best to use would also be great.

My sincere thanks,

Kind regards,

Hallo BAW9DV and welcome!
Gosh! and I thought mine were difficult enough but they are a piece of cake compared to yours however the answers are all out there somewhere. You seem to making strides anyway.
Yes bMD certs are becoming dearer so you need to be careful and go for those you really need.
I'm sure some folk on here will be able to help you.
Heathrow I knew when it was a green field and a wooden control tower!
The marriage cert of John Archibald James and Frances Alice Hill will give you both fathers' names and occupations. It may not give James age... will probably say "of full age" but one could look for a birth around 1881-5 with the right father.
How old was Dorothy Ellen Davies on her marriage to Elijah Payne in 1937 and would she have been born in and around Birmingham do you think?
I wish you the best of luck.
lola

Hello Slizzy,

Hi BAW9DV and welcome to AA,

Thanks for that.

You say you have the marriage certificate of Dorothy Ellen Davis and Elijah Payne, who is named as Dorothy's father and what's his occupation? Also what addresses are given and who were the witnesses to the marriage?

Ok Dorothy's is shown as a SPINSTER who worked as a Machinist in a Biscuit Factory. She was 21 years old when she married Elijah Payne in August of 1937. This would put her as being born in 1916. She lived at 121 Saltley Road, Saltley in Birmingham UK at the time of the marriage. Her father is shown as BERNARD DAVIS (deceased) who was a Sargeant in the Royal Engineers. Witnesses? Well, the certificate says ".. in the presence of .." which I assume would be the witnesses. And they are listed as one A J HARPER and one N. DAVIS. They were married in the Registery Office in Birmingham.


EDIT - update 18:00 - found the birth of Dorothy Ellen DAVIS! Birth is registered in Tewkesbury, Gloucester in 1916 in the APR-MAY-JUN Quarter. Mother's maiden name listed as RUSSELL.

Thanks for your help,

regards,

Hello Welshlady,

I'm aware of the fact that not all entries provide the FULL middle names. Some even swtich the names around! I guess this is why this sort of research is frought with problems. What my Dad DID do yesterday when I found the record was to confirm that Dorothy WAS born in 191 and it WAS in Tewkesbury. So, I believe that this is the correct one. I guess next thing to do is look at the Census to cross-check and see if I can find her living!

Just beginning to learn this now...

There is also the possibility that Dorothy Payne (formerly Davis) is still living! Born in 1916 she would be 95 years old now. My family - so my father says - has longevity so she could be still living. Not sure...

Thanks for your research help,

Take care

Lee

Hello Welshlady,

thats great that your dad can confirm birth details. the next step would be to get her birth cert to find her mother and her maiden name. i know it is expensive to get certs but i think until you get back at least as far as the census it is absolutely necessary.

dorothy was born to late to appear on any census yet. i had a look for bernard on 1911 but there were quite a few that could be him. the name of his wife will help find his marriage and then they should be able to be found on census going back. his occupation in the cert in 1937 was army but of course that could just have been because of the war, although he was deceased by then.

i also noted that dorothys mother maiden according to birth index was RUSSELL but could not find a bernard davis/russell marriage. i did find another birth slightly earlier (1911)in tewsbury of a norman g davis (mmn russell) and wondered if it could be the n davis witness on dorothys marriage cert to elijah payne. Norman married in 1936 in tewksbury and there is a poss death in 2003 cheltneham for a norman george davis.

Thanks for looking at this. I'm still not sure exactly who is correct yet. So far I have ordered copies of the marriage certificate for John Archibald JAMES to Francis Alice HILL (my Dad's adopted father and mother) and the death certificate for my grandfather on my mother's side, Thomas William JACKSON. I need to be more certain about Dorothy, her birth and marriage and will concentrate on her first.

But guess what? My Dad dropped me a phone number last week located in Birmgimgham (its a 0121 number) and I called it over the last few days (no answer initially).

But I left a message and they phoned back this morning! You'll never guess what happened -

The lady who lives there and who phoned me confirmed that a DAVIS family lived there for a long time and a lady called Mary DAVIS died there from a heart attack many years ago! Now the witness on the marriage certificate for Dorothy Davis who married Elijah PAYNE which says N. DAVIS could easily be "M" Davis! Also, the next door neighbour knew the family well and even has photographs! They have agreed to meet me and I am planning to drive up and meet them for lunch or coffee and find out what they know.

I never thought for one moment anyone would phone back! Can't wait!

I'll keep you posted.


Lee