gennepher

By gennepher

Sketch

I am trying to find my father-in-law at the time of the 1921 census.
I liked him but his wife didn't, any love between them had scarpered aeons ago.
He'd say to her I am just taking G out to see whatever, and his wife would turn to me and say, you're driving, and make sure it's only one pint. And you're on orange juice. Just one pint for him. Yes I would say, knowing he'd be legless when we returned.
He would point out place of interest as we drove around Swansea, and took me to the house he was born in - this was 1974. It was derelict then, bare brick, blackened inside, water running down the walls. It was 4 rooms, with one of those being the kitchen. 2 rooms upstairs 2 downstairs. We did go inside, no doors or windows remained. He seemed proud to show me that was the house he was born in. And that stuck in my mind.

I also met his brothers and sisters and more who still lived in the same street (many of the original houses remained and still do today) or adjoining streets. And had lived there all their lives, something I cannot envisage doing.

So, it was interesting finding them on the censuses on Ancestry.

One thing I cannot find is my father-in-law on the 1921 census.

Nor can I find any trace of his five younger sisters, the youngest two were twins. All I can find on the 1921 census is his mother and father and his eight older brothers and sisters. All of them were out of work they had all been laid off.

This is why I paid for a three month subscription with Findmypast because that's the only way you can reasonably access as many 1921 records as you need to. I am one month into this subscription and I also want to investigate my side of the family and I have spent so much time on this, but I have to stop today on this bit of research.

I knew they couldn't have died, because otherwise my father-in-law would not have been around. Then the 1939 census came out. I was able to check and find all of them bar one and it is hard to check women because they marry and change their names. But I struck lucky because one of the twins had triplets and the granddaughter had posted loads of stuff online. Her site was a mine of information.

I have gone through hundreds of 1921 censuses, in case a family member was looking after the 6 children. I have gone through every census in that very long street house by house. You can go along the film strip and look at them all and no neighbour was looking after them. Then I went around the surrounding streets but no one round there was looking after these six children. I have been through all poor law, union records, asylum records, and I cannot find them. I have even checked the whole of the UK, and no trace of them. I don't admit defeat, but I think this one has defeated me.

Today I do not want to look at one more 1921 census....but I did find a lot of interesting facts in all that research....

Just give me a week's break from this....


Wildlife nighttime cameras
Badgers & Foxes
1min
https://youtu.be/7v3BjzZ6ScY?si=2UlDDbZWfpPoweyo

Creative...
Finally the sun has reached the ground in my garden. And so I did a sun salutation this morning. No, not one of those fancy yoga pose ones, I wouldn't get back off the ground...no, a very simple one I adapted for me...

I need a nap and that sun had better stay out...

Ah, so my creative drawing is sun through the trees...

Have your best day.

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