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Research in Other Countries => Australia => Topic started by: Eupham on Monday 31 August 09 10:41 BST (UK)
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Hi All,
I have a 65 year old mystery that has yet to be solved. Tidbury Havill Edwards was born in Braeside, Ontario, Canada on 20th April 1921 and came to Australia as a 2 year old with his parents, grandparents and sister and lived in Bankstown, Sydney. He served in the Australian Army during WWII and went A.W.L more times than you've had hot meals. Tidbury's mother lost 3 brothers during WWI, his father served in WWI and WWII and his brother was killed in WWII. Tidbury hurt his leg jumping off a tram yet told everybody it was a war injury to get sympathy and the odd free beer. His father found out about this and confronted Tidbury and the pair had a falling out. A few day later Tidbury's sister and her husband gave him a lift to central station in Sydney where he boarded a train for Pukapunyal in Victoria. The last thing Tidbury said was "Tell mum I will see her one day, I'll turn up like a bad penny". The family never saw or heard from Tidbury again. Is there anyone out there who can help find out what happened to Tidbury.
Cheers.
Eupham :)
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what was Tidburys' mother and siblings names if they are not living please?
Leanne
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Tidbury's mother was Florence May Edwards nee Gibbings, his father was William Alfred Edwards and his brother that died in WWII was William John Edwards. He has 2 sisters living who have no idea what happened to him after 1945.
Cheers
Eupham :)
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Hi Eupham :)
Don't you think it odd that Tidbury was going to Puckapunyal - an army base and military training area?
I have searched all the available death records but can't find anything. Of course he could still be alive.
Cheers
Cando
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Hi Eupham and Cando.
As far as I know, digitised images of war records are not released until after the death of the person, and given the decision to release the images of Tidbury's records was made in 2003 one can pesume he died sometime prior to that date. What is puzzling is that there is no date of death placed on his war records before they were released for public viewing as is the norm.
Aussie Bob
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No that is not the case Bob ;D
you can apply to have any world war 2 record digitalised it does cost you about $25 I did with my grandfather.
I thought someone researching the family must have obtained the record
Jenn
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Thanks Jenn,
Always pleased to learn. I guessed instead of checking first. Seems convoluted logic that such sensitive issues of living persons are made freely available to the public when us self publishers have to struggle with the privacy laws when doing family histories. :o
Bob
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Hi Bob...a bit of the blurb from the NAA website.. The records on the site are not searchable by search engines such as google.
http://www.naa.gov.au/collection/recordsearch.aspx
Searchable records include documents, photographs, posters, maps, films and sound recordings. Generally, 30 years after a record is created, the public can access it.
Privacy Laws.....no comment >:( >:( :-X :-X
Have you published your book?
Cheers
Cando
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Thanks Cando,
That was the site I used to check the access details after Jenn's post. If Tidbury is still living I hope he has changed his haircut from the one in his photo ;D Google brings up the records and Photos, haven't tried maps or sound recordings yet.
I am in the final edit stage of my book. It is on Tasmanian families: Poole, Buxton, Radford and Pyke. I have 11 direct line convict ancestors. Is it ok to put details of the book Launch on the Convict Thread? or what site should I post it on? I'm not quite sure of the protocol yet. any suggestions would be welcome.
Bob
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Well done Bob,
That must be very worth while and I must say a bit of help from rootschat as well, but you are to be commended beacuse you allways try to return the favour with helping others out.
I will say I would put it on the Australian thread surely the mods might leave it there for a wee bit.
kind thoughts Jenn
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Thanks Jenn,
Will try that. 8)
Cheers, Bob
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Hi All,
Thanks for trying guys. I didn't think you would have much luck. No one else has in all these years. I just thought it would be nice if his sisters knew what became of him before they died.
I agree with you about the haircut Bob ;D
Cheers.
Eupham :)
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hullo to you all,
i am so happy that there is some other people out in this world enquiring about Tidbury Havill Edwards.
this mysterious man happens to be my uncle. i , as well as his other relatives have been trying to find his wherabouts for a great deal of many years.
i am led to beleive that he changed his name to Tommy Jackson but i am not certain if that is absolutely correct. it certainly makes it more difficult to find.
he has 2 sisters still alive. my mother and aunty. all brothers deceased.
Eupham, are you related to Tidbury?
KINNANDER
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He has 2 sisters living who have no idea what happened to him after 1945.
Cheers
Eupham :)
Hi
I hope that this turns out to be a lead for you. Was it a bit later than 1945 when he took off perhaps? You have not mentioned the information that i detail below so i will submit it for your interest.
There is listed one Tidbury Havill Edwards, Guard at Parliament House, ACT, living in the ACT at 31 Elder Street, Braddon according to the 1949 Australian Capital Territory electoral roll.
I hope that it is the same person that is being inquired about; perhaps this was before the split mentioned in your first post.
Regards
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Hi Not sure if you have this info but thought you might like to have it. Hope this works I have attached the Baptism of Tedbury.
Kathy
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Hi The attachement did not go with the last . If you cant read it try opening with Paint and enlarging.
It reads
Baptized Edwards
Tedbury Havill, son of William Alfred Edwards labourer of Braeside, Ontario, and his wife Florence May Gibbings was born the 20 day of April in the year of our lord one thousand nine hundred and twenty one and was baptized on the nineteenth day of June in the same year by me. A. W. Naughton, Priest
Witnesses William Alfred Edwards
Florence May Gibbings
Image Removed: The psoting of complete images is not permitted - only a small portion of the image may be displayed for assistance with handwriting etc
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Hi Muskwa,
could you please confirm the correct spelling of his christian name thanks Muskwa?
cheers
kinnander
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Hell o there
did you read reply no 13? from duinnsleibhe
Jenn
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Hi
In regards to the first name. The data entry was typed as Tedbury Havill Edwards.
Methodist 1921.
Place of worship Huntingdon (Methodist Church and Presbyterian and Church of England).
Quebec Vital and Church Records Droiun Collection 1621-1967.
When you look at the transcript it is hard to say it could be Tidbury, however there is no dot above the letter. Unlike in Havill there is a definite i.
Kathy
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When you look at the transcript it is hard to say it could be Tidbury, however there is no dot above the letter. Unlike in Havill there is a definite i.
Kathy
Yes, it makes it hard to tell sometines. Even comparing other words on the page doesn't always help. A little dot can be hard to see too, and may not have survived the digitisation process - especially the greyscale scans that we are generally used to seeing with some of these images.
For what it is worth, Google says that Tidbury is a far more common word than Tedbury. Also i think the fact that Tidbury calls himself as such points to that being the correct spelling. ;D
Having said that, i thought that i would throw in something else that i have found.
Although not strictly related to the original posters question about what happened to T H Edwards, i think it does serve to show that handwriting can be hard to decipher if nothing else. It may even be helpful . ;)
The 1891 UK census shows (according to the machine readable transcription) one Thomas Tedbury Havill, aged 71, as residing at 40 Lower Budleigh(street?), East Budleigh, Devon, England. Also residing there is Clarissa, aged 72, Thomas' wife.
The scan of that census page is pretty clear but you still can not say for sure that the word handwritten there is not Tidbury. For instance, there is a Catherine a couple of lines down on the same page, and there is definitely no dot above the i in Catherine. There are probably other examples on the page but i don't need to list them to illustrate my point.
I am editing this post to add a couple of interesting links about the above Havill(they all think it is spelled Tedbury ???):
http://www.geoffnutting.me.uk/havilltree/havillfam.htm
http://www.btinternet.com/~keymer.recording/tree4/tomted.htm
Back to the subject though - perhaps cando is right and T H Edwards is still alive. Maybe in Canada?
Regards
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hi all,
thomas tedbury havill is tidbury havill edwards grt.grt. grandfather.
i really appreciate you all taking an interest in this. thankyou all very much.
kinnander
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i really appreciate you all taking an interest in this.
Hi kinnander
Do you know when (what year approx.) it was that the family lost touch with T H Edwards? It would be useful to know this information as it would narrow down the years needed to be searched.
Also, do you have any input/insights regarding the apparent listing of him on the 1949 ACT electoral roll?
Regards
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Hi All,
Sorry, I had no idea this thread was still going. In answer to your questions duinnsleibhe I do think it is the same Tidbury living in Canberra in 1949. I think the last year his family saw him was in 1942. He had already been A.W.L. many times and chances are his father told him he was a disgrace or that he was ashamed to call him his son (Tidbury's father served in both world wars, Tidbury's mother lost 3 brothers in WWI and Tidbury's brother died in New Guinea in WWII). Tidbury boarded a train for Pukapunyal in Victoria in 1942 and told his sister to tell mum I'll turn up one day like a bad penny. That was the last time they saw him. In 1944 he was arrested and detained for desertion and sentanced to 12 months detention. The family went to the military prison to see him but when the guard told tidbury his family was here to see him he told the guard that he didn't have a family and that he was an orphan.
There was also a rumor that in the 70's or 80's someone saw a death notice for a Tidbury Edwards in a N.S.W local newspaper. This Tidbury was in his 20's and died in a motorcycle accident. The spectulation was that Tidbury had a son but no one has since been able to find any trace of this death notice.
Cheers.
Eupham :)
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Just wondering where he was in prison?
Judith
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Hi Judith,
I think the prison was at Singleton but I will have to get back to you on that one.
Cheers
Eupham.
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You have a photo MAYFIELD HOUSE, TAS............. also name POOLE. Ever heard of the Pooles of Mayfield, Cork? There is a book by Rosemary ffolliatt (genealogist) re same.
Lorraine .........www.radleysofcork.bigpondhosting.com
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Hi Lorraine,
My Mayfield house was named after Mayfield, Derbyshire, by T Buxton. I had seen Rosemary's book and whilst I think her Poole's and mine are all originally from the Poole's of Cheshire, no connection can be made.
Anyhow we must not hijack Tidbury's thread as he may still be alive, and I have already insulted his hair style.
Regards, Aussie Bob
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Hi,
I am waiting for the Nat. Archives to give me access to the crew ledger for HMAS Perth for Jun-Sep 1939.
When HMAS Perth visited New York in August 1939, a crewman T.H.Edwards, deserted from the ship. This information is recorded in the Ship's Proceedings available online at the AWM.
http://www.awm.gov.au/collection/records/awm78/292/awm78-292-2.pdf ( Page 2, Para.12)
There is no record in the NAA of him serving in the Royal Australian Navy but there is an entry on the crew ledger for HMAS Perth about him. Because the file is not open to the public I don't know what the entry says. Hopefully my request to have the file open will be granted and I can then let you know about it.
I have been "indirectly informed" that he is the same person who appears on the Army Records in the NAA as Tidbury Havill EDWARDS.
How or when he joined the RAN is a mystery but he must have been part of the commissioning crew when PERTH left England in July 1939. Why then is there no record? And where did he go and how did he get back from New York to Australia?
Cheers
Bruce
http://www.perthone.com/perth.htm