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Research in Other Countries => Other Countries => Topic started by: Joseph_K on Monday 04 January 16 13:01 GMT (UK)
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Hello,
I am looking for some basic biographical information on the following men, who were resident in British India in the period circa 1890-1910. Some of them might have been employees in the British Indian Civil Service.
I have looked through the Indian Army & Civil Service Lists and searched ancestry.com quite thoroughly for information on them, but with little success.
A.E. Barton
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H.A. Lane
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G.F. McMahon
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H. O'Connor
J.W. O'Connor (brother of the above?)
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A.K. Oliver
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T.C. Sangster
Possibly related to Alfred Bruce Sangster (1864-1913)
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E.E. Steel
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Any help would be appreciated.
J.
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Have you tried searching on http://www.fibis.org/ they sometimes have info other places don't. ;)
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A E Barton is possibly Arthur Elliott Barton.
He was an officer in the Indian army. He married Eliza Lilian Wyatt in Trichinopoly in 1891.
See photo https://bartonhistory.wikispaces.com/Arthur+Elliott+Barton+(1864-1931)
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"G F McMahon" is possibly George Francis William MacMahon who was a British Army officer on the East Indies headquarters staff in Bombay. Born around 1852.
Promoted to Major in 1890 https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/26043/page/2275/data.pdf
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There are some records for people in Bristish India on the Find My Past website.
The British Library has a list of available records on that site here;
http://www.bl.uk/reshelp/findhelpregion/asia/india/britishinindia/index.html
Not sure if this is of any help to you - but you can often access Find My Past at a local library.
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I would think that "E E Steel" is Ernest Eden Steel, more noted as a cricketer than a tennis player ( I assume that you are researching tennis players). He was in India around that time.
Photo http://www.cricketarchive.co.uk/Lancashire/Players/14/14623/14623.html
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"H A Lane" could be Harry Arthur Lane. He was born around 1862. When he married in 1899 he was Deputy Collector at Siliguri.
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" A K Oliver":
Arthur Knapp Oliver - born in India 1847, married Ellen Wollaston in London in 1879. An officer of the High Court in Bombay.
https://goo.gl/NA5j3y
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Worth searching here, too: some records are only online on the BL site. Depends on how deeply you want to research: there is so much to be seen in the BL itself; but my (very limited) experience is that I got very much better value out of hiring a researcher than I did out of a train fare and researching for myself.
http://indiafamily.bl.uk/ui/AdvanceDiscovery.aspx
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Thanks to everyone for the helpful responses, especially to ShaunJ for the wonderful information provided.
J.
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I'll add a few more names of men from around the same time who probably also worked in the civil service in British India:
Harrison, F.H.
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King, H.C.
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Pigeon, F.H.
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Shaw, F.W. (probably Frank)
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Any help would be appreciated.
J.
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I am pretty sure that "F H Pigeon" is Lieutenant (later Major) Frederick Hugo Pigou (1866-1942).
He already has a mention in the tennis archives http://www.tennisarchives.com/player.php?playerid=34200
He was posted to the Indian Staff Corps from the Hampshire Regiment in November 1889.
https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/26227/page/6473
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Hello,
Thanks for that reply. Makes sense that "F.H.Pigeon" was Lieutenant (later Major) Frederick Hugo Pigou.
J.
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I'll add a few more names below in case anyone might be able to help in identifying the people in question, all of whom were in India circa 1900:
Behrend, E.H.
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Davies, H.W.
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Elliott, E.O.
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Kidd, R.
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Rushton, G.O.
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Any help would be appreciated.
J.
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Arthur Knapp Oliver was my great, great grandfather. He was a Bombay High Court judge and married to Ellen Elizabeth Wollaston who was a wonderful water-colourist. I have three of her paintings, one of which was of a Sherpa guide whom she painted when accompanying Mallory - I think - on his Everest expedition. She was painting for the geographical society, my mother thought. She was quite old at the time. They had at least two sons, Cyril and Eric. Eric became a civil engineer and helped design and build the Kuala Lumpur irrigation system before taking up rubber planting in Malaya. He was a well-known tennis player and local regional champion. He won literally hundreds of silver trophies and cups. Cyril remained in India and worked for the Calcutta railway. (I have a report he wrote in 1903. Or maybe, 1913.) I don't have much information to hand as I am not at home.
After Arthur and Ellen retired, they lived on a houseboat in Kashmir until his death, upon which Ellen moved to Malaya to join her son and help look after my mother whose own mother had died of the Spanish flu shortly after giving birth. My mother only recently died at age 97.
PS I have his marriage certificate, if that helps? He had several witnesses, so some names may be familiar.
PPS, Arthur was also a very good tennis player and won many competitions in India and my daughter has a wonderful embossed silver fruit bowl given her by my mother on which Arthur Knapp Oliver's name is written plus other information.
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A warm welcome to Rootschat, ZannahBT.
Unfortunately the original poster has not been on since mid January, hopefully he will return soon.
You have given a mass of very interesting information,which will definitely help.
Brionne.
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Hi ZannahBT, A warm welcome from me too ;D
Just to confirm that Joseph has been notified of your new reply, I am sure he will be very excited and pleased to hear from you.
Regards
Sarah