RootsChat.Com
Beginners => Family History Beginners Board => Topic started by: samfisher on Wednesday 02 November 16 15:47 GMT (UK)
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Hello all, I've recently started to trace my paternal grandmothers side of the family and found a record in the 1911 census with my great grandfather as 'head' of the family.. as far as I knew he was born in Bradford, a small district of Manchester , however his birthplace is stated as 'nr settlement, singapore' in 1880... wondering if anyone had a clue what the nr represents and what circumstance might lead him to be born there in this time period as I've got records of his own father being born in manchester as well
I'd really appreciate any input or advice, thanks to all
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nr usually means near. Does the birthplace of Singapore appear in any other census records?
Are you willing to share his name so us Rootschatters can have a look?
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Are you sure it says Nr and not Sts (Straits) :-\
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His name is Jonathan broadhurst, but I can't find any other reference to Singapore so it's really thrown me
I only just found out that his son Jonathan junior, my grandmothers brother had the middle name of 'cleveland' .. so there are more questions than answers with him at the minute
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Did he marry Catherine Walsh
https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NNRT-TX7
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Yes, that's him!
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Jonathan senior also appears to have had the Cleveland middle name, according to the free 1911 index.
Birthplace is Singapore Sts Settlements (as previously suggested - short for Straits Settlements).
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I'm not sure I've heard of Singapore straits, what does that refer to?
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The Straits Settlements at the relevant time were Singapore, Malacca, Dinding & Penang - held as a combined Crown Colony from 1867 until the 1940s.
The 1911 entry you've found suggests that, of the four settlements, he was born in Singapore.
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Do you know what circumstances would lead to him being born there in 1880?
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His parents being there is the usual one :) Careers which took people out there would have included the military, the colonial civil service, anything to do with plantations etc. Or other trade links.
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On the other hand, as you say, everything else points to his being a labourer/collier's son from Bradford, Lancs - birth registered in Prestwich district Sep qtr 1879.
An online tree suggests he'd served in the Boer War - is that right? Perhaps if so he had mingled with people who had travelled far and wide, and invented a bit of a fantasy (and a mysterious middle name) to impress his bride?
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Haha it might well be something like that .. i'd heard through family that he was in the boer war .. where did you find the online tree?
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His service record is on FindMyPast. He served in the Manchester Regiment 1897-1908 , including service in the Boer War. He was in Singapore 11.3.03. - 29.12.04.
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His army record on FindMyPast (Manchester Regiment 1897-1909) says he was born in the parish of Bradford, Manchester. Maybe he spun his wife a yarn about being born in Singapore !
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Haha it does sound like it.. I've heard he had quite a sense of humour so it'd fit that characteristic quite well..
I'm not a member of find my past so I can't view that record, doesn't show up on ancestry but I'd like to view it, is there a lot of informational to see on his boer war campaign?
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If you have Ancestry look for J Broadhurst regimental number 5065 in "UK, Military Campaign Medal and Award Rolls"
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I'm going to add to this conversation, not as a wise genealogist but as someone who has spent a fair bit of time in Singapore.
I would be inclined to think that your Gt granddad's birth in Bradford may be the thing he lied about, rather than a birth overseas. If he was keen to get into the army, he may have omitted the Singapore birth because it could raise a whole lot of questions he'd rather not waste time answering.
If his dad was a collier then the dad may have been a stoker on a ship at some stage. Alternatively the dad might have served in the army too, and been stationed in SG for a while.
SG was absolutely booming economically in the 1880s so a strong British presence there was desirable. That could mean military, shipping etc.
Modern Singapore has been collecting birth, marriage and death data for some time now. It also has a growing genealogist community. I'd like to suggest you send an email off to Singapore's National Library for advice on who specifically to correspond with. Either that or use Google to track down the registry of births or whatever they call it there. You may be pleasantly surprised by what you find.
-David C
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I would be inclined to think that your Gt granddad's birth in Bradford may be the thing he lied about
That's an odd position to take. His birth was registered in Prestwich Registration District in 1879: he was born in Bradford per the 1881 and 1891 censuses.
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touche ;)
-DC
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Thanks to all for contributions and inputs, very much appreciated
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Do you know what circumstances would lead to him being born there in 1880?
His parents being there is the usual one :)
Especially his mother.