RootsChat.Com

I've had a browse through a number of the Hansard report summaries relating to Sir Hamar Greenwood and in a number of them he refers to reports given to him by the Royal Irish Constabulary.  I note that you mentioned the auxiliaries and black and tans in an earlier post and, as I understand it, they were working with the RIC at the time.  (Forgive my ignorance, I only have a very limited knowledge of the events at the time.)  Could the report have emanated from the RIC?  there are records at TNA

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/records/research-guides/royal-irish-constabulary.htm#

From a brief scan it looks as though the incident could be included in CO 906
http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/SearchUI/details/redirect/?CATLN=3&CATID=3565&CATREF=CO+906&CATLN=3&CATID=3565&SearchInit=4&SearchType=6&CATREF=CO+906


 or possibly WO 35

http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/SearchUI/details/redirect/?CATLN=3&CATID=13095&CATREF=WO+35&CATLN=3&CATID=13095&SearchInit=4&SearchType=6&CATREF=WO+35

You have obviously done a lot of research already in Ireland and I can understand why you want to see the British side of things.  It is possible to make a Freedom of Information request

https://www.gov.uk/make-a-freedom-of-information-request/the-freedom-of-information-act

but clearly you need to have the relevant information details.  Do you know which regiment of the British army was involved?  I'm just wondering if there is an alternative way of identifying the report referred to in the Westminster archives, say, tracing military information relating to the incident.  Any such sensitive information might be subject to the 100 years' rule but I have recently had access to two naval files from WW2 that are both marked 'Secret' and 'closed until 2041'.

I haven't looked for records of this nature before but I wonder if the report arose in Ireland.  The Irish Times has reports of various atrocities around that time but I don't have a subscription so I can't look at them.  Perhaps there would be more information available in The National Archives of Ireland.
http://www.nationalarchives.ie/

Thank you for your kind words, Maria, but I can't claim to have any special research skills and there are many others here on Rootschat more knowledgeable and experienced than I.  I've 'learned my way around' the records in counties where I have ancestors, joined family history societies and so on, and have learned from and been helped by other Rootschatters.  Quite apart from that, we all enjoy the challenge of a good mystery!

Many small schools were set up by individual schoolmasters/mistresses and came and went fairly quickly.  The Dorset History Centre
 https://www.dorsetforyou.com/dorsethistorycentre

or Poole Museum 
http://www.boroughofpoole.com/leisure-and-culture/museums-and-local-history/museum/

may be able to guide you in the right direction with regard to the school, any major epidemics etc.

Both Timothy and Richard died after the registration of births, marriages and deaths started in 1837 so you can order copies of their death certificates, which will show the cause of death, from GRO.  The cost, £9.25 per certificate, includes postage to anywhere in the world.  If you decide to order them, you will need to quote the full page and volume numbers for the register entries you have already found.

It is such a shame that Timothy didn't last another ten years as his place of birth would have been shown in the 1851 census!  Sometimes people are missing from parish registers simply because the minister forgot to enter them.  The registers that we are familiar with are monthly summaries of the services that took place.  Some ministers were scrupulously accurate and entered additional details (such as dates of birth with baptisms) whilst others were appallingly sloppy and got the details wrong or left out entries altogether.  One local vicar, looking after several rural parishes, entered my Alner family as Allenor, Alver, Allen and Arnold.  I had to check the original parish registers then cross check that other families of those names weren't living in the area to make sure I had the right family members as all the other biographical details matched.  I've seen marriage registers with entries completed then names crossed out and different names written over the top, dates scribbled out and changed, entries left half finished and gaps left, presumably for things the minister couldn't quite remember at the time.

Anyway, more information about the Oakes may come to light so we'll keep them on the back burner.