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Hello:

I, too, am looking for information that could be used to trace my Great-grandfather, whose occupation was listed as a ship's steward. His name was John Charles Johnson and lived in the village of Weston in Gordano, Somerset.

Little is known about him except he may have been born in a Scandinavian country, possibly Norway, and his actual name was John Carl Johnson. He married my Great-grandmother, Elizabeth Ann Williams and the marriage was registered in Bedminster, Somerset.

We know that Elizabeth re-married, but are unsure whether she was divorced from John or his widow. No death certificate has been found for  John and I'm wondering if he was lost at sea.

Any clues as to locating missing crew or leads for ship's stewards would be appreciated.

Many thanks.

Barryjohn

Hello Wendy, Annie and Ken: (17/12/08)

Many thanks for your replies , questions and suggestions. They are most appreciated. I will try to answer all your queries in this one message.

Very little is known about great-uncle Alec - even his actual name is suspect, being family word of mouth knowledge only. The only clue I have are, again, orally handed down, indicate that he was the only son of John Charles JOHNSON and Elizabeth Ann JOHNSON (née) WILLIAMS. Uncle Alec is supposed to have been born c. 1890. I am unaware if he was given a middle name. I am unable to find any census evidence of his birth, marriage (if any) and all I know about his death is the alleged report that he was killed in action on the Western Front on June 26, 1916, age 26.

Concerning Wendy's question about the demise of John Charles JOHNSON. Great-grandfather (paternal) John is, himself, an enigma. Nobody knows for sure of his origins except it's most likely he hailed from Scandinavia. Two logical countries are Norway and Denmark. It's construed that his name was originally John Carl JOHNSON (Norwegian) and the Carl later Anglicised to Charles. Another theory is that his name was originally Jan JANSEN (Danish) and later Anglicised. I have seen a census entry (as had Wendy) of Alec's elder sister's surname as being JANSEN. Curiously enough, however, on the same sister's birth certificate (March 21, 1885), her father's full name is listed as John Carl JOHNSON , and on her wedding certificate (May 17, 1908), her father's full name is listed as John Charles JOHNSON.

I'm more inclined to favour the Norwegian ancestry and I did make some enquiries with the Norwegian genealogical society, without any luck. John C. JOHNSON's wedding certificate (March 13, 1882) shows him identified as John Carl JOHNSON and his father's name as Arno (or Arne) JOHNSON, occupation farmer. John Charles JOHNSON was, by profession, a mariner - more specifically - a steward. The absence of a death certificate or entry (as far as I can determine) may indicate that he could have been lost at sea. For sure, as Wendy discovered, Elizabeth Ann JOHNSON remarried to a William HARMAN and had a son by him (Edmond HARMAN). The apparent dislocation of the family unit may be a reason for Elizabeth's daughters, Marguerite and Mary  to be "adopted" for a while  by other family members.

Ken's idea of posting my original message on the Somerset section of RootsChat is very sound. I'm not quite sure how to navigate to such a section on the Web site - some pointers, please.

In a nutshell: Like yourselves, I've been unable to find any BMD or census evidence of great-uncle Alec JOHNSON. My only information is family oral lore and is subject to misinterpretation. I have enquired with CWGC and await their reply. John Charles JOHNSON's death notice is also elusive, but could be construed as happening before 1895 when Elizabeth remarried. I have looked on ships' registers (crew lists) and anything applicable to possible deaths at sea, without luck. However, more seasoned researchers may be able to suggest other avenues of approach.

Your help and interest is most appreciated.

BarryJohn

Dear ROOTSCHAT friends:

I am looking for information about my late great-uncle, Alec JOHNSON, who was a casualty in WW1.

He was born c.1890 in the Somerset village of Weston in Gordano to John Charles JOHNSON and Elizabeth Ann (née) WILLIAMS. He was the youngest of three children. The oldest was my grandmother, Marguerite Ethel JOHNSON then her sister Mary Winifred JOHNSON.

I am told he was killed in action on the Western Front of France/Belgium/Flanders on June 26, 1916, age 26. Apparently he was awarded  the Mons Star and listed in the Honour Roll in the Birmingham Hall of Memory. Unfortunately I don’t know any regimental information.

At the moment, I have left an enquiry with CWGC, but if anyone at ROOTSCHAT can advise where I can find a list of Mons Star recipients, I may be able to at least find out uncle Alec's regiment, or verification of his last resting place.

Many thanks.

BarryJohn
(Goderich, Ontario, Canada)