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That looks like an 'N' to me, written like a large 'n' shape for upper case - I find that sort of thing a lot in the written records I'm using for my PhD (try reading Victorian doctors' handwriting - uurgh!). Also, loads of my family have been confusing me by interchangeably using first/middle names on different censuses - a Richard morphed into a William, but they estimated different birth years on different censuses, but then it transpired everyone knew him as Bob. His son was called Alfred John, and he flits between those and Jack - maybe that's what's going on here? Does anything come up for 'Ellen Luce(or Lucy)' or vice versa, perhaps trying it with both surnames?

Not that I've found a single thing out about them yet, but I think some of my family are descended from George Sheppard, who was apparently an Irish sea captain. His daughter, Eliza Rosina, was born in 1884 in Kinsale, Cork... do you think there might be some crossover, or are you looking for a different bunch/time?

Hurray!
The birth certificate for Victor Freeman Barkell Bougouis came! Sadly, owing to something to do with the poor quality of the original filmed record, it's just typed onto the cert (and I'm not sure if they've mistranscribed the name of the street for a start)... but it does reveal:

Victor Freeman Barkell Bougouis born 23rd November 1896 (reg'd 28th December 1896) - son of 'Victor Bougouis' (a coal porter) and 'Rosetta Bougouis, formerly Freeman', at 10 'Love Street' (think this might be Looe Street) in the Charles District of Plymouth (which covers Plymton St Mary as well I think... and is one of the many parts flattened by WW2 - think it's where a bombed out church still remains in the middle of a roundabout!)... so it looks as though this Victor (the dad) may well have been the one who had lived in Jersey and had French parents!

Also, my mum has since remembered that the place Victor jr ran away from was the farm he worked on (so the census entry with Victor Burgaise must have been him at 16 in 1911 when he was there 'tending cattle') because the farmer mistreated the animals very badly, which is when we thin he fibbed about his age and joined the navy (though amusingly he apparently also thought the wrong date was his 'real' birthdaythat he had fibbed about!

Going to try to trace more of this Victor-the-dad now I think, to see if  can definitely link him to the Jersey family... and maybe try again with seeing if I can figure out where/how he went into care!

It's so exciting, and so good to see that what we thought probably true was correct! :-)

Hi again,

I think that's Jess's tree, whose post in 2007 on this website is the one I found which led to me finding these links. Poor Rosetta had a rather eventful 40 years it seems! Jess's tree traces her parents back a bit further too, and apparently her other two children, Thomas and Rosetta jr Barkell, ended up with an uncle (who presumably didn't want to take in, or wasn't allowed to take in Victor - or Victor had already been put into care). Mum thinks Victor jr had a half brother who killed himself - might have been Thomas Barkell... going to try to find a record of his death too. Mum thinks he might have flung himself off a train of all things. She's going to get email addresses for her cousins who're older and might remember more of what their mums might have said (my Grannie's sisters).

I am not sure, but family rumours suggest, in combo with this recent info, that it might have been William Roberts (Rosetta's last husband) who mistreated (at least) Victor. Going to try to follow up a bit on him too... REALLY want those certs!! the website says they're despatched within about 4 days - do you know if it really is that quick? I hope so! Also, any idea on how to find records of children taken ito care? was there a central organisation who did this in the early 20thC, or would I have to look for orphanage records and hope for the best - can't seem to find any orphanage ones, all I've found is a bit of history of some Barnardos homes near Plymouth (no records) but most of them seem to have been in operation too late for this story.

I've also informed my brother he is going to have to get helping - at least he is in Somerset so he can start some tape recording of conversations with Gran for tidbits that could be clues!

Thanks so much again for your help and interest - I had known there was some sad stuff in my family history but I'd no idea how much so!

Vicky xx