Search for William Woolley

[delenn87]

I have come unstuck. Am looking for a marriage for William WOOLLEY believed to have been born c1878 and died c1956. He had children William, Alice, George (b. 1913) and Edith, but I cannot place him in 1901 or 1891 census and cannot find him in FreeBMD - can anyone help, or give advice on where I should look next?

Thanks

 

[Hackstaple]

I would like to make a suggestion. There are many people who might be able to help you but it really is important that you give us some clues as to where, for example, he was born. There may be many hundreds of William Woolleys of roughly the right age [many marriage certficates have false ages].
Secondly, if you know of his 4 children then you should be able to find a birth certificate for at least one of them. That will give you the maiden name of the mother. It seems that George's birth will be easiest for you.
Read the top messages in the beginners board. there you will find heaps of paths to obtain certificates and so on.
What was his occupation? Was he a soldier or in the Navy? Those can explain absences from a census. Other reasons - misspelt surnames - he used another given name normally and not William - possibly George as his second son had that name.
Go back over your searches. How did you eliminate him as not being on those censuses ?, they contain many William Wolleys.

[rutti tutti]

A look on the 1837 online for a birth after about 1910 will give you the maiden name of the mother - just give us all the details you do know, no matter how small and we can work from there.
Ruth

[delenn87]

Thank you both - you have given me some possible leads. I hope to pin him down yet!!

[Bryant]

To the dungeons with this one..................