I..think I know my OWN grandmothers name

[chrissy]

oohh trish!!!....Im  speechless ....I grew up only knowing her as ethel
           Thanks....I may have to get foot out of mouth......Really,really reluctuntly.Appreciate the help
                    Chrissyxxxxxxxxxxxxx

[trish251]

If it is the only way family history leads you astray - you are very lucky   

My Gran (b. 1892) was also an Ethel - looking at the 1889-1901 Vic CD there are 6712 birth registrations for the name Ethel & only 2512 for Evelyn

Trish

[chrissy]

Trish.....
  Her brother samuel john...was know as " Uncle Jack"...
        they did this just to stir me up...she had a wicked sense of humour,didnt drink,pefered a cup of tea,and liked a bet on the horses on saturday arvo...She was a true gem in my heart ...God bless you nan ...................................xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
  .........I bet she's looking down and having a good laugh on my account!

[JAP]

I had a Great-Aunt Olive/Ollie - never a name which appealed to me.  I've since found that she was born Alice Beatrice (to quote Prue, "two perfectly lovely ... names"!).
Her sister, registered as Minnie Ada, was always known as Queenie (well ...).
My own mother was always known as Eileen Blanche Julia - Blanche was not on her birth certificate (I think she would have been very glad to have known this!).

JAP

[goldy]

Could the Blanche have been a conformation name? My dad was known as Ralph James Bernard but the Bernard was his conformation name so wasn't on his bc.

[JAP]

Hi goldy,

Blanche was her mother's middle name.

'Confirmation' - who knows.  There was a certain religious tension in the family and the maiden aunts sneaked her off as a baby to be christened as a Roman Catholic (her father's background - he'd been an altar boy and the maiden aunts had hoped he'd go into the priesthood) so I doubt they'd have given her the middle name of her CE mother then.  After which time, religion was kept in the background so I doubt she'd have been confirmed ...

JAP

[tropicalj]

hello 
My dear mum's name was Margaret Alma BUT it was really Alma Margaret she found that out when she needed her birth certificate for a job. Her death certificate says Margaret Alma done by us kids, thats what she would have wanted.  She would not have wanted to go to her grave as Alma.

Now one of my cousins has her down as Alma on Genes Reunited but I have her as Margaret thats who she was to all and sunry  anyone looking for her won't even know  Alma will they!

She was one of 13 most of them  were known by their middle names some of the first names were allready in the family  back then that was the norm so not to confuse would use a middle name or a "pet" name, which doesn't help our searchings at all.

So your Grans name is whatever you remember her as!!

regards Jenn

[jocer]

I can't resist Chrissy!  My Nan didn't even know her own name!!

My Nan is 98.. and always thought her name was Thelma May and her sister Jean Elizabeth.  It wasn't until Nan was 75 (!!) that she sent my Pop to get a copy of her birth certificate (for some reason) and they discovered that she was in fact Thelma Elizabeth and Aunty Jean, Jean May.  Even to this day, she refuses to acknowledge it as fact!!

Just last week she had a lady come and interview her from a government agency and she stated her name as the one she's always believed it to be throughout her life (and fair enough too).  At some stage early on, their names were verbally swapped around and that's the way it stayed.. through all of their children's birth documents and of course their marriages!

My Nan is still extremely lucid and a total wag!! BLESS!

Cheers, Jo

[ajcarroll]

Hi guys!

My aunty didnt know her name either until a few years ago. She had to get her birth certificate for some unknown reason and thinking her name was Melva they couldnt find her!! But her name is actually Melvina.

And another story..........my grandfather will no longer acknowledge my family history research. He thinks it is all wrong. He says his mother's name was Violet Edith Crow. But I have done some digging and have found her name was in fact Ada Sophia Violet Crow - and he wont beleive me!!! The rest of the fam does (luckily) as they remember great nan saying something about being Ada when she was old and thought it was 'old age' talking.

Andrea x