French Canadian

[Christopher Robin]

This is a long shot!!!

I'm looking for a serviceman who was stationed in Worthing, UK during WW2.
His first name is Charles but his surname could be:-

ARMSTRONG/BYERS/ELLIOT/IRVING/ERWIN/IRWIN/IRVINE/IRVIN/IRVIN

All the above surnames are very closely related through DNA.

Does anyone have any idea from the above surnames if any could be French Canadian and from where in Canada. Please.

Cheers 
Chris (Happy New Year)

[VivienR]

Hi Chris
The surnames you listed do not sound like any French Canadians I have ever run across. Perhaps his mother was French Canadian.  Do you have a birth date for Charles?  Most French Canadians live in Quebec although there are pockets in other provinces.

Vivien

[Christopher Robin]

Hi Vivien

Thanks so much for coming back.

He was about 42 in 1945 so that makes him born about 1903.
But I don't know where he was born  Canada/UK.

Cheers

Chris

[VivienR]

Hi Chris.

Here's a link for the 1911 Canadian census.

http://automatedgenealogy.com/census11/

There's a Charles Armstrong born 1903 living in Vancouver with his parents. Do you have any other information ?
Irving's a big name in New Brunswick.

Vivien

[Christopher Robin]

Hi Vivien

Thanks for the link.

No other info really.  As you say all the surnames are British, but his mother could of
been French Canadian or even his grandmother. But that points to him being born
in Canada !!. Otherwise if he moved to Canada he should of had a English accent.

All the surnames derive from the surname Irvine and the DNA is 99.9% match.
He was stationed in Worthing, Sussex, England for a good part of the war, but did see
service in Europe but was back in Worthing July 1945.

We even know the house that he was billeted in, but no records kept. As they would of told me
his surname.  No one in road still alive who live near during the war.

regards

Chris

[VivienR]

Was he serving with the Canadian armed forces, Chris?

Vivien

[Christopher Robin]

Yes, Canadian Army

But no idea of regiment

Chris

[amazon510]

Hi,

Do you think your ancestor was French-speaking?  Or could he have been an Anglophone in a primarily French speaking area?

Be aware that not all French speaking Canadians are Quebecois.  There are significant French populations in northern New Brunswick, Eastern Ontario, Manitoba, and pockets throughout the country.  However Quebec is obviously your best bet to start out if you are sure your ancestor was French speaking.

I wouldn't rule out the paternal surnames as from Quebec.  There has always been English and Irish settlement in Quebec, particularly in Montreal and the Outaouis. 

J.

[Christopher Robin]

Hi J

Thank you, for your input.
Re: Anglophone I'm not sure. I have only found one person who met him and said he spoke good English but with a French accent !!!.
In Worthing where he was stationed we had a number of French Canadian Regiments including
12th Army Tank (The Three Rivers) who were here for about 13 mths and 61 men married local girls in that time. I'm working through the war diaries of all the regiments that I know were in Worthing during WW2. To see if I can match up a surname, but most of the diaries don't have a list of soldiers.
And it looks like billet records have all gone!!!

Thanks again J

Chris