Born 'At Sea'

[carol8353]

Lily Violet Rose OSBORNE baptised at St Batholomew Camberwell on 10th Nov 1905, DOB 24th Oct 1905.

Parents Ernest Emmings Osborne and Clara of 15 Ablett Street hes a fireman.

Carol

[axecalibre]

Maybe the enumerator heard birthplace 'at Smeeth'  as 'at  sea' ?

[rosijayne]

Thanks carol

 I think the 1905 marriage is the correct one, and thanks for the baptism of Lily Osborne

It also seems as though axecalibre may have a point with their post - I have been practising saying 'at Smeeth' out loud, and it really could be very possible!!

[carol8353]

The trouble with that theory is that the 1911 census is the first one where we get to see what our ancestors have put and their actual signatures.
All previous censuses were copies of the copy that the enumerator had made.
So lots of margins for errors there.

I think it's more a case of he didn't have a clue where he was born (it wasn't that important back then,nor were ages or birth dates) so he put 'at sea' in the hope that no one really looked it up to check.

Carol

[rosijayne]

That sounds possible carol, I guess nobody back then could even dream that descendants would be studying them in the way that we do now

rosiejayne

[anne P]

Just a thought - might not be relevant.  Railway workers sometimes went abroad to work on constructing railways.  Example only:  In 1873 the ship Northfleet was hit by a foreign steamship 2 miles off Dungeness and sunk.  She was laden with tons of railway iron and 400 labourers and their families bound for New Zealand to construct a railway.

Another possibility for birth at sea:  The London Chatham & Dover Railway Co., and the South Eastern and Chatham Railway Co., ran passenger services between Dover & Calais.  Would have to be a quick birth, though.

Anne P

[rosijayne]

Thanks Anne, this is interesting - I think I really need to order that birth certificate now to solve this one

rosiejayne