Crozier family living at The Grange, 53 Wake Green Road, Moseley in 1925

[planehome]

Thank you so much, Heywood, for this fascinating information - some great research done there.

Can I access these newspaper reports easily online ?  I obviously have a lot of learning to do given the information from yourself, Rosie and others.

This raises so many more questions about the whole adoption process in this instance.  I can see that this may have been a regular occurrence for the family - as you say, maybe run as a business or as good works.

It is interesting that the family moved from Northern Ireland to Manchester and then to Birmingham when the father, David, was employed only as a clerk (in Manchester, at any rate).  I wonder what the driving force for these moves actually was ?

Wilhelmina and May - they did seem to keep getting themselves into problems with their activities, even if it seems that they were well intentioned.

I will think about this further tomorrow !  There is more to learn here, I am sure.

Thank you so much.

[rosie99]

The newspaper reports are on British Newspaper (BNA) website or FindMyPast.  A lot of libraries in England have access to these databases

Rosie

[planehome]

So, a bit more time spent looking into the Crozier family and some interesting findings - funny how a thread like this becomes intriguing, even if its doesn't directly help to solve the original problem !

So, Wilhelmina Crozier ....... I read the two accounts on the 1918 Derby incident (whilst Wilhelmina was based in Manchester) with great interest and carried on searching within the newspapers.  Lo and behold, 4 more instances appear of newspaper reported court appearances relating to the emotive term of baby farming (at worst) or failure to abide by adoption notification purposes (at best)!

All the incidents were in 1911 and 1912, whilst Wilhelmina was based in the Blackley area of Manchester (same location as the 1911 census).  The reports are in the Manchester Courier (23/3/1911), Sheffield Daily Telegraph (10/8/1911 and 30/9/1911) and Yorkshire Telegraph (1/2/1912).  All confirm that arranging adoptions (formal or informal for babies) was regular business for Wilhelmina ... and she seemed to make quite a few mistakes around this period.  The Sheffield Board of Guardians were especially peeved about failure to notify them of arrangements.

Clearly, these reports pre-date the 1918 reports and I can't find anything in-between or after.  Surely these cases (and fines) must have had some impact on their activities !  There is a location move of only a couple of miles from Blackley (1911) to Moston/Harpurhey (1918) and, in fact, some attempt at formalisation of their activities into the Ashton-on-Mersey Nursing/Maternity Home.

So, why the move to Birmingham ?  Any thoughts ?

Does anyone know whether how property transfers were recorded in 1925 ? The Grange in Moseley seems to be connected to the Croziers in October 1925 but in the 1925 Electoral Roll to the Jackson family.  The Crozier's may have been tenants, of course, not buyers.

Ok, that's my synopsis for a film script about illegal adoption practices in the early 1900s !

[planehome]

The newspaper reports are on British Newspaper (BNA) website or FindMyPast.  A lot of libraries in England have access to these databases

Rosie

Thanks Rosie - I took about a 1 month sub to FindMyPast to view them.

Pete

[rosie99]

The newspaper reports are on British Newspaper (BNA) website or FindMyPast.  A lot of libraries in England have access to these databases

Rosie

Thanks Rosie - I took about a 1 month sub to FindMyPast to view them.

Pete

Make sure you untick the box - My Account - Personal details -  Auto-renew my subscription or they will take more money

Rosie

ADDED I must have a look at the other articles sometime.

[planehome]

Thanks again, Rosie, and Heywood.

[heywood]

Hi Pete,
It's very easy to get distracted! We do it all the time.
Good luck with the searching.

Heywood

[rosie99]

I have now read the other newspaper reports, they certainly make interesting reading. How things have changed.  I keep coming back to these posts   

Rosie

[planehome]

I have found this fascinating - even outside of the desire to search for some context for my MiL.

Even more interesting because many of the newspaper articles I mentioned were from Sheffield and that is the city that my MiL has lived in for the past (almost) 90 years !  How strange.

She will also love the fact that 'The Grange' was previously owned by the creator of the Birmingham Rep Theatre and my MiL's adoptive father played piano in Sheffield theatres, including the wonderful Lyceum Theatre, and they 'took in' theatrical folk as boarders !

The world does indeed turn in circles , or as they would say in The Lion King ... 'The Circle of Life'.