I have a lot of information about my great grandfather. I have his father's name, where he was born, who his sisters were. I know who he married and the names of his children. I have his marriage certificates and his death certificate. The one thing I've never found is any kind of record of his birth or baptism, and therefore I have never found anything that tells me his mother's name. I know his father was called William Campbell Williams or sometimes he was called Campbell William Williams. I know he was married to Julia Williams nee Knox There are several land transaction documents online that name the members of the family including my great grandfather. Not one of them specifically says Julia was his mother although she did leave him property. His name was John Andrew, the same as Julia's brother. He called his first daughter Maria Julia. One of his sisters was called Hannah Maria. I have DNA matches to people in the Knox family. Do you think this is enough evidence to conclude that Julia was his mother or should I keep looking?
The reason this is important to me is that if Julia was his mother, then her family goes back all the way to William the Conqueror. If his mother was Bridie from round the corner, then I'm probably descended from the local washerwoman. I'm not sure if I want the royal ancestors or not. They were pretty awful.
I had the same information about my Gt Grandfather as you (my Gt Grandfather was born 1884, the exact Birth date I didn't know to begin with) and
my Gt Grandfather has a full Civil Birth Certificate which gives parentage.
Also have you found the relatives that you know are your actual relatives, in a Census yet?
It is no good looking at other Trees and assuming them to be correct, some are not and some have then copied the errors of others.
I have seen a Tree this week where someone is linking my earlier family to Dorset without the slightest scrap of evidence!
They have assumed that my 4 x Gt Grandfather was 20 years old when he married in 1815 and looked at the rounding down on the 1841 Census. Had they applied and got his Marriage Licence and Bond they would see that his age was 28, but the writing is so faint in the Register the 8 (in 28) looks like 20, but now I know it should be 28 years from the Licence, I can see in the Register it should read 28 years.
The 1841 Census does not agree with Dorset either. He was born in the same County, which should mean Yorkshire.
You need to get the paperwork and work back methodically step by step, using the Census (unless you are before the Census and Civil Registration (or the Census is one of the few images that are missing).
Mark
