Genealogy Chat

I have been looking for my great grandfather for a long time but still haven't managed to find him. Thank you to everyone who has helped me so far! My great grandfather was called Albert Goodge and no one in my family knows anything about him. I have his marriage and death certificates but this hasn't helped me get further back. His marriage certificate from 1914 states that his father was Alfred Goodge, Tobacconist. I looked on historical directories for Alfred, but there was no sign of him. Albert was a waiter and lived at 'Viola', Bournemouth Park Road, Southend. None of his relatives have signed as a witness. Perhaps his family disagreed with the marriage? He died in 1952 but his death wasn't registered by a family member as he was in a mental hospital at the time. I knew that he was admitted when my grandfather was a toddler. There were two asylums in Coulsdon(where he died). A kind member of GR and Surrey History Centre checked the records of both asylums but there was no record of him at either. I haven't been able to trace his birth certificate. His marriage certificate suggests he was born in 1880 but his death certificate suggests he was born in 1883. I don't know where he was born. I have checked censuses but I don't know which Albert Goodge could be him as I don't know anything about him. Can anyone offer me any advice? Thank you very much for your help, Lucia :-)

Hi, Do you have a dob for him? I know you have said that there is a discrepancy over the year, but do you hav a date and month? That could help limit the possibilities of his birth. People tend to know theie month and 'number' but can easily forget the year. I take it there was no father and son match on the 1901? Pat

There a 4 Alberts on FBMD between 1879 amd 1884. 1 of them has a middle name of Alfred Sep quarter 1879 Greenwich 1d 1019. I don't know if you have looked at this before but it would cetainly be worth a look.

Hi Pat, I'm afraid I don't have a date of birth. Then only thing I know about him is his name, his occupation and that he was in a mental asylum. I didn't manage to find a match on 1901 census. I'm beginning to think he was foreign lol Thank you very much for your help, Lucia :-)

Have you located his grave? DOB might be on there? If you think he may have been baptised, I am very close to the Greenwich Local History centre, They may have the records. Pat

Hi Pat, Thank you very much for your kind offer. Unfortunately I don't know where he came from so I wouldn't be able to give you any information. The death certificate says he is buried in the hospital grounds in Coulsdon. Lucia :-)

Ok, Well what about eliminating the births you know are NOT him? It could take a while, but it'll be worth it in the end! Do you have access to ancestry? You could list ALL the possible births. Then try to find those 'births' on the census, to find out who their fathers were. There is only a few possiblities for his birth, so it might not be too difficult. Pat

The elimination technique might help on the census front, too: 1 find all the feasible Alberts, give or take a year or so (people also lied about their ages, as well as being a bit vague about them) 2 look at the families - and see what the head's name is, and how Albert is related the head. if Albert is a son and the head isn't called Alfred, then it's probably not the right one. e.g. in 1891 RG12/444 Clapham London **Goodge, Albert H abt 1883 Balham, Surrey, England Son Goodge, George abt 1849 Offley, Hertfordshire, England Head RG12/27 Kensington London (can't tell with this one) **Goodge, Albert abt 1881 West Hampstead, London, England Boarder Prior, Frederick J abt 1856 Kensington, London, England Head RG12/624 Barnes Surrey **Goodge, Albert William abt 1879 St Pancras, London, England Son Goodge, James William abt 1850 Holbeach, Lincolnshire, England Head RG12/3941 Holy Trinity Yorkshire **Goodge, Albert abt 1878 Hull, Yorkshire, England Son Goodge, John abt 1847 Littleport, Cambridgeshire, England Head RG12/1273 Luton Bedfordshire **Goodge, Albert abt 1879 Luton, Bedfordshire, England Son Goodge, George abt 1843 Not Known Head RG12/1275 Caddington Bedfordshire **Goodge, Albert abt 1885 Caddington, Bedfordshire, England Son Goodge, George abt 1850 Lilley, Hertfordshire, England Head Unfortunately, the only one out of those who hasn't got the wrong Head, is the boarder! There's also the mistranscription route, of course... Christine

Christine, I was thinking about the mistranscription also! Unfortunatley, I think the most likely would be transcribed as GOOD. That would make the search more difficult of course. Pat