Watson & Nelson 1891 .....

[Russell]

This was my best effort.

Todays teaser.

Thomas Hendry Watson Wood

Sarah Wood wife to ……… ………… seaman
Merchant service tho the
deceased is not the father of
the ……….. And further that
there has been no personal communication with him since
they ceased to reside together six years ago

I know Registrars were supposed to record the information as it was given but surely they had a little discretion and could summarise rather than record verbatim.

I was slightly concerned by the names in this post as I have Watson, Wood and Hendry in my lines around that time.
I was able to breathe a sigh of relief when I saw the address.

Russell

[brian1968]

Thanks for all your help but I cant understand why some kids surnames are watson who were born in scotland & nelson who were born in england

[DavidWW]

This was my best effort.

Todays teaser.

Thomas Hendry Watson Wood

Sarah Wood wife to ……… ………… seaman
Merchant service tho the
deceased is not the father of
the ……….. And further that
there has been no personal communication with him since
they ceased to reside together six years ago

I know Registrars were supposed to record the information as it was given but surely they had a little discretion and could summarise rather than record verbatim.

I was slightly concerned by the names in this post as I have Watson, Wood and Hendry in my lines around that time.
I was able to breathe a sigh of relief when I saw the address.

Russell

ROFL (again!!)

Weel done

Have a look at the birth register entry of wee Mary, - does Nils NELSON fit as the name of the seaman ?, - I think it does, - just that the greater part of the LH stroke of the capital "N"s is too faint to have come through on the image.

Could it be "...the Child and further that" ?.....

This wasn't necessarily a verbatim recording, but the required format for the registration of a birth in such circumstances, - I've seen quite a few over the years, - all deriving from a basic principle of Scots Law to the effect that, unless otherwise declared, the husband was presumed to be the father, even when he was deceased !!, and any possibility that he could have been the biological father most unlikely

David

David

[DavidWW]

On reflection, and given my Scandinavian/Nordic connections, - the terms are not synonymous*, - I lived and worked in Sweden for 6 years, and had a Finnish partner for approaching 10 years, - I have to shamefacedly admit that it's only on reflection that I don't believe the name Nils NELSON ..........

Nils NIL[L]SON, yes, either Swedish or born of at least one Swedish parent, with a remote possibility of a Norwegian/Danish connection, and slightly less remote possibility of a Finnish connection - see below, - especially if NIL[L]SEN was misheard and recorded as NELSON, but I have a major problem in believing that he was Nils NELSON ............

David


*It gets complicated, believe me !!

A good explanation of the situation and the multifarious complications is given on Wikipedia at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scandinavia from which the following is taken ......

QUOTE
Scandinavia is a region in Northern Europe named after the Scandinavian Peninsula. The most common definition includes continental Denmark, mainland Norway and Sweden. Sometimes, Finland is included even in official contexts, although since the 1850s, with the rise of Scandinavism and Finnish nationalism, this inclusion divides opinions in all of the respective states. This is sometimes reflected with the usage of the term "Fennoscandia", mainly a geological term. In the English language, "Scandinavia" is often used as a synonym for the Nordic countries.

The usage and meaning of the term outside Scandinavia is somewhat ambiguous:

Finland and Iceland are often counted as parts of Scandinavia.

From a German point of view, Norway, Sweden and Finland are usually included, but Denmark is not.

From a British point of view, Norway, Sweden, and Denmark are usually included, often with the addition of Iceland and Finland.

The Nordic [DWW added emphasis] Countries are Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden and include the autonomous territories of Svalbard, Åland, Faroe Islands and Greenland.
ENDQUOTE

From much contact with Finns, including Finland-Swedish speaking Finns (it's a distinct dialect of Swedish) I can state that they do not regards themselves as part of "Scandinavia", although they will admit to being a Nordic nation.

The situation is complicated by the fact that, deriving from the history of Finland, there is a substantial Swedish speaking minority, around 7 or 8%, hence the international country designator for Finland of "SF" - "S" = Suomi (Finnish), and "F" = Finland (Swedish), - the Swedish name for the country is the same as in English.

Which is getting off the subject somewhat !!, in the sense that a Scandinavian surname ending in "-SON" is more likely to be Swedish, with a surname ending in "-SEN" more likely to be Norwegian or Danish ..........
dww

[DavidWW]

Thanks for all your help but I cant understand why some kids surnames are watson who were born in scotland & nelson who were born in england

Very simply, whether or not the father took part in the registration of the birth, - in Scotland, that is, - I'm no expert in terms of English registration details

And weren't most of the kids born when Nil NELSON was still alive?

Note that, in the case of Mary Jane WATSON, both the mother, Sarah NELSON, and the father Thos. WATSON attended at the registrar's office to register her birth, and both signed the register entry, - the only way, in such circumstances, that his name could also appear on the birth register entry as the father.

Note also that Thos. WATSON is described as "Occupier" which means that he was the resident at the address on the birth registration entry, - 13 York Street, Aberdeen, - so that it would be a reasonable assumption that Sarah NELSON MS WOOD was his "housekeeper" ......................

As regards wee Thomas, - he was registered as Thomas Hendry Watson WOOD or NELSON .........

So does the use of "Watson" imply that Thomas was also the father in this instance, but didn't go along with Sarah to register the birth ?! But where does HENDRY come from ?!

David

[Russell]

My fear was that it was another seaman/fisherman from just along the coast in Port Gordon which is where my lot come from

Russell

Thanks for the Nordic/Scandinavian info David. They have almost as turbulent a history as Scotland.

[brian1968]

The only problem here is that the mother is shown as Head of Household, and a Widow ................ except that if you have a look at http://www.talkingscot.com/gallery/disp ... =72&pos=22
you will see that she was indeed a widow, or at least describing herself as a widow in 1891.

Can you tell me who else was in the family with Sarah in 1891

So does the use of "Watson" imply that Thomas was also the father in this instance, but didn't go along with Sarah to register the birth ?! But where does HENDRY come from ?!

Is the Hendry not Henry as the father was Thomas Henry Watson