James/William SWADLING

Any info big or small would be excellent as you can appreciate my grandmother is now nearly 85 and would love to know about her birth parents.Thank you

Hello Lee

I know this is rather earlier than you are enquiring about but at the time of the 1881 census there were only 252 people in the UK with the surname SWADLING and the highest concentration of them were in Berkshire followed by Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire with some to the south east of those counties.

Is there some particular reason why you have asked your question on the Shropshire Message Forum?

Mike

Hi Mike, thank you for your reply, the reason is in the 1911 census theres a James William SWADLING listed as living in Bridgnorth Shropshire, sorry should have mentioned that in my post

Hello Lee,

I found the 1911 Census record you mentioned, which states that James William SWADLING was born in Pimlico, London. Have you got his birth certificate? The Ancestry website also links him to a 1901 Census record for a James SWADLINGS aged 7 years, the son of Thomas and Elizabeth SWADLINGS, with Thomas' occupation recorded as "Musician".

I'm not sure he is the same person but if you search Ancestry for Thomas SWADLING born c.1870, then there are two records for a T. SWADLING and a Thomas SWADLING on Passenger Lists from/to New York and recording his occupation as Musician.This may explain why it is difficult to find Thomas SWADLING in 1911 Census.

So if these are the right records did James William follow his father's occupation? And if so did he ply his occupation on ships? Could this explain that he was in Dublin in 1930?

There is also possibility that Thomas SWADLING served in the Army in "Hussars - 10th (Prince Of Wales's Own Royal)". His service papers indicate he was born in London in 1869 and that he was a Musician.

Regards

Phil Poole

Hi Phil

Thanks for reply.
We don't have a birth certificate as we don't have DOB and are not sure if this is the right James William SWADLING as I mentioned earlier we are just trying to narrow down our search.The adoption society here in Dublin that my grandmother was adopted have now closed down, not that they were much help, we approached them a few years back and were given very little to go on. Adoption was not made legal in this Country until around the 50s so anybody adopted before this was given little or no information about their identity. We sourced my Grandmothers original birth Cert ourselves which we now realise were very lucky to have as I see through a lot of forums that many still don't even have that to go on. It was from the birth cert I matched the death cert, same name, address and occupation. Unfortunately that's all we have at present and its taken 85 years to source these documents.

Hi Lee,

What drew me to the records for James William SWADLING were his birth record in London in 1894, which then led me to who I think his father was (i.e. Thomas SWADLING).  And as his father was a musician, that made me think there was a link. Thomas was also born in London c.1869. He was discharged from Newington Workhouse with Hannah and Emma SWADLING in 1873. I found him in 1881 Census as an "inmate" in Central London District School in Hanwell, Middlesex, which was a school supported out of the poor rates. In 1883 he joined the Army with a slightly chequered service career. He played Trumpet, and tantalising has a reference to Dublin in 1892. He married in York in 1891 and looks as though he had 4 children, including James William. Why his wife was in Bridgnorth in 1911, without Thomas, is a bit of a mystery, with her youngest child born in Leek, Staffs?

Do you subscribe to Ancestry? If so search for Thomas born 1869, and you will find two family trees with info on him and his family. It might be worth contacting the Tree owners, although they don't have much info on James William. Based on the Trees Thomas' wife continued to live in Bridgnorth as did one of her children, so living descendants may still be in the area. Thomas is reported to have died in Portsmouth, so perhaps they didn't live as a family,and if he was a Musician either on board a ship or working in New York, that could explain why he died in Portsmouth.

Not sure what else to suggest at this time. I was unable to find an obvious marriage or death record for James William based on 1894 birth. Perhaps he emigrated? To Ireland?

Regards

Phil

Hi Phil

Thank you yes I have subscribed to ancestry website and that's what led me to Shropshire. I suppose we were hoping that maybe a living relative might be active on this site and have some info on the James William SWADLING in their family tree. I haven't found a marriage cert here in Ireland either so no clue there either also the hospital which my grandmother was born refuses to give DOB for birth mother under privacy laws. All they told us was that she was 36 and Alice SWADLING (nee) OSBURN again no trace of her in Ireland in 1911 matching the age but lots in the UK so like finding a needle in a hay stack.

Hi Lee,
James William SWADLING is listed in the Bridgnorth WW1 Army Roll of Honour book. The book records the local people that served, not only those killed.
James William, of 23 Severn Street, a Private in the Union Defence Force. In the Remarks column it has "South Africa : Cape Town"

When Elizabeth Louisa, the mother of James William SWADLING, was buried in Bridgnorth in 1935, she was listed as the wife of Thomas (thus implying she wasn't a widow) Elizabeth, age 65, had been living in the same house as on the 1911 census - 23 Severn St, Bridgnorth.
On Friday, I'll see if there was a funeral report or obituary in the local newspaper that may mention family names.

Gwynne

Hi Gwynne

Thanks for reply, I was saying that my grandmothers birth mother was listed as a widow in the hospital she gave birth to her, not James mother sorry if that wasn't made clear. Also its probably unlikely now that this is the right James if he's listed as being in South Africa??. The death cert we have is for a James William SWADLING who died in Dublin 1930 of TB listed as married and a musician and 35 years old

Hi Lee,

It might be him. In 1911 James William was described as a Garage Apprentice in the Motor trade. In October 1913 a J. W. SWADLING travelled from London  to Durban, South Africa with his destination of Rhodesia. His age was 19 and his occupation Chauffer. Ancestry indexes the record as J.N. SWADLING, but Findmypast as J.W. SWADLING.

Regards

Phil

Hi Phil

Yes I noticed that too, the two different initials but took them to be the same person also. I have checked the South African records on Ancestry and see a James William married to a Margaret no marriage record  just reference to three children baptised (no birth record) to parents Margaret and William James SWADLING and absolutely nothing after that no trace of children or their parents in South Africa?? Very strange and very frustrating

Hi Lee,

There is some interesting info on Wikipedia about Union Defence Force, which was formed in South Africa in 1912 and was involved in WWI. Also if you google Union Defence Force it throws up some ways of accessing records of individuals who served in it. Not sure how easy it is to get records but may be worth a try.

Regards

Phil

Hi Phil

Thank you ill have a look now, was just wondering if James? William died here in Dublin would his body be buried here or brought home? as I cannot find burial records anywhere,although apparently a lot of the church of Ireland were destroyed in a fire

Very little to go on in the South Africa War records unfortunately

Hi just wondering did anybody find any more info on the family inthevarea I seem to have come to a brick wall thanks