When all is said and done.... a work in progress

 cont...

The George and Alice Ford story  part 12

 

Revisiting the coastguard at Ball hill

This story began when the Fords of Eastwood, New South Wales sought to unravel the mystery of their grandfather, Sid Ford’s upbringing. It was always assumed that as he was called Paddy and had a kind of Irish accent that he was of Irish descent.  But snippets of information, newspaper articles  and mementos sent by family to Sid over the years brought us to Newhaven. Alice’s remarriage to William Mockford and the report of mourners at his funeral listed  Sid’s siblings. There were a lot of them. George’s Navy records gave a date and place of birth and sketchy details of his brother.   Further details on the marriage certificate came next and a barrage of navy records for the boys and some details of the sisters from a 70s letter started to fill in the pieces.  Soon I made contact with Beatrice’s relatives via Genes Reunited a  Edith’s grandsons via Ancestry and the flood gates opened. Online trees have expanded the search, Cecil’s family was found, William’s grandson sent me information, Joseph’s daughter was discovered in Canada and years later Archibald’s extended family was found. (I’d decided he was unmarried and lost at sea!)

Further still DNA has backed up the whole story. More recently grandchildren and great grandchildren of the siblings have confirmed the roots back to George and Alice’s family. What’s more the documentation and Ancestry contact and recent DNA testing has allowed cousins to find each other and meet up across the oceans.

When I first discovered George Ford and his family I couldn’t help but be drawn to the fact that sea water seemed to be running through their veins. In fact as I researched further it has continued for generations.  Rather late in the piece we found the mystery behind George’s upbringing and parentage. He actually originated from the land in East Meon, Hampshire and yes he began his life born a Wilks not a Ford.  Funnily Alice, his wife later married a Mockford but she probably had already married a “mock” Ford!!

Alice’s family and parentage is another story still evolving. She’s from a maritime background too, a true hero who outlived two husbands (one by 50 years). She lived to a great age. Her story has been able to be updated due to Archibald’s daughters and details revealed in the 1939 census.

George’s early life seems to have made its mark on the genes- the love of the veggie garden/ plot/ allotment was strong and competitive amongst the future generations of Ford men.  

Another observation comes from my studies into my own family history. The women and often the young folk generally live a short life. Women died in childbirth or children of the  poverty of  living in large families.  Despite George’s early death, the navy pension and assistance allowed his children and Alice to live respectably. Alice’s children all appear to have lived to adulthood. Alice died at 94. Of the next generation many of the womenfolk have lived until their eighties and the following generation into their ninties- healthy and strong from a good steady income earnt from the good  maritime jobs and  perhaps the standard of healthy living provided by the veggie gardens. 

Maritime adventures and opportunities have lead to members of the extended family moving all over the world. We could watch an International event and be able to feel we could still barrack for a winner once our own country has been knocked out.

It will never be possible to have a Ford Reunion but it is possible to have a “virtual” reunion with the wonders of modern technology. I’m pretty proud to have rounded up a bunch of my husband’s second cousins to create this virtual event which now continues through emails, Facebook, phone calls about DNA, swapping photos etc. Some of us have met up or will meet up one day (Covid permitting)

Reunions always need stories and memories. Someone always brings a photo album.  In this reunion the keepers of the artefacts and photos have “shared” from afar. Sharing the stories and writing things down can only be a good thing- it’s made our family story three dimensional. Copies of photos distributed amongst the generations guards against the unthinkable.  Thank you to all the people who dusted off their photo albums, memorabilia and address books- good on you – you took time to share and preserve this story with past and future generations.

My favourite photo is the one of Edith in Africa and yes there was a relative born in an African colony. and another photo I love is  of Alice Ford- matriarch.

Edith May Ford in Africa with husband James Mercer

Definitely Alice Ford nee Barter

My favourite story is Richard and Liz Harvey dusting off the war medal belonging to Alfred Samuel Ford, the brother who was killed in action. Everyone was surprised to see his name under the tarnish. We had the story that went with the award-yes it can only be a good thing uncovering the stories.

After writing the first story many second and third cousins  took a DNA test- no coaxing from me and many quite random. (perhaps Jude Hayes bent a few arms around her family.) Some of this served to find people who were looking for lost contacts. Family reunions have happened around Archie’s family. My husband has at least 20 matches.

A final word..

Writing up the family stories and completing family lines will probably always be a work in progress as seen by this version 2. They are getting too large to handle and print so I have divided them up into smaller    stories. Along the way I have explored Alice’s family, her sisters mainly but there’s more. I’ve dug through the East Meon farm life, George’s mother, brother, possible cousin. All can be found found through looking at the tags on the blog.     

I thank my partners in crime for research and information and especially for getting on board with DNA testing. We have collaborated across the seas!  As I’ve said before this has enabled an impressive 3D story to come together. Stories provide so much more than just names on a page or lines on a tree. It’s fun finding forgotten stories and uncovering ancestors’ lives. It’s a good excuse for a trip. I think we even had a few ahh ha! moments  especially over Archibald and his family.

Any mistakes are mine – I will always welcome insight or information to enhance the cause! Photos will always be welcome. Hope to catch up soon. If you have further to add please contact me via the contact form at the bottom of the blog.