It's a small world...

I've been busily working on the Ball family tree, but my side interest has veered down the Turner branch of the tree - specifically the families related to Annie Amelia Turner, 1878-1947 (wife of Thomas Huxtable Ball, 1875-1941). She immigrated to Canada, along with 3 of her 4 sisters: Sarah Elizabeth, Edith, and Eva. Older sister, Alice, and Edith's twin, William Henry, remained in Wales.

Lately, I've been researching Alice's family. She married a man named Edward Boyle in Cardiff. One of her children was named Alice Victoria Boyle. Alice Victoria married Vivian G. James and it looks like they had several children, including a set of twins, Kenneth and Joan, in 1926.

Recently, I found an obituary online for a January 2012 obituary for a Kenneth James, who was noted as being born in 1926 in Wales, had siblings, and had served in the RAF. He died in Regina, Saskatchewan. Unfortunately, his immediate family was not noted. In my mind, I am putting together all sorts of connections between the James family I am researching and this Kenneth James who lived in Canada. However, as his birthdate was noted in the obituary, I decided to order his birth certificate to compare before making any more assumptions.

The certificate finally arrived on Friday. Much to my disappointment, the birthdates do not match. However, much to my delight, I noted the address of his birth - 14 Plassey Square, Penarth.


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Plassey Square is just around the corner from where my Ball family relations lived on Plassey Street! Had the Ball family known the James or Boyle families? I do not know. What I do know is that it's a very small world.

It's a lovely, sunny and warm Victoria Day long weekend here in Waterloo. I hope everyone is enjoying a bit of the same, wherever you are.

Cheers, K.

Secrets, lies and paper

If I had to chose a starting point, I would say that it was the receipt of a typewritten note on the history of the Ball family, composed by my great-aunt Gwen Hynds (sister to my grandfather, William Huxtable Ball). My Dad's mom,whom we called Nana, said not to take it too seriously as there were many errors (my great-grandmother died in 1947, not 1945). Nana sent it to us after Dad died and in some way it was a last tenuous link between us, Dad and the past. Mom and I dissected the note countless times, disagreed on the references and relationships noted, but it kept my interest piqued....

I won't post the whole note as there are references to living people and a dispute about money on my great-grandmother's (Turner) side - so you can see we are a very typical family... warts and all.

Like a great puzzle to solve, I felt compelled to sort fact from fiction.

Cheers,

K.