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I'm looking for the parents of William Charles Francis, born 1909.
I have been told that his father had an affair and nobody knows who his mother was.
I've found him living with a William John Overy in the 1911 census who I think may have been is biological Father. I'm unable to find if the birth was registered or a birth certificate. Where do I go from here?

Can you check the dates you have given as they don't seem to be right? Can you also say where they were living in the census record you found?

Kath. x

How do you know he was born in 1909? Do you know where he was born?

there is this 1911 census if it is the right person
FOSTER, Ralph Head Married M 22 1889 Bricklayer Lancs Prescot VIEW
FOSTER, Alice Wife Married F 22 1889 Lancs Prescot VIEW
FOSTER, Ralph Son M 1 1910 Lancs Prescot VIEW
FOSTER, John Rigby Son M 4 1907 Lancs Prescot VIEW
FRANCIS, Charles William Visitor Married M 24 1887 Watch Maker And Jeweller Worwick Coventry VIEW
FRANCIS, Mary Elizabeth Visitor Married F 23 1888 Lancs Prescot VIEW
FRANCIS, William Charles Visitor M 2 1909 Lancs St Helens VIEW
RG number:
RG14 Piece:
22741 Reference:
RG14PN22741 RG78PN1332 RD456 SD4 ED7 SN432

Registration District:
Prescot Sub District:
Prescot Enumeration District:
7 Parish:
Prescot

Address:
30 Beaconsfield St Prescot County:
Lancashire

Can find a William J Overy in 1891, 1901 and 1911 but no William Francis living with him

If the family Maddie has found is the correct one then this looks like the birth:-

Name: FRANCIS, William Charles
Registration District: Prescot
County: Lancashire
Year of Registration: 1908
Quarter of Registration: Oct-Nov-Dec
Mother's Maiden Name: Not available before 1911 Q3
Volume No: 8B
Page No: 742

The certificate will name his mother.

Kath. x

1911?

OVERY, William John Head Married M 63 1848 Potter Stoneware Bottle Maker Commercial Road East London VIEW
OVERY, Mary Wife Married
39 years F 59 1852 Camberwell London VIEW
OVERY, Albert Son M 14 1897 Lambeth VIEW
OVERY, Charles Nephew M 8 1903 Lambeth VIEW

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

RG number:
RG14 Piece:
1972 Reference:
RG14PN1972 RG78PN69 RD25 SD1 ED30 SN53

Registration District:
Lambeth Sub District:
Lambeth Church Enumeration District:
30 Parish:
Lambeth

Address:
49 Ethelred St Lambeth S E



Can you post the 1911 details you have been looking at

Sorry i put 1991 instead of 1911 :)
Maddie and Kathleen I'm affraid those don't look like the correct ones.
In the 1991 census there is a William Charles Francis aged 1 living with an Emily and William Overy in Llanelly.
William Francis is classed as a nephrew.
I got the birth year of 1909 from the age he was when he died. His birthday was in July I think, so that matches up with the aged on the census.

Okay found him

1911
OVERY, William John Head Married M 27 1884 Haulier Above Ground Llanelly Carmarthenshire VIEW
OVERY, Emily Wife Married
5 years F 30 1881 Llanelly Carmarthenshire VIEW
FRANCIS, William Charles Relative Nephew Married M 1 1910 Pontardulas Carmarthenshire VIEW

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

RG number:
RG14 Piece:
32859 Reference:
RG14PN32859 RG78PN1876 RD596 SD3 ED14 SN225

Registration District:
Llanelly Sub District:
Llanelly Urban Enumeration District:
14 Parish:
Llanelly Urban

Address:
23 Crooked Row

Yep Glitter Baby thats the one :)
I was told that he was brought by his dad and step mom however the step mom died shortly after and the dad may have gone into the army. I've found a death record for an Emily overy in 1912 which matches but I'm not sure what I should be looking at next.

Should place of birth read as Pontarddulais - Swansea Area

Marriage is no help

Marriages Mar 1906 (>99%)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

EVANS Emily Llanelly 11a 1358
Jenkins Thomas Llanelly 11a 1358
Overy William John Llanelly 11a 1358
Thomas Margaret Jane Llanelly 11a 1358

Yes Pontarddulais is right but I haven't been able to find the birth registered there

William John's service record is on Ancestry:


British Army WWI Service Records, 1914-1920

Name: William J Overy
Document Year: 1919
Regimental Number: 41751
Regiment Name: Welsh Regt
Number of images: 15

Thanks for your help MarieCeleste that sounds about right :)

Interestingly on those Service records it states that William J married on 4 April 1914 but there is no wife's name. However, it lists children as
Wm Chas. no date of birth
Phyllis M b 20 11 14
Nancy b 21 9 16.

Looking for births of Phyllis & Nancy it gives mother's maiden name of 'Jenkins'

So it looks like William possibly remarried

Marriages Jun 1914
Jenkins Esther Overy Llanelly 11a 2269
Overy William Jenkins Llanelly 11a 2269

Thank you for your help. I'm going to do some more research into this. Which records did you get your information from?

The Army Service Records are on Ancestry....it looks as if William applied for a War Pension which was rejected.

It may have no bearing on your case, but I had a brickwall with someone on my tree living with a relative on a census. She was logged as 'daughter'

Dates indicated that she was born before their marriage, so I looked for her being registered c.1882 in the maiden name of the wife, or their married name, but couldn't find her.
A bit more digging and with lots of help on these boards found that she was registered in her mother's surname, but this was not the person who married the father, with her on the 1891 census.
Her natural mother died in childbirth and she was later raised by her father and his new wife.

You could try looking for any William Charles born in the right time and area and look to see whether a woman of the same surname, who could be his mother, died about the same time.
It worked for me.........

Good luck.

Gwyn