sad death certificates

[LittleMissP]

Now I know that death certificates are never going to be happy, light reading, but today 3 arrived and they all depressed me more than I thought they would. The first was a baby who had been 'violently suffocated in bed'. The second was an old lady who had died in a workhouse on Christmas Day. And the third was a twin baby girl who had 'been born into a pail' and had died of convulsions though it also said there was 'want of attention at birth'. The combination has made me feel very sad for all of these poor people and the dreadful conditions they endured.

Paula

[Richard1955]

Yes very sad indeed and also reminds us of how fortunate we are.

[v.wells]

My uncles' wife buried 2 children - 3 mos and 18 mos old 2 wks apart in the same month. Both died of influenza. My uncle died a few years later from TB. I felt horribly sad for this poor lady. She never married again and raised the remaining 3. The last born cousin died just a few months ago at age 83. I wish I had been able to meet him. We are very fortunate that we don't have those appalling conditions anymore.

[spison]

My GGGGrandmother died in childbirth and family stories state "and the twins were buried with her". She'd suffered for three days. This was the second death of a spouse in childbirth for my GGGGrandfather. I try not to think too hard about what it used to be like. We are so lucky!
Jane

[cristol]

. I try not to think too hard about what it used to be like. We are so lucky!

The only relevant fact I knew about for one of my Gt Grandmothers was that she was involved in or witnessed a terrible fire in which one of her little sisters died. When I started on the family tree, I was still a little unsure that I had located the right family. I discovered the death of a younger child and sent for the death certificate. I remember waiting for the certificate hoping that it would confirm my hunch and then realising what an awful way of thinking this was. Sure enough the certificate came through showing that the young 7 year old had died “from accidental burns received on the 4th April” and what made it worse is that she didn’t die until 19th April – fifteen days of suffering. I can’t see that there would have been much money available for medical help or medicine to alleviate her suffering. She had been trying to light a fire to keep their sick brother warm and her clothes had caught fire. Just when I thought it could not get any worse a friend located a newspaper report giving the dreadful details and then we found that on the day the little girl was buried, her 10-year-old brother was buried too having died of phthisis. Their mother had already been lost to this disease the year before and soon after that, their youngest sibling (less than one year old) succumbed to the disease. Their father’s first wife had also died from phthisis. This all took place a few years after his mother (the children’s grandmother) – being quite elderly and totally deaf had been killed after being struck by a train. What a tragic hand life had dealt my Gt Gt Grandfather and he was to die three years after his two young children, suffering from cancer of the tongue. Of all my families this one has been the most heartbreaking to research. It almost made me never want to order another death certificate ever again!

[susan-y]

AND...
We wonder why our ancestors always seemed so dour and never showed much emotion or sentiment.

Sue

[Sue Mackay]

One of my husband's ancestors had fifteen children by two wives, but only seven survived beyond their fifth birthday. My husband's gt grandfather was the fourth son to be given the name William, the first three having died in infancy. Another surviving son later became the town's sanitory inspector - no doubt influenced by witnessing so many of his siblings succumb to disease. It was interesting that the father signed his name on both his marriage certificates, but made his mark when registering all those deaths - obviously too overcome by grief to concentrate on signing his name.

[exiled brummie]

I have the death certificate for a possible 1st cousin 4 times removed, who died in 1847. The certificate was issued 2 months after his estimated date of death and the informant was a local coroner, who declared he was "found drowned where the tide waters flow" near Broughton in Furness Lancashire. My relative was aged just 21.

I have what appears to be his 1841 census entry, when he was working for a farmer, so no help there.

When funds allow I must obtain a copy of my grandmother's cousin's father's death certificate. He died in 1876, a year after he was married, and no more than 3 months before nan's cousin was born.

[v.wells]

AND...
We wonder why our ancestors always seemed so dour and never showed much emotion or sentiment.

Sue

I agree- now we Know why!

[Elma]

My great-great grandfather died aged 36. Nothing unusual with that but recently I found a son of his was born the day before. It makes me upset to think about it. I had always said Great great grandmother was a character moving on with husbands and partners but life was tough and all about survival. Whatever she did ensured some care and future for the children.
I keep telling myself I must not be judgemental. I might not be here otherwise.
ELMA