What happened to Dorothy Henderson?

[Squaredancer]

I can't find my first cousin once-removed, Dorothy Moffat, born 1888 in Brunswick, Melbourne, Australia, after 1943 when her mother Ellen Moffat died. She was granted probate as "Dorothy Henderson, wife of Harold Robert Henderson".
A member of another forum found a newspaper report about Harold Robert Henderson marrying his cousin at Gretna Green in March 1914. (Harold and Dorothy would be first cousins.) I can't find that marriage on Scotland's People, but I did find the marriage of a Harold Robert Henderson to a Dorothy Pauline Moffat at “Graitney or Gretna” - in 1948! "My" Dorothy didn't have a middle name. Someone found a divorce record on National Records of Scotland in 1949 for Harold R Henderson and Dorothy P Moffat. "My" Harold died on 12th May 1949.
A couple of family trees on Ancestry and elsewhere have Dorothy marrying a Norman Mansbridge (no date or source) and dying in the 1970s. "My" Dorothy definitely didn't marry Norman Mansbridge. The My Heritage site shows Pauline Dorothy Mansbridge (born 1897 in Plymouth) marrying Osmore Norman Mansbridge (born circa 1896 in Cheltenham).The only Pauline Dorothy born 1897 in Devon is Pauline Dorothy HENDERSON, so those Ancestry trees have got my family in a fine mess.
I don't have Dorothy's date of birth beyond 1888. Harold's is 6th July 1885. Harold lived in Perth, Scotland, and I'm expecting that Dorothy was with him, so they won't be on the 1939 register. (I did look, just in case.) I don't believe they had children. When Harold died, probate was granted to his brother.
Dorothy has disappeared. Can anyone help me find her?

[Pam Downes]

You won't find the 1914 marriage of Harold R Henderson on Scotlands People because it wasn't a legal marriage.
There are three newspaper reports on FMP - all slightly different although the main details are the same. Basically, Harold ws living in Perth; bride (who is never named) lives in Devon. She and her sister travelled by train to Carlisle where they were met by Harold, and then they all drove to Greta Green where a villager 'married' them. The happy couple then drove back to Carlisle where 'Mrs Henderson' and her sister boarded the train to travel back south while Harold returned to his job in Perth. And it wasn't a spur of the moment marriage as they'd been engaged for about eight years.
In none of the newspapers on FMP does it say anything about Harold and his bride being cousins.

The British Newspaper Archive has an additional report in the Aberdeen Evening Express dated 7 March 1914.

ADDED: Depending on how much cash you want to spend to find any answers, I think I would invest in that 1948 marriage certificate. People often added a middle name, changed their names around, changed their name completely, etc.

[Jomot1]

I'm confused! The 1914 marriage of Harold Robert Henderson & Dorothy Pauline Moffat is definitely on Scotland's People, and was entirely legal as its in the Statutory Registers.

HENDERSON, HAROLD ROBERT
MOFFAT, DOROTHY PAULINE
1914
827/ 36
Graitney or Gretna

[Pam Downes]

I'm confused! The 1914 marriage of Harold Robert Henderson & Dorothy Pauline Moffat is definitely on Scotland's People, and was entirely legal as its in the Statutory Registers.

HENDERSON, HAROLD ROBERT
MOFFAT, DOROTHY PAULINE
1914
827/ 36
Graitney or Gretna

And I'm doubly-confused!!
I always thought that Gretna marriages weren't legal - hence my sweeping statement in post #2.
I admit to not checking Scotlands People for a marriage in 1914.

(Two reasons why I'm now off to stand in the corner!)

Pam

[Pam Downes]

I don't think this will anything to the search for Dorothy, but 1891 census RG12/2018 folio 53 page 18, Dorothy is with parents Hugh and Ellen Moffatt (sic), living in civil parish of Barton St Mary,Gloucester.
Ellen, aged 28, born in Gloucester.
Dorothy aged 2, so therefore allegedly born c 1889.
Marriage registration of Hugh Moffat with Ellen Moreland on same page, in June quarter 1884, Hereford registration district.

Pam

[Squaredancer]

Many thanks for the replies! Just to clarify, I've got all the census and family info for Dorothy, so I don't want anyone to waste their time looking for it. I'll come back to this later today.

[Lesley Robertson]

The Gretna marriage would have been legal at that time if the Registrar had attended, or even married them. Standard civil marriage. The irregular marriages were before 1855 and called that because they weren’t registered in Church records.

[Jomot1]

Reading up on how Scottish divorces were recorded pre-1984, it seems the original marriage entry was 'corrected' so I think the 1948 marriage entry on Scotland's People - which has the same reference numbers as the original 1914 marriage - is the later addition of the divorce.

[grisel]

Reading up on how Scottish divorces were recorded pre-1984, it seems the original marriage entry was 'corrected' so I think the 1948 marriage entry on Scotland's People - which has the same reference numbers as the original 1914 marriage - is the later addition of the divorce.

Both the 1948 cert and the 1914 image have the same reference number. I would def look up (the much cheaper) 1914 record to see what is going on.In 1914 it was still legal to be married before witnesses in Scotland I think,
Sorry just realise Jomot has already given you this information!


There is a marriage of a Dorothy P Henderson to a William J Freeman in Liverpool in 1953and a death of a Dorothy Pauline Freeman in 1978. Dob 22 April 1904

[grisel]

There is a marriage of a Dorothy P Henderson to a William J Freeman in Liverpool in 1953and a death of a Dorothy Pauline Freeman in 1978. Dob 22 April 1904

So too young to be your Dorothy I realise.....