My great-grandfather - prison records?

[Jane_Adams]

I'm having another go at trying to dig into the background of my great-grandfather who seems to have taken black sheep to new levels!

He was born Arthur Bernard Clements in 1879 in Camden, London. In 1899 he married Polly Harmon and they had at least 8 children, that I know of, between 1900 and 1910. They are together on the 1911 census.

In 1918 he married my great-grandmother, Mary Maloney, but as far as I can find out, he never divorced Polly and she didn't die until 1927. The marriage certificate shows him as a widower, and his age was out by a few years. My grandfather, Bernard Arthur Clements, was born in 1919.

THEN in 1923 he married Edith Partington (family members remember her). Apparently Mary had died but I can't find any evidence to support this so far.

So it looks like he was a bigamist at least once over, probably twice.

If that wasn't bad enough, he was also apparently in Wandsworth Prison in 1930 for manslaughter! I'm trying to track down whether this is true and if so what the background to that was. I can see that Wandworth Prison records are held by the LMA, not sure if they are accessible online at all? I'm currently trying to trawl through the British Newspaper Archives in the hopes that something was recorded somewhere, but tricky with very little to go on.

[kaysii]

If you have looked at the LMA website here you will see that they are accessible if you visit. https://search.lma.gov.uk/scripts/mwi...R=STARTREQUEST
There is no online access. You can order a history card online to save time when you visit.

[jacval]

Are you sure you have the same man.
Just "Arthur" Clements when he marries Polly-states aged 20 -father Joseph Clements traveller.

Arthur Bernard Clements +Mary Maloney(1918) age 26 father George Clements -gentleman

Jackie

[Peter Goodey]

In 1918 he married my great-grandmother, Mary Maloney...The marriage certificate shows him as a widower,

I'm looking at the marriage register in the LMA collection and doesn't show "widower" - it shows "bachelor"!

As Jackie has already hinted, it doesn't really all hang together.

[Peter Goodey]

I was having a coffee and thought some more about this one...

THEN in 1923 he married Edith Partington

Have you got the marriage certificate to confirm this?

Bernard Arthur Clements, was born in 1919.

What was the addresses involved? (birthplace and informant's address)

Polly...didn't die until 1927

Have you got the death certificate to confirm that?

[christanel]

I can see only one marriage for a Clements to a Harmon 1899 to 1927 and that is Arthur to Polly. On FreeBMD there are another 4 births 1912 onwards, surname Clements mother's maiden name Harmon, the last one being 1921 in Paddington.
This also would rather suggest there are two Arthur Clements.

It is interesting that in his probate index on ancestry it says "Arthur Bernard Clements otherwise Arthur."

Christina

[christanel]

The Electoral Rolls for 1927 have an Arthur Clements, Polly Clements and Lillian Maud Clements (dau in 1911) living at 11 Senior Street Paddington.


Polly may or may not have still been there if she was the one who died in 1927 because I understand the rolls can be out dated by a couple of years or so. Also Arthur, if with Edith may still be registered there but not living there.
I note that if searching for Edith's and Arthur's marriage using Arthur's name FreeBMD have Edith's surname as Parting but when using Edith's name it is there as Partington.


Christina

[Lesley Robertson]

There's more up to date info on this family HERE so, in order to keep new info about the family together, I'm closing this thread. If anyone has any more information, please visit the other thread.