Am I jumping to conclusions?

[swendeperle82]

I have recently started researching my dad's side of the family which has been tricky as I have very little information to go on. I started with his maternal grandfather who was Edwin H Damps but he was born in Poplar in 1913 so just after the last available census. I was able to determine that his mother's maiden name was May but that didn't get me much further.

Then I came across a 1911 census record in the Poplar area that listed a Damps family - August (head), Alice (wife), George (b. 1908) and Albert (b. 1911).

It turns out that August was from Germany and his original name may have been Ludwig Augustus Dams. I then thought that it was safe to assume that the surname Damps had originated from Dams or could it just be a misspelling on the census?

There's also a marriage record out there for August Damps and Alice May in 1908 which ties in nicely with the census and the birth of their first child.

August Damps is also mentioned in the 1901 census as a servant to what looks like a German family running a pub, so I'm assuming that's why he came to this country in the first place.

So this information all seems to match up but it still doesn't determine that August Damps was my 2nd gt grandfather.

I know I could probably order a birth certificate of my gt grandfather Edwin which would determine his father's name but I'm trying not to spend any money unless I have to!

What do you think?

[Sumi]

As you say, what you have found 'seems to match'...but, you are skipping a generation. You can find a lot of solid information from the records that are now available online, but there comes a point when only a certificate will do and this is where you are now. If you don't get your g/grandfather's birth certificate you may kick yourself later.

Sue

[Lesley Robertson]

Sue's right. The only way to be certain that the people you found in the census were your people is to check the certificate. Otherwise you could waste a lot of time. Before the days when so much was online, I had to throw out a whole year's research because I guessed which man was my ggrandfather. It turned out that there were two of them with the same collection of forenames, born within a year and in the same area because they were cousins, and I chose the wrong one. All that because I didn't want to bother getting a certificate through the post... I only found out when someone else pointed out the error.

Also, do not underestimate the 19th century talent for miss-spelling names from other regions of the UK, let alone other countries.

Mind you, if you do order a certificate, do it through the official system (no doubt someone will be along in a moment to give your the URL) as the commercial companies charge much more!

[Megan Roberts]

https://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content/c...es/default.asp

This is the official site - order through this site a PDF version - do it now and it will only cost £8. This is a limited offer.

[christanel]

Do you know any of the names of Edwin H Damps siblings?
The Damps marriage to Alice May 1908 has Alice missing from the page on FreeBMD, you have to enter her name and the year and area in a separate search. This is because the page number for Alice is entered as 490 instead of 499 as it is for August.
There is also a marriage of an August Dams to Marjorie May in 1920 Sept 1/4 Hendon

An Alice Dams died Dec 1/4 1918 age 40 Wandsworth registration district

Christina

[geneius]

So this information all seems to match up but it still doesn't determine that August Damps was my 2nd gt randfather

If Edwin H DAMPS is your grandfather, given the following information, it is not guaranteed that August DAMPS is your great grandfather.

If you look on line the marriage certificate states
St John the Evangelist, Stepney
1st July 1908
August to Alice MAY, states he was a widower aged 35, a hairdresser living at 19 Grove St Alice was aged 22 years, so it is likely August knocked a few years of his age!

August states his father Joseph DAMPS was deceased.

Witnesses to the marriage were Alfred HOGGER & Susannah HOGGER
They can be found on the 1911 census RG14; Piece: 1492
81 Lambeth Street, Whitechapel East

You need to find out what happened to August DAMPS.

In 1919 Alice DAMPS was living in the house with a John H PAYNE by 1920 Alfred T PAYNE was also in the household.... there is a marriage of Alice DAMPS to Alfred T PAYNE in 1926 Stepney

You need to look at this address in the 1939 Register
Ilford M.B.,
Alice PAYNE born 1888

Checking freebmd.org for DAMPS / MAY & PAYNE / MAY of Stepney births is interesting particularly as a couple of the children look as if they have been re registered

[Peter_NB]

Hello "swendeperle82" Welcome to the world of "Genealogy"... Over 40 years ago I learned that when it comes to Genealogy, assume nothing and doubt everything. Once one has that firmly implanted into all lines of research the amount of wasted time is reduced. All hobbies cost money and unless one is chasing great, great, grandfather's hidden millions it is usually done for the enjoyment and an annoying need to know. Our parents are who they told you they were, or in many cases didn't, the same goes for each generation of our ancestor families. We build family trees based on what someone once said, wrote or photographed.

My mother spent the first 60+ years of her life with a sister who was actually 1 year older than "the family said it was".

Brit-Gen has a living library of humanoid knowledge, so to get back to your question. "jump to conclusions ?" not the best idea but when hitting a brick wall, sit down and guess all possible scenarios and then work through them. Never give up.

Hope this helps in some way and all the best with your research.

[christanel]

There is a 22 year old August Damps in the 1901 census, a servant (potman) in Whitechapel. He is single, born Germany. RG13 piece 305folio 152 page 6.
Christina