Iilligitimate birth unknown mother, Cape 1912

[MylesOrme]

I have been unable to find my any record of my father's birth.

It has recently been suggested to me (as a skeleton revealed) that he was the son of a mother other than his father's wife - and this does accord with stories my father told me.

His name was Arthur Stanley Orme and he was (likely) born on the 28th October 1912 in Cape Town.

His father was Arthur Cecil Orme, who was serving with the 2nd Battalion of the East Lancashire regiment who were deployed on garrison duty in Wynberg. Incidentally, they seemed to have been transferred in 1911 after the census - on the night of the census Arthur Cecil is placed with his battalion in India.

In August 1912 he married Christina Elizabeth Grieve and in 1914 they had a daughter, Violet Stuart. This I know as the army dutifully recorded these events - but not the event of my father's birth.

My father told me that his mother died in childbirth (or a little later as a consequence of the birth) and that he was brought up by a wicked stepmother. I have recently been told that his mother was an unnamed Africaans woman - the source may not be truly knowledgeable - it may just be the story they have heard, but still.

Does anyone know of a way to find an illegitimate birth given the date and only forenames in Cape Town, possibly Wynberg district?

Of course, it is possible that my father fell out with his mother and made up the story and it is also possible that the story is true but the baby was given a different forename by his mother and renamed as he entered his father's family - but let's not be pessimistic.

[peanut]

Hi
Not sure if this helps but there is a A.C Orme travailing to Cape South Africa in 1931 he is aged 43 and living at 15 Marsh Street Blackburn occ.clarke if this is your Arthur why would he go back 20 years after his son was born there

Peanut

[christanel]

There is another thread where your father is mentioned here but I will leave this one open as it deals specifically with your father. I will put a link to this thread on the Wynberg thread for future reference.
Christina

[MylesOrme]

Hi
Not sure if this helps but there is a A.C Orme travailing to Cape South Africa in 1931 he is aged 43 and living at 15 Marsh Street Blackburn occ.clarke if this is your Arthur why would he go back 20 years after his son was born there

Peanut

Tantalising. In 1928 he is still Quartermaster of the 1/4 Battalion of the East Lancs living in Franklin Street, Blackburn. On his son's wedding certificate in 1933, he is still listed as Cptn Qtmr - but as we know his son may not have been the most reliable narrator.

1939 he is a hairdresser living as a lodger in Birkenhead - I can confirm this is the same person, not another with the same name, as there is a note that he had been the RSM of the 2nd Battalion - his previous post before retiring and signing up again with the reserves. 1940 he dies in Liverpool.

It is possible that he actually left the army in 1930/31 and decided to chance his hand in SA - but he would have been more likely to head to Canada where he had family connections and I think it likely that he left the army later than that - I'm applying for his army record to check.

The right age though given the rounding tendencies and not a wild move from Quartermaster to clerk - not as wild as from army officer to hairdresser at any rate - also just because it says he intends to live in South Africa doesn't mean he didn't change his mind having had that intention - I notice from other people's travel records they tend to give Canada, say, as intended place to live on the way out and England on the way back - even when they only stay a few months or even weeks.

Thanks for the eagle-eye and the puzzle.

[MylesOrme]

Having found only one Baptismal record for an Arthur in Cape Town in 1912 (1911-1913) of single mothers I have no idea how to confirm or deny that this is my father - Though an earlier birthdate, it is tantalising as it was conducted in private, in sickness. I can't find any other records concerning the mother.

https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61...222&cc=1468076

Did adoption papers exist in those days?

[Sue Mackay]

If you go to https://www.national.archsrch.gov.za/...v/smws/sm300dl and type in Adoption you will see there were hits for this period. Can’t see one for Orme though. If you type in Orme under RSA search you get 70 hits.