William Finn

[iangibson]

William Finn is my maternal grandfather. He was born 15th January 1884 at Warkworth Station, Northumberland, England. He died 11th May 1916 at Khanepur Murree Hill India. He served with the Northumberland Fusiliers Pte 26259. I have his birth certificate but there is no mention of a father. Is there a record of enlisting for the first world war and does it show the fathers and mothers name. Don't know how else to find out about his father. There was some mention that he was aliased as William Gill?

[Megan Roberts]

If there is no father shown on his birth certificate then he was born illegitimately and unless you can find some other document such as a Will where a man legally acknowledges him to his lawful and / natural son you are unlikely to be able to do anything other than speculate as to who his father was.

It is possible that If you do a DNA test and upload the results to one of the sites that specialise in DNA genealogy that you,might find a match either now or in the future that might help you identify potential fathers.

With regard to army records you can search for these online at Find my past and Ancestry, but you need to be aware of the following:

60 per cent of all the records were destroyed during an air raid in World War 2.
The enlistment record usually lists the next of kin.

His service number was 26259 and he served in the 2nd Battalion Northumberland Fusiliers. These details come from the Commonwealth War Graves site which shows that he is commemorated in Karachi, Pakistan.

[Lesley Robertson]

Welcome to the British Genealogy Forum.

The Register of Soldiers' Effects for 26259 William Gill says "William Gill". However, it does not give next of kin, neither does "Soldiers Who Died in the Great War".
The WW1 medal index for 26259 Finn doesn't mention an alias, but there's a note asking for permission to dispose of the medals dated 15.6.22.

What is the mother's name on his birth certificate?

[Peter Goodey]

The medal roll says there was no next of kin.

[Lesley Robertson]

The 1911 census has only one William Finn of the right age bornWarkworth Station in Northumberland. He's living with his mother, Jane Straffen and sisten Isa Finn at Westgate, Northumberland. He's shown as married, and a cabinet maker.

[christanel]

William Finn
Marriage Sept 1/4 1905
Registration district: Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland
Vol 10b Page 2
to one of these
Letitia Anderson
Mary Annie Yule

He married Letitia Finn and in 1911 she is living by herself at 15 Blenheim St Newcastle on Tyne, as married, Letitia Finn and has two children Elizabeth Finn age 5 and Norman Finn age 2
The information re the present marriage and number of children has a red line through it
Christina

[christanel]

GRO index of births
William Finn March 1/4 1884 registration district Alnwick vol 10b page 80. No mother's maiden name given which indicates an illegitimate birth.
But there is a William Finn with his grandparents in 1891 census
RG12 Piece 4261 Folio 21 Page 11
Scroggs, Acton and Old Felton, Northumberland
Thomas Alexander 67 shephard
Alice Alexander 74
William Finn 7 grandson born Warkworth, Northumberland,

[christanel]

In 1901 both Jane Finn and Isa Finn are using the surname Straffer.