Railway Ancestors

FAMILY HISTORY SOCIETY

Surname Interest List

P


SURNAMEAREACONTACTDATES
PALMER, EllenANYAlan Jones1880-1900
PALMERALLAlan JonesANY
PARKER, GeorgeSHEERNESS, KENTCarol Jones1920's
PARKER, GeorgeSOMERSETCarol Jones1930-1940's
PARSONSCORNWALLSheila YeoALL
PARSONSSTRATTON, CORNWALLJim EngertALL
PAYNECORNWALLSheila YeoALL
PAYNECORNWALLJim EngertALL
PEAKHANTSAlan LongPRE 1900
PELLEYDORSET/DEVON/CORNWALLJim EngertALL
PENDARVESCORNWALLSheila YeoALL
PENKEVELLDEVON/CORNWALLJim EngertALL
PERKSLONDON/MIDDXJim EngertALL
PERKESLONDON/MIDDXJim EngertALL
PETERSLONDONAlan LongALL
PETTSUSSEXGeorge YaldenPRE 1850
PIKELECKFORD, HANTSJim EngertALL
PINELCHANNEL ISLANDSAlan LongALL
PITHERREADING, BERKSJim EngertALL
POLKUSAJim EngertALL
POLLOCANYJim EngertALL
POLLOCKANYJim EngertALL
POLLOKANYJim EngertALL
POPPEHAMBURGJim EngertALL
POPPEGERMANYJim EngertALL
PORTERLISS, EAST HANTSJim EngertALL
PREECEPORTSMOUTH, HAMPSHIRESheila YeoANY
PROUSEDEVON/CORNWALLJim EngertALL
PYKEANYElizabeth WilliamsALL
PYKEIs anybody able to help me with a problem that has been haunting me for the past 25 years, since I first became involved in family history research as a teenager. My great-grandfather - Hugh Edward Pyke - seems to suddenly "appear" in official records in 1888, when his second marriage is indexed in the GRO Registers.On that certificate he is described as a widower, but I have been unable to find any sign of a first marriage, or his birth, in the indexes, despite prolonged searches under every conceivable mis-spelling. I have also been unable to find him in the digital indexes of the 1861, 1871 or 1881 census. The 1891 census gives his place of birth as Whitechapel, and the 1901 census states that he was born in Great Horton, Bradford - hardly contiguous parishes, and both highly populated! I am sure that you can begin to see the extent of my problem! There is a family story that he changed his name at some point, and certainly that would explain the situation. My one remaining hope is that I can locate at least a date of birth (which would at least help to identify possible contenders!) from employment records - and that is where I am hoping that you (or someone in the Society) might be able to offer some advice. I have detailed below the description of Hugh's employment as given (mainly) on the birth certificates of his numerous children (I'm surprised he had the time to work!!). As you will see, he is frequently described as a 'railway clerk'. I suspect that the references to 'commercial clerk' may also be interpreted as railway clerk (either that or he switched between jobs very frequently!). I have tried, during visits to TNA Kew to delve into the railway archives, but I am afraid that the number of railway companies, and my lack of knowledge, defeated me (no doubt it would have been simpler had he lived in a village in Cornwall, but as you will have gathered, there is nothing simple about this man...) My questions are basically as follows: When he moved from the London area to Ilford, is it likely that he 'moved down the line' with the same company, or might he have changed companies - in other words, did people usually stay with the same company? I have noted that Ilford 'belonged' to The Great Eastern Railway. Did Railway employees receive free travel, as they do now? If so, and if he continued to work in London after moving house to Ilford, would he have only received free travel if he worked for Great Eastern, or did some of the companies have reciprocal arrangements? Basically, I am trying to determine whether the fact that he moved to Ilford would indicate that he worked for Great Eastern... I am very aware that these questions are a bit generalised and that it may not be possible to answer them. However, any information or advice that you might be able to offer would be much appreciated. I am hoping to visit TNA again (but I have four young children so nothing is certain!) and would anticipate spending more hours delving into massive staff ledgers, so any guidance at all would, I am sure, be very helpful. Elizabeth Williams1930-1920
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