My grandfather's brother, Patrick Brawley was born in Newmains on 7 February 1894. In 1923 he left Scotland for Canada where he made a good life for himself and his family. A return visit to Newmains in 1960 generated some interest in the local press. My mother remembers his visit well. Even after 37 years … Continue reading On Holiday From Montreal – Patrick Brawley 1894-1981
Stories From The Poorhouse (Part 3) – My Granda Brawley
Finding my grandfather, Hugh Brawley on the Poor Law records for North Lanarkshire made me feel really sad. I didn't get to meet him but he is not someone from the dark and distant past so knowing that his family was struggling so badly is really quite hard. Again I have found information on these … Continue reading Stories From The Poorhouse (Part 3) – My Granda Brawley
Stories From The Poorhouse (Part 2) Julia Brawley
Working my way through the North Lanarkshire Poorhouse records is certainly throwing up some surprises. I'm finding things out that I wouldn't find from any other sources. I'm also finding family that I didn't even know existed. Below is the record of John Brawley. I have previously written about the accident that ended his life. … Continue reading Stories From The Poorhouse (Part 2) Julia Brawley
Stories From The Poor House (Part 1)
The North Lanarkshire Poor Law Applications are now available online via Ancestry. I have visited North Lanarkshire Heritage Centre in Motherwell on a number of occasions looking for specific records and it is amazing and quite moving to see the original registers however, until I have had the time to look through the online records, … Continue reading Stories From The Poor House (Part 1)
Died On This Day – Sarah Helferty Brawley 1921-2007
I love this photograph of my Aunt Sarah who was born on 20 May 1921. She was named after her maternal grandmother, Sarah Helferty. I remember visiting her with my son shortly after he was born and we were talking about middle names. She was laughing telling me about her "terrible" middle name. At that … Continue reading Died On This Day – Sarah Helferty Brawley 1921-2007
Prisoner of War – James Gerard Burns 1920-2000
Recently I've been reading a novel set during the time of the Fall of Singapore. Now to be honest it is not something I knew very much about so I've been trying to educate myself a bit on the subject. You can read more about it here. I remembered a story I'd heard when I … Continue reading Prisoner of War – James Gerard Burns 1920-2000
Shaking The Branches 