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  • Reason for name change?

    Many of you will know that husband's gt gt grandfather changed his name, first from Dennis McCarthy to James McCarthy and then to James Carter.

    I had assumed it was to avoid anti-Irish feeling - even though some of Dennis/James children carried on being McCarthy.

    Now I think I might know. OH's gt grandfather Charles Albert McCarthy born 1866 and registered with father Dennis McCarthy.

    1871 family are all called Carter on census.

    In 1867 (a year after CA's birth) there was a Fenian explosion at Clerkenwell Prison (near the ex-FRC) which killed some civilians. This was the start of a lot of terrorist activity and anti-Irish feeling, so that might have been the trigger for the McCarthys to become Carters.
    ~ with love from Little Nell~
    Chowns, Dunt, Emms, Mealing, Purvey & Smoothy

  • #2
    That's interesting Nell. My OH's ggg grandfather was David McQuone. According to the census info he was born in Manchester and married there in 1850. With a name like that I suspect his parents perhaps came from Ireland.

    Hi son James Henry McQuone (b Machester 1856) appears on the 1861 and 1871 censuses as Mcquone but when he married in Leeds in 1876 he had become James Henry McQuone Mellor. He gives all his children a middle name of McQuone - so OH's grandmother was Martha Hannah McQuone Mellor.

    We have absolutely no idea why they changed their name - they have taken some tracking down as the name was spelled in so many different ways and is vanishingly rare! Perhaps there was more anti Irish feeling than we imagine?

    Anne

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    • #3
      Maybe your chap's change of name - he didn't drop the Irish bit did he, he just added on the Mellor - might be connected with his marriage. Maybe he wanted to sound posh, or there may have been a Mellor ancestor somewhere whose name was added when James inherited?
      ~ with love from Little Nell~
      Chowns, Dunt, Emms, Mealing, Purvey & Smoothy

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      • #4
        Well its a possibility. He was a 'marine engineer' and 'boiler maker' on censuses. In fact he was an engineer on a trawler and was lost at sea on a night when 15 trawlers from Hull sank in a storm

        LOL - I wondered if the spelling problem had prompted the name change - and yet it was still there as a middle name! As far as I can see they were a very ordinary working class family and the name Mellor hasn't cropped up on either side yet.

        Anne

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        • #5
          I've no idea how you'd set about looking for a likely one - but maybe there's a MELLOR Will somewhere which is the answer to the puzzle?

          Christine
          Researching: BENNETT (Leics/Birmingham-ish) - incl. Leonard BENNETT in Detroit & Florida ; WARR/WOR, STRATFORD & GARDNER/GARNAR (Oxon); CHRISTMAS, RUSSELL, PAFOOT/PAFFORD (Hants); BIGWOOD, HAYLER/HAILOR (Sussex); LANCASTER (Beds, Berks, Wilts) - plus - COCKS (Spitalfields, Liverpool, Plymouth); RUSE/ROWSE, TREMEER, WADLIN(G)/WADLETON (Devonport, E Cornwall); GOULD (S Devon); CHAPMAN, HALL/HOLE, HORN (N Devon); BARRON, SCANTLEBURY (Mevagissey)...

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          • #6
            Its worth a thought, but as you say - when??? I guess I could check out the Probate calendar between the time he was last McQuorne and his marriage as Mellor.

            Trouble is he came from Manchester and the name Mellor is extremely common there :(. Definately something to put on my 'to do' list though!;)

            Anne

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            • #7
              Nell, if you're ever wondering around Clerkenwell, have a look in St James'. Jean and I went in there ages ago and there's a memorial to the 1867 explosion - first time we'd known anything of it.
              Asa

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              • #8
                Asa

                I may well do that! I've been to the House of Correction there (scary) and of course husband's Mum was born in the Pakenham Arms, also nearby.
                ~ with love from Little Nell~
                Chowns, Dunt, Emms, Mealing, Purvey & Smoothy

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                • #9
                  Little Nell,

                  Could it be that the 1871 census taker simply misheard the name?

                  This raises the question of when the information was recorded in the official census book. Was it done directly on the doorstep or was there an intermediate stage whereby a form was completed on the doorstep and later transcribed in the official census book.

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                  • #10
                    Hugo

                    The information was taken on sheets of paper on the doorstep and later transferred to schedules, so an immediate window for error.

                    However, the name McCarthy would be pronounced Umcart-eh in a broad Irish accent and the mistake could have occurred there.

                    However I think Nell's explanation is the correct one - many Irish people anglicised their names, prompted by the anti-Irish feelings of the time.

                    OC

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                    • #11
                      Hugo

                      It wasn't just the 1871 census. Dennis/James is consistently James Carter in every census from 1871. Two of his daughters are in the GRO marriage index as McCarthy (haven't got their certs so don't know how their father is recorded on them) and his son Richard remained McCarthy on censuses, even in 1901 when he is living next door to his father James Carter.
                      ~ with love from Little Nell~
                      Chowns, Dunt, Emms, Mealing, Purvey & Smoothy

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                      • #12
                        OC

                        Thanks for the information.

                        Hugo

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                        • #13
                          My Australian grandmother's sister married a man whose surname was Breckels, and after their marriage during WW1 they both used her maiden name of Inman. I wondered if it was because the name was German-sounding (although he was actually a New Zealander), but it turned out that he was on the run as a deserter.

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                          • #14
                            Mary

                            LOL!

                            OC

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                            • #15
                              Hi Anne, I've been doing research for a friend of mine, K.... E... (full name removed) who lives at Mapleton, QLD. His great grandfather was James Henry McQuone Mellor. I see what you mean about the name change. Ancestry is where I'm doing my research and I agree with your findings.
                              I've seen your post on Genes Reunited as well and I see your name is (name removed). I'm presuming that you two may be related. K's father was Frederick Conyer East and his grandparents were Fred Conyer East and Martha Hannah McQuone Mellor. Martha's father was James Henry. If you are related K.... may I know what the connection is, please? K.... and his wife C.... came to Australia in the 1960's I think.
                              Heather from Mapleton
                              Last edited by Elaine ..Spain; 07-11-13, 08:58. Reason: names removed

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                              • #16
                                Hi, it may be best to PM [private message] Anne about this, click on her username [on left] and you will get a drop down menu to send her a message.
                                Julie
                                They're coming to take me away haha hee hee..........

                                .......I find dead people

                                Comment


                                • #17
                                  Heather, welcome to the forum.
                                  I have edited your post as we don't allow the names of living people to be posted on the forum.
                                  As this is an old thread, it might be a good idea to send a PM (personal message) to Anne. If you click on her name to the left of her post you will see the option to send a message.

                                  Sorry Julie, didn't see your post!!
                                  Elaine







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                                  • #18
                                    Originally posted by Elaine ..Spain View Post
                                    Heather, welcome to the forum.
                                    I have edited your post as we don't allow the names of living people to be posted on the forum.
                                    As this is an old thread, it might be a good idea to send a PM (personal message) to Anne. If you click on her name to the left of her post you will see the option to send a message.

                                    Sorry Julie, didn't see your post!!
                                    it's ok! you picked up on something I missed too!.. [that'll teach me for rushing!]
                                    Julie
                                    They're coming to take me away haha hee hee..........

                                    .......I find dead people

                                    Comment


                                    • #19
                                      I have PM'd Heather with my email address. Look forward to hearing from you Heather.
                                      Anne

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