Charles Luke and Hannah Brook had...
James, who married Frances Chapman, who had...
Daniel, who married Mary Morritt, who had...
Walter, born 1859. Walter migrated to San Francisco, and that is where our information ended.
Tonight I made contact with Leonard Luke, who is Walter’s grandson. I also received the death certificate for a Walter Luke who died in San Francisco, showing the correct birthplace and parents. What a night! Those two sources confirmed the following information, which I gleaned from census records, voter registrations, vital records indices, and so on.
Walter LUKE married Annie DURING, a daughter of German emigrants, between 1900 and 1904 in San Francisco. Walter was born 31 Jan 1859 in Manchester and died 12 Aug 1930 in San Francisco. Annie was born 7 Feb 1874 in Colorado and died 21 Jun 1952 in San Francisco. They had two children, Walter Cecil and Edna.
Walter Cecil was born 19 Oct 1904 in San Francisco, and he died 26 Nov 1989 in Santa Clara County, California. He married Donna BEECH. Walter and Donna had two children, Leonard and Lynda, who are still living. I talked with Leonard, as mentioned above, and am calling Lynda tomorrow.
Edna was born 28 Sep 1906 in San Francisco and died 30 Jan 1986 in Santa Clara County. She married “Rod” ELROD. “Rod” might only be a nickname derived from his last name; I have to do more research on that. Rod was a Lieutenant Colonel in the US Marine Corps. Edna and Rod adopted one child, Michael Luke ELROD, who passed away in 1995.
I have digital copies of records for these people, and would be happy to share them with anyone. Just email me and I will send you the files. I also have more information on the predecessors of the women who married into the Luke line. Again, email me if you would like that info.
Perhaps next time we do a reunion we’ll have to go up one generation to include the Charles and Hannah descendants. :)
Monday, 8 September 2008
James > Daniel Luke lines
James Luke (b1794) was the son of Charles Luke (and brother to William), and he married Frances Chapman in 1814. They had eight children, one of whom was Daniel, who married Mary Morritt, and they also had eight children.
Second born to Daniel and Mary was John, who married Mary Brabbs, and they had William Hubert Luke in 1879., which was the extent of the knowledge of this line of the family. That was until I recently found a marriage record, and confirmed with a copy certificate, that William Hubert married Ellen Louisa Jewell on 19 June 1902, in Manchester. So far I also know that they had at least one son, Norman, born 1904, (I have a copy cert) and via Genesreunited I've found someone else who has Norman listed, and I'm awaiting a reply to my message to Victoria Luke, but it looks promising that I've found another living descendant.
Second born to Daniel and Mary was John, who married Mary Brabbs, and they had William Hubert Luke in 1879., which was the extent of the knowledge of this line of the family. That was until I recently found a marriage record, and confirmed with a copy certificate, that William Hubert married Ellen Louisa Jewell on 19 June 1902, in Manchester. So far I also know that they had at least one son, Norman, born 1904, (I have a copy cert) and via Genesreunited I've found someone else who has Norman listed, and I'm awaiting a reply to my message to Victoria Luke, but it looks promising that I've found another living descendant.
Friday, 5 September 2008
Uriah Luke line (son of William and Emma)
Uriah Luke was born in 1838 and was the youngest son of William and Emma.
In June this year I made contact with a direct descendant of Uriah; Eric Crook who lives in Denton, to the East of Manchester. Unfortunately he couldn't make the reunion due to work commitments, and he is the only one of Uriah's line that I've managed to find so far (well, apart from his daughter). This line has been one of much research, and frustration.
Uriah had 3 sons, but only Charles (b1864) survived into adulthood. Charles married Margaret Ann Humphreys in 1884, and they 7 children, although 3 died as infants. The oldest surviving daughter, Elizabeth Ann (b1885) married Charles Speakman; they had only one child, Nora, born 1912, and she never married. As a child, Eric can remember visiting Charles Speakman and Nora, who lived in Horwich near Bolton. Nora died in 1999 in Horwich. I tried to contact the informant of the death to see what I could find out, which was before I made contact with Eric, but had no response to my letter.
Jumping to the youngest surviving child; Ada (b1892), married Ernest Crook, and she died in the early 1960s. Ada was Eric's grandmother, whom he couldn't remember as he was so young when she died He also didn't know that her maiden name was Luke, so my seeds of contact back in February and April fell on barren ground for this reason. But, a knock on his door in June soon changed that, and after I proved with various certificates that we were in fact related, we chatted for a couple more hours. Nice chap. He told me how his dad, Alfred Humphreys Crook, hated his middle name, but only now did Eric understand its origin.
A little background about ordering certificates here in the UK. Each one costs £7, but if unsure of whether ordering the right one, you can have the General Registry Office (GRO) cross-check a fact for you, such as father's name. This service costs only £3, but you don't get the certificate. In the early days of my research I used this facility a few times, but as I started to broaden the scope of my research, I decided to abandon cross-checks, as a wrong certificate today could turn out to be a correct one for tomorrow's research.
The other two of Charles's children were William (yes, another one) and Charles (confusing!)
In 1905, a Charles Luke married (according to the marriage indices), and I'd ordered a copy of this certificate in 2006, but with a cross-check that Charles's father was also Charles. I had an email back from the GRO to say that the father's name was not Charles, so I assumed there to be no connection. But last week, curiosity got the better of me, and I ordered the certificate, this time without the cross-check, in the hope that perhaps a mistake had been made previously. I received the marriage certificate for Charles Luke, but instead of being son of Charles, this one was son of Uriah. Charles's (snr) wife died in 1901, and he remarried on 14 February 1905 to Mary Ann Rowlands, who was also widowed. He was 41 and she 44, and they married at the registry office in Chorlton upon Medlock. Not quite the result I was looking for, but it is valid additional research to add to the database, but no further information in the research for Charles jr.
Back to William. This chap now holds the record for the number of wrong certificates I have in the quest for information about one person, currently standing at 4 certificates for other William Lukes. In 1905, William, son of Robert; in 1907, William James, son of William John; in 1908, William, no father listed; and finally (so far) in 1936, William, also no father. The ironic thing is that the last two Williams are probably one and the same, as they both have no father and are coal miners, lived within a couple of miles of each other; Newton and Oldham (the 1936 marriage), and in 1936, William is shown as a widower.
I also have a death certificate for William Luke of Oldham, whom I'd hoped was 'our' William (as his age looks correct), but the connection was always circumstantial and perhaps I'm now more of the opinion that I have the death certificate for William the miner, who died in Oldham in 1950. According to the death certificate, William was a bath attendant and the cause of death is shown as myocardial failure, due to acute sclerosis, together with lung cancer and chronic bronchitis, the latter two perhaps being connected to mining. He died in Boundary Park Hospital, which is now closed, and I have enquired of the local records office, but many records of that time have been destroyed and they could find no trace. So no further info for William either.
In a letter of 1904, Charles snr wrote to his cousin Charles W Luke (son of Charles Oliver), in Manti, and said that two sons and two daughters were still living at home, so we know that they survived until at least this date. Maybe they never married...
I've found another candidate certificate for William, and that should be turning up next week, so watch this space...
In June this year I made contact with a direct descendant of Uriah; Eric Crook who lives in Denton, to the East of Manchester. Unfortunately he couldn't make the reunion due to work commitments, and he is the only one of Uriah's line that I've managed to find so far (well, apart from his daughter). This line has been one of much research, and frustration.
Uriah had 3 sons, but only Charles (b1864) survived into adulthood. Charles married Margaret Ann Humphreys in 1884, and they 7 children, although 3 died as infants. The oldest surviving daughter, Elizabeth Ann (b1885) married Charles Speakman; they had only one child, Nora, born 1912, and she never married. As a child, Eric can remember visiting Charles Speakman and Nora, who lived in Horwich near Bolton. Nora died in 1999 in Horwich. I tried to contact the informant of the death to see what I could find out, which was before I made contact with Eric, but had no response to my letter.
Jumping to the youngest surviving child; Ada (b1892), married Ernest Crook, and she died in the early 1960s. Ada was Eric's grandmother, whom he couldn't remember as he was so young when she died He also didn't know that her maiden name was Luke, so my seeds of contact back in February and April fell on barren ground for this reason. But, a knock on his door in June soon changed that, and after I proved with various certificates that we were in fact related, we chatted for a couple more hours. Nice chap. He told me how his dad, Alfred Humphreys Crook, hated his middle name, but only now did Eric understand its origin.
A little background about ordering certificates here in the UK. Each one costs £7, but if unsure of whether ordering the right one, you can have the General Registry Office (GRO) cross-check a fact for you, such as father's name. This service costs only £3, but you don't get the certificate. In the early days of my research I used this facility a few times, but as I started to broaden the scope of my research, I decided to abandon cross-checks, as a wrong certificate today could turn out to be a correct one for tomorrow's research.
The other two of Charles's children were William (yes, another one) and Charles (confusing!)
In 1905, a Charles Luke married (according to the marriage indices), and I'd ordered a copy of this certificate in 2006, but with a cross-check that Charles's father was also Charles. I had an email back from the GRO to say that the father's name was not Charles, so I assumed there to be no connection. But last week, curiosity got the better of me, and I ordered the certificate, this time without the cross-check, in the hope that perhaps a mistake had been made previously. I received the marriage certificate for Charles Luke, but instead of being son of Charles, this one was son of Uriah. Charles's (snr) wife died in 1901, and he remarried on 14 February 1905 to Mary Ann Rowlands, who was also widowed. He was 41 and she 44, and they married at the registry office in Chorlton upon Medlock. Not quite the result I was looking for, but it is valid additional research to add to the database, but no further information in the research for Charles jr.
Back to William. This chap now holds the record for the number of wrong certificates I have in the quest for information about one person, currently standing at 4 certificates for other William Lukes. In 1905, William, son of Robert; in 1907, William James, son of William John; in 1908, William, no father listed; and finally (so far) in 1936, William, also no father. The ironic thing is that the last two Williams are probably one and the same, as they both have no father and are coal miners, lived within a couple of miles of each other; Newton and Oldham (the 1936 marriage), and in 1936, William is shown as a widower.
I also have a death certificate for William Luke of Oldham, whom I'd hoped was 'our' William (as his age looks correct), but the connection was always circumstantial and perhaps I'm now more of the opinion that I have the death certificate for William the miner, who died in Oldham in 1950. According to the death certificate, William was a bath attendant and the cause of death is shown as myocardial failure, due to acute sclerosis, together with lung cancer and chronic bronchitis, the latter two perhaps being connected to mining. He died in Boundary Park Hospital, which is now closed, and I have enquired of the local records office, but many records of that time have been destroyed and they could find no trace. So no further info for William either.
In a letter of 1904, Charles snr wrote to his cousin Charles W Luke (son of Charles Oliver), in Manti, and said that two sons and two daughters were still living at home, so we know that they survived until at least this date. Maybe they never married...
I've found another candidate certificate for William, and that should be turning up next week, so watch this space...
Wednesday, 3 September 2008
Birth records found in Manchester
One more piece of information I found in searching records at the Manchester City Library. Found birth records of Emma and John Henry Luke, first and second child of William and Emma. Noel took photos of this information as one contained the signature of William and one had the signature of Emma. Record: Births of General Baptist Chapel - part 2692 of MFPR 224.
Also found an entry of a birth of William Henry Dean, son of Uriah Dean and Charlotte Dean, daughter of John Henry Perkins. Noel has a photo of this record.
Record: Births of General Baptist Chapel (Gen Bap New Connection), part 2435 of MFPR 224 Batist Register, Oxford Street.
That's it for now.
Kathy Luke
Also found an entry of a birth of William Henry Dean, son of Uriah Dean and Charlotte Dean, daughter of John Henry Perkins. Noel has a photo of this record.
Record: Births of General Baptist Chapel (Gen Bap New Connection), part 2435 of MFPR 224 Batist Register, Oxford Street.
That's it for now.
Kathy Luke
Visit with Ian Macnair at the St. Mungo Museum, next to the Glasgow Cathedral
Noel and I met with Ian McNair on Aug 13, 2008. He is a volunteer for the St. Mungo Museam, which is associated with the Glasgow Cathedral. Ian is a history buff as well as an archivist. He mentioned one of the Merchant portraits which belonged to the cathedral. It was loaned to the Hunterian Museum at the Glasgow University (Gillmore Hill and University). The Museum claims ownership and refused to return it to the Cathedral. Ian talked about an 1894 Exhibition, and a book he has which lists names of portraits in the Exhibition. He had the book at home, but he promised to send information regarding any Luke portraits which may be included in the book.
Ian shared that a map of locations of gravesites will soon be prepared by the Family History Center. He will send to Noel information on any Luke burials they find.
This was a good visit - if Ian can follow through with his commitments to Noel.
Kathy Luke
Ian shared that a map of locations of gravesites will soon be prepared by the Family History Center. He will send to Noel information on any Luke burials they find.
This was a good visit - if Ian can follow through with his commitments to Noel.
Kathy Luke
Birth data of 1737 - Luke's
While in Glasgow (or Manchester), I searched the "Old Parochial Regs, County Lanark, Parish Glasgow, Vol. OPR 644/11, Births 1728-39, Item 3, for anything I could find with the Luke name. The following are items I found. This may not be new and I am not sure how or if they connect, but it does give us a source.
Births: James Luke and Marg Box, son Walter, born 11 Dec 1737, witnesses: Walter Lang, John ___
John Luke and Elizabeth Luke, son John born 1 Oct 1737, baptized 1 Nov 1737, witnesses: John Watson, Jon Weir.
Ro't (assume Robert the way it is written) and Janet Stirling, son John born 22 June1736, witnesses: John Stirling, John Luke. I recognize the names Robert Luke and Janet Stirling from the portraits.
If anyone can put any of the other together, let us know. Kathy
Births: James Luke and Marg Box, son Walter, born 11 Dec 1737, witnesses: Walter Lang, John ___
John Luke and Elizabeth Luke, son John born 1 Oct 1737, baptized 1 Nov 1737, witnesses: John Watson, Jon Weir.
Ro't (assume Robert the way it is written) and Janet Stirling, son John born 22 June1736, witnesses: John Stirling, John Luke. I recognize the names Robert Luke and Janet Stirling from the portraits.
If anyone can put any of the other together, let us know. Kathy
Monday, 1 September 2008
Welcome to the Luke Family Research Blog
Dear family far and wide,
Since the reunion I have surprisingly remained active in my family history research and I know that some people would like to be more involved, so I've decided to give blogging a try. You can dip in and out, keep a track of progress and abreast of the new nuggets of information, and living relatives that I'll discover.
And there is new stuff to share with you, both in the UK, and USA, where we are being helped by Jessica Roberts who's on the brink of tracing cousins whose ancestors moved to San Francisco in the late 1800s.
Check back later today, as I'll be posting a run down of recent discoveries.
Andy
Since the reunion I have surprisingly remained active in my family history research and I know that some people would like to be more involved, so I've decided to give blogging a try. You can dip in and out, keep a track of progress and abreast of the new nuggets of information, and living relatives that I'll discover.
And there is new stuff to share with you, both in the UK, and USA, where we are being helped by Jessica Roberts who's on the brink of tracing cousins whose ancestors moved to San Francisco in the late 1800s.
Check back later today, as I'll be posting a run down of recent discoveries.
Andy
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