Help!! with an old bloke

[gjcee]

G'day all

 

I've hit a brick wall! I'm looking for any information whatsoever on Henry Cooke. He was born in Manchester in 1889. He moved with his parents, George and Mary to Sheffield prior to WW1. The parents were originally from Crewe.

 

When he was 27 (~1916/7), he joined the Royal Engineers, Railway Traffic Establishment and marched in at Longmoor as a recruit. He was a railway clerk prior to all of this. He served in Europe and Africa with some distinction as he was mentioned in Dispatches at some stage. He was promoted through the ranks at a rapid rate as he ended up Warrant Officer Class 1, Regimental Sergeant Major before his discharge in 1920.

 

He was discharged to his parents at 61 Glencoe Road, Norfolk Park, Sheffield.

 

And it is from here that the trail runs pretty cold. He may have been re-employed in the railways. I think he may have passed away in 1940 at the age of 50, never married and without descendants.

 

I figure that someone out there knows something. So, with that, I ask your help filling in the gaps for me. Thanks in advance.

[tiffy]

http://http://www.railwayancestors.org.uk/

 

 

http://http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/records/looking-for-person/default.htm

 

http://http://www.sheffieldfhs.org.uk/about_con/databases.htm

 

http://http://www.sheffieldrecordsonline.org.uk/

 

look around the sites for further useful links, also by looking on the free census records you can find their addresses and type of employment if you haven't already found it.

happy hunting

[me-and-pippo]

http://http://www.railwayancestors.org.uk/

 

 

http://http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/records/looking-for-person/default.htm

 

http://http://www.sheffieldfhs.org.uk/about_con/databases.htm

 

http://http://www.sheffieldrecordsonline.org.uk/

 

look around the sites for further useful links, also by looking on the free census records you can find their addresses and type of employment if you haven't already found it.

happy hunting

None of your links work.

[hillsbro]

Hi gicee - I just looked at the deaths index. It seems you are right about the 1940 death - a Henry Cooke died in Sheffield in Apr-Jun 1940, aged 50. The death certificate might have clues as to his marital status etc. (Vol. 9c, Page 1152).

 

The 1911 census return shows Henry Cooke, age 20, a railway clerk born in Manchester, living at 61 Glencoe Road. The head of the family is given as his father George, aged 50 and born at Crewe, also George's 39 year-old wife of 15 years Ruth (maybe Henry's mother Mary had died - a Mary Ann Cooke died at Nantwich in 1894, aged about 34). George was a "foreman engineer" with a railway company. Maybe you have this information but if not, and if you'd like a scan of the 1911 census page, PM me an email address.

 

The Cookes evidently moved to Glencoe Road after 1904 (as they are not listed there in the 1905 directory). The 1925 directory shows them at 61 Glencoe Road, but they had moved from there by 1941 (when George would have been about 81). George evidently died aged 86 in 1947.

[gjcee]

I have to have completed 5 posts before I can PM anyone. Apparently this is to stop spam PMs or suchlike. So I have to spam post to get the 5.

[gjcee]

Thanks tiffy. I'll be working these today and I'll let you know how I got on.

[gjcee]

None of your links work.

 

I think the double http:// is throwing it off. Remove one of them and it should be OK.

[gjcee]

Hi gicee - I just looked at the deaths index. It seems you are right about the 1940 death - a Henry Cooke died in Sheffield in Apr-Jun 1940, aged 50. The death certificate might have clues as to his marital status etc. (Vol. 9c, Page 1152).

 

The 1911 census return shows Henry Cooke, age 20, a railway clerk born in Manchester, living at 61 Glencoe Road. The head of the family is given as his father George, aged 50 and born at Crewe, also George's 39 year-old wife of 15 years Ruth (maybe Henry's mother Mary had died - a Mary Ann Cooke died at Nantwich in 1894, aged about 34). George was a "foreman engineer" with a railway company. Maybe you have this information but if not, and if you'd like a scan of the 1911 census page, PM me an email address.

 

The Cookes evidently moved to Glencoe Road after 1904 (as they are not listed there in the 1905 directory). The 1925 directory shows them at 61 Glencoe Road, but they had moved from there by 1941 (when George would have been about 81). George evidently died aged 86 in 1947.

 

Thank you hillsbro. You have added some value to my task. I subscribe to the UK ancestry.co but they have no 1911 Census data. I believe that this is coming soon. The local LDS centre is now closed for the Christmas/New Year break so my sources are limited even further. So you can see that your info is really appreciated.

 

George did marry a Mary Ann Foley in Crewe. I didn't know about the subsequent marriage to Ruth. They may have had other children which I will now search for on the 1901 Census. I'm finding it very difficult to find UK living relatives of James Cooke who was born in Chester 1801. If it weren't for his son Thomas, not one of us would exist as he was the only male born in the line.

 

I'm not sure if UK Death Certificates show descendants of the deceased. They do here in some Australian States. How do I obtain on-line directories of the 20th century?

 

I'll PM you now that I have my 5 posts. Thanks again.

[carolew]

Hi Gicee - this is very, very late in the day, but picked up your thread when doing a search. I was trying to find out what my Great Uncle Henry was mentioned in Dispatches for and came across your comment. Henry Cooke was my great uncle - Clara Constance Cooke on the 1911 census at Glencoe Road Sheffield was my Grandmother. We know Henry was mentioned in Dispatches but we don't know what for. Just wondered if you had found anything else?

[hillsbro]

Hi carolew - have you looked at Henry Cooke's service records via ancestry.co.uk? There are quite a few documents; Henry was evidently mentioned in a dispatch of General E. Allenby dated 3 April 1918, and this appeared in the London Gazette of 11 June 1918 but no details are given in the record. He evidently served in Egypt in 1919 - "24.12.19 Embarked at Alexandria per H.M.S. Teutonic for UK".