Military Chat

Top tip - using the Genes Reunited community

Welcome to the Genes Reunited community boards!

  • The Genes Reunited community is made up of millions of people with similar interests. Discover your family history and make life long friends along the way.
  • You will find a close knit but welcoming group of keen genealogists all prepared to offer advice and help to new members.
  • And it's not all serious business. The boards are often a place to relax and be entertained by all kinds of subjects.
  • The Genes community will go out of their way to help you, so don’t be shy about asking for help.

Quick Search

Single word search

Icons

  • New posts
  • No new posts
  • Thread closed
  • Stickied, new posts
  • Stickied, no new posts

Henry H Alexander WW2 Pioneer Corps

ProfilePosted byOptionsPost Date

Deborah

Deborah Report 23 Jul 2017 17:06

If anyone has any information about my grandfather, please contact me. My father was adopted and I never met my grandparents. I don't have any records of hiss death and can't access them as my father was adopted.

I'm hoping it will lead to my aunt, Sandra Carol Alexander who was also adopted in the late 1940's.

Thank you.

+++DetEcTive+++

+++DetEcTive+++ Report 23 Jul 2017 18:15

WW2 records will be with the MOD.
This is the link for forms to access them.

https://www.gov.uk/get-copy-military-service-records
As long as your father has documents proving they are biologically related, you're half way there. Depending on Henry H Alexander's yob, there's the outside chance that he's still alive.

Has your father accessed his adoption file? Does that give any clue about his biological father or his situation?

As for finding your aunt - add details to the adoption contact register & hope that she was too.
https://www.gov.uk/adoption-records/the-adoption-contact-register

Deborah

Deborah Report 23 Jul 2017 20:12

Biological father was married to his mother, there was no clear reason for the adoption. Thank you I have downloaded the docs suggested.

+++DetEcTive+++

+++DetEcTive+++ Report 24 Jul 2017 11:39

Do you have Henry's birth certificate? If you aren't sure of his yob, his declared age on his MC would give you starting point along with the name of his father, if given.
As he served during WW2, it's unlikely that he'd be born after 1928.

Search on https://www.freebmd.org.uk/cgi/search.pl if born or married in England & Wales or https://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk if Scotland. You need to register with the latter.

Certificates should be ordered via either Scotlandspeople (if Scottish) or https://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content/ if England or Wales.

Deborah

Deborah Report 24 Jul 2017 12:14

I can't find Henry's birth certificate. It's more than likely that he was Jewish and entered the country around that time. He was born in 1920-21 as his marriage certificate gives his age at 22 in 1942. His father is listed as deceased and the address was destroyed by a bomb in WW2.

I have contacted the Royal Pioneer Corps, who are trying to help.

Just downloaded the documents to be filled in. Fingers crossed! Thank you, very kind of you to help.

AustinQ

AustinQ Report 24 Jul 2017 15:44

Hello Deborah- you say his father is listed as deceased on the marriage certificate- is there no name for his father? Who were the witnesses?

Have you checked the address on the 1939 register to see if any related people are living there?

+++DetEcTive+++

+++DetEcTive+++ Report 24 Jul 2017 15:51

Just noticed you have a related thread in FLR.

Rather then starting to look for & paste family records on here, it's probably better to keep it together on
http://www.genesreunited.co.uk/boards/board/living_relatives/thread/1367296

AustinQ

AustinQ Report 24 Jul 2017 16:05

Thank Detective