What middle names can tell us
The middle names of people often provide useful information about a person’s family or origins. Boys are sometimes given their mother’s maiden name, for example – this seems to be particularly prevalent in Scottish families.
Our project is uncovering lots of interesting middle names: including the Farnhill WW1 Volunteer James Scarborough Theodore Pollard; and the younger brother of another Volunteer, Harry Mossman Dawson.
One of these is named after the place the family used to live, and the other was given an old family name. I’m sure you can guess which is which.
So our research has shown that James Pollard was descended, on his mother’s side, from the Scarborough family – prominent in the area from the very earliest records. Harry Dawson’s family, however, were relatively new to the area having previously lived near Mossman Fields in Shipley.
If you would like to help us untangle the family histories of the 68 men from Farnhill who volunteered to fight in WW1, please email us.
