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Home for young females.Please help!!!!

F

fennslim

Brummie babby
:adoration:Hello everyone. I am new to the site and wish I'd searched it sooner. Myself and siblings have been searching through numerous sites [not all free] for our half sister who was adopted in the period 1939-1942 [we think]......I have a copy of her birth certificate- Patricia May Slim was born at Dudley road hospital 27/02/1938. At the time my mother was living at The Hostel 276 monument road Edgbaston. Only on this site have I found any info on this address. My late mother Margaret Anne Slim married my father in 1943 but by then Patricia was no longer with her. We know from info given us by a member of his family that patricia's father was Harold Williams from Hales Lane in Warley. The Problem we have is we have no adoptive name for her because the Birmingham adoption have no record of her adoption. The reason I did not place this on the thread that already exists is that it dates back to 2010.
If any of the people that posted on the old thread [or anyone willing to help] would be willing to take time to post advice [particularly the name of the person running the home in 1938 as I have been told this can be of help in tracing Patricia's adoption certificate] I would be very grateful. Born n raised in the back to backs of Hockley a true Brummie. Help me out folks!!!
 
If someone has access to a Kelly's directory for 1938 they might find the answer. The nearest I can do is that the matron in 1940 was a Miss Alice Thorne. The electoral roll might also help. These can be found in Birmingham library.

Janice
 
hello fennslim and welcome are you actually looking for your half sister or just her adoption details..as you cant find any legal adoption for her it was very common especially back then for neighbours or friends to take on children and bring them up and so keeping their birth name..i take it you have tried searching for any marriages that could fit for patricia may slim ??

all the best

lyn
 
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The matron was Mrs thorne in 1938 & 39 also, though I doubt if they would have had anything to do with the adoption, as it was a servant's hostel, not one concerned with caring for unmarried mothers
 
Thank you-Janice.Lyn and Mikejee. Firstly- I have a BC for Patricia that gives my mothers address as 276 Monument road. So she was definitely living there when the birth was registered. also, there is an appendix on the BC with the word adopted and the name of the superintendent registrar W F Horn. So Patricia was definitely adopted. Thanks also to pjimburns for the name Alice Thorne. Hopefully this will be of use. In answer to your question Lyn.It is Patricia's adoption records we are concerned with mostly. If she is still alive we cannot know if she is aware she was adopted, and at 76 years of age would she want to know? but we would love to know what kind of life she had. Married? Children? Where? Happy? etc- Please keep helping.......John
 
hello again john...yes it can be very difficult stirring up the past especially where adoption is concerned...i myself recently had to go through this with a member of my family and although he did find out all about his birth mom it was not really what he wanted to hear...have you tried contacting social services about patricias adoption as this is where my rellie(who had a new first and second name on adoption) found his records and was able to gain access to them...

lyn
 
John some years ago I did an article on 276 Monument Road. Its grade 2 listed and is on the corner of Monument and Reservoir Road. It originally started in approx 1840 and from 1852 it was a boys boarding school and was called Penrhyn House. From 1891 it was 'Association for the care of young and friendless girls' (unmarried mothers etc) and was called Norwich House. At that time it was a Mrs Rogers. Some years later it became a laundry for 10 years. By coincidence I have today watched Philomena and it brings it home for people who search for adopted relatives as a very soul searching emotion. Good luck in your search. Carol
 
Thanks lyn and carolina. postie??? It's lovely that people I have never met and probably never will, are so helpful. Where should I go to get help from social services,bearing in mind I have no Idea where mom was living at the time or even when the adoption took place.
 
john try the number on the link below..i know its for todays adoption and fostering but you need a starting point...just tell them you think that social services may have been involved in your sisters adoption and ask them to point you in the right direction as to who who should contact....please keep us informed of developements...good luck..

lyn
https://www.birmingham.gov.uk/adoptionandfostering
 
Hi fennslim
I have gone through the same thing within the last eighteen months, at the age of 62 I found I had a brother who was adopted at birth, I had always thought I was a only child. you will not be allowed to access adoption records you have to use a intermediary, it is not as expensive as you would suspect,i found one in Birmingham who was superb they take all the hard work on board and if it is possible will find and arrange contact for you . and yes I have contact with my brother who was found and it is well worth the effort please feel free to ask about anything if it will help you edd
 
Many thanks to you all. Lyn I have been in touch with the adoption society already, it ended when Flo white [lovely woman] told me the society had no record of Patricia and they could not help me any further. people have told me that I need to contact the DSS in the area she was living at the time of adoption. Problem is I have no idea where or when! Thanks for the pic Carolina. As it is, I was on street view in google maps yesterday. Once I had it focussed-couldn't click off. Cannot believe that mom went through all this and managed to keep it a secret from her other 6 children for all these years????? Anyway, I'm still struggling as to where next. Stay with me gang-think i'm gonna be needing you. John. Just saw your post eddlowe. thanks for getting in touch. Any info you can give will be appreciated[including costs]
 
My DH has just been contacted by his half sister - he was searching for his mother and now has a sister, we are off to meet her at the end of the month. As we are in our late 60s it has come as a bit as a shock to both of them.
FYI I happened to post the mother's name on 'Family Tree' two years ago and it was only late last year someone perusing the forum contacted me.
My advice is to keep searching, don't give up hope.
 
Concerning where your Mother was living at the time. It might be worth starting with Edgbaston and seeing if they handled any adoptions for women from The Hostel. The alternative might be to see if you can trace (on Ancestry) your grandparents on an electoral roll if they came from the Birmingham area.

Janice
 
hi again
the person I used was Siobhan clemons head of origins father Hudson society coleshill she was superb and the whole thing came to less than £300 by the way father hudsons is a catholic society but Siobhan will deal with all denominations ours was c of e, in that price Siobhan traced , contacted , introduced ,and keeps in touch to make sure everything is progressing well. any other help please ask edd
 
Thanks for the encouragement bishopsgmate. Janice I have searched already for edgbaston the hostel but there is no record of adoptions. as regard to grandparents my mothers parents made her leave the house when they discovered she was pregnant and it was only when she married dad in 1943 that things settled.... ed-thanks again. I will try contacting Fr Hudsons tomorrow. John.
 
Hi Carolina and men slim
I have looked at Carolina old picture at at this particularly time regarding the building she as shown stating 246 monument rd

I just have a little doubt in my mind regarding the numbers of such a building I do have another building within my mind
As that one Carolina put on the thread was not 246 monument rd as I recall from a little whipper snapper
I am just trying to recall the number of the houses where I lived down the rd working out which way did the numbers go coming down from the ivy bush
It was oppersite the blue bottle park and the old Ladywood police station on Ladywood red we called it blue bottle park because the police officers walked through it back to the station as it was right next to it and it over looked the park and unless they changed the house numbers from 1938
Renumbered I think it was the big old welfare centre which also stands there today on monument red
If I got a electrol roll number for miss price the chippy and a Mr dickindsons news agent of monument red Ladywood for that period I could confirm it
As the old welfare. Entre that was there for donkeys years and it still being used today AS a we'll fare centre best wishes astonian,,,,
 
Astonian it is definitely 246 its on the corner of Monument and Reservoir Road and opposite Ladywood Road (where the little park and Police Station still are). I thought the Welfare Centre was nearer Springhill Carol
 
Hi Carolina
Nice to hear from you
Carolina I will not disputed the fact that you are correct because you are correct to state where that particular building is and yes I do know the building is still there
As pass it quite often and done so for many years along with the station even thou there frontage asx change some what
And yes that part is monument rd I myself would say its about half way down the monument rd
The reason I did day about the two shops because they was very close to the welfare centre and I only lived a matter of yards from both of them and I thought the hoses was of allow number working up to high numbers going up that way to that particular building asdi do know there was a company operating in that building for donkeys years as I can recall when it was a family dwelling then a couple of small building
Open end up there and finally one company took it overland a couple of doors from thet
There was more house going up and an old friend of mine whom his father was well known and got a knight hood and was the general secretary
For the West midlands bus company and general chairman of the Ladywood social club is brother lived in one of the house a couple off door from that building
That's another reason good a check on those propertsof the chippy and the news agents shop number as I feel the numbers was going up that way
And that's why I asked mike was there ever a numerical house number cha yes from those days best wishes Carolina astonian
 
fennslim said:
Thanks for the encouragement bishopsgmate. Janice I have searched already for edgbaston the hostel but there is no record of adoptions. as regard to grandparents my mothers parents made her leave the house when they discovered she was pregnant and it was only when she married dad in 1943 that things settled.... ed-thanks again. I will try contacting Fr Hudsons tomorrow. John.
Click to expand...

hi john what were the names of your grandparents...

lyn
 
Not wanting to confuse things but I thought the photo of the hostel was 276 not 246 Monument Road. It seems to be still there today.

Janice
 
Folks. What's gone wrong? The number is 276 and the building stands on the corner of monument rd and reservoir rd. look on google maps street view, it gives you a perfect view. John. Hi lyn- William and May Slim nee Saunders. married early 1913- 4 children-Doris-Margaret [mom]-Violet and William.
 
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