In among my Grandfather's box of family history stuff were a couple of postcards and photos. I would like to try and figure out who they are. Sadly two of the photos were not labelled, and the sender of the postcards did not use full names. If you have any opinions after reading this post, please do comment and let me know what you think!
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| Postcard A - Front |
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| Postcard A - Back |
Please correct me if you think otherwise, but I believe this postcard is from an A. Gibbins at 10 Kingsley Street, Camberwell, Victoria, and was sent at Christmas 1915. I cannot seem to find a 10 Kingsley Street in Victoria's electoral rolls from 1912 - 1919 (Subdistrict: Camberwell, District: Kooyong). Perhaps A. Gibbins was visiting or had not enrolled to vote in Victoria, but from what they said, it sounds like they had moved from Macksville (where my Great Grandparents & Grandfather lived) to Victoria. There were Gibbins living in Camberwell but not in Kingsley Street, and none of their names began with A.
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| Postcard B - Front |
Could the man and woman in the middle of this photo above be the same man and woman in Postcard A? I thought the women looked very similar, but was not sure about the man. However, Postcard B is from somebody with the surname Hay.
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| Postcard B - Back. |
The only Hay I have in my family tree is John Eric Hay, born 1891 in Waratah, New South Wales and died 1951 in Newcastle, New South Wales. John Hay married my Grandfather's cousin Elizabeth Jeater in 1943 in Newcastle. As far as I am aware, John and Elizabeth did not have children. John was Elizabeth's second marriage. Elizabeth was the daughter of Ernest Edwin Jeater and Margaret Croal, my Great Grandmother Elizabeth Croal's sister. My Great Grandmother Elizabeth did not die until 1952, so one possible explanation is that John could have sent this to my Great Grandmother?
But that would mean the two couples are completely different people? I have no Gibbins in my family tree that I have found thus far. Still, I did not think in the 19th or 20th Centuries people would send postcards with strangers on them, but who knows. If only there was a date and address on Postcard B! John Hay was one of four or five siblings, so I doubt it is his family, and Margaret and Edwin had three boys and two girls, where as the family in the postcard have four girls and two boys. I have not seen a known photo of Margaret Croal/Jeater before either.
However, mentioning the Croal's brings me to these two photographs...
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| Portrait C |
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| Portrait D |
My first thought on seeing these two photos was that they could possibly be the same couple in Postcard B, and possibly Postcard A. However, the back of the photos say they were taken at a studio in Newcastle which is where Margaret Croal and Ernest Jeater lived. I would like to say that they are definitely not the same couple in Postcard A as they never lived at Macksville nor Victoria, but could they be the couple in Postcard B? I'm not sure.
I mentioned before I had not seen a photo of Margaret Croal before. Could this woman be her? I compared it to the photos of my Great Grandmother Elizabeth Croal, and in my opinion, they do look very similar. Margaret died in 1949 at the age of 78, and Elizabeth died in 1952 at the age of 79. Here is a photo of Elizabeth. Do you think they look similar?
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| My Great Grandmother Elizabeth Croal |
I would like to rule out Postcard A and say that it is not the same couple in Postcard B or the individual photos above. A. Gibbins who moved from Macksville to Victoria is most likely an unrelated family friend at this stage. But why does 10 Kingsley Street not appear in Camberwell's Electoral Roll between 1912 and 1919? It could be part of another electorate...if so, I have not been able to find the relevant information.
What do YOU think?
Could the individual portraits be the same couple in Postcard B?
Or are they all completely unrelated to each other?
Could Portrait C of the lady be Margaret Croal/Jeater?
