Where
was Wilfred Frederick White born? Was the year 1889 or 1890? (1913
- 24 = 1889). What unit did he serve with during WWI? Where and when did
he die? Where is he buried? What was his mother's name?The Wilfred Frederic White Mystery
Where
was Wilfred Frederick White born? Was the year 1889 or 1890? (1913
- 24 = 1889). What unit did he serve with during WWI? Where and when did
he die? Where is he buried? What was his mother's name?
WHAT WE KNOW
Wilfred Frederick WHITE was 24 years-old when he married Mable Norah MOORE on April 22, 1913. They were married in the parish church at Haslemere, Surrey, England. He was a bootmaker, and his father, Steven, was a bricklayer. Mabel was 21 years-old. Her father, Thomas Moore, was a labourer, her mother was Lily Letitia Combs. Lily and Thomas were married on November 29, 1880 at the parish church in the parish of St. Luke, Chelsea, Middlesex, England. Thomas was 24, and Lily was 21. Both resided at 7 Milman Street. Thomas' father was William Moore, a labourer, and Lily's father was George Combs, a carpenter. (From Marriage Certificates)
On the 26th of October, 1914, Wilfred Aubrey White was born in Chiddingfold, Haslemere, Surrey. He was baptized at St. Mary's parish church by Rev. Tompson.
World War I was declared in 1914. Two small newspaper clippings give us the only clues to what happened for the couple between 1914 and the spring of 1921:
"Melita's Young Voyager: Wilfred Aubrey White, A Croyden boy, 6 1/2 years' old, was a passenger on the Canadian Pacific Melita, which sailed from Liverpool to-day. He was travelling alone to his mother's place at Regina, Canada. His grandmother, who was to have gone with him, had died."
"Boy's 5,000 Mile Voyage: Wilfred Aubrey White, aged six, left Liverpool yesterday by the Canadian Pacific liner Melita, bound for Canada, where he will join his mother, a soldier's widow, who has found employment at Regina. The boy began his 5,000-mile journey alone, and a stewardess took charge of him."
Mabel settled in Regina, met and married Arthur James Relf. Aubrey, as he was called, took his step-father's name, until he was about to be married in 1938.
Kelly's Surrey Directory, 1911, pg. 640, lists White, Wilfred, 83 Lansdowne Rd., Croyden. Under the listing for Croyden, p. 149 is listed: White, Harry, bootmaker, 6A, Wellesley Parade, Wellesley Road, Croyden. The only S. White listed lived at 30 Marchmont Road, Wallington. These listings are not in the 1890 edition of Kelly's.
Got any leads?
