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My estranged grandfather was born in UK in 1888.
He worked as a cross-Atlantic merchant seaman for many years and I have seen many confirmations of this.
He married for a 2nd time (bigamously ? ) in the USA in 1920. They both became US citizens so far as I can understand.
I found him outside New York in the 1930 Census with his wife.
I think I found him in Manhattan in the 1940 census, but no trace of his wife.
I found him in the 1942 WW2 “Old Mans” Draft.
Whilst I had subscriptions to Ancestry.com and others I could not find anymore info.
How do I progress my research now? When / where did his wife die? When / where did he die ?
How does one find out their Social Security numbers (SSNs) ?
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Some names would help :-)
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US federal census years are multiples of 10. There are some states that conducted a state census midway between the federal censuses, and some of these re online.
Like the UK, there is no national system for the registration of BMDs - it's a state responsibility.
There is no legal obligation to have a SSN, although the vast majority of adults now have one. Historically, this was not the case - people really only started acquiring SSNs in the mid-1950s. I think the only readily available info on people's SSNs is via the SS Death Index - this lists some info about people with SSNs who have died - until recent issues, one could tell where an SSN was issued from the leading digits of the SSN.
FYI There are free databases at:
https://familysearch.org/search/collection/list#page=1®ion=UNITED_STATES
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I did not include names in my post, because I didn’t expect others to do my donkey work. It was more a case of being guided as to what to do next.
However a brief resumé would be :-
Joshua Ireland John Nicholas born 7 Oct 1888 , Southampton, England
Worked as a Steward (not Engineer) on trans atlantic ships.
2nd marriage 66 Oct 1920 in Manhattan, New York to Florence E Lissington née Wilkinson. Florence (born England) had been married to William T Lissington.
Joshua & Florence appear together in Leonia in the 1930 US Census although his surname was transcribed as Micholas whilst she as Nicholas.
He appears in the 1940 US census in Manhattan in what may be a Seaman’s hostel or an apartment block. She I cannot find.
He appears in the WW2 Old mans Draft, but probably did not serve.
After leaving the sea he may have remained connected to ships by virtue of working in a ship’s provision business or a ships catering equipment business in “New York”.
I have found no death record for either party in the UK.
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John
I hate to say this, but you might not be able to find anything.
My gt aunt and her husband, both born around 1875, married in England in 1902 and immediately emigrated to the US.
I have found every record for them from then until the 1940 Census, they are always living at the same address in Newark, New Jersey.
I can remember my mother receiving letters from her aunt, and also Mum receiving a letter in the mid-1950s saying the aunt had died. My "memory" says that her husband had died a number of years before then.
However, I simply cannot find any death for either of them, nor any other record, during the period from 1940 to 1960 .............. and they fall into the group that probably did not have SSN numbers, especialiy as Aunt never apparently worked outside the house.
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Is this the 1940?
John Nicholas
Respondent: Yes
Age: 51
Estimated birth year: abt 1889
Gender: Male
Race: White
Birthplace: England
Marital Status: Married
Relation to Head of House: Lodger
Home in 1940: New York, New York, New York
Map of Home in 1940: View Map
Street: Broadway
House Number: 2612
Inferred Residence in 1935: New York, New York, New York
Residence in 1935: Same Place
Citizenship: Naturalized
Sheet Number: 12B
Occupation: Steward Seaman
Attended School or College: No
Highest Grade Completed: Elementary school, 8th grade
Duration of Unemployment: 30
Class of Worker: Wage or salary worker in private work
Weeks Worked in 1939: 26
Income: 720
Income Other Sources: No
Neighbors: View others on page
Household Members:
Name Age
Paul Nelson 45 - Carpenter – Construction
Alice Diamond 36 - Operator – Dress Manufacturer
Jack Russell 31 - Canteen Man – restaurant
Henry Olson 34 - Salesman – Beverage.
John Nicholas 51 <<
If that is the case,including Paul Nelson, the rest are Boarders with varying occupations. His is the only one directly connected with sailing.
It certainly seems to be a block of appartments - a number of households with the same building number on Broadway, but with different visitation numbers.
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Yes. That is the entry I had found. But nothing afterwards other than the 1942 Draft. I also had seen that he was listed as "married". But where was his then wife, who I was unable to find elsewhere in the Census using any of her three surnames; (perhaps outside the US or not near a consulate for the purpose of Census Registration??). Where and how much later did they die. His first (possibly undivorced wife !! ) didn't die until 1956 so the listing as "married" could be said to apply to either wife. Oh dear....
So that's my brick wall and hence the posting on this forum; my trail went cold at 1930 for then wife and 1942 for him. Even if I was living in the US (rather than UK) would I be able to find more info by personal rather than internet research ??
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well, bmds are kept by state .... so you really do know which state is involved.
I'm not sure that you would be able to do more on the ground than on the internet
Have you tried looking on one of the Find a Grave sites?
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi
http://www.gravestonephotos.com/index.php
they're all "sites in progress", but one sometimes gets lucky.
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