I found his birthplace

This is my paternal grandfather, Percy Scrivener. He died suddenly at the age of 53, long before I was born. My mother who was 21 at the time was heart-broken. I have always felt cheated. He sounded like such a good man. His portrait hangs in our dining room.

Percy was born in Newton Rd in Ipswich, Suffolk, UK in 1881. In 1883 his young parents, with four children under six, sailed  for 96 days to Australia on the Barque Rialto. The Australian Government wanted more skilled emigrants and my great grandfather was an engine fitter. He came out to work on the railways and did so until he retired in 1922.

My mother never visited the UK. Not that she didn't want to but my father wasn't keen.By the time I could have taken her she had become legally blind. However, when we visited in 1984 we set out to find Percy's birthplace. I carried his birth certificate which shows the address of his birthplace but it doesn't show a street number. So, on this day 37 years ago, we spent three hours in the Suffolk Record Office and, with the well-honed research skills of my better half, we finally identified the exact house in Newton Rd where he was born. It had been built the year before Percy was born.

When we arrived at the house we had only intended to take a few photos and go. Understandably, though, the gentleman living there then came to the door to see what we were doing (see photo on left). We explained who we were and I showed him Percy's birth certificate. He and his wife could not have been more welcoming. They took us inside and suggested to us which room he was probably born in.

Mum could not have been more thrilled. We gave her a set of photos which she treasured.  We also sent a set to the lovely couple as well.

I checked the internet today and the house is still there. The front garden has been removed to make a car space but other than that it looks the same.

As you can see I am still working on our 1984 trip photos.