Two long-lost relatives are looking to solve the mystery of a birth that took place in Grantham almost 80 years ago.
Ron Deegan, from Leicester, was contacted by Rachael Goddard via genealogy website Ancestry.com.
It turned out that Rachel, from Lincoln, was the daughter of a cousin that Ron never knew he had, named Ann.
After speaking to his other cousins, Ron found out that Ann was adopted out of the family and was a secret that had not been passed on. It turned out that even Ann’s siblings knew nothing about her.
Ann was adopted from birth by a couple named Harry and Ethel Espin, and led “a very happy life,” according to daughter Rachel.
The couple renamed her Jean Ann Espin, but she was always known as Ann.
Although Ann’s birth mother had lived in Stamford, her birth took place in Grantham on February 13, 1942 at 119 Dysart Road.
Ron and Rachel have been able to reconnect, but due to the pandemic, have been unable to meet each other for the first time.
Ron said: “It’s just completely out of the blue. One of those things that you don’t expect.
“Nobody in the family knew anything about [Rachel’s mother].
“Rachel’s trying to build up as much information as she can about the origins of her mother and with the address on the birth certificate being in Grantham, she was wondering if anybody in Grantham has got any memories or knows anything that can add to her story.”
Rachel is also anxious to find out any new information about her family history.
She said: “Well, I’ve always known my mum was adopted.
“My mum passed away nearly seven years ago now but she always knew she was adopted from birth.
“We did try and find them in the ‘90s, but my mum had Alzheimer’s in the end.
“There was no real data or computers then to go by. So, unfortunately, mum passed and I lost my brother 11 years ago, so he passed without knowing his grandma as well.
“In lockdown, I’ve found this news out on my own and I’ve got no one to really share with it.”
On connecting with Ron, Rachel said: “It’s been absolutely brilliant. He’s given me all the information that I’d been looking for and as much as he knows.
“The day Ron sent me a photograph of my grandma, I was really overwhelmed with it because she was the absolute image of my mum and it took me back really.
“My mum was born in Grantham, but her mum came from Stamford, so we wanted to know who lived in this house in Grantham and basically who my grandad is.
“I’ve done a DNA test on Ancestry and nothing’s really come up on that.
“It’d be nice to be able to have this information to pass down to my child and my brother’s children.
“It’s quite a unique story. It’d be great to find my grandad. I don’t know whether he was an American soldier or what, because my mum was born in 1942.”
Ron added: “The name of a possible father they have is H. Steward, who they believe could be an American serviceman.
“A question that both myself and Rachel have asked is, does someone in Grantham have a story of a birth at 119 Dysart Road, Grantham that has been passed on to them that fits in with the above?”
Anyone who thinks they can help with this mystery is asked to email Rachel at: rachelgoddard@hotmail.co.uk
2021-02-13 07:00:00
