Brothers Reunited

Well finally, we can reunite the two sides of a family that was divided in the period 1903-1905, with the descendants of the elder brother using the Johnson surname while those of the younger brother retain the old family name of Shorrocks.

The photographs above show my grandfather's brother Robert Mallinson Shorrocks (centre), flanked by own father 'Jay' Johnson (top), and Robert's elder brother Harry Shorrocks / Johnson (pictured below with Harry's youngest son - and Jay's brother, Eric Johnson).

The photographs are roughly contemporary (1934 to 1940).

The link-up has resulted from around 8 years of research that involved cross-matching male-line ydna data with census, birth, marriage and death records.

My Distant Cousin Norma Crossley (nee Norma Shorrocks) writes:

'Your original email helped explain a mystery in my research as I had found reference to granddad having an older brother Harry from the census records but it was complete news to my Dad.

We had a fun day though when we when to see Mum & Dad earlier this month with all your information & Dad has amended his family tree to include Harry, so the evidence must be enough to convince a solicitor!

As we talked Dad said he has some vague recollection in conversations between his mother & aunts of references to a relative who was 'a bad lot' who disappeared to London - but as he put it “it's over 40 years ago”.

We will probably ever know why Harry left but I have some sympathy with changing his name, Crossley is a vast improvement. I certainly found Shorrocks a difficult name when I lived in South East England for a spell'.

I had written to Norma as follows, after our initial contact:

Thanks so much for replying - it so good to be in touch (if only 105 years or so down the track!)

I was hoping that your family would be able to help explain Harry's disappearance but I am not altogether surprised that there is largely a blank. Whatever happened, it seems the rupture was pretty final'.

Robert it seems was a steady family man who looked after his mother when his father Robert Edwin Shorrocks died, and who then helped to look after a sister who was widowed in WWI.

Harry is seems was a bit of a gambler, a bit of a ladies' man, and a finally a heavy drinker - though I am sure he was good company in any hostelry.

Ironically, both sets of descendants identify with North West England (living not so far from the place of origin of the Shorrocks surname in Central Lancashire) and some members of the contemporary Shorrocks family live within 20 miles of some of their formerly lost 'Johnson' relatives in Cheshire.