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William Titley alias William Bell

William Titley alias William Bell

Posted: 11 Jul 2015 5:46PM GMT
Classification: Query
Surnames: Bell Titley
I'm trying to find the birth details of my great-grandfather. He married my great-grandmother Louisa Florence Riley in Fremantle in 1891, using the name William Bell. Various Bell family documents state he was born in Ballarat aorund 1860, father George, mother Elizabeth.
According to my grandmother (born Grace Florence Bell):- Louisa left William Bell in the 1920s, because he had been cited as co-respondent in a divorce case (I found a record - Harp vs Harp). He ended up in the old mens home (Sunset) and died there in 1933. After he died, the family discovered paperwork that showed his name to be William Titley, and that he had abandoned a wife & children in Victoria before coming to WA, and so the marriage to Louisa was bigamous.
I have a death certificate for William Titley, 1933. But I have not been able to find any details of parents, previous marriage etc.
I would be grateful for any leads that would help to solve this longstanding family mystery.

Re: William Titley alias William Bell

Posted: 13 Jul 2015 3:37AM GMT
Classification: Query
There was a George and Eliza TITLEY (nee NORMAN) in Daylesford, Victoria around the 1860s. Only births for Alice (1863), Annie (1864) and George (1866) show. Both had 2nd given name of Norman.

Eliza NORMAN married John WOOD in 1850, in Geelong. They had a daughter Mary in 1854. Possible death for John in 1853. Mary died in 1865 aged 11, mother shown as Eliza Titley NORMAN.

Eliza WOOD married George TITLEY in 1862 (reg 2161).

It is POSSIBLE William was born to her prior to the marriage to George, and took the name TITLEY (at least for a while!).




Re: William Titley alias William Bell

Posted: 13 Jul 2015 1:46PM GMT
Classification: Query
Thanks Mollipops - it looks like William was the child of George Titley's first wife, but George's second wife, Eliza nee Norman raised him.

I still don't know why he left Victoria and took on the assumed identity of William Bell in WA.

Leigh

Re: William Titley alias William Bell

Posted: 14 Jul 2015 7:18AM GMT
Classification: Query
Hi,
Might be connected.

BRISBANE.-William Titley is charged, on warrant issued by the Brisbane Bench, with deserting his child Mary Louisa Titley, care of Mrs. Doyle, Terrace street, New Farm, on the 6th September
last. Description :-A native of Victoria, a fencer, 25 years of age, 5 feet 7 inches high, slight build,
dark complexion, dark hair, clean-shaved except moustache, long thin face ; one of his eyes appears to be half closed. He was in Melbourne on the 1st ultimo.
12th March, 1889.

Kellie

Re: William Titley alias William Bell

Posted: 15 Jul 2015 2:34AM GMT
Classification: Query
Edited: 15 Jul 2015 2:43AM GMT
"After he died, the family discovered paperwork that showed his name to be William Titley, and that he had abandoned a wife & children in Victoria before coming to WA"

"I still don't know why he left Victoria and took on the assumed identity of William Bell in WA."

Haven't you answered your own question there?

The William TETLEY that you have on your Ancestry tree is not your man. He lived with his wife Mary Kate until his death in 1923 and his Will is digitised on PROV, he was born c1852.

What is the evidence you have that William BELL/TITLEY abandoned a family in Victoria?

Re: William Titley alias William Bell

Posted: 15 Jul 2015 7:33AM GMT
Classification: Query
Hey Kellie - that sounds like my William Bell - the date fits well, and so does the clean-shaved except moustache.

Where did you find the information?

I'll start looking for Mary Louisa for more.......

thanks,

Leigh

Re: William Titley alias William Bell

Posted: 15 Jul 2015 7:47AM GMT
Classification: Query
Surnames: Bell Titley
HI dj72green,

No, I haven't definitively answered the question of why William left & changed his identity. My grandmother could be a bit vague & wooly at times. She was definite about the date and the Titley name, and that checked out when I did a search for death certificates.

But she couldn't give me any details about the previous marrage and hadn't actually seen the documents, so there could have been a misunderstanding there.

However it looks like Kellie may have solved that part of the mystery for me & found the first spouse.

It seems Grandma was right after all!

Leigh

Leigh

Re: William Titley alias William Bell

Posted: 15 Jul 2015 7:55AM GMT
Classification: Query
Surnames: Bell Titley
Forgot to add - I now have William listed in my family tree as William Bell, alias Titley (NOT Tetley).

Parents George Titley (1836 - 1913) & Agnes Farrell (1842 - 1860), stepmother Eliza Norman.

All thanks to answers I received on the WA message board:

http://boards.ancestry.com/localities.oceania.australia.wa.g...

Re: William Titley alias William Bell

Posted: 17 Jul 2015 4:25AM GMT
Classification: Query
Surnames: Titley
Hi Leigh,

Further to the post by Kellie, that William TITLEY, abandoned his child in Queensland.

Here is his marriage, in 1885:

1885 B9645 (Bride) Mary Ann Sheehan (Groom) William Titley

Here is the birth of that child... Mary Louisa TITLEY, in 1886.

1886 B36300 Mary Louisa Titley (Father) William (Mother) Mary Ann Sheehan

Another baby born to this couple, in 1894?? I wonder if this is your William?
Maybe, the father was just written as William TITLEY, and he may not have even known about the birth?

1894 B55029 James Titley (Father) William (Mother) Mary Ann Sheehan (d. 1894)
Burial in Brisbane Cemetery:
TITLEY JAMES Unrecorded Unrecorded 0 21-08-1894 Burial Toowong Cemetery 16-6-40

Another marriage in 1898??

1898 C1309 (Bride) Sarah Agnes Harris (Groom) William Titley

Then this William TITLEY, below, is fathering children in 1902 and 1909, in Qld. He died (I think) in 1956:

1902 C6665 John Henry Titley (Father) William (Mother) Sarah Agnes Harris (d. 1945)
1909 C6204 Thomas Harris Arthur Titley (Father) William (Mother) Sarah Agnes Harris

http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/84142223?searchTerm=... titley"&searchLimits=l-state=Queensland|||l-decade=188

(Last Paragraph, 17.10.1885, Queensland Figaro)

http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/62417867?searchTerm=... ann titley"&searchLimits=

(Townsville Daily Bulletin, 4.03.1940, has the obituary of Mrs William TITLEY, Sarah Agnes TITLEY/HARRIS).

You can purchase online, and download instantly, the BDM's from Queensland.

Mary

Re: William Titley alias William Bell

Posted: 17 Jul 2015 5:42AM GMT
Classification: Query
Surnames: Titley
Hi Leigh,

Re... Mollipops first message.
" George and Eliza TITLEY (nee NORMAN) in Daylesford, Victoria around the 1860s. Only births for Alice (1863), Annie (1864) and George (1866) show. Both had 2nd given name of Norman."

George Norman TITLEY, Born 1866. Death published 23 March 1918, in The Leader, Melbourne.

http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/89785871?searchTerm=... titley"&searchLimits=l-state=Victoria|||l-decade=191

As Fryerning has on the other thread, the death of this man's son, in Africa, in about 1915.

Daylesford Advocate, Yandoit, Glenlyon and Eganstown Chronicle 8 May 1915
http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/119535699?

When George Norman TITLEY married, in 1888, he was the younger son of George TITLEY. So I assume that William TITLEY, was the older son.

http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/6119297?searchTerm="... titley"&searchLimits=l-state=Victoria|||l-decade=188

http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/6119297?searchTerm="... titley"&searchLimits=l-state=Victoria|||l-decade=188


Here is the Will, of the old man, the father, George TITLEY, made on 28 May 1910.
His older daughter, Alice Norman TITLEY / TRANTER, was the executrix.
The beneficiary was his younger daughter, Annie Norman Victoria TITLEY.
He died on 4 March 1913.

George Titley Gent Musk Crk 4 Mar 1913 128/359 VPRS 28/P3, unit 348;
VPRS 7591/P2, unit 490

http://www.access.prov.vic.gov.au/public/component/daPublicB...

Mary
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