Searching for ancestors who were child migrants<\/a> can be tricky because of privacy laws and family divisions. Rosemary Johnston has been astonished to discover an entire branch of her father\u2019s Edwardian family who were sent to Canada by Barnardo\u2019s. Genetic genealogy has been her gateway to the past.\u00a0<\/p> \u201cMy father William Johnston was born in Belfast in 1925 to William Johnston senior and Elizabeth Mullen,\u201d Rosemary explains. \u201cDad seldom spoke about his family \u2013 it was a closed subject. During the 1950s he went to live in Montreal, and worked as a carpenter \u2013 the job was probably arranged by a relative.\u00a0<\/p> \u201cHowever, Dad didn\u2019t like Montreal \u2013 he found it too hot in summer and freezing cold in winter \u2013 so he returned to Northern Ireland. He married my mother Kathleen in 1958 in Belfast, where I was born.\u201d<\/p> During the early 1990s, Rosemary took part in a university exchange programme, and because of her dad\u2019s history she chose Montreal. \u201cI phoned Dad and asked where he\u2019d lived. He remembered the street name, so I set off to find it. After hours of walking I still had no luck. The sense of a family connection with Montreal remained, however.\u201d<\/p> Rosemary began researching her tree in 2013, after her father died. She was amazed to discover that William Johnston senior had eight siblings. \u201cI had only met one of them. Researching the others, I expected to find a Canadian connection. However, they had all stayed in Belfast.\u201d<\/p> In 2018 Rosemary bought Ancestry<\/a> DNA tests for herself and her partner, and her genetic profile provided a revelation.<\/p> \u201cAncestry allows people to connect with other users who share a genetic link. I was intrigued to discover that my closest link was a previously unknown second cousin<\/a>, Cathy, who lives in Ontario, Canada.\u00a0<\/p> “My closest DNA link was a previously unknown second cousin”<\/p><\/blockquote> \u201cI emailed Cathy and asked her if she was a Johnston. She replied, \u2018No, I\u2019m a Mullen.\u2019 I knew instantly that we were related through my paternal grandmother Elizabeth \u2018Lizzie\u2019 Mullen.\u00a0<\/p> \u201cI told Cathy this and she replied, \u2018The lost sister, Elizabeth!\u2019 I wondered what she meant.\u201d<\/p> Rosemary had only one childhood memory of Elizabeth, or \u2018Granny Mullen\u2019 as she was known. She was bedridden, and lived with her daughter Lily nearby in Belfast. \u201cGranny Mullen came to stay with us to give Lily respite. She was horrible! She lay on the sofa in the living room, yelling at us kids to shut the door. Later I learned that she died of pernicious anaemia, so she probably felt the cold. I asked relatives if her illness made her the way she was, and was told that she\u2019d always been like that.\u201d<\/p> Elizabeth married William Johnston senior who died in 1948 at No. 3 Emergency Camp in Crossgar, near Belfast, where the family lived after their house was bombed in the Blitz<\/a>. Did this explain Granny Mullen\u2019s bitterness? Later, a relative told Rosemary that Granny Mullen\u2019s husband William was an alcoholic who squandered his wages on drink and gambling. \u201cHe served during the First World War<\/a>, so perhaps his experiences of combat made him the man he became?<\/p> \u201cApparently, Granny Mullen was a storyteller. She had \u2018second sight\u2019 too. She would sometimes remark, \u2018There\u2019ll be a letter in the morning\u2019 \u2013 and there would be.\u201d<\/p> Rosemary adds, \u201cI was astonished to discover from Cathy that Granny Mullen had four brothers, Oswald, William, James and George. All of them were born in Belfast in the late 19th century.\u201d Cathy is James Mullen\u2019s granddaughter, and she had a fascinating tale to tell.<\/p> The boys\u2019 story unfolded after James Mullen died in Toronto in 1965. His son Ken applied for a pension for his mother, and was told by authorities that James was born in Belfast and came to Canada under the Barnardo\u2019s scheme. This was a total shock.\u00a0<\/p> Due to privacy concerns, the charity was wary about disclosing information. However, after Ken told them that his father had a distinguishing mark (a mangled finger), Barnardo\u2019s provided precise details of James and his brothers\u2019 early lives. The charity also sent heart-rending photos taken when they were admitted.\u00a0<\/p> Their backstory was truly tragic. The four boys and Elizabeth were born to William John Mullen and his wife Lizzie McMurray. William John was a sailor who stole money from his employer and did a runner, leaving Lizzie and the five children destitute and facing the workhouse.<\/p> Lizzie contacted Barnardo\u2019s from the Belfast Union Workhouse and said that she couldn\u2019t bear the children to grow up there. Oswald, William, James and George were admitted to Barnardo\u2019s in 1903 and sent to its children’s homes<\/a> in East London. Oswald was the eldest, born in 1888 and George the youngest, aged only six when he was sent away.\u00a0<\/p> William and Oswald arrived separately in Canada in 1903, while James and George travelled together in 1906 on the SS Dominion<\/em>. On arrival, they were placed with four families in the province of Ontario \u2013 James in Cambray, Oswald in Thamesford, William in Niagara, and George in Huntsville. Barnardo\u2019s provided the last-known address for each of the boys, which intriguingly for George was Montreal, where Rosemary\u2019s father had worked.<\/p> Cathy was thrilled to discover the missing link in the chain: the great aunt<\/a> Elizabeth who became Rosemary\u2019s Granny Mullen.<\/p>![\"Black](\"https:\/\/c02.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/52\/2024\/05\/Barnardos-Pic-William-James-George.jpg\")
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