Can anyone read what this says?

[JessieMcJessie]

The attached is the extract from the register of births showing my Grandpa’s birth entry- he’s the second entry down. However the one above caught my eye as there’s a detailed explanation of what I think looks like some sort of disclaimer of paternity for baby William Rainy or Mackilloch. I can see the mother Maggie Rainy saying something about not residing with her husband for 2 years I think? Can anyone make out the wording better than I can?

Yes that is what it seems to say, that she has decided he isn’t the father of the child as she has had no personal communication with him since May (something I can’t make out) haven’t lived together for two years.
So interesting !

I wonder if it’s “communion” as in sex, rather than “communication”?

I think it's: "who she declared wasn't the father of the child and further that she has had no personal communication with him since they ceased to reside together about two years ago."

Thanks both, think you’ve got it. It does look like “communication” at second glance. I wonder if she knew who the father was?

It sounds as though she has a new man ! I love things like that, so interesting, little snippets of of other lives. She doesn’t sound as though she liked her husband much...

I can just imagine her chatting to the registrar about the situation- what surprises me though is that they were willing to put all the info into the official record. I feel that I might now have to start researching what became of Maggie and her son...

Yes, very funny to think of her telling the reg all about it.
I hope she had a lovely life with her baby.

If you look at records, it looks like my great granny had 8 children by the same man, her husband. In fact, my great granny's husband caused her to be in and out of the workhouse while he was in debtors prison. He eventually fucked off and left her penniless with 6 children and the next census entry shows her as working in domestic service for a local wealthy landowner. She then has two more children but they are registered as Firstname Landowner'sSurnameInsteadOfMiddleName ErrantHusband'sSurname and her husband is listed as the father. She simply couldn't get a divorce so lived very happily in sin with the local, reportedly lovely landowner who took in her 6 children. They're buried together as husband and wife except under her married name. It's all a lie. If my 93yo grandma hadn't told me the truth, it would all make no sense at all.

Sadly little William died of bronchitis when he was a month old. I’ve had a quick look for other mentions of Maggie but can’t find anything.

I’ve just realised that of course this was 1916 so maybe she hadn’t seen her husband for 2 years because he was away fighting in the Great War?

That’s fascinating ShowofHands. Did the 8 kids all inherit from the wealthy landowner?

The two young ones died in infancy but the others inherited the land and some property. Some of them sold off their inheritance and started again in Australia, my granny and grandad ended up with a row of cottages and some fields apparently!

I think the wars cover up some interesting stories. A couple of years ago a chap turned up out of the blue and it transpired that DH's great grandma had an affair with an American serviceman and had a baby. Then her husband came home from the war when the boy was 3 and he was sent to a children's home. 70 years later he knocked on the door looking for his family. His 96yo mother was still alive. We had no idea of his existence.