Albert Saxty

I am researching Albert Saxty/Alfred Saxty who served at Rorkes Drift and there is a conflict of details about where he was born.Some mention Buckland Dinham which is in fact where he was brought up but his date and place of birth is shown as 11th March 1859 at Minety Wiltshire on other documents.The 1871 Census at which time he is living in Buckland Dinham shows his place of birth as Minety.I believe his place of birth to be Minety but when he was relatively young he moved due to his father work on the railways.
I would appreciate any information you might have on this person.

Regards

James Turner (Swindon,Wiltshire)

Hi james1949uk, here's a bio of Alfred, i'm sure others
will have more..cheers xhosa.

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Albert/Alfred Saxty's birth was registered at Malmsbury Wiltshire (which is just a few miles from Minety) in the second quarter of 1859 - it is presumably the local Registry Office. He was not baptised until 4 August 1861 in Stonehouse Gloucestershire. The family is in Stonehouse at the time of the 1861 census. As you rightly say, by 1871 the family had moved again to Buckland Denham in East Somerset. His father, Thomas Saxty, was a policeman for the Great Western Railway.

Steve

Hi Steve.

Very interesting to note that you say Thomas Saxty was a 'policeman' for the GWR.

This could well mean that he was indeed a 'policeman' (meaning a copper or Plod), however, at the time the term 'policeman' on the Railway meant a signalman, hence the word 'Bobby' for a Railway signalman. The word is still used even today when speaking of a signalman. I well remember many a time either ringing the signalman up from the signal telephone and calling him 'Bobby', or going to the signal cabin and signing the book for rule 55 and speaking with the 'Bobby' in the cabin whilst waiting for the kettle to boil to 'mash' the tea in the brew cans and take back to the engine crew, good days, but now long gone, very few manual cabins left, all power box and colour light signalling these days.

Cheers mate.

james1949uk
Saxby has been researched by the excellent Researcher Kris Wheatley in her ' Legacy Series ; Heroes Of RD , Saxby is in Volume 2 . From Vol 2 '' The family had moved from London to Minety , near Chippenham in Wiltshire . The next child was Albert , born Minety 11th March 1859 ''. Albert it seems was the 4th of 5 children .
90th