I was amazed just a few days after I’d posted the Roessler Blog that I received contact from a descendant of the family, as usually and more often I get contact from descendants/relatives months or even years after I have written a blog. SC shared more wonderful family information with me and another photo!

SC wrote: “Quite by chance, I came across the journals of what would have been my great-great uncle, Amandus Ferdinand Roessler, now digitally archived in a library in Le Havre- as you also found. In passing on this discovery to my brother and a cousin, neither of whom was aware of the diaries’ existence, I followed it up with an email to the library staff and they now wish to have a chat with me. This is mainly because one of Amandus Ferdinand’s brothers, Ernest Paul Roessler (our great-grandfather)had similar interests such as archaeology and had also kept a bi-lingual journal of business and family details, complete with sketches and newspaper cuttings, which we did know about and the Le Havre library team did not. The brothers’ walks around Le Havre are documented in the journals in which Ernest’s name crops up from time to time“.

“My cousin googled Amandus Ferdinand Roessler and came across your website- hence my contacting you! As a young girl, she remembers meeting the young lady sitting in the car in the photo you included (the daughter was apparently referred to as Vicky at the time)“.

“We have an extensive family tree which my father and brother worked on for a long time, years ago- though we seem to have one or two slight discrepancies in some dates and some confusion over the numbers of sisters and generational repetition of first or middle names compared with what you researched“.

“There are some amusing coincidences as you follow how the family expanded: For instance, we discovered that Amandus Ferdinand not only spoke German and French but also learned Dutch at some point as he worked in Amsterdam“.

“Two generations later my father, though born and brought up in England, married my mother who was French and they brought up my brother and me to be bi-lingual. Later on, my father also worked in Amsterdam (for 7 years) so we all learned Dutch in addition- not hard for us children who went to local schools there, much harder for our parents. I later earned a degree in French and German, living in Germany for a year as part of my studies, and still retain my fluency in all 4 languages“.

“We also know that my parents’ respective families were in fact distantly related by marriage (that’s another story!)- their initial contact soon after WWII was in fact a result of their own parental generation each wondering how the other ‘foreign’ branch had survived the war in Paris and in London“.

“Whilst they were engaged at one point my mother came to stay with my father’s family in England and noticed a displayed photograph which my father explained was taken in the office of their Bénédictine import business (they were apparently the first to import the drink into the UK from Fécamp where it was produced, via Le Havre)in London“.

“He pointed out his father, grandfather and great-uncles (the one on the left is Amandus Ferdinand), but said he didn’t really know the others. My mother said she did: the youngest man in the picture was her uncle!! (I’ve attached a scan of the photo)“.

“One of my English cousins (I only have two) married an American- they have no children so the Roessler name ends with him). When my parents went to attend his wedding, they met with the offspring of the American branch of the Roessler family which you also mention in your research. Having married someone of Japanese origin, they were interned in the USA during WWII of course as ‘enemy aliens’!“

“I hope this may have added to your interest- and I will try to amend the details you found on our own family tree sheets as they would fill some gaps“.

Here’s the link once again to the Roessler Family tree on Ancestry if you would like to see it again: Roessler Family Tree on Ancestry

Isn’t it a splendid family group photo! So pleased I’m able to share this with everyone. Names below from SC.

I asked SC if I could do a short follow-up blog with all the extra information shared with me and very kindly she agreed. “I don’t mind you using the information and photo I sent you. If it’s of any use, I attach the names of the others in the photo: Amandus, Gustave and Ernest were all brothers. Olivia was their sister. Harry is Ernest’s son, my grandfather. Olivia’s sons are Roger and Henri Durand. Henri Durand went on to marry Edmée Delagenière – this was my mother’s aunt, which is why she recognised her uncle in the photo! Their business was in Philpot Lane but the street looks different now“.

Philpot Lane is a short street in London, England, running from Eastcheap in the south to Fenchurch Street in the north. It looks very different from 100 years ago!

Till next time then……