James Arthur Welsh (pictured) - Where did he come from?

Question

This is a family photo of my Great-Great Grandfather, James Arthur Welsh. Location: Presumably Madras, India. Date: unknown.

James Arthur Welsh has been a mystery to my family for over fifty years. His own Grandchildren didn't know much about him at all. The man was an enigma in terms of his ancestry/heritage/where he came from.

Click here for the image details page or here for the full-sized version (720 x 960).

Here are the facts that we know about him:

• His name was James Arthur Welsh.
• He was born in approx. 1880.
• His father was John Welsh.
• He [James Arthur Welsh] married Bertha Penelope Hatton (who is also an enigma!) in 1902 in India.
• They lived in India, specifically in Bitragunta, Madras.
• Together they had five children (two girls, three boys). Only the boys survived to adulthood.
• James and his wife Bertha were still alive in the 1940s, and possibly still alive in the 1950s.

The questions that my family has about James Arthur Welsh are:

• Where did he originally come from? Was he born in India or elsewhere (such as Ireland, Scotland, England, the US, etc)?
• If he wasn't born in India, when did he move there?
• When/where was he born?
• What was his mother's name?
• Did he have any siblings?

If you recognise the name, photo, or you have a James Welsh in your family from a similar time period that went missing - please get in touch. Thank you.

Comments

Have you tried the British services in India at the time?  or the British East India Company?  Many Britsh were in India at the time.

https://www.anglofamilytrees.com/welsh_family_tree.htm

https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/help-with-your-research/research-guides/british-army-muster-rolls-pay-lists-1730-1898/

There is a census of Madras, India for 1880 and probably for newer dates as well, you might try to search for them and then for James.

He may be?  a descendant of James Welsh who was in the East India Trading Company, he was  born in 1775 in Madras???

Answer 1

Astonishing number of Brits in India, seeming to stay for 3 or 4 generations!  

Rhiannon, i see you have done DNA.  I have some Welch and Welsh ancestors from Devon, but i don't have a missing James.  I thought maybe Bertha Penelope Hatton might be easier to spot, and I see you have started to track some of the other Hattons in India in the same timeframe.  Any luck with that, DNA-wise?  Or any strong matches with no known connection? Or any surprising ethnicity in your DNA at Ancestry (I know that's more of just a bit of fun...)