Page 8 - Daphne Hart - 89 and Feeling Fine

My Mother’s Story

My mother, Alice Adina Dawes, was born on June 2,
1902. The same old story—she was her mother’s first
child, born out of wedlock. Her father left, abandoned
her mother, and eventually married someone else.

Her mother, Miss Dina, later married Papa Willie, an
Irishman. I assume Miss Dina was my grandmother—
after all, why else would she and my mother both have
the name Adina? They were the elderly couple I wrote
about in my book, whom everyone affectionately called
"Godmother Dine" and "Papa Willie." They may not
have been old in reality, but to a five-year-old, everyone
seemed ancient. Together, they had four children: Aunt
Louise, Aunt Lilly, Uncle Jacob, and Uncle Joseph.

I never met my grandfather, but I know his surname was
Dawes. He later married Miss Agnes, a woman from
Knockpatrick, and together, they had three children:
Joshua, Oscar, and Berril.

I share this information so that if anyone in the future
seeks to trace their roots, they may have a path to follow.
The Dawes, Swabys, Harveys, and Johnsons are all
connected in one way or another.

Memories of Miss Agnes

Miss Agnes was known as a seamstress—a woman who
made dresses for others. Whenever my mother visited

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