Finding John Doe

 John Doe is the name given by the Police in many jurisdictions to an unidentified male corpse or unconscious patient in a hospital. It is not quite what I am doing in my family history search as I know the name of the man I wish to study. My problem is separating him out from the other men sharing the same name in the same region at the same time.

My search  began with a legal notice:

 NOTICE OF DISSOLUTION OF PARTNERSHIP. 

NOTICE 1S HEREBY GIVEN that the Partnership lately subsisting between us, the undersigned, ADAM HARRIS and JOHN HARRIS, carrying on business as Coal Miners and Coal Merchants at Saddle Hill under the style or firm of "A. and J. Harris," has this day BEEN DISSOLVED by mutual consent. All debts due to or owing by the late firm will be received and paid by the said Adam Harris, who will in future on his own account continue to carry on the business hitherto carried on by the firm. As witness our hands this 7th dav of March. 1895. 

ADAM HARRIS. 

JOHN HARRIS. 

Witness to the signature of Adam Harris • .James R. Thornton, Solicitor, Dunedin. 

Witness to the signature of John Harris : D. Cook, Solicitor, Dunedin. 

Evening Star, Issue 9649, 16 March 1895, Page 3

Notice of Dissolution of Partnership

This tells me that Adam Harris was operating a coal mine on Saddle Hill at least five years before he said he was in his life story. If we are to understand how an Ayrshire coal miner made good, then the role of John Harris in Adam's story is crucial. Also was John Harris a family member? What else about Adam's life could come to life if we knew that?

The problem is that Joh Harris is a common name and searches in Papers Past do not helpfully distinguish between one person or another. Simply searching on "John Harris" reveals over twenty men and boys living in New Zealand at that time.

I set out to identify those John Harrises who lived in Otago and Southland between 1890 and 1900. I then tried to identify each by his location and his occupation. I narrowed it to ten men, mostly farmers in Atholl, Owaka, Mataura and Tapanui. But were there two John Harrises in Tuapeka. Could I eliminate the Methodist minister? It wasn't until I moved my search to 1914 that I found a John Harris who lived on Saddle Hill.

FUNERAL NOTICE

The Friends of JOHN HARRIS are respectfully invited to attend the Funeral of his late MOTHER, ANN, which will leave his Residence, Saddle Hill, TO-MORROW (THURSDAY). 11th inst, at 1 o'clock, for Green Island Cemetery 

WM. WEDDERSPOON, Undertaker.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 16096, 10 June 1914, Page 4

FUNERAL NOTICE

The next step was to find more about John Harris. Was he living on Saddle Hill in 1895? Could he have some interest in Adam's coal mine?

It took a lot of searching to find his death notice but it was paydirt.

DEATH

LODGE IONIC, 191. THE Brethren are invited to attend the Funeral of the late Brother John Harris, to leave his residence, Saddle Hill, on WEDNESDAY, 27th, at 1 p.m., for Green Island Cemetery, By command of the Worshipful Master. K. TILLEY SHORT, Secretary.

Evening Star, Issue 22348, 26 May 1936, Page 8

DEATH

Lodge Ionic 191 is an "erased" Freemasons Lodge, Roslyn Morning Star.

Then the confirmation:

UNTITLED

Probate has been granted by His Honour Mr Justice Kennedy in the estates of … and John Harris, retired miner, Saddle Hill.

Evening Star, Issue 22361, 10 June 1936, Page 8

PROBATE

This makes it very plausible for this John Harris to be Adam Harris' partner. He does not appear in very many other references in Papers Past, but he did exist.

The next step in the investigation is to find what else we can about John Harris.



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