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Hello,
Unfortunately there is no physical description on the pension form we have, but a form issued to Hannah[JW Peppers widow in Durham) states thatshe is his widow and that he was aka James Hayes.The army nos match for this form and the only pension form I could get from The Veterans agency. That is how I know he was livilng at 40 Boston Street. The death certificate for James Hayes lists him as living at the same address but there is always the possibility that this was the real James Hayes and so I need to link somehow the informant with JW Pepper. She was HELEN HAYES. I believe she was a relative and so I need to trace her. I have an idea she may have died in Durham but I can,t find her as yet. The Boer War record relates to James service in St Helens Voluteers. Iam currently trying to investigate other people called HAYES buried in the same grave as JamesELIZABETH AND ALICE) Bothe these names I am not familiar with. will let you know.

Hi,The pension record that you have is /could be important for elimination purposes i.e the description of the man.

Your previous message state's that you have Boer war info on J W Pepper...what is it?

You also say that you know that James Hayes and J W Pepper are one and the same person.How exactly,do you know this..can you let me know?

Your last message say's that ,"there is still a lot to do,to prove any link".

Why do you need to find all death's for "a woman named Hayes or Pepper between 1940 and 1955?

Hello,
Will definitely let you know. Still a lot to do to prove any link though, for example need to find all deaths Durham City of women named Hayes or Pepper between 1940-1955. Can you help us there?

Hi,Looking forward to the outcome.

Hello,
I have located the grave of a man called James Hayes in 1923 in the right place but I need to check exactly when he died.
Sorry it has taken so long to get back but the mystery is so fascinating that it takes up a lot of my spare time.Thank you for all your help thus far. I think I will look at the register to see if that tells me any more

Thank you very much. We have just obtained some information relating to J W Pepper's Boer War service. I will ring Manchester tomorrow and let you know how I get on.

All you have to do is tell them the name and year and they will tell you where the grave is
Julie

I am currently trying to dig out the form but I can tell you that the name is James Hayes, army no 276643. The address was 40 Boston Street, Hulme, Manchester - and there was reference to a gunshot wound to the head (100% attributable); a few pension orders were cashed in the 1920s. We'll try to find out some more.

I was only asking because I've J W Pepper's for 1914 and just wanted to be able to compare the two.
I know it's long winded for you,but,could you tell me what was on that Pension document that you have?

Hi,
The only pension form we could find states that he was living at 40 Boston Street Hulme and that his birth year was 1877. There appears to be some reference to the years between 1920-21 but as we only have 1 form that survives there could be other years involved. The form states name as James Hayes but we know through the army numbers and other documents that he was actually J W Pepper.

Thanks again for all your kind help

Hi,Can you tell me the date/year on the pension Form's?

Thanks for that help. We have been researching for months and months and any help we can get is warmly received

Try the "Manchester City council" web site for burial record's and related info..that may help you.

Thank you so much Julie. We will definitely do that. Will they be able to tell you where the grave is?

Forgot the phone number for you. It is
0161 881 5269

Try contacting Southern Cemetry - South Manchester. The biggest in Manchester and it is so near to Chorlton

The death certificate we have does have the age at 46 but we are worried that this could still be the real James Hayes and not James William Pepper. We think that there is a real James Hayes who was born in 1877 and James William stole the identity of that man. The informant was listed as Helen Hayes but I can find no record of her. I would also like to know how to find the grave of the man who died in Chorlton. We are frustrated because although we feel sure we have the right man we know there is something we are missing.

On the pension record you have you say 1877 is the given birth year.

The death index state's that there was a James Hayes born c 1877 and died 1923,registered @Chorlton,Lancs.

What age doe's it state on his death certificate?

James William Pepper did marry a Hannah Robinson; however in 1915 he changed his name to James Hayes, to re-enlist in the army. We have a pension record from Hannah Blenkinsop to prove the change of name. We also have a pension record for James Hayes (i.e. the same man), giving his year of birth as 1877; plus a death certificate for a James Hayes (d. 1923 at 40 Boston Street, Hulme, Manchester), listing him as an 'army pensioner'.

Basically, we need to find out if this was James William Pepper (including exactly whose identity - i.e. which James Hayes - he stole). 40 Boston Street was in fact the address on the pension forms - thus there is a 50% chance that this is our man, but we want to discover more about the real James Hayes. Thank you for your interest

Just so we're on the right track.Did he marry Hannah Robinson 1st June 1903 ?.