THE DORANS FAMILY GRAVE IN CALCUTTA INDIA

THE DORANS FAMILY GRAVE IN CALCUTTA INDIA

MY ANCESTORS

Dear Ancestor
Your tombstone stands among the rest;
Neglected and alone
The name and date are chiseled out
On polished, marbled stone.
It reaches out to all who care
It is too late to mourn.
You did not know that I exist
You died and I was born.
Yet each of us are cells of you
In flesh, in blood, in bone.
Our blood contracts and beats a pulse
Entirely not our own.
Dear Ancestor, the place you filled
So many years ago
Spreads out among the ones you left
Who would have loved you so.
I wonder if you lived and loved,
I wonder if you knew
That someday I would find this spot,
And come to visit you.


POEM AUTHOR UN KNOWN
THANKS TO THE POET
FOR SUCH LOVELY WORDS

RUFUS SANDFORD AND MARY

RUFUS SANDFORD AND MARY

THE SANFORD CONNECTION

My grand mother was married twice ,
Ryan and Sanford.
Sanford was evidently the step father as my moms name was Evelyn Phyllis Ryan,

during her life time my mom mentioned that Sanford was a missionary and his mission was in Vizanagram in south India,and that he was from America she also mentioned a name Lottie. Later after searching the net came across the name Lottie who was his daughter from his first marriage, Sanford's wife died in1903 and prior to her death she was eight years in the States while Sanford was in India Sanford died in the thirty's, so it is possible he married a second wife after the demise of his first wife,
I suppose it was during this period after her death he may have married again, though I cannot say if it was a fact as I have not yet come across any evidence of his marriage accept my mom and her relatives words . Patsy who is still alive and is my mother's brother Herbert Ryan's daughter who is now settled in Australia , I shall continue this search following is the life of Rufus Sanford researched till the time of his first wife's death.


LAMONT (Lemont), MARY E. (Sanford), Baptist missionary; b. c. 1842 in Billtown, N.S., daughter of Joel Lemont and Rebecca — ; m. there 20 Aug. 1873 Rufus Sanford, and they had three children; d. 17 or 18 July 1903 in Madras, India.

Born and raised in a predominantly Baptist community, Mary E. Lamont “professed faith in the Saviour” and was baptized on 2 June 1867. About the same time she was sent to the Grand Pre Seminary in Wolfville, N.S. There she was greatly influenced by Hannah Maria Norris*, who in 1870 began the successful organization of women’s missionary societies in the Baptist churches of the Maritimes. It was probably at Wolfville that Lamont met Rufus Sanford, a former student at Acadia College and then a teacher at Horton Academy, who had already decided on a career in the field of foreign missions. On the afternoon of 20 Aug. 1873 Sanford was ordained as a foreign missionary, and that evening he and Lamont were married.

In October the Sanford's, George Churchill and his wife, Matilda M. Churchill, William F. Armstrong, Flora Eaton, and Maria Armstrong left for Rangoon (Yangon), Burma. Known as the “serving seven,” the group arrived on 12 Jan. 1874 and took up work among the Karen people, where they struggled with the difficult language and the even more difficult climate. Although funded by the Baptists of the Maritime's, the “serving seven” worked under the board of the American Baptist Missionary Union. By the mid 1870s, however, Maritime Baptists no longer considered this arrangement acceptable, and they strove for a mission station of their own. In 1875 the missionaries were ordered to leave their work and proceed to Cocanada (Kakinada), India, to open a Maritime Baptist mission. There they were to labour beside the missionaries of the Ontario and Quebec convention among the Telugu-speaking peoples.

Some of Sanford’s fellow missionaries had reservations about the decision, but she was clearly delighted, and wrote to the press in Nova Scotia that “we are well assured that the Lord has sent us to this people.” She had detested the long rainy season in Burma, and found the climate of the west coast of the Bay of Bengal much more to her liking. The Sanfords’ arrival at Bimlipatam on 4 Nov. 1875 marked the start of the Maritime Baptist involvement in India, which has lasted to the present. The couple had to battle heat, language and cultural barriers, famine, lack of supplies, and the almost impenetrable caste system. Mary concentrated on women and children, establishing schools and a system of “Bible women” designed to reach and teach other Indian women. Rufus worked with the men, attempting to set up a small network of trained native preachers.

The effort involved in her programs, the births of three children and the death of one due to inadequate medical supplies, the discouragingly low number of conversions, and the climate seriously affected Sanford’s health, which had never been robust. She and the children were forced to spend from 1881 to 1886 in Nova Scotia on furlough. By 1891 the health of both Sanfords had been broken, and they had to return to Canada. After a furlough of four years Rufus went back to India, this time to the more promising Vizianagaram station, a few miles from Bimlipatam.

Mary Sanford returned to India for the last time in 1899. Shortly after the reunion held to mark the 30th anniversary of the “serving seven,” she died in Madras, a victim of the ill health which had plagued her during her missionary career. Aided by their daughter Lottie A., Rufus continued work until his death at Vizianagaram in 1932. Mary Sanford was in many respects typical of the missionary wives of the late 19th and early 20th century. She worked quietly and faithfully among the women of India, bore and buried her children, and shouldered burdens which at times were tremendous, but she received little recognition or credit, then or later.

Barry M. Moody

Saturday, December 5, 2009

SOME VIEWS ON ANGLOS

In 1830 British Parliament described the Anglo-Indian as those who have been English educated, are entirely European in their habits and feelings, dress and language. They were more "Anglo" than "Indian". Their mother-tongue was English, they were Catholic or Anglican and their customs and traditions were English. While most of them married within their own circle, many continued to marry expatriate Englishmen. Very few married Indians. Without Anglo-Indian support, British rule would have collapsed.

RAILWAYS
We ran the railways, post and telegraph, police and customs, education, export and import, shipping, tea, coffee and tobacco plantations, the coal and gold fields. We became teachers, nurses, priests and doctors. If it had any value, the British made sure we ran it. And when it came to secretarial duties no-one could touch our Anglo-Indian girls - the best stenographers in the world and with beauty to match. Were we favoured? Yes, the English trusted us. After all we were blood related. We worked hard. We became indispensable. We lived comfortably and were protected by the British raj. Like the British, we had servants to do all our domestic work.

The average Anglo-Indian home could afford at least three full time servants - a cook, a bearer and the indispensable nanny (ayah). Part time servants included a gardener, cleaner and laundry man (dhobi). Of course we learned to speak Hindi to be able to argue, give orders, bargain, accuse and terminate employment and throw in a dozen Hindi expletives. Imagine our horror when we were later to migrate to England, Canada and Australia and we no longer had servants to do our domestic chores.Who can remember looking at our first toilet brush and asking 'what do we do with this?' We had to learn to cook, clean, garden, do the laundry and take the garbage out and look after the kids.

CHRISTMAS CAKE
The tradition of making your own Christmas cake was a sacred Anglo-Indian custom. Each family had a secret cake recipe, handed down from our grandparents. About a week before Christmas the local baker was contacted. He would turn up to your home with two very large terracotta bowls that looked more like satellite dishes. One for the egg whites and one for mixing. Mum would dish out the ingredients. This was all mixed together under her watchful eye and distributed into about dozen or so cake tins and labelled with your name on it. This labelling was all important. We did not want him to return that evening with someone else's cake recipe. Heaven forbid.

MUSIC/DANCE
Music, movies and socialising were high on the agenda. We loved a dance. Afternoon dance jam sessions were a magnet for the teenagers where we jived, jitterbugged, tangoed or just fox trotted. Many a lasting liaison was forged on the dance floor and today many of us are celebrating 40-year plus marriages. Our mums sat around gossiping and seldom took their eyes off their darling daughters. I know, I speak from experience. I met my wife at one such event and now, 44 years later, I still fancy her.


The Anglo-Indian railway and cantonment towns that sprung up around the major cities cultivated a unique social and industrial blend with a heartbeat. Their dances were legendary. At the drop of a hat the city cousins would jump on a train and travel for anything up to six hours to get to that up-country dance.
Many of our lives revolved around the biggest and best railway system in the world. And the trains ran on time! Today the Indian Railways transport over 5 billion passengers each year, employing more than 1.6 million personnel. Between 1853 and 1947 we built and managed 42 rail systems. This was a legacy we can be proud of.

CONTRIBUTIONS
During World War 1 about 8000 Anglo-Indians fought in Mesopotamia, East Africa, and in the European theatre - three Anglo-Indians were awarded Victoria Crosses. In World War II they fought at Dunkirk and flew in the battle of Britain; Guy Gibson of the Dam Busters was one such Anglo-Indian, and we were in North Africa, Malaya and the fall of Singapore . Merle Oberon, Juliet Prowse, Tony Brent, Engelbert Humperdinck and Cliff Richard are all Anglo-Indians.

The Anglo-Indians took India to Olympic hockey glory. From 1928, India won five consecutive Olympic hockey gold medals. In fact, when India faced Australia in the semi-finals of the 1960 Olympics in Rome , it was a unique occasion. The captains who came face to face were both Anglo-Indians: Leslie Claudius and Kevin Carton.

EDUCATION
English education played a major role amongst the Anglo-Indians. Anglo-Indian schools numbered close to 300 and were prized. They stretched from Bangalore in the south to the cooler northern hill stations of Darjeeling in the foothills of the Himalayas . Each was modelled on the posh English Public school system. We ran them as teachers and principals and to this day these schools are coveted across the sub-continent.

IDENTITY DILEMMA
The Anglo-Indian has always faced an identity dilemma because of our mixed origins. Europeans said they were Indians with some European blood; Indians said they were Europeans with some Indian blood. The world of Anglo-India vanished on August 15th 1947 when India became the largest independent democracy in the world. The British packed and went home. Over 300,000 Anglo-Indians remained. We felt apprehensive and abandoned. So we too packed our bags and began to migrate to Australia , Britain , Canada , the U.S.A. and New Zealand .

Many of you will remember the dreaded Income Tax Clearance document one needed to leave the country and further faced the strict Indian foreign exchange regulations that allowed you only 10 pounds each. Imagine starting life in a new country with 10 quid in your pocket. Some had to leave behind their savings; others simply resorted to the risky black market, loosing a 30% of their savings.

IDENTITY
The Anglo-Indian identity is disappearing. We have found new lives and merged into the mainstream. Our generation, sitting here tonight, who were born in India , growing up in the 40s thru to 60s, are possibly the last true Anglo-Indians. Look around you. Where is the next generation? Most of our children were born abroad and their connection to Anglo-India is very fragile. They have married Aussies, English, Canadian or other Anglo-Indians born outside India .

They prefer to be regarded as English, Australian or Canadian. Our grandchildren will assimilate and forge a new identity based on their country of birth. Putting aside history, I believe we could regard ourselves as an exotic cocktail that had its origins over 300 years ago. We have matured and become a unique aromatic spirit, generously flavoured and very stimulating. We were a force to be reckoned with. We were the shakers and the stirrers. Please pick up your glasses and toast your State of Origin and New Horizons.


FW: The Anglo Indians‏ From: Gordon Rixon (gordon_r02@hotmail.c


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1 comment:

  1. CLUELESSNANETTENovember 1, 2013 at 3:24 AM

    Hello my name is Trevor Phillips, I am at present living in Germany. Thanks for your wonderful blog. It is so complete. My mum Irene is the sister of your dad. Could you contact me. Best wishes Trevor

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