Anna HUNTER (aka Goot Choy / Kot Choy / Cot Choy) [c.1854-1937]

How the research was done. Brian found marriage certificates for his relatives that showed their addresses. He also had an address from a distribution from an estate. That led to the Rate books, which are held both by the public records office and the rates and valuation Department. The jury lists helped cross check the addresses. I then picked up the trail taking those addresses and identifying the lot numbers, and then the lands department showed the leases for those properties. Brian previously had gotten a day pass from for the South China Morning Post archives but didn't have this woman's name yet. Once we had this new name he got another day pass and the scmp archives produced the estate notice with his great grandmother's name and English alias.

Catherine Coutes was her maiden name as listed on her children's death certificates.

Five years later ( April 2021 ) and I'm no further ahead re finding out where the name "Catherine Coutes" came from, other than it was a name supplied by my mother when my grandfather Tobias Hunter passed away. On the line listing his mother and her maiden name, she gave this. There is to date, no other corroborating record of her existence.

Hello Brian. I see we are neither of us giving up on our wearying ancestor research! I don't want to send you on another wild goose chase, but I note that the name of the purchaser of some properties of my grandfather's company, C.E. Warren & Co. is similar to one that you mention in another thread. The purchaser in question is given as So Tang Shi, purchaser of 1-5 Perfection Place in 1916. https://gwulo.com/node/54944  I don't know if there is any connection to Kot Tang Shi, but you never know....

Hi Jill,

I think the Kot Tang Shi was just a coincidence although there's been an awful lot of coincidences! But, you're correct in the fact I'm still at it! I keep revisiting old links and hope one day I'll get some answers. I recently turned up an interesting link to a the Endicotts of Danvers, Mass. James Bridges Endicott was a major player in shipping and all sorts of stuff in the 1800s. My grandfather's sister May, married into a family named Cock, who came to China from Scotland via ( a generation or so in Calcutta ) Her husband's father had a sister who married to one of the Endicotts. A whole whack of them ended up in the USA as citzens by way of their father being an American. There was about 7 of them and the wife ( I assume Mary Cock ) came after via the UK. She was said to have been caucasian but spoke only Chinese. It's crazy stuff! Anyway, please keep me in the loop as often the most insignificant clue can break down a wall Speaking of walls. I started a blog to try to drum up clues. It's not really public at this point but if you feel like killing a couple of hours, here's a link: https://thejadewall.com/ :)

Cheers and thanks for remebering me!

Brian