Yesterday, I posted a version of this post that I entitled “The Mystery of Willie’s Birthdate – Solved!” Then the daily mail came… and now I’m rewriting the whole post…

Previously, I wrote about all the possible dates of birth for my grandfather, William B. Dawson, Jr. (Willie). His birthday was always celebrated on August 14, but now, I have been presented with a more probable birthdate – August 13, 1894.

Previous attempts to find a birth certificate for Willie had not been successful, but I have continued to try and then this came in. This August 13, 1894 date is supported by the newspaper announcement of the birth of an heir on August 14, 1894.

However, trying to reconcile this birthdate with the other evidence is difficult for me. This would mean that the letter to Willie from his father in 1908, where WB says “you are now nearly 11 years old” is off by THREE years, as Willie would be almost 14 years old in 1908! This would mean that Willie WAS a slacker and didn’t timely register for the draft for World War I! And who is the mystery “unknown” child that was born in March 1896 whose birth certificate was used to support Willie’s passport application?

Well, apparently that mystery child was ALSO William B. Dawson, Jr. according to the birth certificate I received yesterday…

In examining this birth certificate, I note that the child was stillborn. How was Willie allowed to use this birth certificate for his passport application in 1918? Looking at that 1917 certified copy of this birth certificate indicates that the unknown child was born alive! And why would the original certificate include a name when the later certified copy indicates the child’s name was unknown? If this 1896 child was stillborn, why would he receive the same name as his older brother? Reusing a deceased child’s name, especially a father’s name, for a subsequent child was a common historical practice, particularly in early American contexts, often done to maintain family continuity and/or due to high rates of infant mortality. This would suggest, however, that the William B. Dawson, Jr. that was born on August 13, 1894 had passed away!

I have made some additional requests to the Bureau of Vital Statistics to determine whether a Dawson son passed away in Jacksonville prior to 1896 and will provide an update when I receive a response.

In the interim, I also requested and received a copy of Willie’s brother, Ovid’s death certificate.

Ovid’s death certificate incorrectly names him as Ovid “Christian” Dawson, but his name was Ovid Tristan Dawson. It appears to identify him as being two and a half years old. This would suggest a birthdate in 1897 and the local paper did announce the birth of a male child in April 1897. That would put Ovid’s age at his death from diphtheria in 1900 closer to age three, but that is at least close. My theory about the mystery of Willie’s birthdate was that the son born in 1896 may have been the son that died as “Ovid”, and the child born in 1897 as Ovid was renamed William B. Dawson, Jr., but I now have at least one birth certificate for 1896 that suggests that the child born then was stillborn.

Adding to my theory or confusion is the apparent age difference between Willie and his sisters. Olga and Una were born in 1890 and 1891, respectively. In many of the pictures of Willie with his siblings, Willie looks a good bit younger than his sisters.

I still am confused by the inconsistency of these birth certificates and other supporting documents and reports of the Dawson sons births and deaths. Hopefully, I’ll be able to obtain further records to clear up the confusion.