Information about Edward Teaguer’s (Taker/Teager) family is sketchy. A 1896 newspaper report mentions “a wife and child” [01].

A Mr and Mrs Teaguer and infant travelled from Singapore to Fremantle in July 1901 on the Sultan. They are described as being of British nationality, which would be the case with Edward being born in Australia and Gertrude born in the UK [02]. The arrival of “Teaguer and infant” and “Teaguer” on 24 July is also reported in The West Australian [03] and the The Western Mail [04].

A Mrs Teaguer, aged 25, and a male infant sailed on the Orotava in October 1903.

The simplest solution seemed to be that there was one child, born in 1895 or 1896. However, such a child would be 7 or 8 in October 1903, so not considered an infant.

After Edward’s apparent disappearance, Gertrude married Reuben James Stockden in 1913.

There is a Jack Stockden who died in 1964. The Western Australian Births, Deaths, and Marriages index lists “Jack Stockden, Male, 64” who died in Perth. His parents are listed as John and Gertrude E. The age of 64 would place his birth in around 1900, so it certainly seems that Jack is the male infant of 1903.

Jack’s listed parents are interesting. Gertude E is certainly Gertrude Emma Stockden, formerly Teaguer, née Pearce. His presumed biological father was Edward Teaguer. His adopted father was Reuben James Stockden. But John?

And we still have the other unsolved mystery… What happened to the reported child of 1896?