John Thomas Gittens

1868 - Abt 1924  (55 years)

• Name	John Thomas Gittens  [1, 2, 3]
  Birth	20 Jan 1868	Barbados   [1]
  Baptism	1 Aug 1868	Saint Philip, Barbados   [2]
  Gender	Male
  Immigration	Abt 1924	British Guiana   [4]
  	JT and wife are said to have moved from Trinidad to British Guiana circa 1923-24 and both died shortly thereafter. Thanks for your efforts Cliff. It is all interesting. We recently found information that JT may have owned quarries in Trinidad, acted as a General Agent for a life insurance company and lived on Tr Drive.
  Occupation	John Thomas Gittens occupation was stated as Carriage Builder. ...that he ( Charles Andrew Gittens) was the legitimate child of John Thomas Gittens, a Carriage Builder and Matilda Gittens, formerly Tesheia.
  Death	Abt 1924	British Guiana   [4]
  Person ID	I8362	Gittens Clusters
  Last Modified	31 Mar 2016

  
  

  Father	Joseph Gittens,   c. Mar 1830, Saint Philip, Barbados
  Mother	Wilhelmina Leslie Weatherhead,   b. Abt 1833
  Marriage	24 Mar 1853	Saint Philip, Barbados   [6]
  Family ID	F2834	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Matilda Teschae,   b. Abt 1881, Venezuela d. Abt 1924, British Guiana (Age 43 years)
  Marriage	Abt 1900	Trinidad
  Children	1. Thomas Michael Gittens,   b. Abt 1898, Trinidad   2. Victor Stanley Gittens, Sr.,   b. 21 Feb 1901, Trinidad d. May 1987, Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States (Age 86 years)   3. Sybil Delores Gittens,   b. Abt 1903, Trinidad d. Abt 2000 (Age 97 years)   4. Charles Andrew Gittens,   b. 30 May 1906, Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago   5. Pearl Gittens,   b. Abt 1922, Trinidad
  Family ID	F530	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	19 Sep 2013

  
  

• Event Map

  Birth - 20 Jan 1868 - Barbados Baptism - 1 Aug 1868 - Saint Philip, Barbados Marriage - Abt 1900 - Trinidad Immigration - Abt 1924 - British Guiana Death - Abt 1924 - British Guiana  = Link to Google Earth

  
  

• Photos

  J. T. Gittens and Wife Teschae I have attached a photo of JT and, grandmother whose adopted last maiden name was Teschae or some such. Depending on which family member one talked to, she was a full blooded Arawak or Carib born in Venezuela. The picture may have been taken circa May 1901 for the coronation following Queen Victoria's death. My father, Victor, was named after Victoria as he was born a month after her death. The couple moved from Trinidad to British Guiana circa 1923-24 and died shortly thereafter. Thanks for your efforts Cliff Regards Vic

  
  

• Notes

  Name: J. T. /Gittens/ Name: John Thomas Dottin /Gittens/, [3, 5] Hi Victor, This is a very stunning picture of your grand parents. By all appearances they would appear to be quite well off. I am curious about JT's race. If he was white there is a chance that he could be traced back further, but I am not really familiar with the status of vital statistic records in Trinidad. Thanks for all of the pictures they will be uploaded onto my site about Dec 20th. Victor Gittens 4:00 PM (14 hours ago) to me Hello Cliff Yes JT was white. Family lore is that he and 4 or 5 brothers emigrated from England after having some political troubles. One brother emigrated to Barbados, one to St. Lucia, and one(JT) or two to Port o Spain. Family lore is that JT owned livery stables but we are also uncovering info that he owned some quarries and also served as General Agent for a Life Insurance Company. Family lore is that he never adapted to the coming of the auto and tried this venture to British Guiana(building and paving roads and owning a hardware/supply store) which failed miserably. As a result, my father who at the time was attending the U of PA had to drop out and go to work. He went to work for Philadelphia Storage Battery Company which later became Philco. Shortly thereafter, the grandparents both died and my Dad's sister, Dolores, felt estranged from her other brothers. I suspect the children divided along racial lines. My dad and aunt looked Native like their Mom: the others looked Anglo like their Dad. In any event Dolores sailed for Canada. She and my father often met at the US-Canadian border and one day she simply did not return and hence was an illegal in the USA. She eventually got that straightened out. I think JT was well off but, non the less a commoner. My Aunt Dolores had no work skills when she emigrated as everything was taken care of at home. My dad was pretty down to earth yet I joke that he was a white man trapped in an Indian's body. Anyway. Interesting. I have not found any info about JT from Trinidad official documents as they are said to have perished in a fire. Best regards and happy holidays Vic ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The following is an excerpt from a research paper done by Jeffery Gittens in about 1988. The full paper is included in the source for this record. JOHN THOMAS DOTTIN GITTENS John Thomas Dottin Gittens was born on 20th January, 1868. His birth is recorded in the Register of Births of Barbados (1865-1869) where the christian name "Dottin" appears in the original entry. This is recorded in Book No. RL 3/58. His Baptismal Certificate can be located in Book No. RL 2/47B page No. 393 certificate No. 27 of the Archives. On this certificate the name "Dottin" was not included. He was baptised in the Chapel of the Holy Trinity in the Parish of St Phillip, the easternmost Parish of the island of Barbados . The Minister officiating was Charles Carter. The family lived in the village of Endeavour in the Parish of St. James. John Thomas' father was Joseph Gittens, a Shoemaker and his mother Wilhelmina Leslie, formerly a Weatherhead. She was a seamstress and a spinster. (Research): From: Victor Gittens To: Cliff Gittens Date: Thu, Mar 31, 2016, 08:40 AM Re: DNA Test Results Thanks Cliff Grandsons are good!! You made the same observations that I did regarding Jeffrey's assertions coupled with the lack of any supporting documentation. I agree that it is too coincidental for the marriage certificates to be sequential. Puzzling. Some trivia. I found a Trinidad "Almanack 1896" that lists my grandfather JT Gittens aka John Thomas Gittens as an Insurance Agent/Agency. Earlier I had found a 1901 thank you letter written to him by a widower who had collected on her husband's policy., Looks like it was an early business not mentioned in family lore before JT got into the carriage house business-bad timing since the auto's advent was just around the corner. Thanks again Vic

  
  

• Sources

  [S48] "Barbados Baptisms, 1739-1891," Genealogical Society of Utah. Barbados Baptisms. Index based on data collected by the Genealogical Society of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah., FamilySearch  , accessed 1 Dec 2012); Outwit Hub Data scape of Family Search Database. [S2400] "Caribbean Births and Baptisms 1590 -1928, index," database, Genealogical Society of Utah. Caribbean Births and Baptisms. Index based on data collected by the Genealogical Society of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah. [S2341] Gittens, Victor Stanley, E-mail correspondence. Victor Stanley Gittens [(E-ADDRESS) FOR PRIVATE USE,], e-mail<. [S1418] Gittens, Victor Stanley, E-mail correspondence. Victor Stanley Gittens [(E-ADDRESS) FOR PRIVATE USE,], e-mail<. [S1417] Gittens, Chris, E-mail correspondence. Chris Gittens, Tampa Bay, Flordia [(E-ADDRESS) FOR PRIVATE USE,], e-mail<. [S2407] Caribbean, Marriages, 1591-1905, (FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org).