Walter Henry Leiper (1864 - 1954)

Born 13 Dec 1864 in Grafton, New South Wales, Australia

Ancestors

Husband of Elizabeth Ann (Warner) Leiper — married 30 Mar 1893 in Redfern, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Descendants

Died 17 Jun 1954 at age 89 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

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Biography

Born in Grafton, his birth was registered by his illiterate mother, and this may be the reason why his birth registration is recorded as being Walter Henry Eliper. Walter never used this spelling of his surname though, and this is the only time it appears in any record of any kind.

At different times of his life, Walter was a keen cricket player at a local level, and a member of a Turf Club, often getting his name into the various newspapers.

His main trade was "Fitter and Cutter" - or in simpler terms, a Tailor. After the end of the Boer War, Walter took his wife and daughter to South Africa, apparently to provide clothes to the miners who had gone there.

After Elizabeth's death in 1914, Walter appears to have carried on as usual, until he was named as co-respondent in divorce papers in 1930-1931.

Walter died on 17 June 1954, and was buried at Waverley Cemetery in a now unmarked grave the following day. His will and probate however were to turn up a surprise for his daughter, for in the will was named a "natural son" - a son who appears to have been born a few years before Walter was named in the divorce.

Sources

• Birth - New South Wales, Australia, birth registration no. 9063 (1865), Walter H Eliper; NSW Registry of Births Deaths & Marriages, Sydney. Cit. Date: 17 Mar 2014
• Death - New South Wales, Australia, death registration no. 14310 (1954), Walter Henry Leiper; NSW Registry of Births Deaths & Marriages, Sydney.
• Divorce Papers - New South Wales, Australia, 13495 Divorce and Matrimonial Cause Case Papers 20 Aug 1873 ~ 11 Dec 1978, 1753/1930, Divorce papers William George Bartlett, Catherine Bartlett, Walter Leiper, 22 Dec 1930 to 16 Dec 1931; New South Wales State Records.
• Probate & Will - NSW State Records (NSW State Records), Item number or control symbol: Series 4-421025; Title: Walter Henry Leiper - Date of Death 17/06/1954, Granted on 17/08/1954.

Notes

DNA testing on descendants of Walter Henry Leiper found enough matches with descendants of Henry Albert Munro's other children and his siblings to reasonably and logically conclude that Henry Albert Munro was the father of Walter Henry Leiper. The write up of the DNA Analysis, including charts, leading to the conclusion that Henry Munro was Walter's father can be found at Determining the Father of Walter Henry Leiper