0:00:02 > 0:00:04Today, the heir hunters are trying to discover
0:00:04 > 0:00:06the worth of a high-value estate.
0:00:06 > 0:00:08We have a guide of 125.
0:00:08 > 0:00:11Anything above that will be really good news.
0:00:13 > 0:00:15But there's confusion from the off.
0:00:15 > 0:00:18The problem we initially had to resolve is which estate
0:00:18 > 0:00:21were we researching, was it Patricia or Ivor's?
0:00:21 > 0:00:25Another team are surprised when they find their first heir.
0:00:25 > 0:00:28She was still alive at the ripe old age of 100.
0:00:28 > 0:00:30But for the families and friends...
0:00:30 > 0:00:33I feel like I've lost...lost a best friend.
0:00:33 > 0:00:35..it's a time for reminiscing.
0:00:35 > 0:00:38He was always wanting to make people happy.
0:00:51 > 0:00:53The job of an heir hunter is to try and find rightful heirs
0:00:53 > 0:00:55to an estate that's been left behind
0:00:55 > 0:00:57when someone dies without making a will.
0:01:02 > 0:01:04The value of the estate increases
0:01:04 > 0:01:06when the person who has died owned a property.
0:01:07 > 0:01:09So we're in the Landmark Hotel
0:01:09 > 0:01:11for a London auction house, auction sale,
0:01:11 > 0:01:13and we have the two properties on the Griffiths case,
0:01:13 > 0:01:16where we're hoping we're going to get good interest.
0:01:19 > 0:01:22The Griffiths case has been taken on by London heir hunting firm
0:01:22 > 0:01:25Fraser & Fraser.
0:01:25 > 0:01:27- I spoke to her, she phoned in. - Right.
0:01:27 > 0:01:30It's a private referral with the details of two people -
0:01:30 > 0:01:33Patricia Griffiths and Ivor Griffiths.
0:01:33 > 0:01:36Dave Slee was the senior case manager in charge
0:01:36 > 0:01:38when this unusual case came in.
0:01:38 > 0:01:41The problem we initially had to resolve is which estate were
0:01:41 > 0:01:45we researching, was it Patricia or Ivor's?
0:01:45 > 0:01:47They're focusing on Patricia Griffiths first,
0:01:47 > 0:01:52as they know she passed away on the 24th of June, 2014,
0:01:52 > 0:01:53in Weymouth.
0:01:54 > 0:01:58When we delved deeper into the background of Patricia,
0:01:58 > 0:02:02we surprisingly found that not only was she was the owner
0:02:02 > 0:02:04of one property but indeed
0:02:04 > 0:02:08another property that was in close proximity to the first.
0:02:08 > 0:02:12This is a high-valued estate and meant that the whole
0:02:12 > 0:02:17of the company was involved in researching for next of kin.
0:02:18 > 0:02:20Patricia's death certificate was ordered.
0:02:20 > 0:02:22And in the research room,
0:02:22 > 0:02:25Josh Crawford is going through records concerning the house
0:02:25 > 0:02:27that could have been Patricia's home address.
0:02:27 > 0:02:30We're just going to look at some of the electoral history
0:02:30 > 0:02:32of the address in Weymouth
0:02:32 > 0:02:34to see how long they were living there for so that we can work out
0:02:34 > 0:02:38if they are married or maybe brother and sister, or something like that.
0:02:39 > 0:02:43You wouldn't have thought he'd be taking on a surname at that stage.
0:02:43 > 0:02:46The electoral rolls are invaluable for us because that's something
0:02:46 > 0:02:48that pins down where someone is living.
0:02:48 > 0:02:50So when we're trying to trace someone, an individual,
0:02:50 > 0:02:53an heir, we need to know where they were living,
0:02:53 > 0:02:55and electoral rolls really help in that.
0:02:56 > 0:02:59Records show that Ivor and Patricia had been living together
0:02:59 > 0:03:01at one of the houses.
0:03:01 > 0:03:03And then there's another note here.
0:03:04 > 0:03:09The team try to work out if Patricia and Ivor were married.
0:03:09 > 0:03:14We have a hit on a Ivor T Griffiths
0:03:14 > 0:03:18marrying a Patricia S D'Arcy
0:03:18 > 0:03:22in 1983, in Weymouth, so that looks really good for us.
0:03:22 > 0:03:26They can't find a birth record for a Patricia D'Arcy that matches
0:03:26 > 0:03:30the date of birth Patricia Griffiths has given on the electoral roll.
0:03:30 > 0:03:33OK, cool, I will. All right, bye.
0:03:34 > 0:03:37So they looked to see if Patricia had married a Mr D'Arcy.
0:03:37 > 0:03:43Right, so there is a marriage in Weymouth of a Patricia S Allen
0:03:43 > 0:03:48to a Mr D'Arcy in the December quarter, in 1960, in Weymouth.
0:03:48 > 0:03:50To me, that's a good indication that that's going to be
0:03:50 > 0:03:53her first marriage. But obviously, we'd still have to check to see
0:03:53 > 0:03:56if there is a corresponding birth to a Patricia S Allen,
0:03:56 > 0:03:58so we know that we've definitely got the right person.
0:04:00 > 0:04:02There's no other births that we can find that...
0:04:02 > 0:04:04Searches confirm the findings
0:04:04 > 0:04:08and a hunt for any children born to Patricia and Ivor comes up negative.
0:04:08 > 0:04:12Do you know what? That's probably why we couldn't find him.
0:04:12 > 0:04:16Case manager Jo Ibrahim thinks the team should now
0:04:16 > 0:04:19turn their attention to Ivor.
0:04:19 > 0:04:21The information which we had was that Patricia
0:04:21 > 0:04:25and Ivor were stated as living together at the same address.
0:04:25 > 0:04:30And from there, we tried to locate where Ivor had moved to,
0:04:30 > 0:04:34because we know that he wasn't there at the time of Patricia's death.
0:04:34 > 0:04:36So from there, we managed to try and see
0:04:36 > 0:04:40if we could locate any sort of records to try and track him down.
0:04:40 > 0:04:42Josh searches for Ivor on the internet.
0:04:43 > 0:04:47And so we found a death notice for an Ivor Thomas Griffiths
0:04:47 > 0:04:49in a paper in Weymouth.
0:04:49 > 0:04:53This guy died in a care home, and it requires further
0:04:53 > 0:04:57investigation to see if it's actually the same person.
0:04:57 > 0:04:59The next day, the records they ordered are in.
0:05:01 > 0:05:03OK, cheers. Thank you.
0:05:05 > 0:05:06Patricia's death certificate
0:05:06 > 0:05:09confirms the research done yesterday,
0:05:09 > 0:05:12but the team have realised that as Ivor died after Patricia,
0:05:12 > 0:05:16the case is much more complex than they originally thought.
0:05:17 > 0:05:21Now we've discovered Mr Griffiths has survived his wife,
0:05:21 > 0:05:23it totally changes the complexion.
0:05:23 > 0:05:27Because Mr Griffiths appeared to have died without leaving a will.
0:05:27 > 0:05:29He's also died intestate.
0:05:29 > 0:05:33But he is a vested interest to his wife's estate,
0:05:33 > 0:05:34because he survived her.
0:05:34 > 0:05:37- That's hard to link it in, wasn't it?- Yep.
0:05:39 > 0:05:41When we're looking at a vested interest in an estate,
0:05:41 > 0:05:42when the deceased passes away,
0:05:42 > 0:05:45if they're survived by their partner, or their spouse,
0:05:45 > 0:05:49then the estate forms part of their estate.
0:05:49 > 0:05:53So essentially, one estate moves over to the partner.
0:05:53 > 0:05:56And obviously, we then look at the surviving spouse's estate.
0:05:58 > 0:06:01As Ivor had moved out of the family home before Patricia died,
0:06:01 > 0:06:05Jo thinks this may be relevant to their investigation.
0:06:05 > 0:06:08So when we're trying to find any details relating to Ivor,
0:06:08 > 0:06:11one of our first concerns would be whether we could locate
0:06:11 > 0:06:13a divorce record,
0:06:13 > 0:06:16which would mean that he wouldn't be entitled to any Patricia's estate,
0:06:16 > 0:06:17and therefore,
0:06:17 > 0:06:20the estate and who would be entitled to it would change drastically.
0:06:20 > 0:06:22Obviously, it's vested.
0:06:22 > 0:06:26- We need to see if she's left a will or not.- I've got notes on her.
0:06:26 > 0:06:29And after some searching, the team can find no evidence
0:06:29 > 0:06:34of a divorce, meaning that Ivor was the heir to Patricia's estate.
0:06:35 > 0:06:39The team soon found people who knew Ivor in their hometown of Weymouth.
0:06:41 > 0:06:45Sandra West worked in the local supermarket there.
0:06:45 > 0:06:48He was always popping in and out with his wife, Pat.
0:06:48 > 0:06:51I just thought he was the most fascinating person I'd ever met.
0:06:51 > 0:06:53You know, the number of people
0:06:53 > 0:06:54that come through our door,
0:06:54 > 0:06:56for him, he was absolutely unique.
0:06:56 > 0:06:58And our chats just developed.
0:06:58 > 0:07:01And he'd point his finger and he'd go,
0:07:01 > 0:07:03"Madam, did you know...?"
0:07:03 > 0:07:06And the conversation started from, "Madam, did you know?"
0:07:06 > 0:07:09And he would come out with sort of random facts.
0:07:09 > 0:07:13And if he was talking to a man, it was always sir.
0:07:13 > 0:07:16You know? And my colleagues, he didn't always know them
0:07:16 > 0:07:19by name, so we were always madam or sir.
0:07:19 > 0:07:23Very endearing. It was just... I mean, I could, you know,
0:07:23 > 0:07:26I feel quite welled up just thinking about him now.
0:07:30 > 0:07:32Now that it was clear Patricia had died before Ivor,
0:07:32 > 0:07:35and that the heir hunters would only be focusing
0:07:35 > 0:07:36on finding heirs on Ivor's side...
0:07:36 > 0:07:39I believe it was December.
0:07:40 > 0:07:43..their first step is to see if he had any brothers and sisters,
0:07:43 > 0:07:45and they begin with his birth certificate
0:07:45 > 0:07:47to find his parent's details.
0:07:47 > 0:07:49Griffiths is quite a common name.
0:07:49 > 0:07:53However, we are quite lucky that his name is Ivor T,
0:07:53 > 0:07:57considering that's quite an unusual combination, as first names go.
0:07:57 > 0:08:02So it wasn't actually too difficult to find Ivor's birth.
0:08:03 > 0:08:05Ivor's birth was registered in Surrey.
0:08:05 > 0:08:07His father was William Griffiths
0:08:07 > 0:08:10and his mother was Margaret Gertrude Griffiths,
0:08:10 > 0:08:11formally Dredge.
0:08:11 > 0:08:14- There were two Drudges here, wasn't there?- Both of them...
0:08:14 > 0:08:16Both of them blank?
0:08:16 > 0:08:19The team set about checking if they had any other children.
0:08:19 > 0:08:23These brothers or sisters of Ivor would be next in line.
0:08:25 > 0:08:27And it's good news.
0:08:27 > 0:08:31We've found one sister by the name of Thelma Griffiths.
0:08:31 > 0:08:34She's born in Kingston. That looks really good.
0:08:34 > 0:08:37Our next step is to work out what happened to Thelma.
0:08:37 > 0:08:40OK, well, thank you so much again.
0:08:40 > 0:08:44We located a marriage of Thelma to a Mr Francis.
0:08:44 > 0:08:48And that marriage resulted in them having one child.
0:08:48 > 0:08:53Unfortunately, this child died a spinster, aged 28,
0:08:53 > 0:08:58so therefore, there were no close relatives or near kin to Ivor,
0:08:58 > 0:09:03which meant we now had to go back to paternal and maternal families.
0:09:05 > 0:09:09They need to search for Ivor's mother's family first.
0:09:09 > 0:09:13So firstly, we needed to obtain a copy
0:09:13 > 0:09:15of Ivor's mother's birth certificate,
0:09:15 > 0:09:17which was on the 5th of November, 1901,
0:09:17 > 0:09:20in the Holborn registration district.
0:09:20 > 0:09:24And that clearly stated she was the daughter of Percival Dredge
0:09:24 > 0:09:28and Gertrude Ellen Dredge, whose maiden name was Henderson.
0:09:30 > 0:09:32The team look at the census records to see if Margaret
0:09:32 > 0:09:35had any brothers or sisters.
0:09:35 > 0:09:38I found them on this 1911 census.
0:09:38 > 0:09:40Her siblings are John Henderson Dredge,
0:09:40 > 0:09:41who was seven,
0:09:41 > 0:09:43Eric George Henderson Dredge, who was five,
0:09:43 > 0:09:47and Clifford Henderson Dredge, who was eight months old.
0:09:47 > 0:09:49They need to find out what has happened to Margaret's
0:09:49 > 0:09:51three brothers.
0:09:51 > 0:09:53If any of them are still alive or had children,
0:09:53 > 0:09:56these would be the heirs the team are looking for.
0:09:56 > 0:10:00All right, so we've found a marriage for Eric Dredge.
0:10:00 > 0:10:05He marries a Janet Clapperton in 1938.
0:10:05 > 0:10:08Unfortunately, Eric dies in 1941.
0:10:08 > 0:10:11We just need to check if he's had any children.
0:10:16 > 0:10:19The team's searches find that Eric didn't have any children,
0:10:19 > 0:10:22so they are focusing on Margaret's two other brothers -
0:10:22 > 0:10:24John and Clifford.
0:10:24 > 0:10:28So with Eric unfortunately passing away without descendents,
0:10:28 > 0:10:32we had to pin our hopes on one of the other brothers.
0:10:32 > 0:10:37And Clifford married Dorothy Bissett in 1939.
0:10:37 > 0:10:42And we soon discovered that they had a most unusual hobby.
0:10:45 > 0:10:47Before they got married,
0:10:47 > 0:10:51Clifford and Dorothy both became civilian pilots.
0:10:51 > 0:10:53People learned to fly
0:10:53 > 0:10:57in the '30s for all sorts of reasons. In the early '30s,
0:10:57 > 0:11:01Clifford probably flew because he wanted to.
0:11:01 > 0:11:05I once asked a man why he joined the London Airplane Club
0:11:05 > 0:11:09in the late '20s, and he thought for a moment, then he said to me,
0:11:09 > 0:11:14"Well, we've done skating." And I think that was rather what it was.
0:11:14 > 0:11:17Between 1925 and 1939,
0:11:17 > 0:11:20around 60 flying clubs were started
0:11:20 > 0:11:23and more than 5,000 pilots were trained.
0:11:23 > 0:11:27The development of the airplane in the '30s for light...light
0:11:27 > 0:11:29airplane clubs, basically,
0:11:29 > 0:11:34started back in 1925 when de Havilland invented the Moth,
0:11:34 > 0:11:37which was the right size, the right price
0:11:37 > 0:11:39and had the right sort of engine in it.
0:11:39 > 0:11:41There's a Moth behind me.
0:11:41 > 0:11:44Clifford and Dorothy would have been flying an airplane very similar
0:11:44 > 0:11:47to this one. This one is a Hermes Moth.
0:11:49 > 0:11:52Clifford and Dorothy were flying Gispy Moths - wooden air frames.
0:11:52 > 0:11:57All the clubs had this kind of airplane, open cockpit biplanes,
0:11:57 > 0:12:02which really lasted until the war.
0:12:02 > 0:12:05Although the team had uncovered a fascinating hobbyist...
0:12:07 > 0:12:10..at the office, they still hadn't found any heirs.
0:12:10 > 0:12:13So if Clifford didn't have any children, it would
0:12:13 > 0:12:16only be John left for any beneficiaries.
0:12:16 > 0:12:19Lot number 87.
0:12:19 > 0:12:23Today, Andrew Fraser is at a property auction in West London,
0:12:23 > 0:12:26where the two properties that Ivor inherited from his late wife,
0:12:26 > 0:12:29Patricia, are being sold.
0:12:29 > 0:12:31My role is to maximise the assets.
0:12:31 > 0:12:33We have a guide of 125.
0:12:33 > 0:12:36Anything above that will be really good news.
0:12:36 > 0:12:39A lot is riding on this auction.
0:12:39 > 0:12:42125. 125 is bid. 30.
0:12:49 > 0:12:52In many of the cases the heir hunters investigate,
0:12:52 > 0:12:55surprising family history is uncovered in their searches
0:12:55 > 0:12:57that heirs know nothing about.
0:13:00 > 0:13:04One of these cases is that of Valerie Linda Nash.
0:13:04 > 0:13:08She was born on the 26th of March, 1936, in Birmingham,
0:13:08 > 0:13:11and grew up in living in the suburb of Great Barr.
0:13:11 > 0:13:14Liz Wallis met Valerie many years ago.
0:13:14 > 0:13:18I can only ever remember Valerie coming to visit us once,
0:13:18 > 0:13:21and I would be about ten years of age.
0:13:21 > 0:13:22And she was probably about
0:13:22 > 0:13:25four to five years older than me.
0:13:25 > 0:13:29But I remember that she was very quiet. She didn't have a lot to say.
0:13:29 > 0:13:34She was tallish, longish hair, I think, and wore glasses.
0:13:34 > 0:13:39But she kept herself very much to herself.
0:13:39 > 0:13:41Valerie died at a nursing home in Birmingham
0:13:41 > 0:13:44on the 17th of February, 2014.
0:13:44 > 0:13:46Her details were advertised
0:13:46 > 0:13:50on the Treasury's Bona Vacantia List in June 2015.
0:13:50 > 0:13:53They were picked up by assistant case manager
0:13:53 > 0:13:56Holly Jones, of London heir hunting firm Finders.
0:13:59 > 0:14:01The Treasury had actually had this information
0:14:01 > 0:14:05on Valerie's estate for over a year
0:14:05 > 0:14:09after her death, before it was released on the list.
0:14:09 > 0:14:12- You can confirm Andrew and Peter?- Yeah.
0:14:12 > 0:14:13This can happen sometimes.
0:14:13 > 0:14:17They didn't give a reason, in this instance.
0:14:17 > 0:14:22We found from the land registry that Valerie owned her own property,
0:14:22 > 0:14:25and this was valued at about £90,000.
0:14:25 > 0:14:28So quite a good amount for us to be working with,
0:14:28 > 0:14:30making it a competitive case.
0:14:32 > 0:14:35The information on Valerie's death certificate was
0:14:35 > 0:14:37all Holly had to go on.
0:14:39 > 0:14:40To be a good heir hunter,
0:14:40 > 0:14:42I think there are a number of important traits,
0:14:42 > 0:14:45a number of skills that you learn over the years,
0:14:45 > 0:14:46but at the end of the day,
0:14:46 > 0:14:48the most important thing is basic common sense.
0:14:48 > 0:14:51Get the death and marriage certificates, make sure that...
0:14:51 > 0:14:54have a look at those professions. That will be interesting stuff.
0:14:54 > 0:14:56The death certificate informs us that she was unmarried.
0:14:56 > 0:14:59But we searched the marriage records for England
0:14:59 > 0:15:02and Wales to check anyway. And indeed, she was a spinster.
0:15:02 > 0:15:04She was unmarried when she passed away.
0:15:04 > 0:15:07We also checked the birth records for England and Wales,
0:15:07 > 0:15:11and as far as we could see, she didn't have any children either.
0:15:13 > 0:15:15The next heirs entitled would be any brothers
0:15:15 > 0:15:18and sisters Valerie may have.
0:15:18 > 0:15:22- The person that I found, if this is correct, they have children.- OK.
0:15:22 > 0:15:25The first thing they needed was to find Valerie's birth.
0:15:25 > 0:15:30And senior research manager Amy Littlechild started the hunt.
0:15:30 > 0:15:32Looking for a birth certificate,
0:15:32 > 0:15:36we put in all the names that we can to try and find someone.
0:15:36 > 0:15:39Is it OK if you answer a few of my inquiries at all?
0:15:39 > 0:15:42We also have an exact date of birth from the death.
0:15:42 > 0:15:45So obviously, we need to check around 1936.
0:15:45 > 0:15:49Mainly... She was born in March. It will be around the March,
0:15:49 > 0:15:52June quarters of the years.
0:15:53 > 0:15:55A search of the birth index records
0:15:55 > 0:15:58came up with a match that looked promising.
0:15:58 > 0:16:00So the certificate was ordered.
0:16:00 > 0:16:02It tells us that Valerie,
0:16:02 > 0:16:05again using her middle name of Linda,
0:16:05 > 0:16:08was born on the 26th of March, 1936.
0:16:08 > 0:16:13Again, it goes exactly the same as the death certificate.
0:16:13 > 0:16:15So we've ordered that to see who she left it to.
0:16:17 > 0:16:21The team now had Valerie's parents' names - Horace Henry Nash
0:16:21 > 0:16:23and Linda Lillian Nash, formally Berry.
0:16:25 > 0:16:28They did a birth search to look for any other children
0:16:28 > 0:16:30who would be Valerie's siblings.
0:16:30 > 0:16:33This came up negative, so we're looking at Valerie being
0:16:33 > 0:16:36an only child, and we'll need to go onto the next stage.
0:16:38 > 0:16:41During the research process, it could be relatively easy to
0:16:41 > 0:16:44make a mistake or to overlook a certain key fact, which is
0:16:44 > 0:16:47why it's important that we always emphasise that we double-check
0:16:47 > 0:16:49the family tree, double-check the report,
0:16:49 > 0:16:52make sure that everything's done correctly before we submit
0:16:52 > 0:16:56the results of our research to the estate custodians.
0:16:58 > 0:17:01Having established that Valerie was an only child,
0:17:01 > 0:17:04had never married or had children of her own, the team now need to
0:17:04 > 0:17:08go back a generation and look for Valerie's grandparents.
0:17:08 > 0:17:11They focused on Valerie's mother's family first.
0:17:12 > 0:17:16On the 1911 census, we were able to locate Valerie's mother,
0:17:16 > 0:17:19Linda, living with her parents in Birmingham.
0:17:19 > 0:17:24We now had Valerie's grandmother's name on her maternal side.
0:17:24 > 0:17:30Also living at the address at the time, in 1911, is listed a brother.
0:17:30 > 0:17:33So this would be a maternal uncle to Valerie.
0:17:34 > 0:17:38Valerie's mother's family tree was starting to take shape.
0:17:38 > 0:17:41Linda's father was Arthur Berry.
0:17:41 > 0:17:44Her mother was Agnes Berry, formally Stanton.
0:17:44 > 0:17:47Linda's brother, also called Arthur,
0:17:47 > 0:17:49had been for three years before her.
0:17:49 > 0:17:54The 1911 census tells us that Arthur, Linda's father,
0:17:54 > 0:17:56was a silversmith.
0:17:56 > 0:17:59The family were living in the Brooksfield area of Birmingham.
0:17:59 > 0:18:02Again, this is tying in with the jewellery trade.
0:18:02 > 0:18:06These folks were the ones that they would have needed certs for.
0:18:06 > 0:18:08A census record is a fantastic source
0:18:08 > 0:18:12of information for us, given that it gives us a snapshot of the family
0:18:12 > 0:18:13at that particular time.
0:18:14 > 0:18:18At the time of the 1911 census, the family were living within
0:18:18 > 0:18:22a mile of Birmingham's thriving industry of jewellery production.
0:18:22 > 0:18:24Birmingham's jewellery quarter
0:18:24 > 0:18:27is roughly a square mile of the city,
0:18:27 > 0:18:30just north, northwest of the city centre.
0:18:30 > 0:18:33And for the last 150 years, it's been the main centre of jewellery
0:18:33 > 0:18:35and silverware production in Britain.
0:18:35 > 0:18:38It overtook other centres such as Edinburgh and London,
0:18:38 > 0:18:41mid-19th century, and it grew to become the largest single
0:18:41 > 0:18:45centre of jewellery and silverware production on the planet in 1913.
0:18:47 > 0:18:50At its peak, in the early 1900s,
0:18:50 > 0:18:53the jewellery industry in Birmingham is said to have employed
0:18:53 > 0:18:55around 70,000 people.
0:18:55 > 0:18:59The silversmiths were thought of as being a cut above ordinary artisans.
0:18:59 > 0:19:04They wore very fine clothing and they lived in comfortable houses.
0:19:04 > 0:19:07And they definitely held the position above your general
0:19:07 > 0:19:09artisan in the time.
0:19:09 > 0:19:13Arthur Berry very much would have been in the norm
0:19:13 > 0:19:16in living close to his work.
0:19:16 > 0:19:18If you were a small master, owning your own firm,
0:19:18 > 0:19:20you would very much live and work at home.
0:19:20 > 0:19:23If he was one of the outworkers in a firm,
0:19:23 > 0:19:26he would have been living in the district, certainly.
0:19:26 > 0:19:29And a very wonderful site which you would have seen is that
0:19:29 > 0:19:32when the lunch bell went at one o'clock, the streets
0:19:32 > 0:19:36would go from being deserted to being absolutely festooned
0:19:36 > 0:19:38with people running down the road here to catch the tram
0:19:38 > 0:19:41to Handsworth, the next district along,
0:19:41 > 0:19:42where they'd have their lunch
0:19:42 > 0:19:45and then pile back to the workshops for two o'clock.
0:19:48 > 0:19:52And in that bustle of people, he may have met his future wife,
0:19:52 > 0:19:55as Arthur wasn't the only ancestor of Valerie's who worked
0:19:55 > 0:19:57in the jewellery trade.
0:19:57 > 0:19:58So I haven't put one down for that.
0:19:58 > 0:20:00This one was the only address for this.
0:20:00 > 0:20:04When the team looked at the 1901 census, Valerie's grandmother,
0:20:04 > 0:20:08Agnes, was working as a silver burnisher in the same district.
0:20:08 > 0:20:12Agnes would've been working on various polishing processes
0:20:12 > 0:20:16involving mild abrasives, such as using a substance
0:20:16 > 0:20:20called jeweller's rouge, which is iron oxide.
0:20:20 > 0:20:21It's a mild abrasive
0:20:21 > 0:20:25and it basically brings the full sheen out in the precious metal.
0:20:28 > 0:20:31Having taken the family tree back to Valerie's grandparents,
0:20:31 > 0:20:33the team can now search to see
0:20:33 > 0:20:37if her mother had any other siblings in addition to Arthur.
0:20:37 > 0:20:40After we found the 1911 census,
0:20:40 > 0:20:44we looked for further births for Arthur and Agnes.
0:20:44 > 0:20:47We found out that they had four other children.
0:20:47 > 0:20:50However, we sadly found out that Arthur,
0:20:50 > 0:20:53mentioned on the 1911 census, passed away.
0:20:55 > 0:20:59With four aunts and uncles who, if still alive, could be heirs,
0:20:59 > 0:21:02the search was looking very good and the team has still yet to
0:21:02 > 0:21:05begin on Valerie's father's side of the family.
0:21:05 > 0:21:09Quite an incredible discovery for us. It doesn't happen very often.
0:21:15 > 0:21:17A surprise knock on the door from the heir hunters
0:21:17 > 0:21:21happens to thousands of people every year in the UK.
0:21:21 > 0:21:26It's very strange to inherit from somebody I never knew.
0:21:26 > 0:21:28It would have been nice to know her.
0:21:28 > 0:21:30Today, we have the details of two estates
0:21:30 > 0:21:33on the Treasury Solicitor's Bona Vacantia List
0:21:33 > 0:21:35that are still unclaimed.
0:21:36 > 0:21:39The first is that of Hilda May Abbott,
0:21:39 > 0:21:42who passed away aged 82 in Birmingham,
0:21:42 > 0:21:45on the 8th of February, 1990.
0:21:47 > 0:21:50She was born in Solihull on the 10th of July, 1907.
0:21:53 > 0:21:55Hilda's parents were Herbert George Abbott
0:21:55 > 0:21:57and Maria Gascoigne.
0:21:57 > 0:22:00They married on the 10th of February, 1908,
0:22:00 > 0:22:03and they both died in the mid-'60s in Solihull.
0:22:04 > 0:22:07The name Abbott is Anglo-Saxon in origin,
0:22:07 > 0:22:11given to a person who is of great importance in a monastery.
0:22:11 > 0:22:14Abbott may also be a nickname applied to someone thought to
0:22:14 > 0:22:16be pious and devout.
0:22:16 > 0:22:20Could there still be family links to Hilda in the West Midlands?
0:22:20 > 0:22:23Do you know anyone of that name?
0:22:23 > 0:22:27The next unclaimed estate is that of Thomas Aherne.
0:22:27 > 0:22:31He was 92 when he passed away, on the 12th of June, 2010,
0:22:31 > 0:22:32in Leicester.
0:22:34 > 0:22:37He was born on the 24th of July, 1917,
0:22:37 > 0:22:40in Ardagh, County Limerick, in Ireland.
0:22:42 > 0:22:47The surname Aherne is of French origin and means lord of horses.
0:22:48 > 0:22:51Do you know anything that could be the key to solving this case?
0:22:51 > 0:22:54If you think you might be related to either of these people,
0:22:54 > 0:22:57you would need to make a claim on their estate through
0:22:57 > 0:22:59the Government Legal Department.
0:23:00 > 0:23:03Once again, the names of the cases we are trying to solve
0:23:03 > 0:23:05with your help today are...
0:23:19 > 0:23:22When's that? 1919 he's born, isn't he?
0:23:22 > 0:23:26In London, the team at Fraser & Fraser are investigating
0:23:26 > 0:23:28the case of Ivor Thomas Griffiths.
0:23:28 > 0:23:32Ivor inherited the estate of his late wife, Patricia Allen,
0:23:32 > 0:23:34when she died two months before him.
0:23:34 > 0:23:38They walked all around the town. They walked so many places.
0:23:38 > 0:23:40And they bumped into so many people.
0:23:40 > 0:23:42People would stop and talk to him.
0:23:42 > 0:23:47Being part of Ivor's world was a privilege, an absolute privilege.
0:23:49 > 0:23:52The first of the two properties that Ivor inherited
0:23:52 > 0:23:54is about to go before the bidders at auction.
0:23:54 > 0:23:57Andrew Fraser is hoping for a good price.
0:23:57 > 0:24:00My role is to maximise the assets.
0:24:00 > 0:24:02We have a guide of 125.
0:24:02 > 0:24:06Anything above that will be really good news.
0:24:06 > 0:24:09Can I say 125? 125 is bid. 130?
0:24:09 > 0:24:13130? Another five? 135. It's with you, 135.
0:24:13 > 0:24:16I'm looking for 140.
0:24:16 > 0:24:19142, madam, is now bid.
0:24:19 > 0:24:21143 for the first time.
0:24:21 > 0:24:24Sold. Well done to you, madam.
0:24:24 > 0:24:27They've gone for £143,000.
0:24:27 > 0:24:29It's a very good result for the estate.
0:24:29 > 0:24:30OK, we now move...
0:24:34 > 0:24:37In the office, the search for any heirs to Ivor's estate
0:24:37 > 0:24:41rested with two of Ivor's uncles - Clifford and John.
0:24:41 > 0:24:43But before they look into them,
0:24:43 > 0:24:46the team decide to look at Ivor's father's side.
0:24:46 > 0:24:49We searched to locate any potential beneficiaries
0:24:49 > 0:24:51on the paternal family.
0:24:51 > 0:24:55It was a lot trickier than the mother's side of the family
0:24:55 > 0:24:58because of the name Griffiths.
0:24:58 > 0:25:00Good news or bad news?
0:25:00 > 0:25:02'Griffiths is a really common name.'
0:25:02 > 0:25:04It's a difficult name to work with.
0:25:04 > 0:25:07Because of that, we need to check all the records.
0:25:07 > 0:25:09We need all of those birth, marriage and death records
0:25:09 > 0:25:11to make sure we're on the right family.
0:25:11 > 0:25:13The advantage of a difficult name is
0:25:13 > 0:25:15it's very difficult for competition to find them as well.
0:25:15 > 0:25:18More work for us, but, you know, hopefully we'll get to the
0:25:18 > 0:25:21correct heirs by researching the family properly.
0:25:23 > 0:25:25To find Ivor's grandfather's name,
0:25:25 > 0:25:29the team looked for Ivor's parents' marriage certificate first.
0:25:29 > 0:25:33So there are three marriages between a Griffiths and a Dredge.
0:25:33 > 0:25:35Now, we know that Ivor was born in 1935.
0:25:35 > 0:25:39The two marriages which we can discount...
0:25:39 > 0:25:42The first reason is that they are both female to male.
0:25:42 > 0:25:44So female Griffiths marrying male Dredges.
0:25:44 > 0:25:47So they don't give the right surname for Ivor.
0:25:47 > 0:25:49But also, there is only one marriage before his birth,
0:25:49 > 0:25:52and that's in 1928 in Romford
0:25:52 > 0:25:55from a William Griffiths to a Margaret Dredge.
0:25:55 > 0:25:58Interestingly enough, it's in Romford and not in Surrey.
0:25:58 > 0:26:01But it's the only logical marriage that's possible,
0:26:01 > 0:26:03so we have to go with it.
0:26:04 > 0:26:08The marriage certificate between Ivor's parents told them
0:26:08 > 0:26:10that Ivor's grandfather was called Thomas Griffiths
0:26:10 > 0:26:13and that he was a builders' merchant.
0:26:13 > 0:26:15I'd have a look. Let me just speak to this guy now.
0:26:15 > 0:26:17Then I can...
0:26:17 > 0:26:20Their next step is to try and find a birth certificate
0:26:20 > 0:26:23for William Griffiths, which would give his mother's name.
0:26:23 > 0:26:27Case Manager Jo Ibrahim took on the mammoth task.
0:26:27 > 0:26:30So we looked through William Griffiths and we tried to
0:26:30 > 0:26:32locate a birth record for him.
0:26:32 > 0:26:35But there were lots of William Griffiths.
0:26:35 > 0:26:39Same goes for the census where there was lots and lots of
0:26:39 > 0:26:43William Griffiths living with a Thomas Griffiths,
0:26:43 > 0:26:46which made our job trying to research that part of the family
0:26:46 > 0:26:47very difficult.
0:26:48 > 0:26:51The team looked closely at William's marriage certificate
0:26:51 > 0:26:55and from that worked out the year of his birth.
0:26:55 > 0:26:57And that's...
0:26:57 > 0:26:59INDISTINCT SPEECH
0:26:59 > 0:27:02But rather than continue to look for a birth record,
0:27:02 > 0:27:05they decided to look for a death record instead.
0:27:05 > 0:27:07What's his mother's maiden name?
0:27:07 > 0:27:10This was a turning point in the investigation
0:27:10 > 0:27:13as it gave an exact date of birth for William.
0:27:15 > 0:27:17William's birth record was found
0:27:17 > 0:27:19which gave them his mother's name -
0:27:19 > 0:27:21Elizabeth Thomas.
0:27:21 > 0:27:23The crucial information on the birth certificate
0:27:23 > 0:27:28was the specific village name where William was born,
0:27:28 > 0:27:31which helped us locate the census records.
0:27:32 > 0:27:36The team are looking at the 1911 census in this part of Wales,
0:27:36 > 0:27:39where he was born, to see if they can find the family.
0:27:39 > 0:27:42And they're crosschecking the details with those from
0:27:42 > 0:27:44Ivor's parents' marriage certificate.
0:27:44 > 0:27:48We've managed to link Thomas' occupation as
0:27:48 > 0:27:52a travelling timber tradesman to the builder's merchant.
0:27:52 > 0:27:54It's the best out of everything else,
0:27:54 > 0:27:57all the other censuses. So that's the one to go with.
0:27:57 > 0:28:01The census shows that William had three sisters
0:28:01 > 0:28:04and one brother called David.
0:28:04 > 0:28:06We've been asked to try and find the next of kin,
0:28:06 > 0:28:07which we believe would be you.
0:28:07 > 0:28:10The team think David could be the person who
0:28:10 > 0:28:14signed as a witness for William's marriage to Margaret Dredge in 1928.
0:28:14 > 0:28:17And feel confident they've found the right Griffiths family.
0:28:19 > 0:28:22All right, let me take some notes of these.
0:28:22 > 0:28:25The next step is to find out what happened to these aunts
0:28:25 > 0:28:27and uncles on Ivor's father's side.
0:28:27 > 0:28:30Ethel died in 1972, as a spinster.
0:28:30 > 0:28:34Winifred also died in 1990, as a spinster.
0:28:34 > 0:28:37And Sadie died in 1978, as a spinster.
0:28:37 > 0:28:40So we're only left with David after that.
0:28:40 > 0:28:45Thankfully, he married in 1932 and had two children.
0:28:46 > 0:28:49Even though there were quite a few siblings,
0:28:49 > 0:28:52it turns out there were only two heirs on this side of the family
0:28:52 > 0:28:57because three of the siblings of William all died spinsters,
0:28:57 > 0:28:58without issue.
0:28:59 > 0:29:02With their first two potential heirs found,
0:29:02 > 0:29:05the team moved back on to Ivor's mother's side of the family
0:29:05 > 0:29:08to see if the remaining two uncles - Clifford and John -
0:29:08 > 0:29:11had any children who might still be alive.
0:29:14 > 0:29:18It turns out that aviators Clifford and Dorothy had three children.
0:29:18 > 0:29:20One of them is John Dredge.
0:29:20 > 0:29:22Wonderful memories.
0:29:22 > 0:29:24He's Ivor's first cousin.
0:29:24 > 0:29:26The team had found their first heir.
0:29:29 > 0:29:36When I first heard that Ivor was leaving some sort of estate,
0:29:36 > 0:29:40that I might be a beneficiary, along with my sisters,
0:29:40 > 0:29:42it was a great surprise.
0:29:42 > 0:29:47I'm pretty sure the last time I saw Ivor...
0:29:47 > 0:29:51it was at the period when he had decided to go
0:29:51 > 0:29:56to try to become a minister in the church.
0:29:56 > 0:30:02And Ivor came bounding in from a side door to his pulpit.
0:30:02 > 0:30:06And with great gusto, started to preach to us.
0:30:06 > 0:30:09Then it was time for a hymn, at which point,
0:30:09 > 0:30:12Ivor dived behind his pulpit,
0:30:12 > 0:30:14and we could see he was eating his sandwiches.
0:30:14 > 0:30:18- And it was hilarious. - HE CHUCKLES
0:30:18 > 0:30:22I feel sure that any congregation would have warmed to him.
0:30:27 > 0:30:30Ivor's third and final uncle on his mother's side, John,
0:30:30 > 0:30:33had one daughter who had passed away,
0:30:33 > 0:30:35so her two children became heirs,
0:30:35 > 0:30:37bringing the total number
0:30:37 > 0:30:39on this side to five.
0:30:39 > 0:30:41In total, we ended up with seven beneficiaries -
0:30:41 > 0:30:44two on the paternal side and five on maternal side.
0:30:47 > 0:30:50So, for those of you who are new to...
0:30:50 > 0:30:51In the auction room in London,
0:30:51 > 0:30:55Andrew is about to discover just how much the estate will be worth.
0:30:55 > 0:31:00So the next lot is lot 72 - Mrs Griffiths' investment property.
0:31:00 > 0:31:02This house was bedsits many years ago,
0:31:02 > 0:31:04although it's been empty for many years.
0:31:04 > 0:31:05Everything needs doing to it.
0:31:05 > 0:31:08And although they will get mortgage security,
0:31:08 > 0:31:11it will be very difficult to secure normal mortgages
0:31:11 > 0:31:13given the condition of the properties.
0:31:13 > 0:31:17And that's why we're here at auction rather than private treaty sale.
0:31:17 > 0:31:21With the first house having sold for £143,000,
0:31:21 > 0:31:25now it's time for Patricia and Ivor's investment property
0:31:25 > 0:31:26to go under the hammer.
0:31:26 > 0:31:28193,000.
0:31:29 > 0:31:30194.
0:31:31 > 0:31:33195.
0:31:33 > 0:31:35We're going to get there, aren't we? 196.
0:31:35 > 0:31:37197.
0:31:37 > 0:31:39197 I have. 197.5.
0:31:40 > 0:31:41He's bid 198.
0:31:43 > 0:31:48All right. Here we go then. £198,000. First time.
0:31:48 > 0:31:50£198,000 for the second time.
0:31:50 > 0:31:55It's been absolutely clear, madam, you will lose this to these guys.
0:31:55 > 0:31:58Another £500 possibly if I don't another bid from you.
0:31:58 > 0:32:00Third and final time then.
0:32:00 > 0:32:05At £198,000. I'm pointing at them but looking at you. Are we all done?
0:32:05 > 0:32:09Sold. Well done. £198,000.
0:32:09 > 0:32:11That's an excellent result.
0:32:11 > 0:32:15The heirs to Mr Griffiths' estate, his blood relatives,
0:32:15 > 0:32:17will now have quite a substantial amount of cash
0:32:17 > 0:32:19to distribute between them.
0:32:23 > 0:32:24From our point of view,
0:32:24 > 0:32:28this was both an interesting and unusual estate
0:32:28 > 0:32:32where we initially didn't know whose estate we were researching.
0:32:32 > 0:32:35And we had the vested interest angle as well.
0:32:35 > 0:32:39And I understand that the estate has a value of over £400,000.
0:32:40 > 0:32:42But for Ivor's cousin, John,
0:32:42 > 0:32:45the benefit isn't really a financial one.
0:32:45 > 0:32:48I think I'm thrilled to bits to hear now that,
0:32:48 > 0:32:54even in his later years, he was out there communicating with people.
0:32:54 > 0:32:59He was always wanting to make people happy and please them.
0:32:59 > 0:33:01While for Ivor's friend Sandra,
0:33:01 > 0:33:04it's a reminder of a man who's greatly missed.
0:33:04 > 0:33:05He made people love him.
0:33:05 > 0:33:09And if you can do that, you can do anything.
0:33:09 > 0:33:12He was just...marvellous.
0:33:13 > 0:33:15Marvellous, marvellous.
0:33:17 > 0:33:21I feel like I've lost, you know, lost your best friend.
0:33:21 > 0:33:23SHE SNIFFLES
0:33:23 > 0:33:28Wonderful Ivor. That's all I can say about him. Just wonderful.
0:33:36 > 0:33:39Valerie Linda Nash passed away in a care home
0:33:39 > 0:33:42in Birmingham in 2014.
0:33:42 > 0:33:46I never actually visited Valerie's family home,
0:33:46 > 0:33:47but we were told about it.
0:33:47 > 0:33:52My mum would say it was a really nice home in Great Barr,
0:33:52 > 0:33:55but we never ever got to see it.
0:33:59 > 0:34:03Heir hunting firm Finders are searching for her heirs.
0:34:03 > 0:34:05OK, I have some more information.
0:34:05 > 0:34:07What did they say?
0:34:07 > 0:34:09The team have been looking at the five siblings
0:34:09 > 0:34:11of Valerie's mother - Linda Berry.
0:34:11 > 0:34:14Is it in connection with a cousin of your mother's?
0:34:14 > 0:34:17They've found that her older sibling - brother Arthur -
0:34:17 > 0:34:19died when he was 14.
0:34:19 > 0:34:23Linda's three youngest sisters have also died, but they had all married.
0:34:23 > 0:34:25Any children of these siblings
0:34:25 > 0:34:28would be the heirs the team were looking for.
0:34:28 > 0:34:32Valerie's youngest aunt, Eileen Berry, married William Jones
0:34:32 > 0:34:34just after war in 1946.
0:34:34 > 0:34:38When we located the family from that stem,
0:34:38 > 0:34:42they informed us of an interesting story about Valerie's aunt.
0:34:42 > 0:34:45She'd actually been involved in the Women's Land Army.
0:34:49 > 0:34:52To keep up food production while the farmers had gone to war,
0:34:52 > 0:34:58the Women's Land Army was set up in 1917 and then reformed in 1939.
0:34:59 > 0:35:02It forms part of the voluntary work which women could undertake
0:35:02 > 0:35:04to support the war effort,
0:35:04 > 0:35:06alongside that of munitions,
0:35:06 > 0:35:09nursing and women's military services.
0:35:09 > 0:35:13'In no country are women so thoroughly organised for war.'
0:35:13 > 0:35:18However, from December 1941, all unmarried single women, widows,
0:35:18 > 0:35:21were conscripted to join the war effort,
0:35:21 > 0:35:23between the ages of 20 and 30.
0:35:24 > 0:35:28Eileen joined the Women's Land Army in August 1942.
0:35:28 > 0:35:31She was based in Birmingham and was unusual in the fact that
0:35:31 > 0:35:34she actually worked in Warwickshire, so her home county.
0:35:34 > 0:35:37So, as part of her work, she would have undertaken a whole
0:35:37 > 0:35:38variety of farm work,
0:35:38 > 0:35:44for example, dairy farming, animal farming, ploughing, threshing.
0:35:44 > 0:35:46Before joining the Women's Land Army,
0:35:46 > 0:35:48Eileen worked as an invoice clerk.
0:35:48 > 0:35:50So you couldn't really get a more stark change in occupation.
0:35:50 > 0:35:53It was very strenuous, hard manual labour.
0:35:53 > 0:35:56They were doing digging, they were carrying heavy farm equipment,
0:35:56 > 0:35:58things which they were unused to before.
0:35:58 > 0:36:02And some suffered from long-lasting back and joint injuries,
0:36:02 > 0:36:03as a result of that work.
0:36:03 > 0:36:09At the beginning of World War II, 70% of Britain's food was imported.
0:36:09 > 0:36:13By the end of the war, 70% was home-grown.
0:36:13 > 0:36:16After the Women's Land Army disbanded,
0:36:16 > 0:36:18recognition was very delayed.
0:36:18 > 0:36:21Recognition really culminated in the unveiling
0:36:21 > 0:36:24of the Women's Land Army and Timber Corps Memorial
0:36:24 > 0:36:29at the National Memorial Arboretum in October 2014,
0:36:29 > 0:36:30which is now a permanent memorial
0:36:30 > 0:36:33for all the women who worked on the land as part of the
0:36:33 > 0:36:35Women's Land Army during the First World War
0:36:35 > 0:36:36and the Second World War.
0:36:44 > 0:36:47Eileen and her husband, William, went on to have three children
0:36:47 > 0:36:49and four grandchildren.
0:36:49 > 0:36:53One of Eileen's granddaughters is Nicola Jones.
0:36:53 > 0:36:57She's first cousin once removed of Valerie's and an heir to the estate.
0:36:57 > 0:37:02It still does not feel real that all this has happened, I suppose.
0:37:02 > 0:37:04It's not something that you get,
0:37:04 > 0:37:07someone knocking on your door telling you that someone died
0:37:07 > 0:37:09and they've left you inheritance.
0:37:09 > 0:37:13It's a nice feeling, but it's a sad feeling at the same time.
0:37:13 > 0:37:16I wish that I got the chance to know this Valerie.
0:37:16 > 0:37:20I'd love to see the pictures of her and what she looked like,
0:37:20 > 0:37:22and the sort of job that she did.
0:37:22 > 0:37:25It would have been nice to have known her.
0:37:25 > 0:37:29Nicola's father's, who was a cousin of Valerie's,
0:37:29 > 0:37:31passed away when Nicola was 18.
0:37:31 > 0:37:35She and her three siblings lost contact with his side of the family.
0:37:35 > 0:37:39We know our cousins, but we're not really in touch with them.
0:37:39 > 0:37:43We only really have each other - like, me, my sisters and my brother.
0:37:48 > 0:37:51In the office, the team are looking into Valerie's other
0:37:51 > 0:37:53three aunts on her mother's side.
0:37:53 > 0:37:56One of them appeared to marry in 1939,
0:37:56 > 0:37:58but the team could find no other records for her.
0:37:59 > 0:38:04We managed to trace one of the aunts of Valerie
0:38:04 > 0:38:09and she was still alive at the ripe old age of 100.
0:38:10 > 0:38:12It's quite an incredible discovery for us.
0:38:12 > 0:38:14It doesn't happen very often.
0:38:14 > 0:38:18Often on a family tree, we'll come across a number of elderly people.
0:38:18 > 0:38:21I think the important thing there is to take a responsible
0:38:21 > 0:38:25approach to it and to maybe ensure that there's someone else there,
0:38:25 > 0:38:27maybe a family member or friend,
0:38:27 > 0:38:31who can reassure the person we're speaking to, if it's in person.
0:38:31 > 0:38:33Or to ask on the phone
0:38:33 > 0:38:36if there's anyone else that they wish to consult with
0:38:36 > 0:38:39further to the conversation that we're having.
0:38:39 > 0:38:43A niece of this lady has power of attorney for her,
0:38:43 > 0:38:46so it meant that we were able to provide all paperwork for the case
0:38:46 > 0:38:49through her niece, she didn't have to deal with it herself.
0:38:50 > 0:38:54Valerie's other two aunts - Constance and Joyce -
0:38:54 > 0:38:57both passed away, but their three children have been found
0:38:57 > 0:38:59and are heirs to Valerie's estate,
0:38:59 > 0:39:02bringing the total on her mother's side to nine.
0:39:04 > 0:39:07Resolving the number of heirs on Valerie's father's side
0:39:07 > 0:39:10of the family was now the focus of attention.
0:39:10 > 0:39:13Nope. That's absolutely fine. That's great.
0:39:13 > 0:39:18We discovered Valerie's father's parents were William and Laura Nash.
0:39:18 > 0:39:22From the 1911 census of William and Laura,
0:39:22 > 0:39:24it tells us that they had eight children -
0:39:24 > 0:39:27seven were alive, one had passed away.
0:39:27 > 0:39:30However, now we know Laura's maiden name of Bishop,
0:39:30 > 0:39:35we can always check to see if they had any further children after 1911.
0:39:36 > 0:39:41The team did, in fact, find one more child - Hilda, born in 1912.
0:39:43 > 0:39:47The next step is to look into if Valerie's paternal aunts
0:39:47 > 0:39:50and uncles got married and had any children.
0:39:51 > 0:39:53In fact, they did.
0:39:53 > 0:39:57And from these aunts and uncles, the team found a total of 18 heirs.
0:39:59 > 0:40:02But the call from the heir hunters has meant more than just
0:40:02 > 0:40:06a welcome financial boost. For Nicola and her sister Donna,
0:40:06 > 0:40:10it's also an opportunity to find out more about the family's trade,
0:40:10 > 0:40:13so they've come to Birmingham's Jewellery Museum.
0:40:14 > 0:40:17This is where your great-grandmother Agnes would be working.
0:40:17 > 0:40:19She was a silver finisher,
0:40:19 > 0:40:23so she would have been applying the finish to the article, basically.
0:40:23 > 0:40:25And what these devices here are
0:40:25 > 0:40:27are polishing machines, basically.
0:40:27 > 0:40:30You would have a different grade of abrasiveness of this thing here,
0:40:30 > 0:40:33which you can fit on the end, called a polishing mop.
0:40:33 > 0:40:35And you would also use this substance here
0:40:35 > 0:40:38to be polishing the precious metal with.
0:40:38 > 0:40:40How long would she have been sitting here working for,
0:40:40 > 0:40:43- how long was the working day? - All day long, it could be.
0:40:43 > 0:40:46Basically, 8.00 in the morning to 5.45 at night.
0:40:46 > 0:40:49It would be a particularly horrible job.
0:40:49 > 0:40:52To protect their clothing,
0:40:52 > 0:40:57all they would have on top would be a long sheet of brown paper.
0:40:57 > 0:41:00- Really?- And that would be expected to catch the precious metal
0:41:00 > 0:41:01coming away as well.
0:41:02 > 0:41:04Just round here...
0:41:05 > 0:41:08Right. So, over here is the bench, or the peg,
0:41:08 > 0:41:10where your great grandad Arthur would be working.
0:41:11 > 0:41:14He would be using tools and techniques that have been in the
0:41:14 > 0:41:16trade literally thousands of years.
0:41:16 > 0:41:20Now this particular tool he'd be using is called the drill stock.
0:41:20 > 0:41:24It's more commonly called the bow drill or Archimedes drill.
0:41:24 > 0:41:27This is a tool that was developed by the ancient Egyptians.
0:41:27 > 0:41:30So 3,000-plus years ago.
0:41:30 > 0:41:31Can't imagine what you'd use it for.
0:41:31 > 0:41:34No. Here we go. I'll give you a little demonstration.
0:41:34 > 0:41:37Very, very simple to use.
0:41:38 > 0:41:41For Nicola and Donna, it's been a journey of discovery
0:41:41 > 0:41:43about their ancestral roots.
0:41:43 > 0:41:45It's inspired us.
0:41:45 > 0:41:51It definitely makes you realise that history is valuable.
0:41:51 > 0:41:53There's just so much, isn't there?
0:41:53 > 0:41:56Life changes in such big way 100 years ago,
0:41:56 > 0:41:58but this all still here,
0:41:58 > 0:42:00although lots of things have changed.
0:42:00 > 0:42:04It does make you realise that you do leave a legacy, I suppose.
0:42:04 > 0:42:06You know, everybody leaves a footprint.
0:42:06 > 0:42:10- And I think it does make you value that, doesn't it?- Yeah.
0:42:13 > 0:42:18In total, the team found 27 heirs to Valerie's estate.
0:42:18 > 0:42:19It's a great result for us.
0:42:19 > 0:42:22It means all the money will go to the family,
0:42:22 > 0:42:23as opposed to the government.
0:42:23 > 0:42:26But for Valerie's friends and family, it isn't
0:42:26 > 0:42:30about an inheritance, the experience has been a reflective one.
0:42:30 > 0:42:34I think it's important that you do keep in touch with your family.
0:42:34 > 0:42:37And I'm just sad that Valerie didn't
0:42:37 > 0:42:40or we didn't keep in touch with Valerie.
0:42:40 > 0:42:46- It has been exciting...- Yeah. - ..and emotional to think that
0:42:46 > 0:42:50there's some relation that you never knew, you've never met
0:42:50 > 0:42:52that's out there. It's...
0:42:52 > 0:42:56Yeah, it's really nice, isn't it? It's really nice.
0:42:56 > 0:42:57And it is a journey.
0:42:57 > 0:43:01And one that you sort of want to find more out about.