Hello Liz,
Thank you so much for guiding me to the most likely source for information regarding the Children's home in Douglas. I am hoping to be able to obtain the info. by email and I wonder if you think this to be a practical way to go. The whole family history, from about 1890 to 1918 is shrouded in mystery. The family owned and operated The Victoria Hotel in Ramsey until about 1890 when their fortunes seem to have taken a turn for the worse, the indicators being a number of changes in domicile, including Ard and the "Rest and be Thankful".(where my aunt Ruby was born), and also 'The Beach House" adjacent to the pier in Ramsey. My aunt Lilian says that her father was a heavy spender, and frittered away his money, but I would also like to investigate the possibility of their being caught up in the Dumbell Bank failure. After the death of my grandmother in 1906, the family appears to have been dispersed somewhat, the girls to their mothers sisters, the boys to friends on the Island, and the father reputed to have gone to sea as a purser with the Elder Dempster Line. Trying to resolve this tangle has become my major line of research.Thank you once again Liz. Regards, Peter.