I Found Granny’s Birth Dad Thanks to a Newspaper Record on MyHeritage
I’m a 58-year-old retiree from Queensland, Australia, married with no children, currently fostering a large five-year-old mixed breed dog. I spend a lot of time at home with her, enjoying hobbies like jigsaw puzzles, motorsport officiating, reading, and online games. My interest in family history started when I was young, after learning that my mother’s family descends from Fletcher Christian and the Bounty Mutineers. That side of the family is very well researched — which is helpful, given how large it is!
It was my paternal side that presented a real mystery. My father’s mother once claimed we were related to Errol Flynn, though I’ve never found any proof of that. Still, the idea intrigued me and led me down a path of discovery I never expected.
Toni Fuller
Granny stumbles across a secret
When my grandmother applied for a passport and obtained her birth certificate, she was shocked to discover that the man who raised her was not her father. She learned that her name was Thelma (which she thought was her middle name), the first name she’d always used wasn’t on the certificate, her surname wasn’t Ottoway, and her actual surname was Flinn — not Flynn.
Toni’s grandmother, Thelma Wheeler nee Flynn
This revelation shook her. She even worried that her marriage might not be legal, since she had married under what now she believed to be a false name. While other family members found it somewhat humorous, Granny was deeply unsettled and didn’t like talking about it.
Searching for the truth
I first took a DNA test through another platform, hoping to uncover the identity of Granny’s father. But I quickly became overwhelmed. As a descendant of the prolific Bounty mutineers on my mother’s side, I had thousands of matches to sort through. Many were connected to both sides of the family, which made separating maternal from paternal lines extremely time-consuming and confusing.
When I learned I could upload my DNA to MyHeritage, I decided to give it a shot and see if I could find matches that didn’t appear on the original testing site. I found MyHeritage’s platform easier to use than others. Still, after many hours of sorting and cross-referencing, I hadn’t made any progress in finding Granny’s father.
Toni’s great-grandmother, Annie Ottoway nee Flynn
The breakthrough
Then one night, I searched MyHeritage records for Annie Flynn, not expecting to find much. A document popped up — a warrant for failure to pay maintenance. At first, I didn’t think it was related. But I read it anyway, and my heart skipped a beat. It referenced an illegitimate child with the exact same birth date as my grandmother.
The record on MyHeritage
The document named the man responsible: Stanley Kenneth Sisson, a 30-year-old blacksmith!
The newspaper clipping on OldNews.com
I quickly typed his surname into MyHeritage’s DNA match list — and there were matches! One of those matches had linked WWI service records for the same man. In those records, I found a court document where he admitted paternity and agreed to the maintenance order.
I was absolutely stunned. I called my sister straight away, even though it was after midnight in her time zone. It was a moment I’ll never forget.
I haven’t yet contacted the newly discovered cousins. Still, knowing the truth has brought me great satisfaction and a sense of closure.
To others on the same journey, my advice is this: don’t give up. Don’t overlook a document just because it seems unrelated at first glance — read it! It could hold the exact answer you’ve been searching for. And if you’re using DNA testing, consider uploading your results to multiple platforms. For me, MyHeritage offered clarity and tools that helped when others didn’t. My experience has been excellent, and I’m incredibly grateful for what I was able to uncover.
Many thanks to Toni for sharing her amazing story with us! If you’ve also made an incredible discovery with MyHeritage, we’d love to hear about it. Please send it to us via this form or email us at stories@myheritage.com.
