Scrapbook of Morris and Ruby Logan
Morris Arthur Ransome Logan was born in Chesterton, Cambridge and came to Melbourne, Australia between 1911 - 1915. He met and married Ruby Dallas/Irwin. Morris had a long career with the Melbourne Fire Brigade.
When growing up, it was always understood that "Da" - Morris Arthur Ransom Logan - our grandfather, was named after Arthur Ransome, the famous children's author, responsible for such books at the Swallows and Amazons series which are still popular and in print.
Now Da was born on the 22 of September 1892 in Victoria House, Chesterton, Cambridgeshire to John Maxwell and Alice Logan nee Bullard. Morris was the youngest of nine children, eight of whom survived to adulthood. It would appear that John Maxwell Logan didn't attend the University as some of his brothers did but took over his father, Samuel's, boat-building business upon his death in 1883. Logan Boat Building was situated on the River Cam and not far from where they were living. The business manufactured rowing boats for the university competitive rowing teams.
It would seem that John aspired to greater things in relation to civic duties and responsibilities. He was a council member and his name appears on a plaque attached to a local bridge as a member of the Committee that had organised it. According to his bankruptcy hearing in 1899, he also acted as election agent to Sir G. Newnes up to and including the election of 1895. There is a Logan Meadow and a Logan Way in the vicinity of home and business.
(Sir George Newnes - Sir George Newnes, 1st Baronet (13 March 1851 – 9 June 1910) was an English publisher and editor and a founding father of popular journalism. His company, George Newnes Ltd, continued publishing ground-breaking consumer magazines such as Nova long after his death. ... In 1885 he was elected as Member of Parliament (MP) for the newly created constituency of Eastern Cambridgeshire or Newmarket. He held the seat for ten years ... Wikipedia.)
I mention this only to show that it was likely that he had a diverse range of friends and acquaintances and that he also likely rubbed shoulders with some local influential identities.
Arthur Ransome, the son of Cyril Ransome and Edith Boulton, was born at 6 Ash Grove, Headingley, Leeds, Yorkshire on 18th January, 1884. He was educated locally initially then Windemere College in the Lakes District and the well known Rugby school which is around 70 miles east of Cambridge.
Note that Ransome surname has an 'e' on the end which is absent from Da's 'Ransom' on the birth certificate.
However you try to make it so, it does not look at all likely that Da was named after Arthur Ransome. It is unlikely that the two families crossed paths and were friends long enough to name their child after Arthur - who was still only a child himself of eight years old when Da was born in 1892 - it was quite a few years into the 20th Century before he became famous for his writing.
There is, however, a Dr. Frederic Ransom that lived on Chesterton Road, just down the road from the Logan household.
In 1889, both Ransom and John Logan contested the Cambridgeshire Elections for the Chesterton Division. (I don't have a result - there were two seats and four candidates.)
And in 1890 both names appear again as members of the United Grand Lodge of England Freemasonry register for the Cambridgeshire Scientific Lodge.
While who Da was named after is still inconclusive, it may or may not have been Dr. Ransom as there were most likely other candidates in the area named Ransom, but the chances it was Arthur Ransome, the author, are pretty much non-existent.
