please could some one give me their thoughts on this
my father Thomas Williams son of mary powell that you have so kindly helped me with
and harry ryle Williams .died when I was 12yrs old 48 yrs ago .as far as I knew he only had the name Thomas as is on his marriage certificate I was told he was born forest of dean which is what is on the 1911 census when they were living in the meardy Glamorgan.

Now the only birth I can find for Thomas Williams with parents Williams &powell is 1904 Cheltenham,and he has G middle initial his brother Arthur Charles Williams was born 1899 Cheltenham I know that for a fact.

what are your thoughts if it is my father it's odd the G was never used?

thank you for reading this

Can't comment on your family specifically, but one of my great Uncles was Christened and buried with just one Christian and one surname, as he was on all the census forms until his death in 1945....
Except the 1911 Census that is, when he has suddenly "gained" a middle name, his father's !.
We cannot work out why at all, it wasn't in memory for example of his "recently-departed" father as in fact he lived another 20 years afterwards, so ??. Maybe to avoid confusion with another man locally with the same name, now he'd moved from a quiet Forest village down to busy Newport ?. Perhaps it was an attempt to repair broken family ties/quarrels due to this move, he was only 22 at the time ?. However this seems unlikely, as a few years later his WW1 records dont show this new name, nor does his 1915 marriage, which was back in his home village with father attending.
We just don't know why he did it, but I guess he wasn't the only one who did.

I think it is true to say that we will never know why the middle name was not used but before making any further comment we should perhaps be certain that the birth registration is his by obtaining the certificate. Everything points to it and FreeBMD gives the middle name as George. This is from the Index:
Births Sep 1904
WILLIAMS Thomas George Cheltenham 6a 442

We also know from the 1911 Census that the family moved from Cheltenham to the Forest, back to Cheltenham and then to Glamorgan.

Mike

thanks for your thoughts I suppose I will have to chance it's the correct one and order a certificate then i'll know for sure ,but as far as I know there are no George's in the family?

Gloucestershire BMD Indexes has this birth in 1904, recorded as Thomas G Williams, District - Cheltenham, Office - Cheltenham, mother's maiden name POWELL.

thanks yes that's the only one I can find just that we never knew he had George as a middle name? so looks like i'll have to spend £10 to find out for sure