Australian man’s desperate search for photo of father he never knew who lived in Lancaster

Sam McMillan was born in Belfast in 1953, but has never known his father.

Now 71 and living in Australia, Sam has traced his dad – who passed away in 1969 – to Lancaster, and is looking for help in finding a photograph of him.

“Until last year I never had a name or a photo of who my father was,” Sam said.

“When I was seven years old, I started to ask questions about my dad. The standard reply I received from my family was ‘Sam, we do not talk about him in this house’.

“I do recall my mother saying later in the late 1960s, that ‘he is no longer here’.

Sam moved to Australia in 1972.

"Throughout my youth, I spent most of my life with the grandparents looking after me,” he said.

“A major turning point in my life is when my mother told me, ‘Samuel, you are going to Australia’.

“Belfast and the troubles were a dangerous place to be. Whether you were for, against or neutral, everyone was involved and the troubles involved you, there was no escaping the situation. I got caught up.

“As a result in March 1972, I left Belfast and made my way to Australia.

“My brother Harry was already living in the Adelaide suburb of Enfield, so I already had family living in Australia.

“I have lived in Adelaide, South Australia, ever since. Throughout my working life I was a painter.

"In my later life, I was constantly asking about my father in my mind – who was he, what does he look like, what sort of person was he and all those sorts of questions.

"Last year, with the help of a friend, and investigation, I finally found him and now know his name and have some small details of his life.”

Sam’s father was called Robert Carson McMillan. He was born in Belfast on August 25 1927, and died in Lancaster on August 11 1969.

The late Mr McMillan married Agnes Couser McMillan, and they had four children – Harold, Sarah, Elizabeth and then Sam.

“What I can piece together is that in the first half of his life up to the mid-1950s, Robert Carson McMillan was a dock labourer in Belfast and then became a seaman, who worked out of Liverpool,” Sam said.

"I do not know when he divorced Agnes McMillan, but sometime in the late 1950s, he married his second wife – Angeline McMillan, and they resided at 8 Hazel Grove, Lancaster.

"During this time, he worked as a hospital labourer in Lancaster.”

Mr McMillan passed away at the Royal Lancaster Infirmary at the age of 42 and was buried in Lancaster cemetery.

“This is all I know about my father,” Sam said.

"In order to get some closure, all I am after is a photo of him.

“I fully understand that people might not want to talk about the past and I do not seek anything more. If someone wants to do otherwise, I am more than happy to reconnect.

"If anyone in Lancaster might know any relatives of Angeline and Robert Carson McMillan, who lived at 8 Hazel Grove, Lancaster, in the 1950s-1969, all I seek is a photograph of him; that would be fantastic and bring me some comfort and closure for me.

“Right from the day I left Belfast I always was nagged about who my father was. This has grown even stronger as I have got older.

“It would be fantastic if somehow, I could get a photo of Robert Carson McMillan.”

If you can help, a photo can be emailed to Sam via [email protected], or can be posted (anonymously if preferred) to Sam David McMillan, 4 Melaleuca Place, Golden Grove P/C 5125, South Australia, Australia, or sent via his mobile phone to +61 0416691659.

You can also contact the Lancaster Guardian.