Help Wanted

To enable other visitors to assist you in your research,
submit a brief description of your 'brick wall'.

Alison Apr 25, 2008	Thomas WOODSwas born c 1831 in Surrey, UK. His father was also Thomas Woods,a bricklayer, mothers name is unknown. Thomas jnr. married Elizabeth Ann TILLEY on 19 October 1852 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Thomas died on 25 October 1891, aged 60 years, at Yarraville (a Melbourne Suburb) and was buried in Footscray Cemetery (also a suburb of Melbourne) From information on Thomas death certificate he came to Victoria c 1851, his occupation was a labourer. On six other family certificates his occupation is given as a brickmaker and he was born in Epsom, Surrey. I cannot trace Thomas jnr. arriving in Victoria or any of the states of Australia. I have also been unable to find him on the 1841 Census in England. I have been researching my Woods family since 1975. His wife's family came from Egham Surrey, parents - Thomas Tilley & Rebecca nee Roseblade. I hope someone will be able to help me.
Janice April 11, 2008	I am searching for birth information of Thomas STAVELEY, born 1865 and his sister Catherine (Katherine), both born at Kingston on Thames, Surrey. It seems their births were not registered. I know their father was Robert Butler Staveley profession shown as "landed proprietor,, born 1821, place and parents unknown, who died at Knowsley House, Kingston, in 1875. His death was witnessed by his brother in law, Frederick COXHEAD whose address was Kingston Barracks and whose profession was shown in a later census as "Chelsea Out Pensioner (Army)". I hoped I could trace Robert Butler through Frederick Coxhead's wife Annie, born the same year as Frederick, as they should be brother in sister. Unfortunately neither show up in earlier census records. Advice and help required in finding out the facts I want through the limited information I have e.g. the Barracks, Army, and Knowsley house, if anyone knows anything of this. Also if the children weren't registered, perhaps they were baptized, but what churches were around then. Awaiting with anticipation all strategies.
Bonnie Sep 10, 2007 Updated Oct 08, 2007	I am trying to learn about a family named SHAKESPEAR(E) who lived in parish of St Mary's Church, Lambeth. It was one Nehemiah Shakespeare and his wife Mary HOBBS Shakespeare. They had six children that I know about - the eldest being Frances Elizabeth b. 1817-1818. Nehemiah's occupation was engineer and at the bapt of their daughter Caroline their abode was listed at Lambeth - Water Works. Could anyone tell me where that is? Do you know who I would contact to learn more about this family in that area? I wonder if there are maps that cover just this area? All I could find were London maps which did not list villages. Nehemiah was probably born ca 1790's. Just guessing this from age of his eldest child. Their eldest daughter Frances Elizabeth Shakespeare Stafford married in July 1837 in St. Mary, Newington. I am trying to locate any info on this couple. They had the following children: Frances Elizabeth 1818 ? Thomas Henry 1819 St Mary Lambeth Joseph 1820 St Mary Lambeth James 1822 St Mary Lambeth Emma 1826 St Mary Lambeth Caroline 1828 St John the Evangelist Lambeth Any help would be appreciated.
Terence Sep 11 2007	My wife Ruth's great great grand parents have been identified as Aaron and Frances CARTER. The earliest record found is the birth and baptism record of their oldest known child, : 5 January and 18 February, respectively, 1809, St. Saviour's Church, Southwark, Surrey. Aaron is listed as a vitualler and subsequently in other records as innkeeper, King's Head Inn, Borough High Street, Southwark. Aaron and Frances had six children. Two died in infancy (Frederick, Frances Caroline) Jane b. 1809, William b. 1811, Catherine b. 1815, George b. 1817. The 1841 census listed them as not born in county, but they may have been married in Surrey, probably about 1808 since their first known child was baptized in 1809. I am looking for their marriage date and place. Birth/baptism dates and places, too, but not in Surrey.
Bob Erskine Sep 11, 2007	I have a brick wall for which help would be very much appreciated. I am trying to find my GGGGrandmother and her mother! My GGGrandmother was christened "Mary Ann Brazier WICKS" at St Paul the Baptist, Croydon, Surrey, August 29, 1817. Her father was listed as James WICKS, Groom and the mother was simply Mary. There may be other children of the pair christened at that church. James William WICKES, May 31, 1807 is a possible sibling as is Sarah who may have also been christened there. Husband, James dies March 21, 1839 in Croydon at a listed age of 69 years. His address is listed as Handcross Alley as is the address of Sarah Smith, the informant. James' wife, my Mary, is found in the 1841 census for Croydon, at a listed age of 60 and as being born in Surrey and as head of the house where George Curtis and Mary WICKS (the daughter, now CURTIS) reside with their two year old daughter, Emma. After the 1841 census, Mary disappears and the CURTIS' continue to increase the size of their family have three of the four children christened at St Johns. The only Croydon death of a Mary WICKS that I can find is in 1851 and for a much younger woman (although she was Married to a Joshua that is a horsetrainer). About 1890, my GGrandmother (a SOMERS) wrote that her mother was a CURTIS (which I have documented - the Mary Ann above) and that her mother was a RUSSELL, the daughter of John RUSSELL of Tillingdown Farm and that her mother was the daughter of Brazier, Esq. of Cobham Court. So I think that I am looking for a Mary RUSSELL, born around 1875 (considering the age of James and the way the 1841 census rounded down the ages). Where things get confusing is that when the list pedegree was passed down there was some confusion in reading the old script. A number of variations were offered. TillingDown might have been Tillingdawn as Cobham might be Cabham or even Chatham and the location of the farm may have been Redhill or Rainham and it may have been in Kent, Trent or Surrey. The logical place to start seemed to be at St John the Baptist and those records are accessible on familysearch.org (batch C098651 thru 6 and M098651 thru 5). But there is no WICKS-RUSSELL nuptial. A hint may be that there is no WICKS-CURTIS marriage either. So I am stumped! Any assistance would be appreciated.
Kath Fairweather Sep 11, 2007	My Great Great Grandfather was Benjamin Sargeant (various spellings) b 1810 in Horley, Surrey and married Amelia VIGAR b 1814 in Burstow on 13th April 1834 in Nutfield.. My problem is that I am trying to discover who Benjamin's parents were. I have an idea that they may have been Phillip Sargeant 1745 - 1833 and Mary Cook(e) 1792 Horley - 1874 East Grinstead, but I have no proof of this. I also believe that Benjamin was a Baptist and had an adult christening. I wonder if anyone can help me in solving this and if so it would end a search which I have been undertaking for the past year.
Bonnie Oct 08, 2007	I am trying to locate info on a family by the name of Ryan that lived in the St Mary the Less parish in Lambeth at the time of the 1901 census. They lived at 3 Bolwell st in 1891 and 1901 and any info on them would be greatly appreciated: Ryan, William T. 1842 Southwark, Sry Earth Potter (?) , Louise 1848 Stepney, Mdsx , Louise 1867 Lambeth, Sry , William T. 1869 Lambeth, Sry , Thomas 1876 " , Mary 1878 " , Henry 1881 " , Alfred 1885 " , Ellen (Nell) 1887 " , Albert 1890 "
Walain Jan 24, 2008	I am French, living in Brittany, and trying to build my English family tree. My great grandparents Frederick SYKES and Helen FURNALL married October 22nd 1849, at St Giles church, Camberwell, Surrey. Their Fathers are listed as Richard SYKES and James FURNELL. They had at least one child, my grandfather Walter SYKES, born 19th September 1856, probably in London. He died in 1921 in New York. It seems that Frederick SYKES had a sister Susan who married Stephen RICHARDS 1st Qtr 1845, in St George Church, Southwark. I do not know how to obtain certificates before 1837 and/or without exact date. Is there a website to look for those records? Could someone please help me?

Last updated: June 26, 2008