Surname Lists, Chapman codes and Female Ancestors

-

Good Intentions

How has your day been?

I've been doing a bit of tidying up. It was not my intention to do any research today.  It was my intention to work on my Family History software program and a bit of filing. 

Surname and Chapman Code Lists

But I ended up trying to clean my overflowing email inbox.  And that led to me realising that while I had submitted my surname interests to my family history society years and years ago, I hadn't re-submitted them to put on the Society's website.  So I started to fill out the forms which led me to realise that there was one particular ancestor on my husband's family tree for whom we lacked biographical info; namely where she was born.

Namely Mary Bary Daw nee Ellis.

Search Again!

Now I am sure that I have tried to research her before but you know the old adage, go back and check those pesky databases again because new information may have been added.  So that is exactly what I did and I unearthed some very satisfactory information.

Female Ancestors

Female ancestors can be a bit tricky and Family Search did publish an article recently on steps that might assist you in finding out more information. Family Search suggests you do three things:

  1. Mine male ancestors records - Family Search suggests probate records.  This is quite amusing because they suggest that female ancestors don't often have an estate or money to leave behind.  However Mary Bray Daw nee Ellis did, in fact, have a will and it has always been a source of mystery to me why she left it to what appears to be neighbours by and large rather than her husband so I will have to dig that out again and refresh my memory of that particular document.  However, today, I was more interested in the other end of Mary's life, namely where she was born.
    The Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864 - 1933) Mon 18 Dec 1893  Page 7 

  2. Create a timeline of historical events that happened during your female ancestor's life - yes, good idea, but perhaps not today.
  3. Hunt for headstones - thankfully I have found Thomas and Mary Bray's headstone which is quite heartbreaking in its detail BUT no details of Mary Bray's birthplace there.


Daw Monument at Tingalpa Cemetery - photo by Alex Daw


Census

So, this is what I discovered today:

Via The Genealogist (through QFHS online search as a member) I discovered Mary Bray Ellis in the 1871 Census for Devon living in Goodrington Village, Paignton, Devon with Gilbert Distin and his wife Sarah Elizabeth and Gilbert's brother Alfred, together with two other servants Frederick James and Elizabeth Ann Parnell.  Mary Bray was described as a domestic servant, aged 26 and wait for it, born in Butterleigh, Devon.  Hoorah!

Let's just stop for a minute and think about what an amazing place the world can be.  I've never heard of Goodrington or Butterleigh.  I remember reading in the Wikipedia entry that Goodrington has a railway station.  Wanna see where the railway is in connection to the beach?


Pretty amazing huh?  

Always look at the original!

Looking at the original document I noticed further down the page a John Daw, Cow Boy (Ag Lab) aged 13 living in the Wyatt household and then in the next household, the James household, Tom Daw, aged 21 (Mary Bray's future husband) Ag Lab.

I then proceeded to look for Mary Bray Ellis' birth in Butterleigh and found the baptism for Mary Bray Ellis daughter of Robert and Mary Ellis on 29th September 1844 (did you see that date?  Today's date - cue spooky music). I found this on Find My Past - again courtesy of my QFHS membership I was able to search for this online at home.

I was able to find other census entries for Mary and her family

1841 Census at Clifgate Cottage Butterleigh Robert, Mary and Mary Bray's older siblings Elizabeth aged 3 and Robert aged 1.  

1851 Census at Yew Tree Hamlet, Butterleigh, Mary Bray is living with her brothers and sisters and mother and father as follows: parents Robert and Mary aged 38 and 37 respectively, then Elizabeth aged 12, Robert aged 10, William aged 8, Mary aged 6 and Sarah aged 2.

I861 Census - Mary is now described as a house servant aged 16 working for the Frost Family at Fillbrook Farm, Butterleigh, Devon.  

Don't forget Newspapers!


 The Telegraph (Brisbane, Qld. : 1872 - 1947) Fri 4 Nov 1892  Page 4 

The Week (Brisbane, Qld. : 1876 - 1934)  Fri 3 Nov 1893   Page 16


When I searched Trove again and looked at the death/funeral notices for Mary Bray Daw in Brisbane I noticed that one of the notices had been placed by her brother and sister which makes me wonder if they came out to Australia too.  And if so, which ones?  Was it Elizabeth, Robert, William or Sarah?  That's another search to perform but at least I have found out where Mary Bray was born.  

Where does the middle name Bray come from?  No idea but I'm guessing furiously that it is her mother's maiden name.  Another search to be performed. But no, it would seem that Mary's mother's maiden name was Chambers. The Genealogist gives me a date of marriage of 5th May 1836 with the witnesses to the marriage being Charlotte and James Rawlins.  So do you want to give me a suggestion as to where Bray came from?  No other family member seems to have a middle name.  What's going on there huh? Any ideas?

Happy Family Tree Hunting yourself.

Comments

GenieJen said…
Glad you linally found Mary Bray. Paignton is a gorgeous place too.
October 1, 2020 at 12:06 PM
Alex Daw said…
Dear GenieJen Guess who had to go and get a book on Devon from the library today just to see what it was like I'm not sure where I've been in Devon (isn't that awful?_. I think I was ten years old when I was there last. I remember Conrwall more than Devon which is a bit of a shame.
October 1, 2020 at 3:33 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Family Lore

-
Image
Image by hurk from Pixabay Amy Johnson Crow challenges us to write about our Family History again in 2024 using her 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks challenge.  The theme for Week 1 is "Family Lore." Many of us have heard stories from our grandparents about incredible feats our ancestors did or a famous person we're related to. What's a tale that has been passed down in your family? Did it end up being true or did it turn out to just be a good story? You can join the challenge too her e. The most famous/shocking story handed down in our family was that my father's great-grandfather was meant to have shot himself.  Lo and behold it wasn't the entire truth (he lived to tell the tale) but there was certainly a large kernel of truth in the story handed down by my grandmother.  You can read the story of Edward Conner's life here . Of course there's always more to be done isn't there?  I ordered his death certificate years ago but it was lost in transit so...
Read more

52 Ancestors in 52 weeks - Week 3 - Favourite Photo

-
Image
      The theme for Week 3 is "Favorite Photo." Amy Johnson Crow has devised these prompts and you can participate too by signing up here. Tell the story of a favorite photo: Who is in it, when and where it was taken, and why it was taken. (That last part is often left out!)   Barbara Conner hanging up washing in Edinburgh     This is a photo of my mother hanging up the washing when we were living in Edinburgh in the 60s. I think my father took it to record what ordinary life was like at the time and to send back to the folks at home in Australia.  I'm sure my mother was not pleased but I am so grateful because you can see so much in this photo.  They had a kettle, something like a Sunbeam electric frypan.  I think I can spot a toaster and a radio up on the top shelf.  You can see that the glass came in milk bottles in those days and that the twin tub washing machine was in the kitchen.  There are canisters for things like tea and c...
Read more

Barley Sugar

-
Image
  Photo by Alex Daw Barley Sugar It's been a while since I've blogged and boy do I miss it. Have you received an email from Ancestry lately suggesting you check out new traits?  DNA doesn't lie, so they say, but I beg to differ.   This will probably be an intensely boring post for those of you who don't really know me but I feel compelled to record my responses to the alleged traits for the amusement or interest of posterity and my family. 16 new traits have been identified for me.  There are 56 identified traits altogether. Let's tackle the new traits first: Competitiveness - likely to be competitive - influenced by my maternal side apparently.  Yes I agree but not with the side of the family.  If you'd asked me I would have said the paternal side.  My paternal grandmother was I believe intensely competitive - witness the articles I have written about her swimming prowess.  I'm struggling to recall any competitiveness displayed by my mother ...
Read more