Genealogy Chat

ask for the benefit of all you lovely peoples experience please? If someone born in 1831/33 is born in France, and classed as a British Subject but, only discovered on the census' back to 1851, What is the best way or the best site (have checked out a few but can't understand how they work and don't speak French) to use please?>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> I desperately need to discover who his Mother was, and where she was born.........was she French or English? I'm sure you know the drill and the complications of discovering this type of info!>>>>>>>>>>>>> There's no chance of a birth cert due to the year of birth>>>> His Father has a very English sounding name though all I know of him is his name and occupation, from a marriage cert.>>>>> Not able to discover him on census' either!>>>>>>> All the help you can give as to the best way to tackle this would be very appreciated............as this is my brick wall at the moment. Thankyou! Jen

Oh dear! No idea where in France? Any idea what dad did for a living? Would he have been in the army/ a trader/ a diplomat? Before birth registration I guess you would be looking for a baptism - have you tried www.familysearch.org? nell

Helen, I have tried family search but will do again, as you have reminded me, I saw a thread the other day with mention that it may have been rotated? His father was a cooper, and he was a Blacksmith,& a cooper too, also worked in Iron foundry and was a fustian cutter. He was born in Calais in France! Jen

Calais? Perhaps his dad just jumped on a boat at Dover and stayed at the first port he landed in and then met mum?

Checked fam search again Helen, still nothing there for either father or son. Thought of that one checked on 1837, shipping logs, passenger lists etc............ It looks like I will need to try and contact someone, somewhere in Calais, but some of those sites I have tried are beyond my comprehension LOL! I have a distant cousin (whom I met through Genes BTW, who is also researching him too, as she is his direct desc. also, so far, no luck for either of us!) Jen

what are the names you are looking for??

Calais once belonged to England and there would have been a fair number of soldiers/sailors based there I would have thought following the Napoleonic wars. Have you checked dad for a military record at all? As a blacksmith he could have been involved in shoeing soldiers horses.

Marie, This is good of you to want to look, but I wouldn't want to back this pony lol! Father........John Tyson born abt 1810/15ish......occ: Cooper. Son...........William Henry Tyson born abt 1831/33, Calais France. Occ: Blacksmith, cooper, worked in Iron foundries, and as Fustian cutter. Was married in Heaton Norris, Stockport in 1861 August. Have cert. No Idea where Father was born.........NO knowledge at all of mother! Found William Henry on census' from 1861, onwards. Nothing before then! Jen

Yes Helen, even thought of that one too, checked for him on 1837 military lists............No luck I'm afraid........... But his father was a Cooper, it was the son who was a Blacksmith & cooper................unless, they could both Smith also? Jen

sorry Jen but have been looking on the 1851 and can't find anything. marie

Thanks for trying Marie Jen

I may be talking rubbish here (again) but as he states he is a British Subject, this suggests to me that he has some sort of legal backing for this assertion. Does anyone know how you became a British Subject if you were born overseas? OC

Well OC my own intepretation was that he could just have been born in France but of British parents anyway? I thought that may have been the case, unless others know something else we don't lol! His mother is a total mystery, and even whether he had siblings? Jen

All smacks of the military to me.

Funny you should say that Heather because the closest I have ever come to thinking I might have found something was on I think the 1851 census...............There was a child of about 10 with the name William Tisun or Tison, who was with a woman, whom did not appear to be described as his mother............more like some kind of nanny? They were lodging somewhere in London............and there was reference to the childs father being some Naval type......... Can't remember all the details now, as it was a while ago.......have to go back and look again. Didn't trust it though a little too vague..........and not sure about the age? Jen