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Topic: William BOWLER c1808 (Read 174 times)
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hettie2000
RootsChat Extra
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Posts: 53
Gt-grandfather JC Oldham
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Help! 
I'm completely confused about my gtgtgrandfather William BOWLER c1808, living in Denton, Lancs on the 1841 with his wife Hannah BROWN c1811 (HO107/581/4 32 20). His occupation is given as 'hatter', and I believe they and their son Edwin moved to Southwark shortly after.
I have a death cert for Hannah dated 1844 in Christchurch workhouse, Surrey. Her age is given as 30, and husband William BOWLER (hatter).
In 1851, I have William BOWLER in Southwark, Surrey with occupation of 'slate polisher' and birthplace Denton, Lancs. He is married to Mary c1805 from Mayo, Ireland. Ref HO107/1564 377 8.
I have the marriage cert for William BOWLER & Mary Ann BRETT in 1845, Parish of Christ Church. William gives his occupation as general dealer, and his father as Nathaniel BOWLER also general dealer. Mary (spinster) gives her father as Richard BRETT.
In 1861, I have William BOWLER again in Southwark, with occupation of 'school slate maker' and birthplace Lancs. He is now married to Elizabeth c1811 from Deptford in Kent. He has 2 stepsons, Edmund FOX and Alfred FOX, with him. Ref RG9/331 128 25.
I found a marriage for William BOWLER and Eliza FOX in 1858 in the Parish of St John, Waterloo, Surrey. William's occupation in the certificate is 'school slate maker', but this time his father is George BOWLER (hatter). Eliza's father is Benjamin HILL.
By the way, this William BOWLER is not to be confused with the one who went on to make the first Bowler Hat  , although I believe they are related.
So....are these William's all the same person? If they are, why did he give his father two different names? The only suitable death I can find for Mary BRETT/BOWLER is 1859 Q1 in Southwark, three months after William married Eliza...I need to send for it. I haven't found a death for William yet (there's one in 1864, Christ Church, but this isn't him).
Would burial records be the way to go now? What else can I do to tie this up, or get more clues? Sorry for the length of my post, but I'd be grateful for any help or pointers!!!
Thanks for reading,
Helena 
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Hyde, Oldham, Anderton, Barber, Lord, Bowler, Roebuck, Hadfield, Cowell - all Cheshire/Lancashire
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hettie2000
RootsChat Extra
Offline
Posts: 53
Gt-grandfather JC Oldham
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Thanks so much Jane, for helping me out with this  . Unfortunately it does get very confusing, as you can see 
I've spent some time tracing the William Bowler who manufactured the Bowler hat, and had some contact with one of his descendents who luckily confirmed my research. He was the son of William and Esther, born 1808 in Denton (that's the IGI record you found), and had a brother called Thomas. In 1841 he was living in Denton with wife Nancy and they had children Hannah, Alfred, Esther and Mary with them (HO107/1088/9 20 32). By 1851, William was widowed and living with his children in Southwark, Surrey (HO107/1558 583 32). He's listed as a hatter and living on Lemon St. In 1856 there's a marriage for William Bowller and Mary Martin in Shoreditch, and by 1861 William and Mary are back in Denton with William's youngest son. It's the children who provide the thread in this line of Bowler's and determine this William's whereabouts.
So you're right, the two William Bowler's (the one of Bowler Hat fame, and mine) both moved South in the 1840s. However, mine is harder to trace once he moved. On the marriage cert to Mary Ann Brett it says he is a widower (and she a spinster) which fits with Hannah's death. Perhaps......they moved to London but hit hard times, or Hannah became ill, and she died in the workhouse. William took any work he could find (I'm not clear what a general dealer might be though) until he retrained as a slate maker. Why he didn't work with his cousin(?) in the hatting industry is a mystery.
What bothers me most though is the change in his father's name when he marries again, to Eliza Fox. Again he's a widower, and she a widow. Perhaps it's different person? But surely there can't be many William Bowler's who are slate makers in Southwark?!
Sorry for lengthy post. Hopefully I haven't made your brain hurt too much, and I really appreciate the chance to talk about it and think it through, with someone who's fresh to the confusion. I'm very grateful for your help!
Helena
PS I should probably have said that on the 1841 census both William Bowler's are living in Denton, separately, and both are hatters. Now I need a lie down in a dark room.... <grin>!
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Hyde, Oldham, Anderton, Barber, Lord, Bowler, Roebuck, Hadfield, Cowell - all Cheshire/Lancashire
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hettie2000
RootsChat Extra
Offline
Posts: 53
Gt-grandfather JC Oldham
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Hello again,
No, I haven't found either William or Eliza on a census after 1861. He obviously doesn't want to be found . I'll keep on looking though. For the moment I'm assuming his father's name is George, which gives me some leads on his parents, and I'm hoping that I'll get a clue this way. Fingers crossed I'm not following a dead end!
Many thanks again - I'm off to have another hunt through the death records...
Good Luck with your own research!
Helena
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Hyde, Oldham, Anderton, Barber, Lord, Bowler, Roebuck, Hadfield, Cowell - all Cheshire/Lancashire
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