Thomas (Alfred?) Tyers

[suzy]

I am looking for any information on Thomas Tyers, my great grandfather.  I am told he was born in Derby(shire) in September 1839 (or thereabouts).  In the 1850s he went to India with the Army, where he married, had a large family and died.  I know very little else about him and I have been unsuccessful so far in my search for information about him in the UK.  Any clues would be great!

I believe Alfred was a middle name (it could have been Alfred Thomas, of course!)

Suzy

[Chris in 1066Land]

Hi Suzy

Done just a quick check on www.freebmd.rootsweb.com for a Thomas Tyers between 1837 and 1840 and it came up with just 2, but niether are in Derbyshire.
Oakham Reg Dist is on the border betwee Leicestershire & Rutland
Bingham Reg Dist is on the border between Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire

Surname  First name(s)    District  Vol  Page  
~~~~~~~~
Births Mar 1838
~~~~~~~~
Tyers  Thomas    Oakham  15 676  

~~~~~~~~
Births Jun 1838
~~~~~~~~
Tyers  Thomas     Bingham  15 477

How sure are you that he was born in Derbyshire and do you have any further clues about him.

Chris in 1066Land  

[suzy]

Hi Chris

Thanks for replying.  I have chatted to my aged mother of almost 88, and she is very certain she remembers her mother talking about Derby being her father's home area.  I am now thinking that perhaps my uncle has his year of birth wrong.  

There is some talk of him being related to Charles Tyers (supposedly a brother) who found Lake Tyers in Australia, but I think Charles was born in the early 1800s.  Anyway there is nothing to confirm this is true.

I understand that he joined the Welsh Fusiliers and went to India.  I have loads of information of his activities in India + marriage details, but nothing of parents or birth in England.  

Suzy

[Chris in 1066Land]

Hi Suzy

I understand that he joined the Welsh Fusiliers and went to India.  I have loads of information of his activities in India + marriage details, but nothing of parents or birth in England.

If my memory serves me correct, the Welsh Fusiliers have a museum and display in Caernarfon (think I have spelt it right) castle - as we visited it on holiday last year.

Maybe Welshjen will give you further info on same.

Chris in 1066Land  

[Welsh Jen]

Hi.
This site may give you a few pointers in the right direction:
http://www.regiments.org/milhist/uk/inf/023RWF.htm
But my understanding is that this will only assist people who are searching after 1881.

Here is also the official Welch Fusiliers Website:
http://www.rwfnet.co.uk/history.htm

Here is the link for the Museum mentioned by Chris:
http://www.armymuseums.org.uk (you will have to put in a search for Caernarfon)

And the following excerpt taken from one of its pages which may help you:

Other Ranks - Prior to 1914
As there are no 'Army Lists' for other ranks, and the available records are mostly arranged by regiment, the first requirement is to identify in which regiment or corps the soldier served. There are three important sources of information:

Regimental and Corps Museums. The 150 regimental and corps museums in the united Kingdom contain a wealth of information about the men who served in the regiments and corps concerned. Researchers are advised to contact the appropriate museum, if known, at an early stage in their enquiries. If the location of the appropriate museum is not known researchers should contact the Army Museums Ogilby Trust for help.
The Family Records Centre. This contains the following records which may be helpful:

Civil Registrations. Registrations of births, marriages and deaths after 1837 (England and Wales) or 1855 (Scotland) sometimes indicate the regiment of the person concerned or of the parent
Census Returns. It is possible to find references to service careers in the census returns, these are taken every ten years from 1841.

Regimental Registers and Chaplains' Returns. A number of 'non-statutory' returns exist. The Regimental Registers record births, baptisms, marriages and burials of soldiers or members of their families and cover the period 1761-1924. Further 2 information may be available in Army Chaplains' Department records of baptisms, marriages and burials at stations overseas.  
Public Record Office. The PRO contains the main 'military' source material as follows:

WO100/1-397 Campaign Medals 1793-1912.
WO101/1-7 Meritorious Service Awards 1846-1919.
WO102/1-16 Long Service & Good Conduct 1831-1902.
WO146/1-155 Distinguished Conduct Medal.
WO25/1121-1131 Service Returns No:3 Discharges 1783-1810. WO25/871-1120 Service Return No:1 as at 24 Jun 1806
WO25/1196-1358 Muster Master Generals' Index of Casualties 1797-1817. WO25/1359-2410 Casualty Returns ca.1810-1840.
WO25/2411-2755 Index to Casualty Returns 1810-1840. WO22/1-300 Royal Hospital Chelsea Pension Returns 1842-1862.
WO23/26-65 Chelsea Registers of Out-Pensioners ca.1820-1875.

If discharged to pension:
WO97/1722-2170 Soldiers Documents 1873-1882
1722-1762 Cavalry
1763-1848 Royal Artillery
1849-1857 Royal Engineers
1858-1870 Foot Guards
1871-2147 Infantry
2147-2170 Corps & Misc Units
If not killed in service:
WO97/2171-6322 Soldiers Documents 1883-1913.
 
I hope this is of some help to you in your research
Pob Lwc! (Good luck!)

Jen  

[suzy]

Hi Chris and Jen

Many thanks for the information that you have both given to me.  I have quite alot to go on, and I have already made a start on following these.  

I have also been considering county boundary changes in the 1800s, so I am following these up, considering towns / villages now not in Derbyshire, but which were when my great grandfather was born.

Many thanks

Suzy