Wakefield family of Nelson

[taonga1]

Thanks for that Newbe ... and, darn!

[taonga1]

Well, I have the death registry entry in my hot little hand, and it contains very little information.

When died and where:  23 Dec 1870, Top House
Name and surname:  John Wakefield
Sex: Male
Age: 50 (about)
Rank or Profession: Labourer
Cause of Death:  Found drowned
Informant: Henry Williams, Coroner, Blenheim
When registered: 1 February

I was expecting him to be aged about 40 - 44, so their guess of 50 could be about right.  I'm certain this is the right Wakefield death, but I was really hoping for a place of birth, or wife's name.

Where do I go from here??

I will contact the local family history groups in Motueka and Nelson.

I did find a John Wakefield in Oxfordshire, christened in 1830, who disappeared before the 1851 census.  An American researcher thinks she found him on a ship to Australia with his brother Henry in 1852.  One of the children in Nelson who may or may not be John's is named George Henry, so I'm wondering if the two brothers came from Australia to Nelson together.

Does anyone here know more about the LDS baptism documentation?  The Oxfordshire John Wakefield caught my eye because he has a 1971 LDS baptism registered with the code for New Zealand temple.  The American researcher said that wasn't proof that he was ever in New Zealand, and that baptisms could be processed anywhere in the world. 

I guess I'll be visiting my local LDS family history centre too!

[Thamesite2017]

Sorry if covered
did you try to get coroners report
http://www.archives.govt.nz/docs/pdfs/Ref_Guide_Pers_Identity.pdf
Bye
Althea

[taonga1]

Thanks for that link Althea - very helpful information about what Archives holds.  I'd looked for an inquest in the newspapers but I hadn't thought about trying to get the report through Archives.  It looks like they're all held in Wellington, and I'm there in early July so I'll have a look.

From the lack of information on the death certificate, I'm not sure the report would have much more identifying info, but I'll try anything.

Min

[taonga1]

... aaaaand ... ditto the info on the marriage certificate, darn it!  He's definitely William John on that, no age, no origin, no parents, nada!

It was quite a buzz to see his signature in his own handwriting though  :-)

[squally]

I just noticed your messages re William John and Christina Wakefield  from last year. I think that my great grandmother - Eliza Amelia was one of their daughters. She married James Coutts Dallas and their daughter Violet Annetta was my grandmother. I have just started researching my family history and it is difficult to find out much about John Wakefield. My mother told me about his drowning and that's about all.

[taonga1]

Hello!  Yes, Eliza Amelia is definitely one of our lot too  :-)  Our branch descends from Clara Elizabeth.  I was just about to start ordering birth certificates to confirm siblings - maybe you have more information on that generation.  (I have 8 possibles listed). 

I've got William and Christina's marriage printout. 

With John/William, I'm now working in the other direction - I've identified 15 possibles who originated in the UK, and I've been following each one to see where they ended up.  So far I've eliminated 6 of them, 2 could be strong possibilities.  I went to Archives and searched for inquest reports on the drowning, nothing there.  It may be possible that he's buried at Top House. 

I've got a photo of Christina from the Busch family book, if you'd be interested.  She's quite elderly in the photo, but it was amazing to see family resemblances in her face. 

Annetta Louisa was another sister - so a link there with your Violet Annetta.  Must have been a family name. 

Thank you! - lovely to find related people :-)

[squally]

Hi

Yes, I would love to see my great great grandmother's photo if possible thanks. Not many photos survive from my mother's family.

Re the printout of John and Christina's marriage, I haven't been able to find that on BDM. What details did you put in when you applied for it?

I have ordered a printout of John's drowning so that might reveal something. He's a hard man to track down. I was always told that he was related to Edward Gibbon Wakefield but I have my doubts.

I don't know much about my great grandmother Bida (Eliza Amelia) and her siblings other that after Christina married Hans Busch Bida and one of her sisters left home to live in Christchurch. I think they were very young - in their early teens. I don't know which sister. Intriguing!

[taonga1]

I've emailed you with more information.

Ah yes - THAT marriage entry! 

Some of the early entries were entered differently.  I didn't know what names I was looking for until I got Clara's death certificate, naming her parents (because her birth isn't in the index). 

From that I knew I was looking for William John Wakefield and Christina Lankow.

To find William, you need to put Wakefield into the BRIDE's family name field - he's there in 1858 as Wm John Wakefield. 

Most marriage entries have the bride and groom linked, but most of these early ones don't.  They're listed separately.  1858/925 and 1858/582.