Aubone Surlees (Surtees) LAWSON - 1850.

[ShaunJ]

Check out press reports of the Surtees-Wotherspoon marriage case in 1872:

" in the event of her (Annie Surtees or Dewar nee Lawson) dying before me, I promise to look to the interest of her two sons, Walter and Aubone Surtees, and appoint my trustees to pay to the said Walter Surtees the sum of £50 annually until Whitsunday, 1874, and the said Aubone Surtees the sum of £50 until Martinmas of the year 1875"

[ShaunJ]

Linking to the law report of the 1872 case

[ShaunJ]

Annie's estate was sequestrated in 1873 by which time she was in prison

https://www.thegazette.co.uk/Edinburgh/issue/8370/page/288

https://www.thegazette.co.uk/Edinburgh/issue/8378/page/347

https://www.thegazette.co.uk/Edinburgh/issue/8454/page/134

[Millmoor]

Oh well found, Shaun! Its quite a story - I think Bitzar has the makings of a good screenplay here! Intrigued by it all I tried to find Annie in the 1861 and 1871 censuses ... and failed. Also failed to sight her after she was released from prison.

However the references in the court reports to her father being a furniture maker and to Whitby led me to wonder if this is her baptism

Bishopwearmouth RC : Ann Lawson daughter of Anthony Lawson and Sarah his wife (late Dalton) was born July 12th 1828 and baptized on the 20th.

Marriage in Whitby 13 July 1813 Anthony Lawson bachelor and cabinet maker and Sarah Dalton spinster. (The Dalton could be read as Dolton).

Anthony Lawson and Sarah Dalton had the following children (baptized in Whitby St Hilda's RC)

John 7 April 1816
Joseph Kendray 17 March 1818
Elizabeth  25 July 1821
Anna 30 Sept 1822
John 22 Sept 1824

And also at Bishopweamouth RC

Mary Jane 4 Feb 1832


1841 census Bishopwearmouth

Anthony Lawson 51 Cabinet maker born outside county
Eliza Lawson 20 born outside county
Hannah Lawson 18 born outside county
Ann Lawson 12 born co. Durham

Anthony Lawson appears to be on the 1851 (showing as born Stockton) and 1861 ( born Yarm) and there is a possible death for him Jul - Sep 1866 Sunderland RD. Such a death date might tie up with the court report that Annie Lawson or Surtees had sought to obtain heritable property in Whitby.

I think the above ticks a number of the correct boxes but proving it might be trickier!

William

[bitzar]

Amazing stuff... it's difficult to get a grasp from my iPhone because I left my iPad in charge at home.

 Why was Annie in jail?!

Thanks for the great work.

Bitzar.

[ShaunJ]

Annie is in the 1871 census at 146 Buccleuch Street, Glasgow. Enumerated as Aubone Surtewes, female, married, 36, born England. 4 rooms with windows. No other information given and no others in the household.

[Millmoor]

Cannot find a definite answer to your question, Bitzar. I thought at first that she was in prison because of the bankruptcy but am now not so sure.

There are actually two "sets" of law reports from the Court of Session. The first is in early 1872 when the judgement went against her. The case was returned to the Court of Session in early 1873. She lost again and had to pay costs. Google books have all of these law reports and contain a lot of detail.

Looking at these law reports again she had previously brought an action against a Francis Dewar for the same reason but dropped the case in 1864. This was used as evidence against her as was her action regarding the heritable property in Whitby in early 1868 where she gave evidence that she had never been lawfully married to any man.

 Shaun, I thought she would be in Glasgow in 1871 and suspect she was there in 1861 too. In the law report it is stated by the defense that she was in Edinburgh from about 1854 until about 1859 and that she ran a number of brothels in the St James St. area of the city and then moved to Glasgow.

William

[bitzar]

Very interesting stuff.. I love it!

The son, Aubone Surtees arrived in Australia sometime prior to 1876... we haven't found it yet.  I did see on Anc* that someone of that name joined the Navy in Scotland though.

Annie said in her record that she had never been lawfully married.... well I never did find a marriage to Walter Surtees!

Thanks again.

Bitzar

[bitzar]

I'm back home to my laptop now.... fascinating reading!  Oh that Annie...

William... the baptisms, etc you found is likely them.  Annie's son Aubone wasn't married RC but his children were raised RC and he was buried RC along with his 2nd wife (Cant find a marriage but yeah we already known about not finding marriages).

ShaunJ and William, thanks again.

bitzar.