Help needed on my early history on my GGGrandfather

[roymck]

My GGGrandfather went by many different Christian names and I guess I will never find out the real truth about him. Born 1837 ish in Memel Prussia , or Luhmannsdorf Pommerania he first appears as Gusre Lobeck in the April 1861 census in Falmouth on board HMS Cordelia the ship was seconded to the Australian navy. The ship must have been in Falmouth for a long time as in Nov 1861 he deserted he was then called Gustave. On the 1871 census he is in Falmouth and called Carl and in 1872 he becomes naturalised as Karl Ernst August Lobeck.

We know all of the above is true.

I have just found a record of a Gestan Lobeck from Memel sailing from Liverpool to Sydney on the ship Fitzjames as crew arriving Australia 5 March 1860. I think that is him going to Australia and that ties up with him sailing back to the Uk on Hms Cordelia.

So how did he get to Liverpool in about 1860 and is there any other trace of him before 1860. Anything before 1860 is a blank . Any thoughts?

Thanks Roy

[LizzieL]

On 1861 census "Gusre" is "Gus" then "re" underlined as superscript implying an abbreviation for his full name.

[philipsearching]

Could you confirm what Karl gives as his place of birth on the records you have found?

Luhmannsdorf is in the north-east corner of modern Germany; it is within one day's walk of the sea and a few days walk from the large port of Stettin (now Scczecin, Poland). Memel (now Klaipeda, Lithuania) is a major seaport over 100 miles further east.  It is highly possible that Karl (Gustav) ran away to sea, signed up as a merchant seaman on various vessels before deciding that spending months at a time on board ship under tough discipline was not the life he wanted.

My gut feeling is that Luhmannsdorf is the more likely birthplace.  It would not have been particularly well-known outside the local area, so Karl would probably not have heard of it if he had not been from the area.


Philip

[LizzieL]

In 1861 it says Memel and he is listed as one of many crew members. Whoever filled in the original form had a lot of names to list and possibly did not bother to ask everyone where they were actually born. So Memel could be  where he joined that particular ship.

[philipsearching]

In 1861 it says Memel and he is listed as one of many crew members. Whoever filled in the original form had a lot of names to list and possibly did not bother to ask everyone where they were actually born. So Memel could be  where he joined that particular ship.

I was hoping that would be a possibility!
So - Luhmannsdorf would be a place to look.  Given the war and its aftermath, I wonder what (if any) records survive.

Philip

[LizzieL]

On later censuses (1871, 81, 91) it just says Germany or Prussia, I can't find him in 1901 or 1911. I think he died in 19243.

[roymck]

Thanks for the info , He was known in later life as Charles but also Carl and Karl. He married in 1866 as Charles and gave his fathers name as Charles who was a farmer . Charles for a fathers name who would be back home in Prussia sounds unlikely.
He died in June Qtr 1923 in Cardiff as Carl E Lobeck
His Naturalisation papers say he is Karl Ernst August Lobeck and was a natural born subject of the emperor of Germany. It also states he is from Luhmannsdorf in the province of Pomerania .
Yes LizzieL no trace on 1911 census although his wife is listed in Cardiff and that's the right area as they moved from Falmouth to that area . So where is he in 1901 , can somebody do a look up for me was he not with his wife Mary?
So he didn't do too bad for himself from a humble wanted seaman on the run in 1861 to a ships chandlers and ships provision merchant in Falmouth with servants and becoming naturalised in 1872 and then bankrupt in 1875.

What surprises me is that if he jumped ship in 1861 in Falmouth he continued to live there , don't think they looked very hard for him.

Are there any records on how he got to Liverpool in 1860 or any other shipping records before that date .

Thanks Roy

[roymck]

Philip , any idea if there was a Jewish population in Pomerania during the the mid 1800's , family talk is he might have been Jewish and fled the country . I like the thinking about Memel just being a lazy answer for form filling .

[philipsearching]

Philip , any idea if there was a Jewish population in Pomerania during the the mid 1800's , family talk is he might have been Jewish and fled the country . I like the thinking about Memel just being a lazy answer for form filling .

http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/pomerania
may give some informatuion.  Unfortunately, I have no idea if there were Jewish families working the land.

Philip