** I have asked for this topic to be locked so please don't spend time searching **Posted here as the story covers several places in England and Wales...
Joseph Brooks (born Isle of Man, no birth record, baptised on 7 Oct 1877) married Louisa Barnes (born 27 Dec 1876, at Tynewydd, Glamorgan) at Pontypridd (Glamorgan) register office on 26 Dec 1896, father Samuel, navvy ganger. Joseph and Louisa were both living at
90 Middle Street, Trallwn Gardens, Pontypridd.
Joseph's father Samuel was born in Banbury (
1881 - Ludgershall, Wiltshire: RG11/2062/40 p 13) or Aston (
1891 - 1 Richard Street, Holton, Barry, Glamorgan: RG12/4408/5 p 1) in Oxfordshire around 1840. Living on the Isle of Man in 1861 [
RG10/ 5777/67 p 3; ]. The 1881 census entry is very confusing and lists Samuel's wife as Carbury Brooks, Carbury being her maiden name.
The previous year, Louisa's mother Sarah Ann Heath (nee Dewson) had married William Brooks. Sarah Ann is with a 'daughter' (I don't know who this is at the moment) but not William on the census in 1901 [
RG13/4998/41 p 4], though are at 56 Coedpenmaen Rd, Pontypridd, in 1911, William, aged 68, born around 1843 in London [
RG14/32221; Schedule Number: 40]. At this point, I had assumed that Samuel and William were 2 different men, and had not found Samuel (contractor/builder) and wife Elizabeth after 1891 when they were in Barry (south Wales) (
1891 - 1 Richard Street, Holton, Barry, Glamorgan: RG12/4408/5 p 1) .
Sarah Ann Dewson / Duson had a colourful (and sad) history.... see a previous topic
http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=760550.msg6220600#msg6220600 I've been following Sarah Ann's journey, buying the certificates of the children, and last week I decided to buy the certificate from her marriage to William Brooks (not his 3* great grandfather), and this is where the mystery appeared. Or I'm adding 2+2 and making 5
or missing something obvious!
On 10 Nov 1895 at St Catherine's church, Pontypridd, William Brooks, widower, labourer,
of 90 Trallwn Gardens, Pontypridd (father Samuel, labourer), married Sarah Ann Heath, also of
90 Trallwn Gardens. The address rang a bell and sure enough, it's very similar to the address where Joseph Brooks and Louisa Barnes were living at the time of their marriage in 1896.
A few years ago I found a death of an Elizabeth Brooks (aged 54) in Pontypridd in 1895 but the local register office had told me that she wasn't the wife of Samuel so I'd assumed she wasn't mine. But I've been back to them today and she was the wife of William Brooks, of
90 Middle Street, Trallwn, William a general contractor. This would seem to suggest - to me anyway - that my Samuel, father of Joseph, and William are the same man. William's death (6 Oct 1917, Pontypridd) is registered as William S, though probate is just William. I've not found a death for my Samuel.
The final bit of the puzzle is that 2 of the children of Samuel and Elizabeth had father's name recorded as William on the baptism register in the Isle of Man (in one case - see attached pic - the original S had been clearly overwritten by the full William), [IOM birth and baptism records]. Alice is on the 1871 and 1881 censuses with Samuel and Elizabeth. Sadly I've not found the marriage of Samuel and Elizabeth Carberry / Carbury to know anything more, father's name etc.
Apologies for the long and no doubt confusing post.