RootsChat.Com

I would be very grateful if anyone could help improve this photo which includes my grandparents.
Thank you very much.

Thank you, I tried that and no reply.
I will post the message to other counties.

Thanks very much for your reply.

Yes it's quite a jump to make, that they are the same person.  I know that my James Tench (son of Patrick Tench and Lucy Rickard) was a solicitor because of some letters that have survived, and are in the family. He acted for some family members. The letters have address 24 Lr Ormond Quay, they begin with "My dear Aunt..." etc.

If there was only one James Tench in Dublin who was a solicitor, which seems to be the case, we can conclude that they must be the same person.

That in turn brings in the wealthy Gerald Tench (thanks for links) and all those people.

In favour of your theory is the fact that there's only one obvious James Tench death in the Civil Registrations for Dublin, regd in Q1 1890, which fits with the late Dec 1889 death.  The death index gives approx birth year as 1825.  I wonder did someone mistake  63 for 83 on the gravestone?

Having said that, the James son of Patrick could have died before 1864 when registration began.  And there's also a Ship's Passenger List entry for a James Tench aged 30 (probably an approximate age) in 1851 on www.rootsireland.ie
It might be worth buying that record to see if there are any Dublin indications.

Thanks for those two hints. I will buy that record, and also I think I will buy the death cert, just in case it has something. It is very interesting that you say the birth year is 1825. I might pay that grave a visit to check if the 8 could be a 6.

I find it curious that when I search the online 1901 census, there are only ten people named Tench in Dublin. There seem to have been many more people named Tench between 1800 and 1900.

Hello,

I have a few questions about some people with surname Tench in 19th century Dublin. I have a theory, and I would be very grateful if anyone could prove or disprove my theory.

My theory is that there were two brothers, Patrick and Gerald Tench, both born around 1790. First let me begin with Patrick.

I think Patrick was a tanner and currier on Back Lane, who married Lucy Rickard, see birth of a child here:
http://churchrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/churchrecords/details/30d88f0060793
(I know it says Richard, but I think it should be Rickard because I am researching Rickard and I have further evidence)
They had a son James:
http://churchrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/churchrecords/details/f083c80064453
who became a solicitor. He is listed in 1862 in the online street directory at 24 Lower Ormond Quay:
http://www.libraryireland.com/Dublin-Street-Directory-1862/122.php
In the 1862 Thoms directory, he is at this address, and there is also a firm of solicitors
named Tench and Reynolds at the same address. (I got this on findmypast)
The 1884 Thoms lists this firm at 16 Dominick street lower, so they must have moved.
1884 Thoms also lists James Tench at 16 Dominick st lower, and says his residence is 35 Pembroke road. It also lists a Gerald Tench, esq., at 35 Pembroke road, the same address.

The Gerald Tench, conjectured brother of Patrick,  became Registrar of the Equity side of the Court of Exchequer in 1827:
http://eppi.dippam.ac.uk/documents/10853/eppi_pages/242258
I believe this Gerald is the one mentioned in this post:

...
Now, as to Tench or Finnigan.  No luck on the Finnigan, but Tench is a popular name.  There are two headstones relating to that name and some of the names on them include...
Charles Tench died 10th October 1886 Aged 74.
Jane Meade (daughter of Charles Tench) died 16th Jan 1879,
aged 30.
Maggie Meade, child of Henry and Jane Meade, died 12th Aug 1877, aged 8.
Garrett Tench died Oct 4th aged 93 No year of Death given.

The second stone has the following Tench names on it.
Jerald Tench (spelled Gerald elsewhere on stone) died 19th Aug 1863 aged 76 years, Sophia his wife died 28th May 1869, aged 84.  James Tench, solicitor, nephew to above Gerald died at 35(?) Pembroke road, 24th Dec 1889, aged 85 years.  Mary Tench, relict of James Tench died 18(?)th Oct 1892 and her son James Tench died 29th April 18(8)6 aged 21.
...

Question 1: how likely is it that Patrick was a tanner and currier, and his brother Gerald became Registrar in the courts? These are jobs in different classes. Am I crazy to think they were brothers?

Question 2: Is the James Tench (son of Patrick and Lucy) the same James Tench mentioned on the gravestone?

Question 3: there is another James Tench here in 1894:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law_Society_of_Ireland
in the list of auditors of the solicitors apprectices debating society.
How is this James Tench related?

Just how many solicitors named James Tench in 19th century Dublin were there? In the 1901 census there are only eleven people named Tench in all of Ireland (ten of them are in Dublin) so it is not a very common name.

Question 4: Gerald Tench died in 1863 according to the gravestone, so he cannot be the Gerald Tench in the 1884 Thoms. How are they related? There is another solicitor mentioned elsewhere named Gerald Henry Tench, a nephew of Gerald Tench registrar. There is also a Gerald Tench on the peerage:
http://www.thepeerage.com/p26618.htm
Are these all different people?

I haven't even mentioned Charles Tench yet, and the Crumlin connection. The graves mentioned above are in Crumlin, and there was a tanner and currier named Charles Tench in Crumlin.

Whew. I'll stop here, many thanks to anyone who can shed any light on this puzzle.

Gary