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While researching one of my ancestors I was interested to learn that he was an artist. On different census forms he describes himself as "artist" and "modeller" and "engraver". How do I go about finding out what exactly he did? He was born about 1811 and died in 1852. I "googled" him but came up with nothing. There is a story in the family that Turner once visited him in his studio. Are there organisations in London (where he lived and worked) who might know?

Hi everyone! My great great grandfather William Townsend was born in the Neath area according to various English censuses. He was born about 1833  before civil registration was introduced. On his marriage cert in 1894 his deceased father was named as Job Townsend (I think, it's hard to decipher the script). It appears from census images that he had been living in London for some time. In the 1841 Wales census he appears living with his widowed mother and siblings in Margam ( if that is really him). The trail lies cold then. How can I go about trying to trace the family further back. I live in Ireland so a trek over to Wales at the moment is out of the question due to financial circumstances ( I'll be watching the rugby match on the tv though!).