French Guyana

[DCS]

How can I find out about a Simon Weill who was born in Alsace, lived in the East End of London, and then got sent to French guyana as a punishment for committing a crime.  I want to know who I can approach to find out the record of criminals/convicts sent to Devil's Island in French Guyana and what sort of crime Simon Weill did to warrant this punishment.  Would have been in the 1800s.

[jorose]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Devil's_Island
- specifically, it would have been after 1852, when the prison opened, and it appears it was used by the French government - so if he got sent there it would have been from a French court, and I'd guess the records would be in France then but I'm not sure where.

Do you know what years he was in London? There was a Simon Weill in the 1861 census of Stepney, born Colmar, with his parents:

Louis Weill, 42, shoe manufacturer, b. Colmar
Marie, wife, 46, b. dit
Simon, son, 23, shoe traveller, b. dit
Meyer, ", 22, ", "
Abraham, ", 15, ", "
Julia, dau, 14, scholar, b. "
Matthew, son, 12, ", "
Raschel, dau, 10, ", "
Susman, son, 7, ", "
Rosa Meyer, visitor, married, 32, b. Paris
Leon, visitor, 7, b. Paris
Hannah, visitor, 5, b. Whitechapel

A Simon Weill also married Mar 1864 in Whitechapel district, London - was this yours?

[DCS]

Hi, thanks for your comments.  This is what I have:

Marriages Mar 1901
~~~~~~~~
 
COHEN  Fanny    Mile End  1c 602   
GREEN  Thomas     Mile End  1c 602   
JACOBS  Isaac     Mile End  1c 602   
Weill  Blanche     Mile End  1c 602   

 
And, I found this lot - Blanche is 2 - Rachel Weill is on her own so hubby could have been in French Guyana then.  Can't see Martha or Matthew etc - but the sister Rachel Weill could have been Simon's sister - she is from France!  Their neighbours makes interesting reading - cigar makers and clothing dealers - big Jewish area by the look of it.
 
Household:


 Name  Relation Marital Status Gender Age Birthplace Occupation Disability
 Rachel WEILL   Wife (Head)   M   Female   37   London City Of, Middlesex, England       
 Jules WEILL   Son      Male   16   Mile End Stepney, Middlesex, England   Boot Clicker     
 Sarah WEILL   Daur      Female   13   Stepney, Middlesex, England   Scholar     
 Caroline WEILL   Daur      Female   12   Stepney, Middlesex, England   Scholar     
 Frances WEILL   Daur      Female   9   Spitalfields, Middlesex, England   Scholar     
 Joseph WEILL   Son      Male   7   Spitalfields, Middlesex, England   Scholar     
 Mena WEILL   Daur      Female   3   Mile End Old Town, Middlesex, England       
 Blanche WEILL   Daur      Female   2   Mile End Old Town, Middlesex, England       
 Rachel WEILL   Sister   U   Female   30   (B S), France   Boot Trade Traveller (Com)     
 Woolf PHILLIPS   Nephew      Male   1   Mile End Old Town, Middlesex, England       
 Doro DORSTA   Servant   U   Female   30   (F), Germany   Domestic Serv 

[DCS]

Oops - forgot - Simon Weill born 22nd June

1838 Raguisham Haut-Rhin France who was the greatgrandfather