John Williams, mariner and his wife Elizabeth Harrison (b Aylesby 1790) christened all seven of their children at St James Grimsby.....I have seen the parish register....and all have Tennyson as a middle name.Margaret Tennyson Williams was born in 1813 ,Thomas T 1815, Harriet T 1816, MaryAnn T 1817, Trevor T 1820, Rachel T 1821 and John T 1823.
To date I have not suceeded in finding the parents of John or his birth date. There is a suggestion he died at sea maybe 1824(Elizabeth remarried 7years after this date)
There are family legends about a Tennyson marriage. The children were not named after the poet Alfred as he was not born until 1809! A number of branches of descendants have inherited a story about a disapproved of marriage......was John or his mother illegitimate/had a name change?All have some story variant that there is a conncetion with the East Riding/Grimsby Tennysons
The Tennysons were keen to be come politically important in Grimsby at this time offering bribes and handouts to all voters...and bottles of wine one year to father whose babies were baptised in St James.....was John showing his allegianc but I can not find John Williams listed as a freeman?( Rev Geo Tennyson of Somersby was the very absentee rector of St James so I doubt they were names after him.) Chas Tennyson does become MP.
Politics apart I would have expected to have found a family maiden name somewhere. this seems to be the pattern for the susequent generations......Help! W-T
