Hello Valda
I just wanted to write and thank you very much for your help in tracing my ggg grandparents on both sides. A while ago you sent me a census entry for a Charles and Sarah Hunt and their family (above) - he was a Superintendant of the Victoria Park Cemetery in Bethnal Green in 1851 (I now have reason to believe that he may have helped in the design of that park). I have made big strides thanks to your information. James Thomas, Charles's father-in-law was a Chief boatman and then Coastguard and he was transferred to St Lawrence in the Isle of Wight - while he was there he and another man were in instrumental in rescuing 19 people off the foundering 430 ton ship Bainbridge, which was driven onto rocks near Atherfield. James (and presumably Stubbs) won silver medals RNLI for Lifeboat Gallantry.
Jame's eldest daughter Sarah married Charles Hunt (he was a gardener) and moved to London. Apparently James and his wife Sarah (nee Croscombe) moved to London first and that was the incentive for the family to move there. I have discovered that Charles had a sister called Elizabeth and therefore think that Elizabeth Hunt was probably the wife of James Brown and therefore my ggg grandmother. So the links to Wales and the Isle of Wight, as you can see has been a very important one.
They seemed to move about a great deal in those days, as James and Sarah's two eldest children were born in Swansea, Wales, but the other children were born in the IOW. I have the names of the Hunts further back, but am having difficulty linking William Hunt (1776) and Jane Devenish (1778), his wife to Thomas Hunt (born 1770, St Lawrence, IOW) and Hannah Dyer (nee Tutchell), his wife and beyond them, Thomas Hunt and Mary Coleman. Hannah Dyer was first married to Richard Dyer. I presume that William was Thomas's brother. William and Jane Devenish were married in St Lawrence, IOW in 1797.
I am also having problems finding a birth for James Thomas (may be in Wales, but not sure - 1800) and his wife Sarah Croscombe who supposedly married him in Devon where her family came from.
I have this information (below) from a private book about the Hunt family (just a couple of pages of which I found online):
Noted events in his life were:-
Charles was born at Steephill Farm, in the parish of Godshill and grew up in neighbouring St Lawrence where his father, William was born. It was here that he met his future wife, Sarah Thomas, daughter of St Lawrence coastguard and chief boatman, James Thomas and his wife Sarah nee Croscombe. Sarah was born in Swansea, Wales and christened in Northam, Devon - close to Bideford, the birthplace of her grandfather, merchant navy captain, George Croscombe. The Thomas family settled in St Lawrence circa 1826 when James was transferred from Clovelly, Devon, before moving along the coast to Atherfield Preventive Station. On 24 October, 1832, James received a silver medal for his part in risking his life to rescue passengers from the stricken brig, Bainbridge, that foundered on rocks off Atherfield.
I have not even touched on James Brown yet (Sophia Thomas's father-in-law), so more scavenging to come, but once again I really appreciate your help - a big thank you!
Kind regards
Jenny
