1st Battalion Grenadier guards 1851

[fenifur]

Hello!
I am trying to find my Great x2 Grandfather John Hunt, on the 1851 census. I know he was in the 1st battallion Grenadier guards, and the newspaper reports have him in St george's barracks in dec 1849 which matches his marriage cert., so I assume these listing are correct. That would mean that he should be in the Tower barracks for 1851 (although the last reference I have of him being in the 1st battalion is his sons birth cert in 1850).
They did move to the New Windsor barracks about the time of the census, and I know they did not always move the battalion in one go.
So basically I'm wondering two things:
1) what are the chances he changed battalions/regiments in the space of a year
2) would they have made the transition to each barracks all in one go, or would they have stayed overnight somewhere? Meaning on the night of the census they might have been 'camped out' so to speak?

I have so far found a William and a Thomas Hunt in these two barracks, and I suppose he could have changed his first name (I've had it happen twice before in this family) or lied to my greatx2 Grandmother about his first name for some reason, but he does have another child with her (I presume it's his) in 1854 so it would seem a strange thing to do.

Thanks in advance for your help! 

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Just to add, the only info I have on him is from his marriage cert. So he was 'full age' in 1849, and his father was James Hunt, a labourer. Neither facts are particularly helpful at this stage! 

[gortonboy]

HI,,,Do you know where he was born?

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Unfortunately not, as I said all I have is his marriage cert where he is living in the barracks, as his wife and kids are never with him in the censuses. 

[fenifur]

Also, he dies between 1854 and 1861 as Sarah is listed as a widow, so the 1851 census is the only one I have any hope of finding him on, unless she was telling fibs.

[gortonboy]

ahhhh,,,might rule out the service record i found then,,,this John Hunt was b c1820 in Worcester,,enlisted in the Grenadier guards age 17 in 1837,,,served till 1865.He was a colourful character,,never seen anyone with so many entries in the defaulters book,and court martialled so many times. Thought it might be your chap,as he was always deserting,which may have explained why you cant see him in 1851,,,he might have been using an assumed name.
But if his wife was a widow in 1861?

[km1971]

There is a Jno (John) Hunt in the army hospital in Windsor. He is aged 25 and born Farringdon, Berkshire. He is marked as single, but he may not have told the army he had married.

btw...there is another John Hunt - same age and place of birth - living in St Georges, London - but married to Mary Ann. So if you check the Farringdon registers you need to be aware that there were at least two born about the same time.

If he gave the army a different name he surely would have used it at his marriage. What was the name of the male witness?

Ken

[fenifur]

At the moment both sound promising!
gortonboy - where did you find that service record? Would I be able to view it via ancestry? It sounds like my family, all of them were, erm.. 'dodgy' Plus as Elizabeth, his wife, is often lodging with and without her children, she may have just said she was a widow, as I have had this happen on my mum's side twice before - one for a lady who was never married in the first place!

km1971 - I hadn't been able to find the hospital on the census, do you have the ref no.s/a link? For some reason I have an 1841 census in Berkshire attached to him, I think just because the father is called James. So this could be him...

Thanks for your help, would love to find him as this is the main surname I wanted to research and is only one of two brick walls in the entire tree!

[fenifur]

Found an 1841 census for Eaton Hastings (3 miles from Farringdon) for a John Hunt, father James, who doesn't seem to appear on any other censuses! Can you guys have a quick look and see what you think?
http://search.ancestry.co.uk/iexec?htx=view&r=5538&dbid=8978&iid=BRKHO107_25_27-0420&fn=John&ln=Hunt&st=r&ssrc=pt_t25737453_p1876615903_kpidz0q3d1876615903z0q26pgz0q3d32770z0q26pgPLz0q3dpid&pid=1363903

Berkshire > Eaton Hastings > District 5 > page 3