Tracing my great-grandfather: Thomas Cowen

[pet50ite]

Hi Joshwa
Good luck with searching your cowan/cowen family. Just a word of advice from someone who has lots of cowans in her family. Don't discount coen, cowin cohen or cohan as I did in the early stages. People were a lot less hung up on correct spellings the further back you go. Also if you do trace them back to Ireland there are two excellent free resources, The Irish 1901/1911 census (Iknow that won't help with your immediate ancestors but when you have to work sideways - ie siblings cousins - it might come in handy). The other resource for ancestors in Dublin' Cork and Kerry is Irish Genealogy ie which has details of a lot of the church details for marriage and baptism going back to the 1700s in some cases.

[keyboard86]

Hi again, finding at last the baptism of George in 1883, gave me another "variant search" ie COWING, this led to what I believe are the census returns for the family of Thomas:-

Marriage George Cowin to Jane Foster Dec qtr 1857 S Shields 10a 601

1861 Census

George COWRN 22 occ Labourer Factory b Cumberland
Jane 24 b Corbridge, Northumberland
Joseph 1 b Jarrow
Residing at 2, Rosemary Terrace, St John, Newcastle upon Tyne
Census Ref RG09/3824/40/6

1871 Census

George COWING 33 occ Ironship? Caulker b Gileworth, Cumberland
Jane 34 b Corbridge, Northumberland
Joseph 12 b Jarrow
THOMAS 9 b Birkenhead, Cheshire
Robert 6 b Newcatle upon Tyne
Jane 1 b Bishop Wearmouth, Durham
Residing at John Street, Bishop Wearmouth, Sunderland.
Census Ref RG10/4999/51/35

In 1881 Census ref RG11/5021/127/31 George is b Carlisle and young Jane is an Isabella
Keyboard86

[keyboard86]

Hi again, this is Ann Crummy/Crumley/Crummey!

Marriage Owen Crummey to Catherine Dowling March qtr 1861 Gateshead 10a 586

1861 Census

Owen Crummy 21 occ Jobbing Labourer b Ireland
Catherine 24 b Ireland
Residing at 16, Grosvenor Street, Gateshead
Census Ref RG09/3799/50/50

1871 Census

Owen Crummey 30 occ Labourer b Ireland
Catherine 33 b Ireland
Ann 9 b Gateshead
Joseph 7 b Gateshead
Patrick 5 b Walton? Northumberland
Plus 2 Boarders
Residing at Bill Quay Bottle Houses, Heworth, Gateshead, Durham
Census Ref RG10/5049/32/7

In 1881 Ann Crummey b 1862 occ Blocker Artzn b Jarrow and Patrick b 1865 Jarrow are lodgers with William and Margaret Roberts at 2, Lime Street, Bradford, Prestwich, Lancashire
Census Ref RG11/4017/92/52

Looks like Owen Crummey was visiting his daughter in 1891 as their is this death:-

Death Owen Crummey March qtr 1891 Cardiff 11a 2_6 aged 50

Also I believe their was a Patrick Cowen b March qtr 1896 Cardiff 11a 397 who for whatever reason is missing from the 1901 census, but on a Free Search of 1911, he is their with family in 1911?
Keyboard86

[JoshWa]

Ahh thank you for this! I shall PM you with a quick question, to save you checking this thread.

pet50ite, thanks for the tip! Across 4 generations, the spelling of Cowan has changed 3 times, haha. Thank you for the Irish Genealogy tip too, that will help for other parts of my tree x