Robert Gann born 4/4/1774

[Iain...]

Hi All !

I’m trying to find some family details of one of Waterloo’s unsung heroes, Robert Gann.
He participated in the Hougoumont defence at Waterloo 1815.

Robert was born on the 4th of April 1774 at Bobbingworth, Chipping Ongar, Essex.   
Occupation Labourer.   
Joined the Salop Militia on the 9th of February 1795 and was transferred to my Battalion/Regiment the Scots Guards on the 23 September 1799. (Third Regiment of Foot Guards)
He died on the 18 of February 1823 at Billericay, Essex. (“worn out and nearly deaf”)  Parrish records begin in 1844 !
Even on his headstone there’s no visible inscription.

If anyone can provide me the name of a parent, wife, sibling or child, it would be extremely appreciated. 

Thanks in advance..., Iain.

[suffolk*sue]

St. Germain, Bobbingworth

Robert Gann
baptised April 28th, 1776
son of John and Anne

no mention of a birth date.

siblings
Sarah, July 22nd, 1770
John, April 5th, 1772
William, June 26th, 1774
James, October 4th, 1778
Daniel. August 20th, 1780

=========

St. Peter and St. Paul, Stondon Massey
11th February, 1770
John Gann of Bobbingworth
Anne Brown of this parish
both single and by banns
witnesses
Tho, Franklin
Henry Madle

[olleym]

Looking at pictures of St Mary Magdalen, Billericay, it appears very Victorian and probably wasn't built in 1823. Gt Burstead was the parish out of which Billericay grew, he isn't buried there or at Little Burstead, nor at any of the surrounding parishes, are you sure of his date & place of death?
According the The Third foot Guards Register of Pensioners he was "admitted" on 05.03.1823, you will probably know what that means.



Mark

[Iain...]

Sue..., that’s just great !!   Thank you..., I really appreciate the info !

In fact, Robert was the senior soldier of two very special people for me. (not related)   In fact, I’m writing a short story about both of them and it should be published by the end of the year.   
They were both in my Battalion/Regiment the 2nd Battalion The Scots Guards..., the 'Light Company'; skirmishers. (today’s equivalent; Left Flank)

His sidekick was called Matthew Clay who, following the battle wrote two diaries concerning Quatre-Bras and the Hougoumont events.    Both defended the Hougoumont Farm/Chateau valiantly alongside the Coldstream and Grenadier Guards. (1st 2nd and 3rd Regiments of Foot Guards)
http://blidworthhistoricalsociety.co.uk/10501.html

Once again..., thank you Sue ! 

..., Iain.
http://img138.imageshack.us/img138/3994/scotsguards.jpg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0LnLz6mVUk4

@ Mark :
When looking at Wikipedia I also noticed that the Parrish records only started in 1844.  As for his death date, you now have me wondering.   Earlier on today I was ‘surprised’ to find that date when preparing my letter for RootsChat..., and it now looks as if I could have been a bit too impulsive.   The date prior to the change was 1840.   
A friend of mine has already seen the headstone and he said that there was no date on it.

RootsChat !   What a wonderful site !    Please explain..., “admitted”?   Are you talking about the Chelsea Pensioners ?
Mark..., where can I get access to that list ?

Very kind of you !    ..., Iain.   

[olleym]

Iain

There was a death of a Robert Gann in the neighbouring parish of Shenfield in 1840, but his death age did not tie up with your Robert, and had previously been called a "gentleman"!
Could your friend tell you in which church your friend saw the headstone? I'm not convinced that St Mary Madalen actually has a graveyard, as there are no online burials.
If you PM me your e-mail address I will sent you a copy of the pensioner records, it may well have been Chelsea Pensioners. But that is where the quote about Robert being "worn out and nearly dead" appears to have come from.
It would be nice to find a marriage record for Robert as well, but as he seems to have spent 25 years in the army he may well not have married.

Mark

[Iain...]

Good morning Mark..., and thank you. (I will PM you !)

In fact, the source of the information is a well known historian with many books under his belt.   Unfortunately, I no longer want to ‘grill’ him for information because firstly, he has already provided me with a lot of info about Robert and the Regiment but more importantly, he has a new book out in May for the Waterloo bi-centenary and he is under contract to remain silent before the publication.
Lol !   I will be contacting him anyway because I find it amusing that Sue’s info provides his name as a witness to Robert’s wedding.   But I promise you..., he’s not that old !     

I’m on Ancestry and despite not having him as a relation, I’ve started a tree.   With all your information and some of his service records, perhaps I’ll find a relation who knows more about the family.   
It often turns out that the majority of genealogists do not know their ancestors ever participated at Waterloo.    I’ve already  sent messages to at least 6 people related to Matthew Clay ! 
I’ll keep you updated.

Thanks again.   Kind Regards..., Iain.

[Iain...]

Hi Mark...

I received the following Admin message :

"PM successfully sent to 'olleym'.
PM could not be sent to 'Mark' as their inbox is full!"

PS  ?

Name:    Robert Gann
Registration Year:    1840
Registration Quarter:    Apr-May-Jun
Registration district:    Billericay
Parishes for this Registration District:    View Ecclesiastical Parishes associated with this Registration District
Inferred County:    Essex
Volume:    12
Page:    1

[olleym]

In 1840 Shenfield was in the Billericay registration district so I suspect that this is the death of the "gentleman" from Shenfield.

Mark

[Iain...]

Thank you Mark for the e-mail.    Very kind of you !
It looks as if I’ll have to research the Chelsea Pensioners issue to see how the system works !

I have a Chelsea Pensioner in my tree in Scotland and I’m just about sure he died there with his family.   
Being named in the ‘Chelsea Pensioner’ list you sent me, does that mean he died in Chelsea ?   Or does it simply mean that he received a military pension from there ? 

Probably a bit of a stupid question !   ..., Iain.