German Ancestors

[SarahCarroll]

Hi, i'm trying to track my German ancestry and was after some help maybe?
I'm looking for info on my 3rd great grandfather Philip Lower (obviously name may be different in Germany) who according to Wales census was born in Germany about 1835. His father was Jacob Lower, born about 1802 and who also came to Wales as he died in Merthyr in 1876. Philip also had siblings that were born in Germany and died in Wales, Mary born 1823, Peter born 1831 and Elizabeth born in 1854. I don't know when they moved from Germany but presume it was somewhere between 1854 and 1863, when he married Christina Gebel in West bromwich. In one of the census he puts his place of birth as Germany, F S? I'll try to attach a screenshot.

[emmsthheight]

Hi Sarah
Just going to have another go at my German side.

Looks exactly as you say  The FS intrigued me too.  I expected BS for British subject or else German subject but I can only think of French subject or Franzorsische probably wrongly spelt.

Have you got census for any other years?  We have a French born lady - we think! - and on other census I found more details - though we still have a mystery!

I did find one entry for the German side onfamilysearch but need to find out about certificates.

Good luck!

best wishes

Emms

[youngtug]

Looks like a seven to me.

[SarahCarroll]

Hi and thanks for responses!

I have Philip on the 1871 census through to just before he died on the 1901 census but they just read 'Germany'. I can't find him on the 1861 census, perhaps he hadn't come to UK yet.

It could read 7 but what could that be referring to?!

I'll have a little look on Familysearch.

[BelgianAncestry]

If it's really FS: that could be Freistaat Sachsen (Saxonia).

[SarahCarroll]

Thanks. Having done a random search on the internet i think it possible it means 'Foreign Subject'. That doesn't help me out with the search of course 

[Bookbox]

It's almost certainly F. S. for Foreign Subject, and probably an annotation by a government clerk (different hand from the enumerator).

See ...
http://histpop.org/ohpr/servlet/View?path=Browse/Essays%20%28by%20kind%29/Census/Great%20Britain&active=yes&mno=2075
"The 1901 census broke the population down into four groups instructing householders to:
State the Birthplace of each person:
1. If in England and Wales, the County and Town, or Parish.
2. If in Scotland or Ireland, the name of the County.
3. If in a British Colony or Dependency, the name of the Colony or Dependency.
4. If in a Foreign Country, the name of the Country, and whether the person be a 'British Subject', a 'Naturalised British Subject', or a 'Foreign Subject' ..."

[SarahCarroll]

Thanks. Excuse my ignorance but what is the difference between a naturalised subject and a foreign subject?

[Bookbox]

Thanks. Excuse my ignorance but what is the difference between a naturalised subject and a foreign subject?

A naturalised subject would have applied for and been granted British Naturalisation. A foreign subject would not.