Is this a permanent brick wall or is there hope? Gypsy CLARK, Sussex

[jonw65]

Are you able to register with the British Newspaper Archive?
https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/account/register

It's free to join and they then give you three page views for free which you can download.

I can only see bits and pieces of the electronically generated text for that article in 1884, and I don't know the outcome of it all. You might want to read it privately because Grace did get rather violent. Then again, we can't really know what actually happened. I presume from the names it is your couple.
John

[rebekahm28]

  Thankyou, I never imagined my genteel Grace getting into a brawl. I'll sign up now, thank you so much for this.

[Liz_in_Sussex]

Hi again,

My intentions of having another look at this later this morning were thwarted by the internet messing around - bizarrely I could access a couple of sites but most were "not connecting to the server" so I went off for a wander on the Downs instead  Some interesting discoveries in the meantime!

It seems she is rather inconsistent about where she was born - so possibly we can't take it too seriously unless we can find her in 1851, and perhaps she really wasn't sure? I have had a look at the parishes around Shoreham (the Sussex town of that name - not the place in Kent) and could only find one Grace baptised at around the right time but that child died a few months later.

I'll start on the 1851 census now 

Liz

[rebekahm28]

Only if you have time Liz, very appreciated.

[Liz_in_Sussex]

In 1851 there is a 3 year old child Grace Goldsmith who is daughter of Stephen and Harriott Goldsmith. They are living in Ninfield and Grace's place of birth is given as Ninfield. Her younger sister, Eliza who is 9 months old is born Hellingly. They have an older sister Mary Ann, 5 and Sally, 8.

This Grace jumps out for further investigation because in 1881 Grace is a visitor at the home of Richard Goldsmith, on one occasion she gives her place of birth as Hellingly, and she names her oldest daughter Mary Ann.

You don't by any chance have any Goldsmith links in your DNA matches I suppose 

In 1861 this Grace is a boarder at a School in Lewisham in Kent but the rest of the family are still in Ninfield - very strange.

Of course the above is all based on my theory that she dropped her maiden name.

  Probably best to ignore me!

Liz

ADDED: It's half term! 

[jonw65]

Hope you got (or can get) hold of the article.
Selmeston, there are some baptisms here. Are they the same people?
Two on the same page
31 March 1873, Frederick Thomas
25 March 1874, James
Parents James + Grace Clark
Chesterfield Street, Brighton
Tramps
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HT-DRP3-6FG?i=647#

5 June 1883
Elizabeth
Parents James + Grace Clark
Travellers
Father a Broom ?
BT only
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-DRGS-YMF?i=197&cat=585739

[jonw65]

If Frederick Thomas was not too old at baptism in 1873
CLARK, FREDERICK  THOMAS     
Mother's Maiden Surname: YEALDING 
GRO Reference: 1872  M Quarter in UCKFIELD  Volume 02B  Page 126

But William is 9 in 1881?
Are any birth registrations established?

[JenB]

5 June 1883
Elizabeth
Parents James + Grace Clark
Travellers
Father a Broom ?
BT only
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-DRGS-YMF?i=197&cat=585739

He's a broom dasher  (i.e. a broom salesman http://sites.rootsweb.com/~usgwkidz/oldjobs.htm )

[Liz_in_Sussex]

Are any birth registrations established?

Not that I can see - but the GRO site still seems to be down so I can't check which is frustrating. FreeBMD doesn't come up with any.

Liz