Brick Wall: My G-G-Grandfather William Brown (Scotland, England)

[jbrowntoros]

Hi, first time poster here.
William shows up in England in 1891, in the household with my g-g-grandmother Sarah Jane (nee Isherwood, first/only legal marriage to a Crowther). Besides birth details on Census entries I know nothing of his pre-1891 life. Hence I'm here 

1891 - recorded as born 1853 Morecambe. This location seems an aberration.  Occ given is Railway Plate Layer.

1901 - born abt 1852, Scotland). Occ: Road Labourer/Highway Watchman. A tick/checkmark is visible in the final (Disability) column of the Census (viewed the image).

1911- born abt 1852 Scotland. Occ: Watch Man, for the Urban District Council. Listed as "Cripple since 1892". Nationality box shows "510" in red ink when viewing the image; this was code for "Edinburgh residents" in this Census. He clearly is not an Edinburgh resident at this point, having been with my g-g-grandmother for at least 20 years in Golborne (Wigan and Leigh, Lancashire).

William dies in late April 1915, recorded age at death 63, so possibly born 1851 I guess.

Sarah Jane dies in 1935 with her death registered under surname CROWTHER (her gravestone also reads Crowther). William and Sarah had three kids together; their oldest son Henry began using Brown-Crowther for a surname at his first son's baptism in 1914.

I have only three Y-DNA (111 markers) matches on FTDNA - almost all of these have the surname Black, and those that have gotten out of the USA in their paternal line research all seem to go back to County Antrim. I have opened contact with all of my living Y-DNA 111 matches with varying degrees of success.

That's what I have! Please and thank you for any help!

jbrowntoros

[jbrowntoros]

A William Brown, Scotland-born (c. 1853/4), cripple and s/o Robert Brown and Jane nee Bays exists on earlier England Censuses (1861 and 1871).
The Scotland, cripple and Robert (my g-grandfather's name) leads made it look so promising, but I've eliminated him based on a very thorough search of all William Brown deaths in the area from 1881 to 1891 (as Wm s/o Robert and Jane seems to disappear) that leads me to conclude that this William died in 1881 in Warrington aged 26.

That was a major let-down given it seemed such a good lead (albeit the 1911 Census image says my William was only crippled/disabled since 1892).

[GR2]

As he was a plate layer in 1891 and crippled in 1892, I had a look for any reports of railway accidents in Lancashire in 1892. The only mention of a William Brown, plate layer, that I could see is a report in the Fleetwood Chronicle of 30-12-1892: "about seven o'clock on the morning of Christmas Day, a plate layer named William Brown, of Cleveleys, whilst proceeding up the line, made a horrifying discovery, ..." He found a body on the line.

[CaroleW]

The birthplace in 1891 is very unclear on the image on Ancestry but somebody surname Brown has notified a correction saying the image on FindMyPast is better quality & clearly shows Morecambe??

[ColC]

William shows up in England in 1891, in the household with my g-g-grandmother Sarah Jane (nee Isherwood, first/only legal marriage to a Crowther).

Does this mean you have their marriage certificate?

Colin

[CaroleW]

Sarah Isherwood married Frederick Crowther Dec qtr 1871

However - her birthyear in 1891 is 1860 so that doesn't tie up.  2 of the children shown as Brown in 1891 are actually surname Crowther

Ellen Crowther 1884 mmn Isherwood - Haslingden
Albert Isherwood Crowther 1887

Son Henry b 1889 was registered as Brown

[ColC]

Carole beat me to it but I will post anyway.

I guess from the birth registrations below, William & Sarah may not have been married?

1891 Billinge, Ashton, Lancashire
William Brown   38   Head   Morecambe
Sarah J Brown   31   Wife   Bury, Lancashire
Ellen J Brown   7   Daughter   Haslingden Lancashire
Albert Brown   3   Son   Ditto
Henry Brown   2   Son   Salford, Lancashire

When Henry married in 1913, father not noted.
When Elizabeth Brown married 1917 father William Labourer, not noted as deceased.

Births Mar 1884   
CROWTHER    Ellen        Haslingden    8e   140

Births Dec 1887   
Crowther    Albert Isherwood        Haslingden    8e   132

BROWN, HENRY       ISHERWOOD 
GRO Reference: 1889  J Quarter in SALFORD  Volume 08D  Page 177

Colin

[CaroleW]

Opening post refers to the Crowther marriage as being the first & only legal marriage

[jbrowntoros]

The birthplace in 1891 is very unclear on the image on Ancestry but somebody surname Brown has notified a correction saying the image on FindMyPast is better quality & clearly shows Morecambe??

Yes that is a thread I started on Ancestry boards.  Yes it does show that and all I can really surmise is there was an error by the Census taker or whoever gave that information to them - I'm inclined to trust the Scotland report which appears twice (both in more recent censuses).