stephenson info

[brianstephenson]

Hi, in 1872 thomas Stephenson and Mary Stephenson(nee Watson) came to Australia.
I am trying to find what happened to Thomas parents.  I assume they died but can't
find when and where.

Married 1832: George Stephenson and Hannah Howe, Chester Le Street
Census 1841: Chester Le Street with children
Census 1851: Chester Le Street with children, including a new baby
Census 1861: Newfield, buyers green, Auckland with children BUT with new wife Mary

So, no Hannah Stephenson in 1861 Census, did she die?
      no George Stephenson in 1871 Census, maybe died jan-mar 1862 in Auckland.

I checked the cemeteries in the region online, no luck narrowing anything down. There is lots and lots
of names in the death register, how do you guys pin point things? is it done by "on the ground"
research versus online?

Lots of regards
Brian Stephenson

[AlanBoyd]

Ancestry is pointing me to a death record for a Hannah Howe in Australia, but I don’t have access – have you ruled this one out? Obviously this could be completely spurious.

[maddys52]

Welcome to RootsChat.

On the GRO index you can search for Hannah STEPHENSON deaths.
https://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content/certificates/  (free search, but you need to register)

None that look right in Chester le Street between 1851 and 1861, however at Auckland there are a couple. I would suggest going by her age on the 1851 census (born c1814) that this death looks possible:

Dec qtr 1856 Auckland (10a/59) aged 43.

A couple of possible marriages for George STEPHENSON and a Mary in Auckland - Mar qtr 1857 or Mar qtr 1859 (from FreeBMD). Did they have any children - you can check the GRO births for mother's maiden name.

Modified to add:
I can see on the 1861 census there are no new children.

[brianstephenson]

Hi, I did investigate Hannah Howe in Australia but age and ship records didn't line up.

The General Register Office, I will register. Thanks for the tip.
     Dec qtr 1856 Auckland (10a/59) aged 43.
Wow this looks promising, cause of death and cemetery, would they be available??

I used the freeBDM site which gives:
     surname. given name. district. vol. page.  and a scan of the entry if wanted,
but there is no age or cemetery, is it a separate register to the GRO??

I'll look for George and Mary and others with the info you have given, much appreciation
for your knowledge

Kind regards
Brian Stephenson

[maddys52]

Free BMD is a resource which aims to transcribe all the births, marriages and deaths in England and Wales from civil registration onwards, but it only provides names and locations, and which quarter the event occurred in, and the reference number (volume, page number etc), not all the information which is actually on the records. The GRO however is where you can obtain copies of the certificates, so these will have all the information available (for a cost). A Death certificate should show cause of death, but not the cemetery. You can now order an online digital image of birth and death certificates for £2.50.

[maddys52]

Meant to add the other day that the George STEPHENSON who died registered at Auckland in Mar qtr 1862 was aged 55 (according to the GRO index). This does not quite tally with his age on the 1861 census (48) and 1851 census (38). 

[brianstephenson]

Hi Maddys52, thanks for that info. With your help I think George is

   Name:   Age at Death (in years):
   STEPHENSON, GEORGE       59
       1872  M Quarter in HOUGHTON-LE-SPRING  Volume 10A

He was baptised in Houghton, but I can't find any 1871 CENSUS yet.

interestingly, I found while looking, his other son George (brother Thomas)
came to Australia a bit later and was considered a bachelor, never married.
But from Census he had wife and 5 children UK side, he seems to have looked
after them ok, and after he was killed in a gold mining machinery accident
1907 his wife put "Widowed" in 1911 Census.

Kind regards
Brian Stephenson

[brianstephenson]

Hi, I wonder if I can ask just some general questions.

Unverified by documentation at this stage, but I am confident I have corrected errors in my family tree for Watson and Stephenson families in Durham back to 1806 and 1813 respectively.

Question 1: is going back further into 1700's out of reach for online type research in Durham county
                   area? I did see some Stephenson names in coal mine accidents in 1700's.

Question 2: Durham Records Online was a big help to me when I started and I would like to support
                   them, are the records the same as GRO records? price is different, is there a reason?

Question 3: my mothers UK side is from London, would there be a Durham Records Online type of
                   organisation for that area?

Question 4: Stephenson name is very common in North England, is there any organised activity to
                   allow easier research, for example once family tree is varified, it can be eliminated
                   from someone else research or if purchased record is incorrect, be made availiable to
                   someone else?

Question 5: is Stephenson as opposed to Stevenson a northern English name or Scottish? seems to
                   be various views on this

Tip for anyone outside UK, draw a map and plot what you know is correct, for example Newfield can be in few areas (I think associated with coal mines) and Chester le street is a village in Durham
County NOT a street in Durham City. And there is a lot of interesting history associated with the names.

Kind regards
Brian Stephenson

[AlanBoyd]

Question 2

Durham Records Online (no affiliation) has an ongoing programme of producing new and full transcriptions of parish records, including abodes, occupations, witnesses, sponsors etc. These can provide extra information, but the richness of that information will very much depend upon the policy of the person making the records at the time.

They are also, despite their name, expanding into Northumberland (and possibly North Yorkshire, this is from memory). There was a large influx of people into Durham in the 19th century and many of these came from these neighbouring areas – that’s certainly what happened in my tree.

Added: the display of ‘abode’ can be particularly useful when looking for an individual family at a particular period.