Ageless William Glanville

[Jem]

G'Day All, He joined UK Army on 3 Feb 1831 in Devon, not in UK for 1841 census, on Ship to Australia as a Convict Guard with Wife Sophia who he married in 1844 at Daventry, England for 1851 census, left Army at own request in Ireland in 1849 with a one year salary gratuity so not in Chelsea Pensioners records. I physically inspected all his 47th Regt records at Kew and no record of an age anywhere. I am at a total loss as to where to find his birth/parents. I can supply all details I know in direct emails rather than clog the forum if anyone is a better detective than me. Cheers, John Bennett in Oz

 

[peter]

Ancestry DNA is the best bet, if you haven't already tested with them.

 

[Pauline]

Wife Sophia who he married in 1844 at Daventry, England for 1851 census,

I may be missing something here, and I know you have more details not mentioned above, but do you not have an age and place of birth from the 1851 census, and a father's name from the marriage certificate?

 

[Jem]

Ancestry DNA is the best bet, if you haven't already tested with them.

G'Day Peter, Wife who is the blood rellie does not want to do DNA. Doing my DNA has found some new blood rellies in my lines. My Ancestry account and Findmypast account are how I know of his marriage in Daventry and reason for absence from all censuses, all Williams I could find born early enough to enlist in Devon were either still there for 1841/51 censuses or deceased prior, ditto all old enough in 1861/71/81 were also present in 1851. I spent 2 days at Kew about 10 years ago doing the Regiment records. Police and Convict service records here in West Oz have also all been inspected with no age found. I have excellent coverage of his descendants here in Oz, it is just the next step back that is the problem.... yes I know, welcome to the club, , Cheers, John

 

[Jem]

Ancestry DNA is the best bet, if you haven't already tested with them.

G'Day Pauline, he was on ship on way to Australia at time of 1851 census, yes his father was John Glanville, a sailor, Cheers, John

 

[Pauline]

G'Day Pauline, he was on ship on way to Australia at time of 1851 census, yes his father was John Glanville, a sailor, Cheers, John

OK, I read your first post as saying he was in England with his wife Sophia in 1851.

EDIT: and re-reading, I realise now the England relates to Daventry and the location of his marriage.

 

[peter]

Wife who is the blood rellie does not want to do DNA.

You're going to have to change her mind. One way or another you require a miracle.

 

[Jem]

I may be missing something here, and I know you have more details not mentioned above, but do you not have an age and place of birth from the 1851 census, and a father's name from the marriage certificate?

G'day Pauline, today I received a note saying you had responded and I a sure I already replied but here it is again. Yes, his father on marriage in Daventry was John a sailor, and William and Sophia are both shown on marriage cert as 'of full age'. No he was not in UK for 1841 census, overseas with Army, He was a guard on the Convict Ship Pyrenees coming to Australia at time of 1851 census.

 

[jorghes]

Have you located any possible death records for a possible age?

I feel your pain, I have a similar situation with a soldier, but his death I can only find recorded on a medal roll.

 

[Jem]

Have you located any possible death records for a possible age?

I feel your pain, I have a similar situation with a soldier, but his death I can only find recorded on a medal roll.

G'Day Jorghes,
William was only here in Western Australia for a couple of years, his wife Sophia died in childbirth, he took to drink, lost the plot, was dismissed from his job, had no money to feed family, deserted his kids and left Australia. Prison/convict service records here refer to him writing from Capetown asking for his job to be reinstated, request was refused. I have a short handwritten note, no date or place of origin, to his kids saying he was going to get a job as an overseer in Bermuda and would contact them when he arrived, did not happen, no later communications known. Suspecting he might have gone from Capetown back to England led me to search 1861 and later censuses but he is not there. I cannot find any William Glanville arriving in Bermuda or other adjacent Islands, after 1852, who was born enough time before he enlisted in 1831, even accounting for possible age lies. His army service did not involve battles according to 47th Regt. Paybooks, so no campaign medals so far as I can discern. Family folklore has him rejoining UK army and posted to Crimea but I cannot find any trace of that occurring in UK after 1852 and before 1861 census. Another bit of same folklore has him as the son of Ann Glanville "Heroine of the Hamoaze" in Saltash, Devon but her son William was way too young to have joined army in 1831 plus he was still in England for 1841 and later censuses, another dead end. So possible places and years for both birth and death are completely elastic across a very wide range. Probably more than you wanted to know, apologies and best wishes,
John in Oz.

 

[jorghes]

Have you checked to see if he moved to another Australian colony?

the Medal rolls for the Crimean War are on Ancestry. My similar military relative served in Crimea with the 79th regiment.

 

[Jem]

G'Day again Jorghes,
Yes, but I could not find him in Crimea with any regiment getting medals or doing anything else. Not on manifest of any ship coming to any part of Australia from South Africa (or anywhere else) between 1851 and 1861 that I could find. Ditto arrivals in UK ports and Departures from UK ports going to anywhere in West Indies, Barbados in particular. Unfortunately I have not been able to find records of deaths to check in South Africa which was the last place where he is definitely known to have been around 1852/4. Probably would have not been unusual for civil strife deaths in South Africa at that time, but that is just idle conjecture on my part. Certainly not found on the many revisits to deaths in UK from 1851 to 1871, every old enough William Glanville death candidate looked at was also present in UK in the 1851 census. I really have chased this hard for around 20 years now, casting straws into the wind at every opportunity. Way back 10 plus years ago, when there was an RAOGK website, a resident of Barbados looked at some plantation employment records there (in their archives but not online) for me without any success.
Cheers, John in Oz

 

[jorghes]

I have a few relatives who moved to South Africa and I haven't been able to find out what happened to them after that, unfortunately, it seems difficult to find BDM records for South Africa.

Perhaps you'll just have to presume that he died in South Africa, year unknown!