Help please with my elusive hawkers/pedlars! .....

[ellenavon]

Some of you may remember some time ago I had a query about someone whose name looked like "Nonsy" on the 1891. As David suggested, it was Henry, and I have got a bit further with the family - but now I am in even more of a fankle!

OK here we go: William Taylor (my great grandad) 1877-1965 appeared on the 1891 to be the son of Henry Taylor, Pedlar and wife Helen (aged 44 b. Portsmouth & 46 b. Huntly, respectively on the 1891). Hadn't been able to find William's birth & couldn't find them on the 1881 cds.

A kind soul looked up William's death for me at Edinburgh (I knew his wife, my great grandmother had died in Bathgate) - and he was William Somerville Taylor. Died in Bathgate. Father Henry Taylor, mother Helen Somerville. Big clues! Looked up his birth under Somerville, and sure enough, b. 17.09.1877, illegitimate, to Helen Somerville, Hawker. Domicil, Back Street, Huntly.

Then find Henry Taylor's death, 12.11.1900 @ Guestrow, Aberdeen. Married to Helen Aitken or Stewart!

Still no sign of them on the 1881.

Finally find Helen Stewart, age 37, born Huntly, boarding at 81 Low Street, Tyrie, Abdnshire, along with John Stewart, 49, b. Dublin, Licensed Hawker, and four children all surname Stewart. doesn't actually say she's his wife, both described as boarders.

Find birth certs of:

Alice Stewart, b. 20.10.1870 @ Low Shore, Banff, illegitimate, to Helen Stewart, Hawker.
John Stewart, b. 25.04.1873 @ Nether Buckie, illegitimate, to Helen Stewart, Hawker, Domicil, BUrgh of Elgin.
James Stewart, b. 04.08.1875 @ Chapel Street, Nether Buckie, illegitimate, to Helen Stewart, Hawker
No sign of a William Stewart birth so am fairly convinced that this is young William Somerville (great grandad).

Now am stuck again - can't find Helen/Alice on the 1871 - though little Alice should have been easy to find. I've checked all the Alice Stewarts 0-2yrs.

Can't find Henry. Have checked Ancestry for the english censuses too for him.

They're driving me potty and I must be missing something somewhere.

Helen is just a bloomin mystery. She has a choice of 4 surnames over the years - Aitken, Somerville, Stewart and Taylor - and probably has nother skreed of kids lying around somewhere with more names. Can't find her after Henry's death. thought she might be with my great granny & family in Aberdeen on the 1901 as it was just a few months after Henry died - but no she's scarpered again - probably with another man if her track record is anything to go by! Can't find her death.

No wonder my granny disowned her family!!!

Any help or pointers would be much appreciated.

Regards

Ellen.

[DavidWW]

As David suggested, it was Henry, and I have got a bit further with the family ........much snipped ................. Ellen.

Wisnae me, - it wis Sporran !!

Davie

[ellenavon]

Sorry Sporran for not giving you due credit!

And thanks Davie.

Any ideas on this great great granny of mine? She seems to have been quite a girl!

Cheers

Ellen.

[ellenavon]

Just an update if anyone's interested.

Found young Alice Stewart's marraige last night:

14.07.1894 @ 3 Skene Place, Aberdeen to Alexander Hendry, 39yrs, a Carter.

She says she's 22, a Steam Laundry Worker, living @ 10 Baker Street, Aberdeen. Father, John Stewart, Hand Loom Weaver, deceased, and mother Helen Stewart, ms, Summerville, deceased.

Since both her brother William's marraige cert in 1899, and Henry Taylor's death cert in 1900 would indicate that Helen was alive then, I'm inclined to believe that like her niece, my granny, she has disowned the family to gain "respectability" and disassociate herself from the pedlars/hawkers.

Hmmm... I'm off searching, yet again, for the S(o)ummervilles.

Regards

Ellen.

[sporran]

Hello Ellen,


still interested, but I had little to add. I had found Alice's marriage, 1901 census in Aberdeen St. Nicholas, and her 1936 death in Aberdeen Northern, but they add little to the story.

The best line appeared to be 1871, when it seemed likely that Helen and Alice would have been in Banffshire, or counties around there, but nothing. The "new" or "combined" SP site is currently unavailable for testing, and that has a feature that could help in this search. I hope that it becomes available early next week, and I shall get back to this problem then.


Regards,

John

[ellenavon]

Thanks John

More mystery to add to the story......

I've found another 5 children to John Stewart and Helen Somerville:

Helen b. 1859 Braemar
Thomas b. 1861 Garmouth, Urquhart
Mary b. 1863 Keith
Margaret b. 1865 Elgin
Jessie b. 1868 Elgin.

all of these children are registered as parents John Stewart, variously described as Traveller/Licensed Hawker etc and Helen Stewart ms Somerville (with spelling variations).
Several have parents wedding dates/places - all different!
Ranging from 1856 to 1859 and from Braemar to Huntly to Peterhead with Helen/John variously giving the info.
So far no trace of any of these weddings - think they're telling porkies.

Plus by the census info on Helen's age, she would have been 15 when she had Helen jnr and therefore could not have been married before that.
Of course she was probably telling porkies about her age too. Although to be fair to her she was illiterate (marked cross at all birth registrations) so probably did not know how old she was really.

Big question now is - why do they have 5 children together all registered as both parents up to 1868, then from 1870, all the subsequent children are registered as illegitimate by Helen herself (and born away from where she was domiciled), although at the 1881 census, she was still with John and the 4 subsequent children.

Oh my poor head.

Then Henry appears on the scene in 1891, appearing to have taken William, (great grandad), the youngest, on as his own.

Any further ideas would be appreciated.

Thanks

Ellen.

[ellenavon]

A breakthrough!!!!!

I've finally found (after months of searching and a mortgage to SP!) Helen's death and her marriage to Henry - in 1894!

Just gives me lots more questions mind you, but meantime I'm flushed with success. And more confused than ever with the names.

Henry Taylor age 48 married Helen Aitken (Spinster no less...) age 49, both Pedlars, on 30.11.1894 @ Aberdeen, East Parish Church, St Nicholas.

Now, although Helen still can't write (made her mark again), she claims her dad was Michael Aitken, a Schoolmaster! and mother Helen Aitken ms Gowan.

Henry has also given completely different parents to those given by his son William (great grandad) at his death in 1900. Par for the course with this lot.

Helen Taylor, widow of Henry Taylor, Pedlar, dies 05.02.1901, found dead @ 30 Guestrow, Aberdeen, just along the road from William and Bessie (great grandad and granny) at no 40 or 70 (can't read the no). Notified by son William, who gives the same parents for her.

So it looks like our Helen ran off with "the tinks" as my granny would have called them (the pedlars), very young. Produced 5 kids to John Stewart all over the North East, then another 4 to questionable parentage, even though John appears to still be around, at least until 1881.

By 1891 census she is with Henry (and young William) in Forres, and gets around to marrying him in Aberdeen in 1894 a few years before they both die.

If her dad really was a schoolmaster, her parents must have been horrified!

Most of the kids seem to have disowned her (found young Jessie's marriage in 1888, and like Alice, she claims both her parents are dead.
Jessie also has her as Helen Stewart, ms Somerville. Poor Jessie dies after just 13 months of marriage, and her husband has Helen also as Stewart, ms Summerfield, deceased, on the cert.

Now I need to verify her birth, sometime around 1844/45. she claimed on 1891 census to have been born in Huntly - but no trace so far. And to find out where the Somerville name came from - or was it just a figment of Helen's imagination?

If anyone has access to 1851 census, I'd be very grateful of some help.

In the meantime I'm off for a large gin to celebrate........

Regards

Ellen.