Genealogy Chat

Thank you for all your help.

Yes it looks as if William did have a brother Thomas. Here are the children of Thomas & Sarah in Steyning from BVRI:

TOWN, Sarah Christening
Gender: Female
Christening Date: 4 Apr 1762 Recorded in: Steyning, Sussex, England
Father: Thomas TOWN
Mother: Sarah
Source: FHL Film 1068527 Dates: 1565 - 1907

TOWN, John Christening
Gender: Male
Christening Date: 8 Jul 1764 Recorded in: Steyning, Sussex, England
Father: Thomas TOWN
Mother: Sarah
Source: FHL Film 1068527 Dates: 1565 - 1907

TOWN, Elizabeth Christening
Gender: Female
Christening Date: 2 Aug 1767 Recorded in: Steyning, Sussex, England
Father: Thomas TOWN
Mother: Sarah
Source: FHL Film 1068527 Dates: 1565 - 1907

TOWN, Ann Christening
Gender: Female
Christening Date: 1 Jul 1770 Recorded in: Steyning, Sussex, England
Father: Thomas TOWN
Mother: Sarah
Source: FHL Film 1068527 Dates: 1565 - 1907

TOWN, Thomas Christening
Gender: Male
Christening Date: 26 Apr 1772 Recorded in: Steyning, Sussex, England
Father: Thomas TOWN
Mother: Sarah
Source: FHL Film 1068527 Dates: 1565 - 1907

TOWN, Mary Christening
Gender: Female
Christening Date: 4 Mar 1774 Recorded in: Steyning, Sussex, England
Father: Thomas TOWN
Mother: Sarah
Source: FHL Film 1068527 Dates: 1565 - 1907

TOWN, William Christening
Gender: Male
Christening Date: 17 Mar 1776 Recorded in: Steyning, Sussex, England
Father: Thomas TOWN
Mother: Sarah
Source: FHL Film 1068527 Dates: 1565 - 1907

Margaret, I was just wondering if William himself might have had a brother called Thomas or any records of any other brothers?

Thank you Margaret. All information is welcome and does tie in with what we know. I will eventually have to pay for research at Kew as i need to connect William with being in the navy. Pity the information isn`t on-line.

A possible for Thomas, father of William?

TOWN, Thomas Christening
Gender: Male
Christening Date: 12 Jun 1737 Recorded in: Steyning, Sussex, England
Father: John TOWN
Mother: Anne
Source: FHL Film 1068527 Dates: 1565 - 1907

Thomas born in Dartford:

TOWN, Thomas Christening
Gender: Male
Christening Date: 5 Jun 1808 Recorded in: Dartford, Kent, England
Father: William TOWN
Mother: Ann
Source: FHL Film 1469180 Dates: 1806 - 1812

Other children born in Steyning?

TOWN, Sarah Christening
Gender: Female
Christening Date: 29 Apr 1810 Recorded in: Steyning, Sussex, England
Father: William TOWN
Mother: Ann
Source: FHL Film 1068527 Dates: 1565 - 1907

TOWN, John Christening
Gender: Male
Christening Date: 12 Jan 1812 Recorded in: Steyning, Sussex, England
Father: William TOWN
Mother: Ann
Source: FHL Film 1068527 Dates: 1565 - 1907

BVRI has this William, son of Thomas:

TOWN, William Christening
Gender: Male
Christening Date: 17 Mar 1776 Recorded in: Steyning, Sussex, England
Father: Thomas TOWN
Mother: Sarah
Source: FHL Film 1068527 Dates: 1565 - 1907

Thanks Cristine.I think i need to research Thomas Town of the the "Thunderer" as i mentioned earlier , although the information still might not give me a conection to my william Town .That`s something i will get around to doing some time in the future.I suppose it`s times like this you need to live just round the corner at Kew. i have found out that william was maried to Ann Peacock in 1804. their oldest son,Thomas was born in 1808 in Dartford,Kent. Maybe William was away at sea for a couple of years.

National Archives at Kew have the Royal Navy Muster books (all crew members were signed in when going on board, and records kept of them during the voyage- sometimes a description was included). If you go to Kew you can see the actual books. If he was on that ship during the battle, he will be in the muster book for that period. My own g.g.grandfather appears in the Victory muster book - but not until many years later!

I believe there are generally researchers at Kew who will look them up for you (probably for a fee!)

I see there is a William Towns who is an in-Pensioner at Greenwich in 1841 (10th page of 39 records). He could have entered at any time from 1805 onwards. This sounds hopeful

Just got the death certificate. Occupation says Toll gate keeper, aged 84 . not really surprised so at least that detail is covered .

No i must get the death certificate. more information the better. i`ve been thinking that another option is to find the service record, if there is any of Thomas Town who served on the Thunderer, although i would have to pay for research on that one as i would not have a clue how to do that. That would have to be a last resort though.Thanks for your suggestion.

HI Nicholas

Have you got Williams death cert?

I have an ancestor who was a Whitesmith on all census, but when I got his death cert it said he was a Greenwich pensioner, so I was then able to look up hs naval records.

Jacqui

I think that somehow i need to find if there was any children from the 1st marriage. Also, people did not always use the same name (slim chance i know). As he married in Greenwich it still gives the small chance of a maritime connection.I would be quite satisfied if it was proven he wasn`t at the battle. i`ve just got to get to that point

Nick

I have the Trafalgar Roll on CD and I'm afraid apart from Thomas Town born London C1785 and a David Towne son of David & Elizabeth born 1769 London, there is noone matching or even resembling your man on any ship. I've checked other spellings, the crew of the Victory and even those born Sussex.

Jan

I`ve just emailed ST Alphage to see if they will be able to give me any more information on william such as an occupation, but i`m sure this will take quite some time.i`m not a member of Ancestry.com so i`m grateful for the extra marriage details. if he married in 1804 i suppose he could still be in battle by 1805. if he had any children around 1804/5/6, then that might make it more problamatic.

Well, its not an uncommon name is it. I think the way forward is getting the baptism records for the kids or indeed their marriage certs.

Would add that he married near the Royal Naval Dockyard. Not an uncommon name though is it. Fair bit older than the wife isnt he? Wonder if there is an earlier marriage somewhere. What occupation appears on the childrens birth certs or baptisms?

Parish register on ancestry shows the marriage with William as a widower. (and Charlottes surname as Bone)

just tried googling hms trafalgar roll and thomas town did not come up on the list as being on the Victory but on the national archives he is on the Thunderer.so the only fact i have at the moment is that a man called Town was in the battle

Thanks for all your help. i always knew about henry richard and i was able to follow him in the census files and thats how i found his fathers name of william. william is certainly old enough to have been a former mariner, littlehampton is on the coast . i didn`t know about the marriage in kent which brings him closer to london. thomas town on the national archives came from london.i think in the early census william says he came from Arundel but maybe he moved around alot. i have a gut feeling there is truth in this story. it`s just proving it. i don`t believe he was on the "victory" though. we all like to exaggerate. i will follow the other suggestions as well when i can. i`m sorry it takes a while to check the messages!