Sir George Lambert: Value of his estate, and beginning of his sister Juliana Margaret's story

Probate Index, Sir George Thomas Lambert, 15 March 1919.
Estate valued at 22,946/9/8.
Using the calculator on the website Measuring Worth, in today's money (2009 values), that amount would be worth 1,630,000 GBP based on the retail price index, or over 8 million GBP based on the average earnings method used on the website. (The methods are explained on the website.) My point is obvious: Sir George T. Lambert was a wealthy man at the time of his demise.
Probate granted to two of his six sisters, Juliana Margaret (identified in index as Margaret Juliana) and Frances, referred to elsewhere as Fanny sometimes.

The Law Times, January 20, 1881 John Lewis More O'Ferrall obituary. His estate passed to his only son, Edward More O'Farrell, who was married to Juliana Margaret Lambert, Sir George's sister, and one of the two executrices of his will.




From: The county families of the United Kingdom; or, Royal manual of the titled and untitled aristocracy of England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland .. (Volume ed.59, yr.1919), by Edward Walford, viewed as an e-book.

This is about Juliana Margaret's son.

O'FERRALL, John MORE., Esq., of Lisard,
CO. Longford ; and of Balyna, co. Kildare.

Eldest son of Edward Gerald More-O'Ferrall, Esq.,
J.P. and D.L., of Lisard, and of Balyna, who d. 1914,
by Juliana Margaret, 4th dau. of the late Henry
Lambert, Esq., M.P., of Carnagh, co. Wexford;
b. 1872 ;
m. 1901 Cesira, 3rd dau. of Signor David Polenghi, of Italy, and has, with other issue, a son, Gerald, b. 1904.
Mr. More-O'Ferrall was educated at Stonyhurst College;
Balyna, Moyvalley E.S.O., co.Kildare;
Lisard, Edgeworthstown, co. Longford:
Kildare Street Club, Dublin ;
S. St. George Yacht Club, Kingstown.

A volume by Bernard Burke (A genealogical and heraldic history of the landed gentry of Great Britain and Ireland) indicates John had three sisters (at least), Mary, Maria, and Ellen.

Because John More O'Ferrall, son of Juliana Margaret Lambert, married a woman with a unique name, Cesira Polenghi, I thought I would look for her in the census rather than searching a more common name (like "John", for example).


What I found leads to more connections between Ireland and Italy, and an unexpected contrast in sentiments between Sir George's family and that of his neighbour, Henry Fleming.

Burke's genealogical and heraldic history of the landed gentry,: Founded by the late Sir Bernard Burke

Six degrees of Queen Victoria: How the Thomas Charles MARCH family were connected

To recap, this is a potted history of the people at No. 1 Charles Street in 1871. If you would like to see a fuller version, just look in the post archives and you'll see a series of posts before this one, about the MARCH family.

Thomas Charles MARCH was a lifelong member of Queen Victoria's household staff, finishing his days as one of the top employees. One of the highlights of his career, in the easy-to-find public records, was representing the Royal Household in the procession bringing the Duke of Wellington's body from Kent to London for a state funeral.

Arabella S. MARCH, nee Sarah COOPER, born in Basingstoke, Hampshire, was a spinster with a child (Arabella) when she married Thomas (who was 20 years older) in 1867. How she came to have a child and a house on Sloane Street, and funds before she married Thomas, I don't know.

Arabella MARCH, the daughter, born in St. Luke's, Chelsea, didn't marry and disappeared from my view after selling the family's country home, Forest Lodge in Ashtead, Surrey, around 1901.

Thomas C. MARCH in the 1871 census is Thomas Charles MARCH, who matches a boy who died at the age of 8.

Not shown in the 1871 census, because he wasn't yet born, Reginald George MARCH was the youngest child I'm aware of, and the only one with children, again, as far as I know. He was born at Holmwood, Surrey in 1874, was, like his father, a Clerk in the Lord Chamberlain's office, fought in South Africa with Lord Paget's Horse, was married, and had at least two children. He enlisted for the First World War but does not appear to have seen active duty outside the United Kingdom.

The only person I'm aware of to carry on the MARCH name from this family was Reginald's son, Thomas Charles MARCH, who matches a gentleman who died in 1999 in Winchester.

I promised I would play Six Degrees of Separation, in two forms, for these people:

Six Degrees of Queen Victoria
and
Six Degrees of Dracula.

The Queen Victoria numbers are from 1 to 3.

1, Personal connection to Queen Victoria

Thomas Charles MARCH. Having served so long and in such important positions, I'm guessing he bumped into Her Majesty the Small Queen at least once in a while.

His son Reginald George MARCH, based on his position in the Lord Chamberlain's office, which could be a stretch. If not a 1, he is a 2, like the rest of the family.



2, Personal connection to a person with a Queen Victoria number of 1

Connected through Thomas Charles MARCH:

His wife Arabella S. MARCH
His daughter Arabella MARCH
His son Thomas C. MARCH.




Next: The Dracula scores.
That takes a bit of explaining.

Thomas March is the first of many interesting people we will meet on Charles Street in 1871. His story starts with Thomas March of 1 Charles Street: One degree from Queen Victoria.


This article is one in an ongoing series, starting with Bram Stoker, author of Dracula in public records: BMD (Birth, Marriage, Death).

Next: What was Thomas Charles March's Dracula number? Six degrees.

Six degrees of separation for Dracula and Queen Victoria

What began as a look at Bram Stoker's family in the English census returns has grown into a look at his servants, and their families. That's the beauty and the fun of looking at the census. You just never know where it will lead.

A few years back, I did a little research about a prominent family in Calgary, where I live, in the days before the First World War. Well, by the time I was done researching the history of a church they had helped to build, I was convinced that everyone in Calgary then was either related to each other, or about to be.

Of course, that's a bit of an exaggeration, but on the other hand, there's a lot of truth to it. The idea of "six degrees of separation" has been around for a while now. The theory is that you can connect anyone to anyone else via a chain of six intermediates or fewer.

For example, I have a friend (degree no. 1) whose husband (degree no. 2) is an executive producer on a great TV show, 30 Rock. I assume he's in one way or another acquainted with the stars of the show, so that makes me three degrees away from Tina Fey. Who knew?

If you use LinkedIn, you'll already know how easy it is to connect two people at the 3rd degree level, particularly if one of your 1st degree people has thousands of connections.

Rather than "six degrees of separation", I prefer "Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon", a Web game where people trace anyone who's had anything to do with any movie at all, back to actor Kevin Bacon. I wonder if Kevin Bacon ever feels a bit odd about that. Must be strange to be the centre of the universe.



Anyway, after a little nosing around in the census returns, I've decided to make my own Six Degrees. In the next heartbeat, I decided to do two, because I came across a person who fits both.

Get ready to find out:

Six Degrees of Dracula
and
Six Degrees of Queen Victoria.

I'll try to include rankings for everyone I write about in this series if I can. I don't know how many 1-1s (only 1 degree from each) there will be, but we shall see.

This article is one in an ongoing series, starting with Bram Stoker, author of Dracula in public records: BMD (Birth, Marriage, Death).

Next: Thomas MARCH of 1 Charles Street, One degree from Queen Victoria

A brick wall: Elizabeth Jarrald, widow, Nurse to Bram Stoker's baby son in 1881

Starting with the 1881 census return for Bram Stoker and his family, I have been tracing all the members of the household, including the servants, through the public records that are easy to use, mainly relying on Ancestry.co.uk. The point is to see what can be gleaned from these primary sources, not to prepare comprehensive biographies. We'll leave that for others!

I've come to the eldest of the three servants listed with the family in 1881.

The transcription given by Ancestry indicates the the lady's name is Elizabeth Jarrald. She is a Servant in the household, a widow, age 30. Her occupation is Nurse (presumably meaning the baby's nurse, not a hospital nurse), and, rather infuriatingly, her birthplace is blank. Not helpful at all.

There is no easy way to find this lady.

A further problem is that her name may actually be Jerrald, or Jerrold, or Jarrold, or even a variant starting with a "G". When I look at the handwriting, it appears to be Jerrald, but it's a close call.

The assumptions and the dangers of making them


This is not the right way to do research! It worked for me and suits my purposes because I like the research for its own sake, I like to see what turns up even if it's "wrong", and I am only answerable to myself. Of course, as a matter of public responsibility, I try to point out to readers and other researchers where there are traps, such as here.


I was stuck with a name, an age, a location on one day in 1881, an occupation, and a marital status. Bearing in mind that any of these could be wrong (a danger with any census record), I went ahead and tried to find information.

A simple search for Elizabeth Jarrald

From the Bram Stoker family entry (linked to above), we have the spelling Jarrald, date of birth about 1851, place unknown.

Ancestry's search function, for Elizabeth Jarrald, b. abt 1851 gives two results with the same spelling. One is the 1881 return we already have, the other is also for 1881, in Haverhill, Suffolk, wife of John Jarrald. Noting the same name, we can exclude this second Elizabeth from consideration if she turns up again.

Now I will tell the truth about the way I did this research, but remember, I am not saying this is the "right" way to do it. This is a fast way to get results that may be for the person I want, but equally, may not be.

I wanted to find Elizabeth in 1871, but I didn't know if she was married then.

I could deduce that Elizabeth's husband, Mr. Jarrald, would appear in the GRO index of marriages with her, and in the GRO index of deaths, some time before the 1881 census.

I searched for marriages between a man with the surname Jarrald and a woman named Elizabeth, starting in 1881 and working backwards, one year at a time. This method takes some care and attention, and of course, some patience. I also searched for Jarrald men (and variations of the spelling) in the death index, working backwards.

In 1869, which is about as far back as I would go, if Elizabeth's age is correct (born 1851), I found a GRO marriage index with two men and two women:

Charles Jarrald and William James Randall
married
Emma Bloom and Elizabeth Trott.

Charles Jarrald is a likely candidate because he married in London and died in London in 1877.

The marriage index doesn't tell us which men married which women, but for Charles Jarrald, the choice of wives is narrowed to only two, Emma or Elizabeth. Of course, I would like it to be Elizabeth, but we need proof.

Next step: how I figured out the marriage puzzle.

This article is one in an ongoing series, starting with Bram Stoker, author of Dracula in public records: BMD (Birth, Marriage, Death).

Next: Figuring out which man married which woman: Elizabeth Jarrald, cared for Bram Stoker's baby, 1881

Harriett Daw, Bram Stoker's Cook in 1881. The problem of a small spelling error.

Bram Stoker was the author of Dracula, the famous vampire novel, published in 1897. From the early 1880s he lived in Chelsea, London, with his wife Florence.

Bram Stoker and family in the 1881 census (link)

The household in 1881 included Bram and Florence, their infant son Irving, and three servants. The youngest was Emma Barton, the 15-year-old Housemaid. I posted her story the other day.

The story of Emma Barton, Housemaid to Bram Stoker in 1881 (link)

Today I'll continue with the Cook, Harriet Daw, who was 21 and single in the 1881 census.

The problem with Harriett and spelling

I haven't found a matching Harriett Daw in the census or in the other easy records to find on Ancestry.co.uk. Almost immediately, though, a Harriett Dew appeared. Off by one letter. Matching, sort of, as to place of birth. Matching as to age.

Other people's non-verified family trees have a Harriett Matilda Dew traced from birth to death, including marriage in 1882. Missing: an entry for the 1881 census. These gaps are also suggestive that the two Harrietts are actually one.

So, with a giant flashing red light warning that we may be talking about two different people, here is the story of Harriett Matilda Dew, as found in the public records on Ancestry.co.uk.

Daughter of a Carman

Harriet was named after her mother, Harriett. Sometimes there is one "t" in "Harriett", sometimes two. Harriet Matilda was baptized on June 13, 1858 in St. Paul's District Parish Church, Lisson Grove. Her mother's name was Harriett Eliza, and in the baptism register, although both parents are named, only the occupation "Laundress", a word that would only apply to a woman, is given.

Harriet Matilda had a brother, John (full name, John Thomas Henry Dew), two years older and named for their father, John Thomas Dew. Both John and Harriett were christened at the same church, on the same day.

In 1861 the young family was living at 10 Upper Lisson Street, Marylebone, London. The father was a Carman.They lived reasonably close to Paddington Station, and he worked for the Great Western Railway for a good part of his life, it appears.

I can't get to 10 Upper Lisson Street on Google Maps today; perhaps the street no longer exists, or maybe this part of it has been taken up by later road-building, or destroyed in the Second World War. However, on Lisson Street as it now is, I found this charming Google Street View picture. Possibly the best one I've found to date.

(Link in case picture does not display properly below)


View Larger Map


Ten years later, in 1871 on census night, they had a "Nurse Child" in the house. Her name is hard to read and probably misspelled. Literally, it looks like Lousia Cate, but my guess is Louisa Cole may be closer. She was 6 years old, and the only other thing we know is she was reportedly born in Notting Hill.

I have looked for a connection between Louisa (using either surname, Cole or Cate) and the Dew family. I can't find one strong enough to mention.

The phrase "Nurse Child", in the most general sense, means a child in the care of a woman who is not the child's natural mother. It's more of a fostering arrangement than what we would think of as babysitting. If the child had only been there for a day or two, on the census I would expect her to be called a Visitor.

Women could earn money by looking after children, often while their (not uncommonly unmarried) mothers went out to work. In desperate situations, that was what a mother had to do to feed herself and her child.

This is another piece of social history that would be interesting to know about, but it doesn't advance our understanding of Harriet Dew particularly, since Louisa and Harriet were not in the same house in the next census. Any speculation that there may have been a close relationship between Louisa and the Dew family is just that: speculation.

Marriage in 1882
In 1882, so within about a year of Harriett's appearance in the census as the Stokers' Cook, she left to become the wife of William Edmund Frid. They were married on Christmas Day. On the marriage certificate, Harriet's father is John Dew, deceased. Unverified family trees say her mother had died earlier. Her only sibling, John, was married in 1876 and, like their father, worked as a Carman for the railway.

Mr. Frid was a Carpenter. Before marriage, he was apparently living with an aunt and uncle in London and was unemployed. I am only guessing that his fortunes changed, at least I hope so. In 1891, Harriett and William had four children, three girls and a boy.

Although the Frids lived in Marylebone at the time of Harriett's marriage to William, (both at Welling's Place on the marriage certificate) and were there in Marylebone again in the 1891 census, all four children were born in Mortlake.

That's not how I personally got my vampire bloodline, but it does have a personal connection, because for two years, about a hundred years later, we lived in the same part of town. I hope the Frids liked it as much as I did.

An early death in 1895

Her little children were still young when Harriett died in 1895.

Did William remarry? What became of the motherless children?

It's not far-fetched to speculate that Harriett died in childbirth, given her age. That is pure speculation. The death certificate would give a cause of death, but you have to pay for those.

The family in 1901

Six years after their mother died, Harriett's children and their father were still living together, in Marylebone. William, the father, was a Carpenter Joiner, and his son William working for a Butcher. No occupation is listed for any of the three girls.

Because of the misspelling (or to be more clear, the assumption that there is a misspelling), the descendants of Harriett Dew may not know their ancestor cooked for "Dracula" himself. I hope they see this post and do some further research to see if my hunch about Harriett Dew and Harriett Daw being the same person is correct.

This article is one in an ongoing series, starting with Bram Stoker, author of Dracula in public records: BMD (Birth, Marriage, Death).

Next: A brick wall: Elizabeth Jarrald, widow, Nurse to Bram Stoker's baby son in 1881

After Dracula: Bram Stoker and family in the 1901 English census

In 1881 and 1891, Bran Stoker, the author of Dracula, lived with his small family in Chelsea, a fashionable neighborhood of London then and now. Last seen in 1891 at 17 St Leonards Terrace, I mentioned in my post about that address that it was the property next door, No. 18 St Leonards Terrace, that has the blue plaque honoring Stoker. In the Google Street View picture, you can see the blue plaque.

Here's the picture again. No. 18 is the white house on the end.


View Larger Map

Dracula was published in 1897. It wasn't Stoker's first literary work. In the 1891 census, he listed himself as having three occupations: Theatrical Manager, Barrister, and Author.

Let's look at the 1901 census.

Address: 18 St Leonards Terrace, Chelsea

Name: Bram Stoker
Age: 53
Estimated birth year: about 1848
Relation: Head
Spouse's name: Florence A L Stoker
Gender: Male
Where born: Ireland
Civil Parish: Chelsea
Ecclesiastical parish: St Luke
County/Island: London
Country: England
Street address: 18 St Leonards Terrace, Chelsea, London
Occupation: Barrister
Condition as to marriage: Married
Employment status: Worker


Registration district: Chelsea
Sub-registration district: Chelsea, South
ED, institution, or vessel: 2
Household schedule number: 382
Household Members:
Name Age
Bram Stoker 53
Florence A L Stoker 39, Wife. Occupation is blank. Born Falmouth, Cornwall.
Irving Noel Thornley Stoker. Son, Single, 21. Accountant's Apprentice. Born Chelsea, London.
Maria Mitchell. Servant, Single, 63. Housekeeper (Domestic). Born Dorking, Surrey.
Louisa Driver. Servant, Single, 37. Parlourmaid. Born London.



Source Citation: Class: RG13; Piece: 77; Folio: 68; Page: 47.
Source Information:
Ancestry.com. 1901 England Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005.
Original data: Census Returns of England and Wales, 1901. Kew, Surrey, England: The National Archives, 1901.

____________________________________________________________

The move into No. 18 St Leonards Terrace took place sometime during the past 10 years.

Bram is now listed as a Barrister, with no mention of his former occupations of Theatrical Manager and Author. Was he still doing both of these things? Other records would indicate, yes. In fact, his work as a Barrister appears to have been secondary throughout his life. Biographies stress his work in the theatre, not in the courts of law.

The Stokers' son, Irving Noel Thornley Stoker, is again with the family. (He was absent in 1891). He's training to become an accountant.

Two servants, Maria Mitchell and Louisa Driver, have replaced the two we saw in 1891. We don't know how many there may have been in between.

A big question now is, what impact did the publication of Dracula have on Stoker during his lifetime? Was it the proceeds from the sale of this book that financed the move to this new house? Somehow I suspect not, but that is only from seeing a passing note saying the book was not an immediate success. It will take a little more research to be sure of that.

I should perhaps repeat that I am working from the primary sources here. There is plenty of information available about Stoker online and in print. Eventually I may turn to it to fill in some gaps. My objective is not to write any kind of biography, but to look at the primary sources I have readily available, and see what they say.

This article is one in an ongoing series, starting with Bram Stoker, author of Dracula in public records: BMD (Birth, Marriage, Death).

Next: Harriet Daw, Bram Stoker's Cook in 1881. The problem of a small spelling error.

17 St Leonard's Terrace, Chelsea: Bram Stoker's family home in 1891

The 1891 census is the first time we see the Stokers living on St Leonards Terrace. In 1881, they had been on Cheyne Walk. Both places are in Chelsea, both fashionable.

It is at No. 18 St Leonards Terrace where there is a blue plaque for Bram Stoker (link). In 1891, the Stokers lived at No. 17, but in No. 18 there was no one designated the Head of the household. The occupants were two women, referred to as Servant in Charge, in the Occupation column. The open question is whether the Stokers had an interest in No. 18 in 1891, or whether that came later.

St Leonards Terrace is about a block from the Royal Hospital and the grounds of the Chelsea Flower Show. One website lists it as one of the 200 most expensive streets in Britain.

A piece of trivia: Sir Laurence Olivier, in another time and with two different wives, also lived on Cheyne Walk and moved (eventually) to St Leonards Terrace.

Here is a picture of (approximately) No. 17 St Leonards Terrace, Chelsea, courtesy of Google Street View. No. 18 is the white house on the end of its block. We can't tell from this picture whether No. 17 is on the right or the left. My guess would be the right but that is just a guess.


View Larger Map

This article is one in an ongoing series, starting with Bram Stoker, author of Dracula in public records: BMD (Birth, Marriage, Death).


Next: After Dracula: Bram Stoker and family in the 1901 English census

Dracula's author, Bram Stoker, and family in the 1891 English census

If you have already had a look at the Stoker family in the 1881 census (link), you will know that they were living at 27 Cheyne Walk in Chelsea, London. Bram and Florence, their son Irving, and Bram's brother George lived there with three servants: a nurse, a cook, and a parlourmaid.

Some changes have come about, which you will quickly notice in the 1891 census.

Reference: Class:  RG12; Piece:  63; Folio  43; Page  12; GSU roll:  6095173.

1891 England Census for London, Chelsea, Chelsea South, District 2, Page 12, Household 103
Link to Ancestry.com image of the census page (may only work if signed in to Ancestry.com. Don't worry, the information is all here.)

Address: 17 St Leonard's Terrace, Chelsea, London
1 inhabited house

Household 103 on census form

Abraham Stoker, Head, Married. Male, age 43. Barrister, Theatrical Manager, Author. Born in Dublin [Ireland].

Florence A. L. Stoker, Wife, Married. Female, age 27. Occupation is blank. Born in Cornwall, Falmouth. [Falmouth, Cornwall].

Mary A. Drinkwater, Servant, Single. Female, age 28. Cook (Domestic Servant). Born in Oxford, Milford. [Milford, Oxfordshire]

Ada V. Howard, Servant, Single. Female, age 22. House parlourmaid (Domestic Servant). Born in London.

That is the end of No. 17. However, at No. 18, there is no new Head of household, only two servants. It may be that the Stokers had both houses, particularly if these were side by side. In case this is of interest later, here are the details.

Address: 18 St Leonard's Terrace, Chelsea, London

Household 104 on census form.

Julia Abbott, Servant, Single. Female, age 25. Servant in charge. Born in Great Yarmouth.

Mary Kerr, Servant, Single. Female, age 22. Servant in charge. Born in Dumfries Lockabie [possibly Lockerbie, Dumfriesshire, Scotland].

_______________________________________________________

The family has moved from Cheyne Walk to St Leonard's Terrace. Is that a move up or down?

Son Irving and Bram's brother George are both absent. George may very well have set up his own household, but where is the boy? He would be about 11 years old now.

Instead of three servants, there are only two, a Cook and a House parlourmaid. This is the same as in 1881, when the family also had a Nurse to care for the boy. The servants are new, though, not the same people as ten years ago. It makes me wonder whether there were very many others in between.

Bram's occupation was Theatrical Manager M.A. in 1881. Here in 1891, he is Barrister, Theatrical Manager, Author. Perhaps the M.A. is his law degree. Showing his occupation to include Author suggests he's already had some success in publishing his work. What has he written to date, and how well has he done as an author?

Florence was shown as an Artist in 1881. Why not now? Has she given it up? How does she spend her time?

There are the same questions about the servants as in 1881, boiling down to who are they, and how did they get here, and what became of them?

Finally, there is the question of the house next door. Has it got anything to do with the Stokers at all, or are the servants looking after it while the owner is absent?

And, a question that no census is going to tell us, has Bram started to think about Dracula yet?

This article is one in an ongoing series, starting with Bram Stoker, author of Dracula in public records: BMD (Birth, Marriage, Death).

Next: 17 St Leonards Terrace, Chelsea: Bram Stoker's family home in 1891

27 Cheyne Walk, Chelsea, London, former home of Bram Stoker (1881)

Bram Stoker, author of Dracula, lived with his family at 27 Cheyne Walk in Chelsea in 1881 when the census was taken. Details of the household (the Stokers, Bram's brother George, and three servants) are in this post:

Bram Stoker and family in the 1881 English census (link).

Cheyne Walk is a desirable place to live today, and has been fashionable for a long time. Here's a link to a picture of No. 4 Cheyne Walk (link) in 1881.

The Google Timeline of Cheyne Walk (search "Cheyne Walk" on Google.com, then select the Timeline option for results) gives an interesting perspective on the street over the years. Modern day residents have included Mick Jagger and David Bowie, with their respective partners. Sir Hans Sloane was a prominent figure there in the 1700s.


Link to a picture of Cheyne Walk, Chelsea (London) from about 1800.

And here is how it looks today, courtesy of Google Street View, below (may take a moment to load).


View Larger Map

This article is one of an ongoing series, starting with Bram Stoker, author of Dracula, in public records: BMD (birth, marriage, death).

Next:  Emma Barton, Bram Stoker's 15-year-old parlourmaid in 1881
 


 

Bram Stoker and family in the 1881 English census

Bram Stoker, famous as the author of Dracula was born Irish but lived much of his life in England. Here is a snapshot of his family and household on census day in 1881.

The link to the census here is via Ancestry.com and may only work if you are signed in to Ancestry. However, the information in this post is complete.

Reference: 1881 Census of England and Wales
RG11/74/78/0656

London, Chelsea, Chelsea South, District 9a, Page 1, Household 4

Address: 27 Cheyne Walk
1 inhabited house at this address
Living there:

Bram Stoker, Head. Married, male, age 33. Theatrical Manager M.A. [I'm assuming the M.A. means Master of Arts - Jill]. Born in Dublin [Ireland].

Florence Stoker, Wife. Married, female, age 21. Artist. Born in Falmouth [Cornwall, England].

Irving N. Stoker, Son. Unmarried, male, 15 months. [Occupation is blank.] Born in London.

George Stoker, Brother. Unmarried, male, 26. Physician & Surgeon. Born in Dublin [Ireland].

Elizabeth Jarrald, Servant. Widow, female, 30. Nurse. [Place of birth is blank.]

Harriett Daw, Servant. Unmarried, female, 21. Cook. Born in Middlesex, Nottinghill. [Notting Hill, part of London.]

Emma Barton, Servant. Unmarried, female, 15. Housemaid. Born in Essex, Woodford. [Woodford, Essex.]

_________________________________________________________

What does this snapshot tell us? What questions does it raise?

Beyond the obvious, here are a few things it makes me think about. And I will tell you right away that the answers to some of these questions are easily found with a Web search. However, I like to find things from scratch, for myself, and to make up my own questions. Then I can check with what others have done and see if we agree.

Of course, when I hit a dead end or get tired of looking, I cheat and search the Web like everyone else!

27 Cheyne Walk: This is a famous part of Chelsea. Who were the neighbours? Who lives there now? What was the house like? Is it still standing?

Bram Stoker's education: Does M.A. stand for Master of Arts or is it something else entirely? If it is the university degree, when and where did he get it? When and how did he become a Theatrical Manager? Who employed him?

Florence Stoker's occupation: What kind of art did she do? Is any of her work still around? Was she good? Was it unusual for a woman of that time to list her occupation as "Artist"? How did a young woman from Cornwall end up married to a Theatrical Manager from Dublin, 12 years her senior?

Irving N. Stoker's name: Was he named for Henry Irving, the actor?

George Stoker: A doctor, so we have two prominent men from the same family in Dublin. Was the Stoker family well-off? Prominent? Were there any doctors in the family already? And how long did George live with his brother? Did he get married, have children, do anything notable?

The servants: Three servants in a family of three adults and a baby, was this normal? What social class does this indicate? How did the servants get selected, hired, and trained? What was their pay? Where did they stay? What was the work like? How long did they stay with the family? Where did they come from, and was this job a step up or down for each of them? What happened to them after they left the Stokers?

Elizabeth Jarrald, the Nurse: She would have been there to care for the baby, Irving. She was a widow at the age of 30. What happened to her husband? Did she have children of her own? Would she have been working if her husband was alive? What was her maiden name? Was the baby attached to her as he grew a little older?

Harriett Daw, the Cook. At age 21, she was responsible for feeding everyone. Was that normal for a cook to be so (relatively) young? Was she a good cook? Did the Stokers have a lot of guests? Given the number of well-known people they must have associated with through the theatre, did Harriett play a role in maintaining their reputation as good hosts? Or were they?

Emma Barton, the Housemaid. If Harriett seems like a young Cook at 21, Emma at 15 is even younger to be out working. It's not that this is shocking, but it's not what we see done today. How old was Emma when she went into service?

So many questions, and this is only the beginning.

This article is one in an ongoing series, starting with Bram Stoker, author of Dracula in public records: BMD (Birth, Marriage, Death).

The next article is: 27 Cheyne Walk, Chelsea, London, former home of Bram Stoker (1881).

Bram Stoker, author of Dracula, in public records: BMD

I have been tracking Bram Stoker in the public record. I'm actually doing it for another project but the genealogy part is interesting in and of itself.

My links will probably not work unless you have yourself signed in to Ancestry, but if not, don't despair. I will tell you what I've found so far.

I'm not an Ancestry tout, though I should be. I use them a lot!

BRAM STOKER

His name was Abraham, but in the records I've seen, he's Bram in almost every place.

I am not looking at official biographies, and of course, there is much written about him, since he essentially created our version of what a vampire should be, Count Dracula himself. This is a look at a few of the easily-seen public records, some primary sources if you will.

There are some family trees online that other people have done. I'm glancing at them for hints but most things I am looking for are not in family trees.

The first thing to look at is BMD, or what some family historians refer to as "Hatched, Matched, Dispatched" – records of Birth, Marriage, and Death.

BIRTH: Family trees say November 8, 1847. This is supported by a ship's passenger list saying he was 55 years and 11 months old on October 20, 1903, and is consistent with his age as reported in the census of 1881, 1891, and 1901.

I don't have a birth registration record, and probably won't ever find one, because he was born in Ireland and Irish records are out of my reach.

MARRIAGE: Same, I gather from one or two family trees online that although Bram's wife, Florence Anne Lemon Balcombe, was from Falmouth, Cornwall, England, they were married in Ireland.

DEATH: April 20, 1912.

The information comes from the grant of probate. Link to England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Adminstrations), 1912, S-St, p. 28.

Stoker, Abraham otherwise Bram

of 26 St George's-square, Pimlico, Middlesex

died 20 April 1912.

Probate London 15 May to

Florence Ann Lemon Stoker, widow.

Effects 4723/5/11.

Resworn 5269/12/7.

I have also seen Florence's middle name spelled Anne with an e on the end.

Next: Bram Stoker and family in the 1881 English census

Take advantage of spelling mistakes and transcription errors in family history research

You may already have come across some spelling mistakes in your own research. Keep track of them.

Spelling and transcription errors happen all the time in family history research

For example, when I did my search for John VERNELL and his wife Eleanor Anne in the 1871 census, here is the transcription of the entry I found for them.

John Vernell Good.

Spouse: Eleana A Instead of Eleanor A, the person who transcribed the page put Eleana A. Transcription errors are extremely common! It's no wonder. The handwriting on the digitized version of the original is often hard to read. I will not keep a particular note of "Eleana" being a common mistranscription of "Eleanor" because the first five letters are the same, and a search for Eleanor Anne VERNELL will also pull up Eleana. However, if this were a surname, or if the mistake was a little more bizarre, I would make a note of it, and use the mistaken spelling if I get stuck in a search in future.

Birth: abt 1845 - Whitiebapel, Middlesex, England This is referring to John's birth, and is calculated by subtracting the age John gave on the census from the year of the census, 1871. This is a more precise estimate than I had before. I started out with "about 1844" based on John being under age (under 21) when he and Eleanor Anne got married in 1864. I simply guessed that he was around 20 then. Now we have a better estimate of his birth year, 1845.

Did you notice that his place of birth is shown as "Whitiebapel"? This is a fairly obvious and easily spotted mistranscription of "Whitechapel".

Residence: 1871 - East Dulwich, Camberwell St Giles, Surrey, England The census transcript doesn't give the house and street, nor does it show the occupations of the people, and their marital status. But you can get that by looking at a copy of the original handwritten census return, which is just one click away on Ancestry.com. I always look at the original, first because there are so many errors in the various transcriptions (and I don't blame the transcribers for that! Many of them are volunteers doing their best under less than ideal circumstances sometimes.) Another reason to look at the original is to see if another interesting person lives close by. It's always worth skimming the whole page just in case.

The first book I've included below has no picture, just a link.
Reading Old Handwriting (Guides for Family Historians)

Sign in to Ancestry.co.uk to search UK records more easily

This is just a little trick to make searching with Ancestry.com a little easier.

Because I'm in Canada, Ancestry.com actually signs me in to Ancestry.ca unless I type in Ancestry.co.uk to get the UK site instead.

It's more convenient to be signed into Ancestry.co.uk when you're searching UK records, because otherwise a lot of searches will give Canadian records only, or Canadian records first.

Preparing to search in the 1871 census of England using Ancestry.com

Just in case you're wondering, I am an ordinary paying customer of Ancestry.com. They don't know me, I don't know them.

I use other genealogy products but because Ancestry.com fits so many of my needs, they are my current favourite.

Back to my search for John VERNELL #1. Right now, I am showing you how I found out there ever was such a person.

Get ready to start searching the census

One of the most wonderful things we have these days is easy access to census data. It was really not long ago (starting around 1992) that I would go to the PRO, first on Chancery Lane and then to the new building at Kew, and look at reels of microfilmed census returns. I hate microfilm! Even microfiche makes me dizzy. So, I'm very thankful for being able to get census returns at the press of a button.

Is it really as easy as that? Sometimes yes, sometimes no.

Looking for John VERNELL and his wife Eleanor Anne in the 1871 census of England

From their marriage certificate, I know that on 5 July 1864, John VERNELL (the one I call John VERNELL #2) married Eleanor Anne CAMPBELL at the Parish Church in the Parish of Hackney. Both were under age. Usually a marriage certificate will give you either "of full age" or an exact age. This is the only one I've come across in my own research where both parties are under age, though I am not suggesting it's particularly rare.

In this case, although I cannot point to the statute or another legal authority setting the "full age" at 21, I am fairly sure that in 1864, that's what it was.

I can estimate that John and Eleanor Anne were born in approximately 1844, based on a guess that they were about 20 when they married. That means in the 1871 census, I will be looking for people who are no older than 27. However, it is best to be a little loose with the dates at first, and cast the net more broadly. That is experience talking!

Looking for children when you know something about the parents: John VERNELL #1

My story of the VERNELL family is an ongoing example of how to do family history research.

Typically in family history, it's easiest to work backwards from the present to the past. That's because we usually know something about how things are today, and from that we can start to put together the pieces and figure out how they were last year, last century, and so on.

However, the principle is really to work from the known to the less known.

In genealogy research, start with what you know

Eleanor Ann(e) CAMPBELL married John VERNELL on July 5, 1864. I wrote a little about this yesterday, "Building a person's life story from Ancestry.com".

I know that Eleanor Ann(e) had children with John, because it is part of the family history that's been passed down to me. We can't always trust those stories 100% but at the very least, they give us a starting point.

The information you have helps you decide what genealogical records to search for and where

I have now got several fairly reliable known pieces of information:
- the wedding date and place
- the names of the bride, groom, and their respective fathers,and the witnesses
- the occupations of the groom and the two fathers, and
- the addresses and ages of the bride and groom.

I am going to check the census return for the first census after the wedding. If I find this couple, with any luck I will also find some or all of their children living with them and listed as a family in the census. The census is a good choice of record to look at now. I could go on a fishing expedition looking for children in the indexes of births, or the baptism records, but the thing is, I don't yet know for sure how many children John and Eleanor Anne had, and I don't know their names, apart from John's.

(In fact I am sort of cheating. I actually found out about John's existence by looking at the census, and now I am going back to explain my search steps.)

Next: Looking for John VERNELL and his wife Eleanor Anne, nee CAMPBELL, in the 1871 census of England.

Emmitt Smith traces his roots into the days of American slavery

On the U.S. version of the BBC TV show Who do you think you are?, episode one featured American football star Emmitt Smith reaching back to the past and breaching a few genealogical brick walls.

Being African American with several generations born in the U.S.A., Smith's research problems started with the fact that the records of vital events (births, deaths, marriages) for slaves were not kept before Emancipation.

That dry sentence hides the more emotional fact: slaves were property, not people.  They had no rights.

Smith came to the personal realization of how much things have changed for African Americans when he was given an old book of records to look at.  On the cover, the title included the word "Colored".  Even the records were segregated in the American South for a time.

I don't know anything about Emmitt Smith other than what I saw of him on this show, but his compassion for his enslaved ancestors was genuine. That's common in family history research.  Once you know your ancestors' names, you start to fill in the blanks, and they quickly become real people, not just names and dates on the page.

I'm looking forward to next week's show.

Here's a link to a little synopsis of the Emmitt Smith episode, from the BBC's website.














These books are all about tracing African American ancestry.  I haven't read them so can't tell you which would be the best.  Perhaps I'll get a chance later.

Who do you think you are? TV show about family history starts on NBC

I was in an airplane on Tuesday and that's how I came to be watching Oprah.

And, good thing, because that's how I found out the BBC show Who do you think you are?, which has had a British version and a Canadian one already, is now getting an American version too.

I'll be watching tonight and thinking of all the stories behind the names we see every day and never think about: names of streets, schools, hospitals; names on monuments and plaques;  names in phone books and company directories; it never ends.

Ancestry.com is all over this.  I've been using Ancestry for several years.  My Christmas present to myself is the deluxe annual membership.

I know that watching Who do you think you are? is just going to make me want to do more research.