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Research in Other Countries => United States of America => Topic started by: Yodleg on Sunday 15 April 12 12:31 BST (UK)
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I'm looking for Richard Godley who married Anna Linderman in Kings, California about 1898. He is present in the US census from 1900 to 1930. I suspect that he is Richard Godley born 1870 Clayton, Sussex, UK, son of James Godley & Hepzibah Hunt and that he emmigrated to the US with his brothers Walter & Frederick. I can't prove which Richard he is because he only puts 'England' as his birthplace on the census. I would like access to his marriage cert/licence to see if there are any more details of his place of birth but the US birth/marriage/death system seems harder to work than the UK. Can anyone help with either the details or how to get to the records? Kind Regards - Yodleg.
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Per this site, I think you would need to contact the county where they married to see if they have a marriage record. https://www.familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/California_Vital_Records#Marriage_Records
Did he die in California? There are California death indexes through 1939 (on www.familysearch.org) and from 1940-1997 (on www.rootsweb.com), and both are free. I suspect the death certificate might be easier to access, given the later date.
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There are likely death dates for Richard, Anna, & Walter Godley here: https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-1971-26184-5046-54?cc=1932433&wc=14216747
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Thanks Shellyesq - Yes the same Richard who is in the US census seems to have died in California along with Anna his wife. The problem I've got is that I can't prove if he is the correct Richard Godley, he just gives his place of birth as 'England' and the date of birth he gives varies. I was hoping that in the marriage cert it would give his father or at least the county where he was born.
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Given the time frame, I think the death certificate would be easier to obtain and may give more detailed information. The site I linked to has state file numbers for those people, and there is information about getting the certificate here: http://www.cdph.ca.gov/certlic/birthdeathmar/pages/certifiedcopiesofbirthdeathrecords.aspx
Just to pick a random California marriage from the same time frame, see here: https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/XL7K-ZQC It doesn't appear to give a place of birth or parents names. It doesn't sound like you know for sure which county Richard & Anna married in, so that would make finding the actual record more difficult and it probably wouldn't give the information you seek.
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Welcome to RootsChat, Yodleg.
There is a Linderman tree on Anc**try that shows Richard Godley's place of birth as Devonshire, England. It states that he was born January 1870 and married c1896. There is no other information provided about Godley, so I'm not sure how they determined he was born in Devonshire.
Are you sure that the three brothers immigrated to the states? If so, if you could provide years of birth for the brothers (I'm assuming they were born in Sussex?), we may be able to find more records. Would you know Richard's exact date of birth? When were they last seen in England? Thank you.
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I don't have access to English census returns, but looking at partial records, it appears that Walter was born c1868? His full name was Walter John?
Interestingly, there is a Walter J in the same area as Richard Godley, around the same time.
Be back in a few moments.
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"he just gives his place of birth as 'England' "
Don't blame Richard, the country [or US state] is all that is ever recorded on a US census. Why would you expect more detail than that?
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Walter John Godley, Musician, age 27, 5' 10 1/2", light complexion, blue eyes, red hair, born England, naturalized June 20, 1894, Fresno, California. (Date of Registration: April 29, 1896) Oleander Precinct.
Could this be Richard's brother?
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There is quite a bit about (the above) Walter and his family, including a photograph of whom appears to be Walter's son on Find A Grave.
There is also the passing of Fred Godley, born 30 Mary 1869, "other country", died 10 July 1940, Fresno (County). Mother's surname: Hunter.
Do you already have this information?
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Wow Lisa there's no stopping you! Thanks for your help.
Yes I saw that Linderman tree but it doesn't have any supporting info and the Godley name is almost non existent in Devon so I disregarded it.
No I am not sure that the 3 brothers immigrated but I can trace all of the rest of the family to 1911 or death except for these 3 who disappear in about 1890. I started looking at immigration to the usual countries and found all 3 names with the right birth dates in California. I suspect it's them but can't prove it.
Richard is the easiest brother to follow, he crops up in all the US census, dies in 1937 and I can trace his wife (Anna) and then his descendants.
Godley is not a common name in the UK and there are only 8 Richard Godleys born of the right approx age. Of these all but 2 either die in the UK or are still there in 1911 so it seems likely that these are the right people but I'd like to be sure.
Their details are... Walter John Godley 1867 Q2, Frederick Godley 1869 Q3 & Richard Godley 1870 Q4. All born Keymer, Sussex, UK sons of James & Hephzibah Godley. Their christening dates are slightly later than their registration on BM&D's.
The Walter John info looks interesting, where has that come from?
I've seen that death of Fred in 1940 and his mothers surname was Hunt so it looks good.
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The information that Lisa found on Walter was from California voter registrations.
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Hi all
There's a Richard Godley (Goodley actually but...) who leaves Liverpool for New York on the SS Majestic 5th Apr 1893. He is described as single, English and aged 23, so born 1870ish. There doesn't appear to be any other Godley's on the same voyage.
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Hello! Are you still looking for information about Richard and Anna Godley? They are my step-father's grandparents. I can confirm for you that Richard is the son of James Godley of Sussex. James owned a pub in Sussex called the Royal George Inn. I am currently researching the other two brothers of Richard who came to the United States. I would love to correspond with you. Perhaps we can share information.
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Hi vgallagher
I would be delighted to share any information that I have with you. Have you seen the photo of James Godley and of the Royal George public house. That's probably a good place to start, I was sent them by an American lady called Nicole.
I don't have access to many American family history sites but from what I can piece together Richard & Ann had three grandsons via their son Ferdinand (or Fred) who were called Robert W, Stanley Richard and James Lee.
Regards SP
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Hi SP,
Thank you so much for your response. I believe I have the photo of James Godley that you are referring to as well as a photo of the pub. Fortunately, my mom and stepfather were able to visit the pub many years ago before it was torn down. It was a wonderful experience for them--a once-in-a-lifetime trip.
Yes, your information about Ferdinand (Fred) Godley and his descendants is all correct. My stepfather is the James Lee Godley you mentioned. He is the only one of his brothers still living. When I mentioned contacting you to him, he wondered how you might be related to him?
I have been working on Walter John Godley lately. Were you ever able to find all the information you were looking for with regard to him? I have Walter John first living in the Fresno, California area, which my stepfather can confirm. Walter John Godley was a musician (a harpist). My mom says his instrument was donated to the history museum in Fresno. She says they have a photo of Walter with his harp. I would very much like to see it. If that happens, I could send it to you if you like.
After this time, I have Walter as a theatre manager and later as a theatre owner. For many years after that I have him working as a sign painter and living in the San Francisco area. All of this information comes from census, voter records and city directories. My stepfather seems confused by some of the later information. He has some dementia at this point in his life. I am afraid he gets a lot of his information crossed up. All of the information fits perfectly on a timeline, and I haven't found any conflicting information. Does any of this match the information you have?
I was also able to find that this Walter Godley from the San Francisco area had a son, Walter Mallon Godley. The American site, Find-a-Grave had a photo of him. He seems to have my step-dad's chin!
I am so glad to connected with you and that you are willing to share information.
Vicki
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Hi Vicki
I think the relationship goes like this,
James Lee Godley is a great grandson of James Godley & Hepzibah Hunt through Richard Godley (1870) & Ferdinand Godley (1898).
My mother, Americ, is a great granddaughter of James & Hepzibah via Richard's brother William James Godley (1860) and his son Percy Victor Godley (1891).
My branch of the family hasn't moved very far from Burgess Hill, we live about 10 miles to the east, still in Sussex and just to the north of Lewes.
I've got quite a lot of information about the Godley family in Sussex and their descendants but I don't have that much about the brothers who went to America and would love to know more. I'm going to dust off my family tree drawing and bring it up to date. I can send you a copy and/or you can see it on Ancestry although I'm not sure what you can see of the UK site but if you give me an e-mail address I can send you an invite.
I didn't get to see the Royal George pub either, by the time I realised the significance it had already been knocked down but I've collected some articles from the local newspaper about it. There's another important pub at Friars Oak just down the road at Clayton that is quite interesting as well although it has been rebuilt since the Godley's were there.
Regards, Sean
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Hi Sean,
This is wonderful. :) I am very happy to have met you, and I'm eager to tell my step-father about his cousin in Sussex. Thank you for the family tree you attached; it I will help me show him how the two of you are related. I am happy to share my email address with you. I have the international version of Ancestry, so as long as you do as well, I would imagine we would be able to see each other's information once we are connected there. My address is vicki.gallagher10@gmail.com. I would like to send you an invite to my tree as well, although there is not much there as I have just begun. I would also be happy to continue our communications through our private email addresses if you would like.
I would love to learn more about the Godley's in Sussex. I will continue to research those in America and share what I find with you. Thank you so much, Sean! I'm looking forward to working together on the Godley family tree.
Vicki
PS I found out about Friar's Oak through Ancestry. Sadly, my mom and Jim didn't know about it when they were in the UK, so they didn't get to see it. They saw the Royal George, and the church and graveyard. They also mentioned meeting a man who shared a book that contained a lot of information about the families of Burgess Hill. Are you aware of such a book?
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Hi Vicki
I've gathered quite a lot of books on local history so I may have it. There's also a very good selection in the local family history centre in Falmer. Portslade is another important place for this line of the Godley family, Richards grandfather, William, was a parish clerk in Portslade and his grandmother was the local school teacher. They share a very nice gravestone in a prominent position outside the front door of the church and it's worth a look.
It's a mystery (to me anyway) why their son George moved to Clayton and started running an old coaching Inn. From there the family literally exploded into the business of running public houses and were in charge of a considerable number across Sussex, especially in Brighton. I'm hoping one day to find out what started that off.
There are also quite a lot of articles that make mention of the Godley family in the local newspapers. I have got transcriptions for those that I have found. When I work out what I've done with the memory card that I save my work on (in a safe place, somewhere!) I will attach a copy.
I've also sent you an e-mail.
Sean