Romany links

[Fay]

Hello

I wonder if anyone can help.

My greatgrandfather, Fredrerick Callaghan married Elizabeth Cox in 1897, in Woolwich.  I know my grandmother's family were Romany and related to the Lees.  My uncle thought her mother's maiden name was Lee, but it appears to be Cox.  Her mother was Kate, born in Ireland 1855. Could her name be Lee?  Does anyone know of the Romany Lees, either in Sittingbourne, Kent, Woolwich or East London? ?

[forester]

Hello Fay,

I can't help you specifically with your family, but I can give you a general view of SE London around that time. Going by the bits of the 1871 census I have glanced through, there was certainly a substantial Irish community in Woolwich.

As far as the Romany connection goes, I found these Lees in the 1871 census in Eltham, not a million miles from Woolwich:

Caravan on Eltham Common
Belcher Lee, head, 37, hawker, born Kent Hollingborne
Jane Lee, wife, 37, hawker, born Suffolk Coling(?)
Mary Lee, dau, 12, hawker, born Kent Maidstone

Regards,
                 Phil


 

[Paul J Ballard]

Fay,

If you have not already done so I suggest you check out http://www.passing-through.co.uk/index.htm which is a site dedicated to the family history of "travelling" people.

Paul

<-------- Despite my appearance I don't have any Romany ties 

[Fay]

Thanks a lot

The info about the Eltham site and the Passing through website are wonderful.  Now I've just got to find the link between Cox and Lee and I'm laughing.

[casalguidi]

Hi Fay

I descend from Romany LEEs in Kent and there were a number of travelling families settling around the Sittingbourne area - one linked to a CALLAGHAN if I remember rightly but don't think it was a LEE.  Do you have Frederick & Elizabeth on the census - any further details from the marriage certificate?

Best wishes

Casalguidi

[Fay]

Yes, I did find Frederick and Elizabeth together, with daughter Elizabeth on 1901 census. Her surname was Cox.  I traced her mother Kate to Ireland.  She was Kate Cox-Muligan.  So why was my grandmother so adamant she was Romany?  She even went so far to say she was related to Gypsy Rose Lee and the orginal Gypsy Lee was a pirate called the Black Prince.
Incidently, she married George Edward Pack in 1916 in London, she had two sisters, Virginia and Nell and a brother Fred, born after 1900,  ::)so if anyone is looking for the same line I'd be very interested.

[Sandra S]

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