CoastGuards/HM Customs Officers

[mikelmouse]

Hi Shane
Thanks for that. With a "new" cousin on board who has contacts in Ireland this "wall" may soon be knocked down. Fingers crossed.

Many thanks

Mike

[Brendan Joseph]

Hi Shane,

I have a little brick wall of my own, My granduncle Charles McCarthy was born c 1862 in Kilbrittain, West Cork, he married Jane O'Regan 1884 Bandon, on his marriage cert it states he was an Excise Officer, Customs & Excise were seperate in those days.

He has children born in Bandon, Fermoy, Stourport in Worcs and Everton Liverpool, I understand there was an Excise training College in Liverpool. One of his sons I am particularly interested in, Denis Finbarr, 1911 English Census states he was born in Fermoy and was a Revenue Clerk. I think there are revenue records in Kew, I wonder are there any online records?

One of my aunts remembers visiting him in North Wales area early 50's , he was married with one daughter who was around 14 years old, she says it was around an hour or hour and a half's drive from Holyhead. I think it may have been as far as Birkenhead, she has a touch of the A's.

I have searched the free BMD english records, a few possibilities but nothing definate.

Brendan

PS. I am also trying to track down Jane O'Regans family, her marriage cert states father Jeremiah, Bootmaker, Bandon

[RonnieG]

The Coast Guard service was also a reserve force for the Royal Navy. Many, if not all of its members were formerly full-time members of the Navy and had probably originally enlisted as boys. As members of the Coast Guard they would also have been assigned to a Royal Navy ship stationed in a nearby port.

If you have an ancestor in the Coast Guard it would be well worth your time doing an online search with the National Archives in Kew.

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/familyhistory/military/navy/rnstep1.htm

If you find him, then you can download a copy of his naval record for a small fee. This record will also give you a physical description of the man including any scars or tattoos etc.

RonnieG

[annieoburns]

I suppose you have looked through all the English censuses to see if he put more than Tipperary for place of birth? I had a coastguards wife who put her village as well as the county in Ireland.  I was lucky enough to trace coastguard records right back to his first posting and it gave more information that the 'relocation' records of subsequent postings... even told me he got thruppence a mile for his travelling expenses!  The name of his first boychild might be that of the grandfather so another clue to pin him down if you find a baptism record that is probable?
Anne

[mikelmouse]

Hi Anne
Yes got all that information thanks. From the 1841 - 1891 census (excluding 1871) it just has Ireland for them both (John & Margaret). At this moment in time I have met another cousin (3rd) and we are both working on finding out where about in Tiperary & Limerick they came from. We are stuck at the marriage stage which would give his last location before coming to England.
I am sure they married in Ireland first. I would imagine Margaret went with him (to Devon) as his wife rather than fiance. There's another puzzle, they had 8 children from 1837-1851 4 boys and four girls, one boy died aged four. They moved about there quite often but the big move from Shaldon in Dorset to Hoose (now Hoylake) here in Wirral, the three boys are not with them but the girls are. I may have found one son in 1871 but not the others. Other little brick walls crop up for the next 40 years!

Many thanks for you advice, I will be looking into all avenues to track their original whereabouts
as will my new found cousin and Uncle


Regards

Mike Hayes

[annieoburns]

It was customary for children of coastguard officers to have right of abode in the coastguard cottage supplied with job but at age 14 they had to head off.... the girls to domestic service and the boys into the navy where I suspect they was a good demand for young lads to climb rigging etc.  I am not sure if I have the full set of my coastguard family as they may have already moved on by the time the first census was taken in 1841.  My pair were married c 1820 in County Dublin... I am guessing at church but records for that place/time period are missing.  You may be lucky as a lot of pre 1864 parish records are available at a price.  I would lean toward Limerick as on river/sea and tradition of seafaring folk rather than inland county like Tipperary.