Info: William John Speed

[gbuttery]

Hi, Could you tell me where the SPEEDs were born. I have ancestors born in Lincolnshire and Rutland and am trying to put together siblings of a John Speed born c.1754 in Rutland.

Regards

[Cromarty]

 

Our Speeds were born in London.  The really trickey thing is that the names John and William Speed in two separate families.  There is one in the north, Yorkshire, I think, and our line who appear in London in the mid 1700s.  You will also find the name in Essex and then there is the famous family from South Hampton.

Cromarty

[gbuttery]

Thanks for that.  I thought Speed was quite a localised surname; obviously not.
I'll keep searching!

Thank You again,
Gill

[jane56]

Hi
I am trying to trace my great great grandfather William John Speed. He was married to Eliza. Had a son William John Speed on 7th November 1812 (My great grandfather). In Sydney Australia. He married Catherine. There seems to be 2 William Speed's to come to Australia in the early 1800"s. I am in the UK for a very short time and do not have access back home. Would appreciate any information.

[Ebch]

Rollyb's William John Speed's first wife was a Miss Nelson, married 14 Sept 1785 at Furneaux Pelham, Herts.  They had six children, 3 died.  His second 'wife' was Ann Thorn.

[Cromarty]

William John Speed (1761) was my great x 4 grandfather. He married Sarah Nelson and then bigamously married Ann Thorn and  Eliza Russell,  and then Elizabeth Raine.  He was transported to New South Wales in 1810 after a trial at the Surrey Assizes in 1809 where he was convicted of bigamy.  One of his sons, WJS, was born in Sydney in 1812 to Eliza Russell.  This William John's first wife, Mary Ellen Plunkett,  bore him six children before her death in 1846.  The May, Jamieson and Moses families are descended from their daughters.  There was no issue from the sons.  One died in infancy and the other two never married.  WJS then married Marion Govan and had another thirteen children.  There are many descendants from this second marriage from four of their children.

I do not know who the Catherine is that you mention.  This name does not appear in the family up to this point.

You could try searching at the Kew Records for information about the trial in 1809.

I hope this infromation helps.

Cromarty

[jane56]

Thank you this is a great help. I did not know that William John Speed (1761) had another wife after Eliza. Did Eliza come out to New South Wales after WJS?
The WJS born in 1812 is my great grandfather, he died 4th Feb 1891.  My Grandfather is Robert Speed and he was born 1859 and died 1944. I thought his mother was Catherine (but perhaps I am wrong). ::
Will keep looking
Jane56

[jeffreyjoecarroll]

I am a descendant of WJS's last wife, Elizabeth RAINE (my ggggg grandmother) (from her marriage to John FULLOON). I'd be interested to learn the cause os WJS's death or any information about their period of marriage.

Has anyone ever seen any portraits of the pair?

Regards,
Jeff

[phobman]

William John Speed is my 4 x great grandfather. His daughter Jane Mary (mother Sarah Nelson) is my direct relative. Sarah was the granddaughter of George Nelson, a former City of London Mayor - 1761-2. His job as an army officer took him to Barbados, New York and Quebec.
He married Elizabeth Russell in 1798 (according to her testimony they married in Nova Scotia) and on his return to England married Ann Thorn in 1899. Ann had a son, William John Speed, in 1801. Elizabeth's first son, Henry William, was born in 1803.
In order to try and sort out his life, WJ and Sarah had another child in 1805 - George Frederick - but things didn't work out and eventually Sarah convinced Ann Thorn to sue for bigamy.
WJ was eventually convicted of bigamy and sent to NSW in 1810 where he was promptly given a pardon.
In 1819, WJ returned to England to collect Jane Mary. Jane eventually married John Wise and they ran a hotel together in Hobart - the Waterloo Hotel - until Jane died in 1847. Jane and John had six children. John died in Sydney in 1870 after having another three children with Sarah Deacon.
In 1822 he went to Tasmania where he taught at a school and then became a pound keeper and gaoler at Richmond.
WJ returned to NSW and in 1832 he married Elizabeth Raine. Both thought that the other had money and promptly separated when it was realised that they didn't.
WJ died at the Benevolent Society in 1838 aged 77.
WJ and Elizabeth Russell's son, Walter G, emigrated to California in the 1850s and became a citizen. He never married.