Help needed,says he's 'born in England'

[Numan]

   Hi all.  I have been exploring all the ways I can think of to get any more info on my

GGGrandfather

   Nicholas Banfield b.1846 

  I only know from US 1880 census, he was born in 'England'.
   And that he probably arrived in US abt.1867.
    Please, can anyone help me, or tell me, how do I know  where to start to look in England?
   I have searched passenger lists, 1870 censuses from so many counties in PA, W.Virginia, Ohio, New York,-even michigan(there's a family connection there in later years)-death notices, marriage lists, cemetary lists, newspaper items...anything I could on all surnames connected to him, hoping somehow to get a glimmer of how he got to the US. And 'from where in England'?, to know where to start to look for his roots there.
   I've also tried every spelling of 'Nickolos,Nickolas,Nikolos,Nicholas' in my searches...

  And all the Banfield families I do find all over the Us in 1880 or prior (family search included) don't seem to have any connection to him at all.

  If I can't find his port of entry how am I ever going to find even what county in England he was born in?
   please can someone help me?   I am at a complete loss where to go with this.
  Thanks ahead for anything!
   

[robesur]

There were no births in the name of Nicholas Banfield or variations, registered in England between 1841 and 1850.

[Mort29]

a couple of chaps of that name, but 10 years older in the 1851/61 census (Cornwall area)

what was his occupation in 1880?

[alpinecottage]

There were no births in the name of Nicholas Banfield or variations, registered in England between 1841 and 1850.

I agree with that but note that one of the quarters (June, I think) for 1846 is missing from Freebmd.  However I looked at the GRO index and Nicholas wasn't registered in that missing quarter either.

There is a concentration of Banfield families in SW corner of England, but also some around London and elsewhere at that time. 

No Nicholas Banfield/Bandfield on IGI at that time either.

Nicholas is an unusual name for England at that time, so should make finding him easier

[jorose]

http://pilot.familysearch.org/recordsearch/start.html
 - in the 1870 census there is a Nicholas "Banefield", 26, a coal digger b. England, in "Lower Turkeyfoot, Somerset, Pennsylvania"

Unfortunately he is listed as a lodger and there are no obvious family around - probably worth looking at all those b. England in the area, though, and seeing if you can trace any of them back more easily, just to see if there was a big move from one particular part of England to that particular part of PA.

[Numan]

  Wow, thanks for the replies.  But do you see my dilemma?
    
    One of his children say 'Great Britain', so maybe his birthplace wasn't England.

    maybe he just assumed the name Nicholas, if he didn't like his given name.
  
   i don't know where to go from here.

  His occupation was 'Salesman', if I remember right-1880 census
  
 I was writing another reply , and i had a sudden feline visitor jump half into my lap/half on the keyboard, and I lost it....
    So if you see a similar reply somewhere, like this one from me...that's the one i lost.
  

[snowyw]

1851
HO107 P1909 F206 P7  TA crown copyright
Thomas Banfield 43 Farmer of 5 acres, (looks like) Limburner St Michael Carhayes Cornwall
Ann Banfield 40 Gorran Cornwall
Nicholas " 16 Ag Lab Veryan Cornwall
Emma Jane " 13 Ag Lab
Eliza " 9 Scholar
Richard " 7 Scholar
Ellen " 5
Original " (!) son 4
Phillippa Ann " 1

Sue

PS Just realised this would make him born in 1836??

[Numan]

  Yes, Thank-you, I did 'accidently' find (from reading randon censuses in the western PA area, and I had started with the southwest)

that Lower Turkeyfoot, Somerset Co, Nicholas

    'Barnfield', as it was written where I found it.

That was 5 years ago, and I just kept reading tons and tons of censuses, hoping to find some connection...

  I have many names, female banfields too, that 'might' have 'some little connection' written down, from all my searches...nothing connected, or as in this coaldigger, wrong age.

   

[carol8353]

Did he name his father on his marriage cert- any clues in what he named his children as to his parents names? Do US death certs name parents?

Carol