Information on English Customs and Excise Officers

[NNR]

Dear all,

  An ancestor of mine, one Thomas Jones, was a customs and excise officer in Liverpool between at least 1841 and 1851. I was wondering how I might access any records related to his role? He was likely born in North Wales (Flintshire, I believe) around 1795 and lived in Malpas in Cheshire for a time, but other than these small details, I know little about him...

[stanmapstone]

There is a National Archives Guide at http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/records/looking-for-person/excise-officer.htm You can search entry papers of Excise officers by name

Stan

[sanqhar]

The Excise did not merge with Customs till 1909.  Your ancestor was either in the Customs or the Excise and not Customs and Excise.

tom

[NNR]

Thanks for calling me on my accuracy! I'd never realised the two were ever split. Thomas was an Excise Officer.

[NNR]

Investigating further...an oddity.

At the 1857 marriage of his daughter, Ann Jones of Vauxhall Road, her father's occupation is given as 'Officer in Excise'.

However, our earliest record has him at Pembroke Gardens, aged 45 and a customs officer (born Flint). In 1851 he remains at Pembroke Gardens, now aged 56 (and a widower). He is now an 'Officer in Customs' (again born in Flint) with a housekeeper, Elizabeth Lodge (Unm, 37, Yorkshire) and a visitor, Elizabeth Brook(?), (Unm, 21, Yorkshire)

The same year, daughter Ann, 25, is a general servant at a pub on 23 Vauxhall Road.

By 1871 (can't find him in 1861), Thomas is at 16 Charnock Road, Vauxhall. Now 66 he is a 'Seaman's Merchant...' (again bon Wales) with....and I can't believe I've not noticed this 'til now...two more daughters!! Sarah A Matthew(?) and Ann J. Campbell. 29 and 27 respectively, and born Liverpool. There's also a servant. This is very odd. They'd be born in 1852 and 1854, and yet Thomas remains a widow from '51 to '71!

Ok, so now there's more leads...but it still all seems very confusing!

[Colin Y]

There is a National Archives Guide at http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/records/looking-for-person/excise-officer.htm You can search entry papers of Excise officers by name

Stan

Hi Stan,

I have this morning received the Excise joining up papers for William Fryer from Nottingham in 1843.

... 2 'Sadly's' :-{

1. He is not the William Fryer I had hoped he was so I may have spent £12.50 for nothing - they could have put his home origin on the website (and saved themselves costs by not duplicating two A3 pages!)
2 There is nothing on where he was posted and that is critical for me because I am looking for a William Fryer born about then who was an Exciseman in Ireland and father of my Great Granny!

Any advice how I can get to see this William Fryers workplace records please?

Thanks in adv for any help you can offer me.

Colin