To cut a long story short I have an ancestor, Henry (Harry) Ashley, who has been a bit of brickwall for me for a while now. Essentially all I have on his origins is that he was born in England somewhere between 1840 and 1860 (based on different ages he was recorded at in the confirmed historical trail after coming to Australia). I've been systematically going through all the Henry Ashleys born during this period to try and follow them through to try and ascertain if they could be my Henry.
My Henry arrived in Port Adelaide, Australia in 1876 as a crew member aboard the 'Mary Blundell' from Liverpool. He ended up causing some trouble aboard (disturbing the peace and absenting without leave) and ended up in gaol and remaining in Australia. From there married in 1894 having several children and working various labourers jobs before dying in 1918.
I've come across a Henry Ashley born in 1842 in Whitehaven, Cumberland who is currently my top contender as a possibility. Born to a Jane Ashley of Duke Street (no father recorded) - he is then in the 1851 and 1861 census as a foster son to Joseph and Ann Hellon. He then appears in some Liverpool crew lists in the 1860s and 1870s and I can't pick him up again in England from there. I'm not very familiar with what's available record wise to look into around Cumberland and was hoping someone might be able to help me find more information and see if anything can really connect the two stories. Or find something the shows that this Henry Ashley continued to live on in England so can't be my ancestor in Australia.
Blake
