Website in the process of being upgraded - full menu should be back on all pages soon.
Full menu can be viewed here.


George Henry DAVIES

George Henry DAVIES

Male Abt 1807 - 1851  (~ 44 years)    Has one ancestor but no descendants in this family tree.


 Set As Default Person    

Personal Information    |    Event Map    |    All    |    PDF

  • Name George Henry DAVIES 
    Relationshipwith Teresa Ann GOATHAM
    Born Abt 1807 
    • Date from the age given in his marriage PR entry, 1806 or 7 also suggested by the age recorded when he died, and the 1841 census is consistent, suggesting the range 1806-1811. As he was a little younger than his wife he may have made himself a little older to lessen the gap.
      The 1841 census shows him as not born in Devon. Father from his marriage record.
      (No baptism of a George Henry or Henry George DAVI(E)S, son of Robert, found on FMP or Ancestry, in 1807 +/- 5 years 17 Sep 2018; there are a few Georges son of Robert on FMP, could be one of these, but more likely he is a different one not in either indexes when searched.)

      A likely George may appear in baptism lists as more are indexed but perhaps the most likely source for identifying where he was from is muster rolls which often give birthplace; I expect these will be indexed and put online by one of the commercial companies in the not too distant future. (The Keith Matthews name files for George Davey (Davies) / Davis have been checked and there is no evidence of a George likely to be this one).
    Gender Male 
    Occupation From 1837 to 1841 
    Seaman 
    • At the time of his marriage; mariner in the 1841 census; boatman on his wife's death certificate (in 1876, i.e. nearly a quarter of a century after George had died).
    Namesake 1844  Teignmouth, Devon, England See the place on a map and other information about it - if available (many more will be in time); also all individuals with events at this location 
    • In 1844 George's wife Mary's half-brother Thomas HEATH had a son who was given the Christian names George Henry, it would seem likely after this George Henry. Though they were a popular combination of names, of the 27 Georges whose births were registered in 1844 in Newton Aboot RD who were given a middle name Henry came equal top with John, but there were only 3 of each, and it was only about a third of Georges who were given a middle name, so it would seem a bit of a coincidence it Thomas's son was not being named after his brother-in-law).  
      That same year Mary's half-brother Richard HEATH also had a son, more clearly named after Mary's husband; he was named George Davis HEATH.
      Sadly I know next-to-nothing about George, and nothing about why his brothers-in-law would name sons after him. Was he their Godfather? Was it a kindness as by this time George and Mary had been married 7 years but had no children, so it looked unlikely he would himself leave sons or was it, for the same lack of offspring, hoping their sons would be favoured when George died? If so, does this suggest George looked like he would do well for himself? If so, they were to be disappointed as George's life was cut short by that scourge of the times, especially of those living in crowded conditions such as found in East Teignmouth, TB.
    Died 10 Jan 1851  The Strand, East Teignmouth, Devon, England See the place on a map and other information about it - if available (many more will be in time); also all individuals with events at this location 
    Cause: Phthisis pulmonalis 
    • GRO ref: DAVIES, George Henry q1 1851 Newton Abbot RD 10 115; GRO online index shows age at death as 44

      Details from his death certificate. The death was registered by one Ann Heath, almost certainly his wife Mary's sister-in-law (wife of her brother Richard). Both the death certificate and the census of the same year show her as resident in The Strand in East Teignmouth.
    Patriarch & Matriarch
    Robert DAVIES,   d. Yes, date unknown  (Father) 
    Person ID I300752  All | All in the Goatham / Gotham One-Name Study
    Last Modified 25 Aug 2024 

    Father Robert DAVIES,   d. Yes, date unknown 
    Family ID F301664  Family Group Page  |  Family Chart

    Family Mary Ann GOTHAM,   b. 19 Jan 1803, West Teignmouth, Devon, England See the place on a map and other information about it - if available (many more will be in time); also all individuals with events at this location,   d. 27 Jul 1876, The Union Workhouse, Newton Abbot, Devon, England See the place on a map and other information about it - if available (many more will be in time); also all individuals with events at this location  (Age 73 years) 
    Married 17 Dec 1837  St. Gregory the Great’s Church, Dawlish, Devon, England See the place on a map and other information about it - if available (many more will be in time); also all individuals with events at this location 
    • From PR entry (image on FMP)
      "1837. Marriage solemnized By Banns in the Parish of Dawlish in the County of Devon
      No. 6, When Married: December 17th
      Name and Surname: George Henry Davies, Age: 30, Condition: Batcheler,  Rank or Profession: Seaman, Residence at the Time of Marriage: Dawlish, Father's Name and Surname: Robert Davies, Rank or Profession of Father: Seaman
      Name and Surname: Mary Ann Gotham, Age: 32, Condition: Spinster, Rank or Profession: -, Residence at the Time of Marriage: [I think Dawlish written once was intended to apply to both - not central in the box but lower than other groom's info] Father's Name and Surname: William Gotham, Rank or Profession of Father: Seaman
      Married in the Parish Church according to the Rites and Ceremonies of the Established Church by me, J D Perkins D D
      This Marriage was solemnized between us, George Henry Davies, Mary Ann Gotham
      in the Presence of us, Elisabeth Heath, George Thomas"

      GRO ref: GOTHAM, Mary Ann to DAVIES, George Henry q4 1837 Newton Abbot RD 10 195
      Who was the Mary Ann Gotham who married George Davies?
      At first I thought it was fairly simple.

      William GOTHAM and Fanny PERRING?
      The naming of her father as William pointed to a daughter of William Gotham bap 1776 and his wife, Frances Perring: although I have not a baptism for such a daughter, (not in PR for West Teignmouth for 1804-1806), while I have for other chidlren of theirs, the age at marriage suggests she was born in 1805, and this would be in a convenient gap between the other known children of William and Fanny.
      In addition, Mary and her husband were godparents to the first daughter of Elizabeth, daughter of the William and Fanny.

      Mary GOTHAM (later HEATH)?
      It now seems clear that Mary Ann was an illegitimate daughter of Mary who was the sister of the above William, and that Mary Ann invented a father for her marriage (unless she was the result of incest!) There is a baptism for such a daughter of Mary, in 1803. It would suggest she was 2 years older than the marriage record claims, but as she was older than her husband she was quite likely not entirely honest about her age to lessen the apparent age gap between them.
      This Mary Ann had a half sister Elizabeth HEATH, one of the witnesses to the marriage,  the other witnesse was George THOMAS, a brother-in-law of this Mary Ann.

      At the time of the 1841 census Elizabeth was living with George DAVIES and Mary; she married in 1846 but was widowed in 1849. Still (or again) living with Mary in 1851, when Mary [Ann] was the head of the household, also having been widowed - and they are shown as sisters.

      If Mary Ann and George were not aunt and uncle to Elizabeth's daughter to whom they were godparents then what was the connection? - since William (Elizabeth's father) was the brother of Mary Heath née Gotham then Mary Ann and Elizabeth were first cousins, still close enough that Elizabeth might well have chosen them.   
    Family This couple had no children together 
    Last Modified 25 Aug 2024 
    Family ID F300261  Family Group Page  |  Family Chart

  • Event Map Click to hide
    Link to Google MapsMarried - 17 Dec 1837 - St. Gregory the Great’s Church, Dawlish, Devon, England See the place on a map and other information about it - if available (many more will be in time); also all individuals with events at this location Link to Google Earth (if installed; see link below to install)
    Link to Google MapsNamesake - 1844 - Teignmouth, Devon, England See the place on a map and other information about it - if available (many more will be in time); also all individuals with events at this location Link to Google Earth (if installed; see link below to install)
    Link to Google MapsDied - Cause: Phthisis pulmonalis - 10 Jan 1851 - The Strand, East Teignmouth, Devon, England See the place on a map and other information about it - if available (many more will be in time); also all individuals with events at this location Link to Google Earth (if installed; see link below to install)
     = Link to Google Earth (if installed; see link below to install) 
    Pin Legend Address Church or Cemetery Military service or death Hospital Small location Town / City County, state or province Country Registration District Place of education Court Property Not Set