Edward Allen Dickins returned to England

Another researcher who I've been in contact with regarding Anne Clarke Morgan's family sent me some information yesterday.

Basically, Anne Clarke Morgan's sister, Gwen married Richard Humphreys Richards. She had twins, then another daughter and died (1837) less than five years after her marriage. Richard H Richards died in 1841, the twins survived childhood, never married and died spinsters leaving their home estate Llanfair Isaf (located in Llanfair-juxta-Harlech, 20 miles north of Llangelynnin along the Welsh coast) to none other than their cousin, Edward Allen Dickins. The last of the two died in 1918. In January 1919, Edward Allen returns from Canada on the same ship as Sydney Howard Dickins. His final address is "Llanfairisaf, North Wales"

(If you have folks coming into or through the United Kingdom you really have to explore Ancestry.com's UK Incoming passenger Lists, 1878-1960. My friend even found Polish relatives who had gone to the United States, but returned to Poland in 1920. Their ship stopped in Liverpool on its way to Hamburg and all the passengers were listed.)

But there is more: Edward married a Mabel Brakell and had a son and daughter. The son, Francis E Dickins was still alive in 2007...now if I could only find his address!

Uncle Samuel Taylor and Money

Charles [Sr.]'s brother Samuel's will is written 1855, with codicils. He dies 1875. His will states that money is to be held in trust for the child or children of his brother, Charles Taylor, living at the time of Samuel's death. In 1855, Charles had only Mary Collis Taylor, who would have been around 9 years old. Anne Clarke Morgan did not die until 1856. But in later codicils, Samuel doesn't bother to change that to state, "the child of my Brother, Charles Taylor, Mary Collis Taylor." Perhaps, Charles' relationship with Mary Ann Moore was a secret? Perhaps not. Perhaps, Mary Collis Taylor was taken on as a poor relation and was not able to marry until she had received this money from her uncle...she doesn't marry until 1880! She was 34. (That also explains why she only had three sons.)

However, there is no mention of money from Samuel in her marriage contract (1908 version). Where did that money go? It was roughly 1000 pounds.

Gwen Morgan & John Bright

Apparently, the Morgan family was of the Quaker faith. Anthony Morgan married Catherine Evans in 1804. Catherine died before 1840, apparently the last of the practicing faith. Their daughter, Anne Clarke Morgan married Charles Taylor in 1844.

However, they had another daughter, Gwen Morgan, who has survived obscurity because of a romance with a well-known politician, John Bright, MP. The basic story is that John Bright met Anthony Thomas Morgan (brother to Gwen & Anne) at Ackworth, a Quaker boarding school in Rochdale. They became friends and eventually, John Bright met Gwen and fell in love. The feeling appears to have been mutual. Something, however stops their courtship and John Bright marries Elizabeth Priestman up near Rochdale while Gwen marries Richard Humphrey Richards in Llangelynnin (see this poem by John Owen, in Welsh...looking for a translation still). What the "something" was is up for debate. The story becomes a little sadder when we find that Gwen dies in 1841 after just five years of marriage and, years later, John Bright begins to visit her grave regularly until his death.

Now, the big question is what stopped their courtship? Here is an article from North Wales Weekly News in 1932 which gives some insight into the story. Also a few pages from J. Travis Mills' John Bright and the Quakers which also discusses their love story.

Why, if Anthony Morgan was so against Gwen's marriage to John Bright, did he then allow Anne to marry Charles Taylor? Wouldn't that be the same type of marriage? Second, Charles Taylor was listed as "independent" on the 1841 census with Anthony Thomas Morgan...did he misrepresent himself? Was it before he actually started working in the family business? Every census thereafter and every record we find him on states that he was a druggist or chemist. Third, Anne Clarke Morgan only had one child, Mary Collis Taylor, and died 12 years into their marriage. Did she have a bad marriage, too? Mary Anne Moore/Marian DeBarcy lived the longest of his wives, but she left him after 10-15 years. His third wife died young as well, after about 10 years of marriage. Each of his wives was quite young (25ish at the time of marriage) while he kept getting older. What do you think?

Charles Taylor in 1841 Census

He's with Anthony Thomas Morgan in Llangelynnin Parish, Merioneth, Wales!

Now, he isn't listed as a druggist, but as "independent." I guess that means he's got money and doesn't need to work. I wonder if he's through with his schooling and taking a trip before settling down to work at the family business in Cleveland Square? Well, at least it explains how Charles and Anne Clarke Morgan met.

Another researcher has contacted me through the Merioneth Message board who is related to the Morgan family and has considerable research on them. He's found a Quaker connection which also links them to John Bright, a reformer who was raised in Rochdale. Sounds to me as if somehow John Bright introduced Charles Taylor to Anthony Thomas Morgan (whom he met at a Quaker school) which eventually led to Charles and Anne's marriage in 1844.

I need to go through the history of Rochdale some more to find out what else is going on. I did see reference to the Corn Laws and the buying and redistribution of land in relation to John Bright. There is considerable information on John Bright, perhaps it will give us some clues on the Morgans, Taylors and perhaps how in the world Charles met Mary Ann Moore (Marian Debarcy)

Morgan Family

I searched on FamilySearch for Anne Clarke Morgan, hoping to find a birth extraction for her. I found an Anne Clarke Morgan, daughter of Antony Morgan & Catherine christened 11 Feb 1844 in Langelynnin Parish, Merionethshire. Also a Hugh Morgan same date, place and parents. I speculated that these might be the children of the witness of the marriage, Anthony Thomas Morgan and that was why Anne married Charles Taylor there, as his wife wasn't able to travel. But then I wondered if it was possible that Anne Clarke Morgan, herself was being christened as an adult.

I put up a request on the Merionethshire Message Board at Rootsweb for the parish entry for Charles Taylor and Anne Clarke Morgan's marriage. I received a couple of responses and pieces of information, although not the record I had asked for. I asked if it was possible that these christenings could be for adults. The answer I got was it is possible and that there was another christening in the same location for the same parents, a week later, for Margaret Morgan. The parent's residences for all three christenings are listed as Hendre, however, there are no notations that say whether the entry was for an adult or an infant.

In addition, I received a note (see comment) of a will held in the National Library of Wales for an Anthony Morgan dated 1845. He is of Hendre, Llangelynnin, Merionethshire. In tracking down this will I found another for Anthony Thomas Morgan (the witness) in 1855, also a death record for him in both FreeBMD and North Wales BMD in Dolgelly District. Also a marriage in 1850 to a Sarah Coslett or Wood, in Llangelynnin Parish. (see North Wales BMD)

At the National Library of Wales I searched the Will database for Hendre, Llangelynnin & Merioneth. There were several wills. The earliest was in the 1695 and was for a gentleman named Anthoney Thomas. A couple for widows and a spinster through the 1700s and then an Mary Thomas, widow in 1785 which would be right around the time that Anthony Morgan and Catherine ought to be born. The final one was 1809 for Mary Morgan, widow although she was not listed as living at Hendre. Is it possible that Mary Morgan is a daughter of Mary Thomas, possibly the only living child and therefore receives the home estate, thereby passing into the Morgan family? There was also a will for a Evan Morgan of Llangelynnin Parish 1820. How is he related to Anthony? Possibly a father? That means Mary must have been his grandmother, since she was a widow in 1809.

I noticed a Marriage Bond database at the National Library of Wales and searched for Morgan at Llangelynnin and found only two. Anthony Morgan married Catherine Evans 2 Oct 1804 and Richard Humphreys Richards married Gwen Morgan 21 Dec 1835. This database only comes up to 1837, since the Civil Registration started then. So apparently the Gwen christened in 1813 married Richard Humphreys Richards.

So what I have right now on this family is:

Anthony Morgan (b. abt 1780 d. 1845) md. 2 Oct 1804 Catherine Evans (b. abt 1782 d. ?)
children:
Anthony Thomas Morgan (b. 1811 d. 1855) md. 1850 Sarah Coslett or Wood
Gwen Morgan (b. 1813) md. 1835 Richard Humphreys Richards
Hugh Morgan (b. abt 1815)
Margaret Morgan (b. abt 1817)
Anne Clarke Morgan (b. 1820 d. 1856) md. 1844 Charles Taylor

That leaves an awful gap between their marriage and their first child. Hmmm... I'll have to work on that.

I searched for any Ant(h)ony Morgan marrying between 1837 (beginning of Civil Registration; the Marriage Bond Index covers prior to 1837) and 1844. None listed on North Wales BMD site. One listed with FreeBMD an Anthony married Margaret Butler in 1841. But there were no Hugh, Anne or Margaret Morgan in FreeBMD or North Wales BMD that matches the 1844 christening dates. So, this suggests that these three children are the children of the Anthony Morgan & Catherine Evans married in 1804 and are christened as adults in 1844.

Llangelynnin Parish Church

So here's a Google map of Llangelynnin.


View Larger Map

As you can see, the church isn't very far from the beach.

Hendre, Anne Clarke Morgan's residence, is a little harder to explain. There is apparently a house named Hendre across the bay from Llangelynnin. But it looks very new and is in the middle of a row of houses, so that doesn't make sense. There is another house apparently in Dolgelley on Well St. But the only town named Hendre that I come up with is in Mid-Glamorganshire. But that is quite a distance away and how would they have met?

Anne Clarke Morgan IS Mary Collis Taylor's mother

So today's mail was a really large bundle. The internet is a wonderful thing...a week and a half ago I ordered the certificates and they were in the mail today!

To start with:

Mary Collis Taylor was born 17 June 1846 at 13 Wilton St, Liverpool. Her father was Charles Taylor, Chemist and Druggist. Her mother was Ann Clarke Taylor formerly Morgan.

Next:

14 Feb 1844 married by license in the parish church of Llangelynin, county of Merioneth by Thos. Jones, Curate

Charles Taylor, gentleman, full age, bachelor, residing in Liverpool, Father: John Taylor (no occupation) and
Anne Clarke Morgan, full age, spinster, residing in Hendre, Father: Anthony Morgan, gentleman

Witnesses: Anthony Thomas Morgan & Jane Lewis

Third:

Anne Clarke Taylor died 14 Apr 1856 Sidney Rd, Tranmere, female, 36 years, wife of Charles Taylor, Chemist, of Chronic Headache & Apoplectic fit - certified

So we have clearly found Charles' first marriage.

I searched on Llangelynin and found the correct spelling is Langelynnin. The other spelling is located in Caernarvonshire. In searching for this I found a new resource: A Vision of Britain Through Time. It is a comprehensive gazetteer and mapping system about all places in Britain. You gotta try it!

Anne Clarke Morgan

So I was thinking about Anne Clark (Annie Clerk - 1851) and I realized that Mary Collis Taylor, her daughter, ALWAYS used her middle name of Collis. It is on EVERY record that we have of her. What if "Clark" was Anne's middle name, not her surname?

So I search on FreeBMD.org and found only one "Anne Clark" as given names for a marriage to of all people! Charles Taylor. It was registered in the Mar Quarter of 1844 in Dolgelly District, Merionethshire, Wales. Anne Clark Morgan was her name. The 1851 census says she was born in Merionethshire, Wales, so the marriage location fits. Mary Collis Taylor was born 1846, so the date fits. The name fits, and the husband fits...do we bother to look any farther?

So I took the next step, looking for her death record. And in the June quarter 1856 there is an Anne Clark Taylor who is registered in Wirral District, Cheshire. They were living in Cheshire in 1851, so that fits right in as well and well, I was so excited I order these two certificates and Mary Collis Taylor's birth certificate as well.

I can't wait.

Taylor? Moore? DeBarcy?

Am I crazy? Every so often I wonder if I've jumped to a conclusion that makes these families tie together. Then I have to go through all of the information to validate my conclusion that they are one and the same. So here goes...

Charles Taylor, Jr. [We'll call him this, for clarity] was born 1868 in Liverpool, England and immigrated to the United States in 1885. Charles, Jr. left documents listing information about his family in England.


Charles Taylor, Sr. was a druggist. He did work at #10 Cleveland Sq. (1861, 1871) That building was originally owned by his father, then passed to his brother, Samuel who died 1875, directing that all his property be sold and the proceeds split between his inheritors. So it isn't surprising that in 1881, Charles Taylor Sr. is a retired druggist. #2 Brook Subery....turns out to be Tuebrook Suburb in Liverpool, but we haven't yet been able to locate a Clifton Villars address.

There is indeed a Mary born to Charles Sr. and a previous wife, a Mary Collis Taylor. (Christening, 1851) The christening record gives Mary Collis Taylor, daughter of Charles Taylor (druggist) & Anne Clarke [surnamed Morgan]. The 1851 census gives the three of them, Charles Taylor, druggist; wife Annie Clerk Taylor, & dau. Mary Collis Taylor. There cannot be a mistake.

After her mother's death Mary Collis lived with Sam Taylor (1861-Mary Collis Taylor, neice) and John Taylor, who was a surgeon (1871-Mary C. Taylor, neice) although he was living on Hope St instead of the Parliament St address that Charles Jr. gives.

A little off on the "Dr." Sam Taylor. He was never listed as a doctor. He was a Paint & Varnish Manufacturer & Land owner (does this refer to the Cleveland Square address that he received as inheritance from his father? Have no record of him living at Figueroa Street, either.

So Mary Collis Taylor clearly ties Charles Sr., John and Samuel together as brothers.

Now as to Charles Sr.'s second family--our family. We could never find them by the surname Taylor. They just didn't show up. It wasn't until my sister found their names on the ship's register that we found the surname of "Moore." When we then looked for them with the surname "Moore" we found everything we expected. Our copy of the 1861 census for #10 Cleveland Sq was a really bad copy. We thought we could read Mary A Moore, but we weren't sure until I recently got a cleaner copy. It was definitely, Charles Taylor, druggist 45y & Mary A Moore, servant 24y, but she was born in Liverpool, not France...hmmm....

1871 William Moore 55y chemist, born Wale, Lancashire; wife, Mary Ann 33y born Liverpool; William 11y scholar born Liverpool; George H. 9y scholar born Liverpool; Annie 6y scholar born Liverpool; Charles 3y born Liverpool

1881 Mary Ann More, 44y widow, Machinist born Liverpool; Charles 14y, scholar born Liverpool; Jane 8y, scholar born Liverpool
1881 Groman family on Great Howard St. Ann Moore 15y, servant, born Liverpool.

Marian (Mary) Taylor, most of the information Charles Jr gave we cannot yet validate. However, the fact that Marian was also known as Mary, validates the information that we have found listing her as Mary Ann Moore.

All of the kids: his numbers don't add up, but of the children we have been able to track down birth records for, he's right on except for one thing--the surname. We have Christening & Birth Registration for William. Christening for Annie. Birth Registration for George. Christening & Birth Registration for Charles. Unfortunately, nothing for Alice Jane (Jennie). All of these records give them the surname of "Moore." All of the places that he records them currently living in were correct prior to 1950 (with the surname of "Taylor" in the USA).

Oddball information is that, William, George & Charles Jr's birth registrations have no father listed. However, William's christening record lists Charles Sr. as a bookkeeper, Annie's christening record lists him, a "victualler" and Charles Jr's christening gives him as a druggist.

A couple of other pieces of information not listed on this document: Marian DeBarcy was 20 years younger than Charles Taylor. This is validated by the 1861, 1871 & 1881 censuses & both Mary Ann Moore's death certificate & Charles Taylor Sr's death certificate.

Mary Ann Moore who died in 31 Dec 1882 is the same Mary Ann Moore we've been tracking. Ages match, she is the "widow of Charles Moore, Druggist" and the informant is A. Moore, daughter, with a different address...this would have to be Annie who was a servant in another household.

Charles Taylor Sr. in 1881 is retired druggist born in Liverpool, with wife, Margaret & daughter Nellie, 1y. 1891 census give Charles Taylor Sr. as retired druggist born in Liverpool widowed with four children; Nellie 11y born Liverpool; Fredrick 8y born Walton on the Hill; Margaret 6y born Walton on the Hill; Esther 2y born Walton on the Hill

Charles Taylor Sr. dies 24 Oct 1895, retired chemist, Informant is N. Taylor, daughter with the same address as Charles. His Letters of Administration state the same death date and address and state that Mary Collis Dickins (there's that Collis middle name again!) wife of Edward Francis Dickins "the natural and lawful daughter, and only next of kin" recieved the entire estate. Okay, so the "only next of kin" is a little off, but it is clearly the same Charles Sr. If Mary Collis Taylor is his daughter from the first marriage. His death certificate informant is Nellie Taylor, daughter from the third marriage. We already know that Mary Collis Taylor is the half sister, Mary that Charles Jr. was mentioning.

Therefore, Charles Taylor Sr. druggist/chemist born 1815 married 1st Anne Clarke, their child: Mary Collis Taylor born 1846 who married 1880 Edward Francis Dickins. Charles Sr. married 2nd Mary Ann Moore (Marian DeBarcy), their children: William born 1860, George born 1862, Annie born 1865, Charles Jr. born 1868, & Alice Jane (Jennie) born 1875. Charles Sr. married 3rd Margaret (possibly Rooney), their children: Nellie born 1880, Fredrick born 1881, Margaret born 1885, & Esther born 1889.

One man, three marriages (relationships?), 10 kids. Taylor & Moore surnames.

I guess I'm not crazy...he was!

Why do we have a picture of Mary Collis Taylor Dickins?

When do you think this picture was taken of Mary Collis? My first guess was that it was taken when Mary Ann Moore [Marian DeBarcy] married Charles, Sr. That must have been around 1859. (William was born in 1860.) Mary would have been 13. Did girls put their hair up that early? I wish I could see her pendant better. It looks totally flat. I wonder if it got turned around and what we are looking at is the back of the pendant?

Why would Mary Ann keep this picture of Mary Collis even after she split up with Charles Sr.? The fact that she kept it must mean that it was hers to begin with, which is one reason why I think she commissioned the sitting. Was her early picture (see sidebar) taken at the same time? A girl's day out? Trying to make friends with a [future?] step-child?

Mary Collis Taylor bounced around living with different uncles at different times. In 1851, she lived with her father, Charles & mother, Ann Clarke in Tranmere, Cheshire. In 1861, she lived with Uncle Samuel Taylor at 162 Olive Park in Wavertree. In 1871 she lived with Uncle John Taylor at 51 Hope Street in Everton. In 1881, she was married to Edward Francis Dickins. They are together in 1891 & 1901. Of course we have to take this with a little salt, since the censuses are only a single day's snapsnot in a 10-year period. But, Charles Jr.'s notes say that she lived with Uncle Samuel, so that sounds as if she never did live regularly with Mary Ann & Charles Sr. I wonder why, especially if Mary Ann tried to make friends with Mary Collis as this picture might suggest.

Who has the original photograph? This copy was given me by my cousin. It doesn't have the photographer's stamp on it, so I have no idea whether it was taken in Liverpool, or on a trip they all might have taken together. I might even be able to date it somewhat by the photographer's listing in the directories. If only we knew.

Mary's middle name came from her grandmother, Sophia Collis, who married John Taylor, Esq. A cousin contacted us who had a old transcription of an even older family bible record. His record corroborated what we had researched through wills and censuses and gave us a few more details.

But we still can't locate a marriage record for Charles Taylor and Ann Clarke.

What is it with middle names in this family? In Mary Collis's christening record her mother's name of Anne Clarke appears. In the 1851 census, she has the name Annie Clerk Taylor. In both of these Mary has the middle name"Collis." Why is this so important? In every record we have found Mary shows up as "Mary C." or "Mary Collis" and yet Charles Jr. did not record her middle initial in the family story he provided us.

So it all comes back to the same question; Why do we have a picture of Mary Collis Taylor?