I keep coming back to this particular branch which ends in a frustrating dead end. What I am finding it impossible to discover are the parents of my 3 x great grandfather, John Musgrove, who was born illigitimately on 18th April 1805 in the Kings Brompton district of Somerset.
Kings Brompton is in the Exmoor National Park, roughly in the middle of a square drawn between Minehead in the north, Taunton in the East, Tiverton in the south and Barnstaple in the west. It was previously known as Brompton Regis.
Kings Brompton is in the Exmoor National Park, roughly in the middle of a square drawn between Minehead in the north, Taunton in the East, Tiverton in the south and Barnstaple in the west. It was previously known as Brompton Regis.
Someone has transcribed the Brompton Regis Parish Registers and it says that John was baptised on 5th May 1805 and that his mother, Mary, was a spinster. Rather disparagingly, the records state he was "base born".
New records are obviously coming online all the time and, according to Ancestry, John has now been allocated the same father as four other Musgroves born around the same time - William.
Without visiting the Taunton Record Office I can't substantiate either alternative. They may also have bastardy records which might provide more details of the father.
Taking the results from the Ancestry records, I've now tried to find John's alleged siblings on the 1841 and subsequent census to see if any connections can be found which might prove the working theory that they all had the same parents. Sadly, I've drawn a blank. Perhaps they died ? Perhaps they emigrated ? It is all very frustrating.
New records are obviously coming online all the time and, according to Ancestry, John has now been allocated the same father as four other Musgroves born around the same time - William.
Without visiting the Taunton Record Office I can't substantiate either alternative. They may also have bastardy records which might provide more details of the father.
Taking the results from the Ancestry records, I've now tried to find John's alleged siblings on the 1841 and subsequent census to see if any connections can be found which might prove the working theory that they all had the same parents. Sadly, I've drawn a blank. Perhaps they died ? Perhaps they emigrated ? It is all very frustrating.
Rather than end this blog here, and knowing the family connection to cordwainers, I found an interesting Musgrove family living in nearby Milvereton, 13 miles south east of Kings Brompton. The head of house, Robert, was born about 1807, around the same time as my John. He was married to Ellen and they had at least 9 children. Both Robert and Ellen were cordwainers.
In September 1865 Robert and his son, John (born about 1842), came to blows as described in the attached article from the North Devon Journal.
Doesn't sound like one of my family !
In September 1865 Robert and his son, John (born about 1842), came to blows as described in the attached article from the North Devon Journal.
Doesn't sound like one of my family !