Emigration to the US 1840's + missing death and marriage

[Glen in Tinsel Knickers]

I'm trying to work out where a couple from the Lincolnshire/Leicestershire border would travel from when emigrating to the US in the 1840's and what happened to a wife.

The fly in the ointment is that the UK family on the 1841 don't quite tally with the 1850 US census, the name of the wife changes but hubby and kids remain the same:

1841 UK census

Registration district: Grantham
Sub-registration district: Denton

Household Members: Name Age
John Goulson 25
Joseph Goulson 3
Maria Goulson 1
Sarah Goulson 20

--

1850 US census

850 Avon, Rock, Wisconsin USA

John Goulson 34 Farmer bn England
Ann Goulson 22 bn England
Joseph Goulson 12 bn England
Mariah Goulson 10 bn England

---

I have the marriage cert for John to Sarah (Haynes) 2/5/1838 and the birth cert and death certs for their son (John) in 1844 and 1845. The christening (from the igi) of Maria 29/05/1840. Parents John and Sarah.

Sarah appears to be older than Ann according to the census (the later US census details show John and Ann to be pretty consistent re their ages).

There isn't an obvious death entry in the UK for Sarah or a re-marriage for John so it would appear that both events must have taken place after they left for the US but there are a couple of contradictory documents relating to the history of Pescadero in California....there isn't a definative date for the arrival of the Goulson family in the US.

Alfred J Goulson
he is a son of John and Annie (Wakefield) Goulson, both of
whom were natives of England, where they were reared and
married. They came to the United States in 1844 and settled
in Wisconsin,

Elias Shaw/Maria Goulson
While in northern California he formed
the acquaintance of Miss Maria Goulson, who was born in
England, May 27, 1840, and who, in 1852, at the age of
twelve years, was brought across the plains by her parents,
who located in Butte county.

[KiteRunner]

I would reckon that those snippets are probably wrong, Glen, and that you are right.

[Penelope]

Redacted

[Glen in Tinsel Knickers]

The 1841 family throws up an interesting but troublesome point, the two boys appear to be registered in the bmd and also listed in PR's, Maria only appears on the IGI (i have tried variant spellings of her name but still no bmd entry).

Yesterday i had an e-mail from an American researcher, a 4 or 5xgrt g-daur of Maria, she hasn't mentioned John (she simply refers to a Benjamin and i have several of those in my tree), it just makes me question my research.


John Goulson is a reasonably common name in my tree but the only one c1816 is this chap, his m/c suggests a dob in 1815 and the igi and freereg baptisms are 1817, in all cases the father's name and occupation match so i am fairly confident i have the right John but it is just the Sarah/Ann problem around the time of emigration that troubles me.

I can only think of three scenarios,

1 Sarah died in the UK but the event wasn't registered or it happened somewhere way away from where i would expect.
2 Sarah died during or soon after the trip, either no record exists or it's as yet not discovered.
3 Sarah changed her name and age in the later census, i think that is very unlikely though.

[Penelope]

Redacted

[KiteRunner]

I would guess that the people who wrote the little snippets that you quoted may have started with a few facts and guessed some more to make it into a nice paragraph - I was recently contacted by someone who is writing about a certain group of people which includes one of my rellies, and he sent me what he had written about him to check, some of which he had researched by looking at my tree on ancestry, and it said my relly was "the eighth of nine children of XXXX and YYYYY" but in fact I don't know how many children they had altogether! He was just assuming I had them all listed, and I'm sure I haven't. So it could well be that the people who wrote up Alfred and Maria's stories did something similar.

[Glen in Tinsel Knickers]

Those 2 statements are not contradictory. One says 'came to US' in 1844.......

True Penelope, i did find something that stated John travelled back and forth across the plains before settling, each trip taking around four or five months, the suggested date is late 1840's (maybe 1848), of course i can't find it again now.:(

There are only two other births registered in the surname between 1845 and 1849 (both are boys, in the Sleaford district) and i'm pretty certain they are a different branch of the Goulson family.

Unless anything comes up to disprove things i think i have to assume that the '41 and '50 families are for the same father and children and details for Sarah will have to remain a mystery.

[Penelope]

Redacted

[KiteRunner]

There are some deaths at sea listed on the overseas indexes on findmypast. And some passenger lists show who died on the voyage.

[Penelope]

Redacted

[Glen in Tinsel Knickers]

I would guess that the people who wrote the little snippets that you quoted may have started with a few facts and guessed some more to make it into a nice paragraph - I was recently contacted by someone who is writing about a certain group of people which includes one of my rellies, and he sent me what he had written about him to check, some of which he had researched by looking at my tree on ancestry, and it said my relly was "the eighth of nine children of XXXX and YYYYY" but in fact I don't know how many children they had altogether! He was just assuming I had them all listed, and I'm sure I haven't. So it could well be that the people who wrote up Alfred and Maria's stories did something similar.

These come from some sort of written history about the place and the residents, the Goulson family were one of the original settling families, doubtless some of the information was passed down the generations and may be a bit suspect. It's quite an interesting set of documents though, two documents, 30+ pages each, heaps of names, relationships, occupations etc but i still question the 1844 arrival.

Among the sterling old pioneers of western San Mateo
county, one of the best known is Alfred J. Goulson, who has
resided here continuously since 1866 and is numbered among
the best citizens of his community, where for many years he
has conducted a prosperous blacksmithing business. Born in
the little village of Avon, Wisconsin, on the 6th of May, 1860,
he is a son of John and Annie (Wakefield) Goulson, both of
whom were natives of England, where they were reared and
married. They came to the United States in 1844 and settled
in Wisconsin, where the father followed blacksmithing until
1852, when he took his family across the plains to California,
the journey, with ox teams, requiring five months and four
days. They located at Forbestown, Butte county, where they
lived until 1857, when they returned to the east, by way of
the isthmus of Panama. However they were favorably impressed
with the west and not quite satisfied in the east, so
in 1864 they again turned their faces towards the setting sun,
and, this time with horse teams, crossed the plains in four
months and five days. They reached their old home in Butte
county, where they remained until 1866, when they came to
Pescadero, San Mateo county, and here the parents lived until
the father died in 1895 and the mother in 1914.

[Glen in Tinsel Knickers]

I lapsed FMP membership as well!

Are any of them in a later US census, where you may get more detail?

The later census don't give any clues as to where in England, duplicating some bits from a previous thread here that WendyP found,

1850 Avon, Rock, Wisconsin USA

John Goulson 34 Farmer bn England
Ann Goulson 22 bn England
Joseph Goulson 12 bn England
Mariah Goulson 10 bn England

----

1860 Avon, Rock, Wisconsin, USA

John Goulson 44 Farmer England
Ann Goulson 32 England
Mariah Goulson 20 England
Elizabeth C Goulson 9 bn Wisconsin
Alfred Goulson 12months bn Wisconsin

----

1870 San Mateo, California

John Gaulson 55 Blacksmith bn England
Anna Gaulson 40 Keeping house bn England
Carrie E Gaulson 19 Wisconsin
Alfred Gaulson 9 Wisconsin

---

1880, Pescadero, San Mateo, California via the IGI

John GOULSON 65 ENG Blacksmith ENG
Ann W. GOULSON Wife 50 ENG Keeping House ENG
Alfred J. GOULSON Son 20 WISCONSIN Blacksmith

---

1900
San Mateo Californina

A W Goulson 67 Widow has given birth to 5 children and only 3 of them are still alive came over to USA in 1848.


Living on her own


1910 census San Mateo California Ann W 78 is living next door to her son Alfred and his wife but she now has her daughter Lizzie 58(Elizabeth) living at home with her/or at least visiting. Ann now says she had 4 children and 2 of them are still living