I've had this on the back burner for several years but still can't join the dots. Sorry for the length, but here goes...
John Harry Littler, b 6 Jun 1809 in Bengal, supposedly the son of Sir John Hunter Littler GCB 1783-1856 - although all the online biogs for Sir J have him marrying just the once in 1827, so perhaps John Harry was illegitimate.
John Harry becomes an army surgeon, retiring to England in 1865 with the rank of Surgeon-Major.
In both the 1871 and 1881 censuses he is living at the Charing Cross Hotel in London and dies there on 22 Oct 1883. He did not marry.
He leaves a substantial estate of over £41,000.
How on earth did he accumulate so much as an army surgeon? From an online calculator it seems this would be the equivalent of over £3.5 million today. (I used moneysorter.co.uk - not sure how reliable its calculations are.)
The next dot - Marianne Ducker, born 1849, Great Boughton, Cheshire, daughter of Edward Ducker and Marianne Platt. In 1881 she is with John Harry at the Charing Cross Hotel. At the end of 1883 she officially changes her name to Marianne Ducker Littler to comply with a clause in John Harry's will.
She is back with her parents in Bowdon, Cheshire in 1891 and on 3 April 1893 she marries my widowed 2g uncle Robert Hill (1847-1900) in Bowdon. He was as an inland revenue officer. I can't now find the Gazette notice where he too changes his surname to Hill Littler when they marry.
She dies exactly 4 months later on 3 Aug 1893 in Belfast -
She leaves nearly £38,000 in her will so it looks like she inherited most, if not all, of John Harry's estate.
I feel sure that there is some sort of family connection back in Cheshire between John Harry and Marianne but just can't pin down what it is. (His father's family had their roots there in Tarvin according to various info online.)
Questions:
Can anybody pin down a family connection or some other connection between John Harry and Marianne?
Can anyone find any more info around John Harry's birth and parentage?
If anyone finds the notice of Robert Hill changing his name to Robert Hill Littler, please could you post the link?
I've never had occasion to get hold of an English will - how do I go about it and what does it cost? I'm sorely tempted!
Thanks.
Christine
John Harry Littler, b 6 Jun 1809 in Bengal, supposedly the son of Sir John Hunter Littler GCB 1783-1856 - although all the online biogs for Sir J have him marrying just the once in 1827, so perhaps John Harry was illegitimate.
John Harry becomes an army surgeon, retiring to England in 1865 with the rank of Surgeon-Major.
In both the 1871 and 1881 censuses he is living at the Charing Cross Hotel in London and dies there on 22 Oct 1883. He did not marry.
He leaves a substantial estate of over £41,000.
How on earth did he accumulate so much as an army surgeon? From an online calculator it seems this would be the equivalent of over £3.5 million today. (I used moneysorter.co.uk - not sure how reliable its calculations are.)
The next dot - Marianne Ducker, born 1849, Great Boughton, Cheshire, daughter of Edward Ducker and Marianne Platt. In 1881 she is with John Harry at the Charing Cross Hotel. At the end of 1883 she officially changes her name to Marianne Ducker Littler to comply with a clause in John Harry's will.
She is back with her parents in Bowdon, Cheshire in 1891 and on 3 April 1893 she marries my widowed 2g uncle Robert Hill (1847-1900) in Bowdon. He was as an inland revenue officer. I can't now find the Gazette notice where he too changes his surname to Hill Littler when they marry.
She dies exactly 4 months later on 3 Aug 1893 in Belfast -
She leaves nearly £38,000 in her will so it looks like she inherited most, if not all, of John Harry's estate.
I feel sure that there is some sort of family connection back in Cheshire between John Harry and Marianne but just can't pin down what it is. (His father's family had their roots there in Tarvin according to various info online.)
Questions:
Can anybody pin down a family connection or some other connection between John Harry and Marianne?
Can anyone find any more info around John Harry's birth and parentage?
If anyone finds the notice of Robert Hill changing his name to Robert Hill Littler, please could you post the link?
I've never had occasion to get hold of an English will - how do I go about it and what does it cost? I'm sorely tempted!
Thanks.
Christine
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