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I am at the stage of brick walls and banging heads against! After 5 years of researching every Thomas Crouch (with name variations) born in England between 1858 and 1868 I strongly believe my paternal grandfather changed his name before he married. I have him on the C1911, C1901, and C1891 (living in Brumby and Ashby) and his death (1926) and marriage certificates (Frodingham 10Jul1889 to Mary Holdsworth - father same name witnesses Mary's family) with a birth age range of 1862-64. On one census he shows his birth place as London but on the other two as Buckinghamshire (no place). But where was he before 1889?? Perhaps he was illegitimate or in a workhouse or prison – but where and who were his parents?
After five years you can imagine my frustration - any advice before I give up please?
Many thanks
Mike Crouch
p.s He is NOT the Thomas Crouch on C1871 and C1881 (Croush) of Emberton/Olney.

1891 England Census
about Thomas Crouch
Name: Thomas Crouch
Age: 28
Estimated Birth Year: abt 1863
Relation: Head
Spouse's Name: Mary Crouch
Gender: Male
Where born: Buckinghamshire, England

Civil parish: Bromby
Ecclesiastical parish: Frodingham
Town: Bromby
County/Island: Lincolnshire
Country: England

Street Address:

Occupation: Iron stone miner

Condition as to marriage:

Education:

Employment status: View image

Registration district: Glanford Brigg
Sub-registration district: Winterton
ED, institution, or vessel: 15
Neighbors: View others on page
Household Members: Name Age
Thomas Crouch 28
Mary Crouch 21
Matilda Holdsworth 4
Edward Crouch 1


So the same occupation in 1901.

What was his fathers occupation on the marriage cert please?


Dee x

I wondered if this Not Known birth place could be him, as he seemed unsure

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Household:1881

Noah MORPHEW Head M Male 57 Mereworth, Kent, England Blacksmith
Mary MORPHEW Wife M Female 55 Offham, Kent, England
Ellen MORPHEW Dau U Female 26 Offham, Kent, England
*********Thos. CROUCH Lodger U Male 19 N K, Kent, England Improver (Do)

Dwelling Street
Census Place Offham, Kent, England

Dee
Many thanks - that's him but, surprise surprise, on the marriage certificate his father was Thomas and employmenrt labourer! I say surprise surprise because after 5 years I really think he was not who he "married as".
Have a good weekend
Mike

Mike*
I had found this one as well but where do we go from there (backwards to which birth or forwards to - where did he go? but thanks anyway.
Mike

1911 for ref.

CROUCH, Thomas Father M 49 1862 Blast Furnace Labourer Buckinghan VIEW
CROUCH, Mary Mother F 43 1868 Leeds Yorks VIEW
CROUCH, Edward Son Single M 21 1890 Steelworker Labourer Leeds Yorks VIEW
CROUCH, Thomas Son Single M 16 1895 Steelworker Crane Driver Scunthorpe Lincs VIEW
CROUCH, John Son M 14 1897 School Ashby Lincs VIEW
CROUCH, Nellie Daughter F 12 1899 School Ashby Lincs VIEW
CROUCH, Christable Daughter F 9 1902 School Ashby Lincs VIEW
CROUCH, Emma Daughter F 6 1905 School Ashby Lincs VIEW
CROUCH, Alice Daughter F 4 1907 Ashby Lincs VIEW
CROUCH, Cyril Son M 2 1909 Ashby Lincs VIEW
CROUCH, Erenest Son M 0 (1 MONTH) 1911 Ashby Linconshire VIEW
RG number:
RG14 Piece:
20087 Reference:
RG14PN20087 RG78PN1201 RD424 SD2 ED20 SN25

Registration District:
Glanford Brigg Sub District:
Winterton Enumeration District:
20 Parish:
Ashby

Address:
26 the Screeds Ashby Doncaster County:
Lincolnshire

..........the more names you give, the more chance of finding a connection with others researching the same family.
Try putting the names in 'Search Trees' to see if you can find a match.

So he's not this one in 1871?

CROUCH, Thomas Head M 31 1840 Middlesex Warehouseman ? Assistant
CROUCH, Caroline A Wife F 30 1841 Cornwall
CROUCH, Caroline J Daughter F 8 1863 Middlesex
CROUCH, Sophia Daughter F 6 1865 Middlesex
>>CROUCH, Thomas Son M 4 1867 Middlesex
CROUCH, Martha M Daughter F 0 1871 Middlesex

Registration District: Shoreditch Sub District: St Leonard Enumeration District: 2 Ecclesiastical Parish:

Civil Parish: St Leonard Shoreditch Municipal Borough:

Address: Union Buildings, St Leonard Shoreditch
County: London, Middlesex

There are a few with Thomas as father, but occupation not quite right.

Have you considered this one?

London, England, Births and Baptisms, 1813-1906
about Thomas Crouch

Name: Thomas Crouch
Record Type: Baptism
Estimated Birth Date: abt 1862
Baptism Date: 14 Dec 1862
Father's Name: Thomas Crouch
Occupation: Labourer
Mother's Name: Mary Anne Crouch
Living: Little Brockley
Parish or Poor Law Union: Lewisham St Mary
Borough: Lewisham
Original gives date of birth as: 19 Oct.1862

Do you know his exact date of birth?

MarieCeleste
Thanks but I've followed him through via C1881 (Shoreditch) and C1891 (Bethnal Green) as a Printer (not married) - so not my grandfather!
Mike

Catherine
The C1911 shows all my aunts and uncles and my father (Cyril). As to the Lewisham Thomas: I have him living in Ticehurst on the C1871, C1881 and C1891 so not my grandfather - thanks anyway. If only I did know his exact date of birth or even a place of birth - you can now see my frustration - I have nothing definite before his marriage certificate in 1889!
Mike

Does his death certificate not give his date of birth?

Sometimes family stories can become a bit exaggerated over the years, or only half truths, but some do have some bases of truth. Are there no such stories in your family that may help put you in the right direction?

Some illegitimate children were raised by their grandparents, but on their marriage certs. they put their grandfather's name down so as not to leave the name blank. Maybe the Thomas on his marriage cert. was in fact his Grandfather.
or
Maybe his mother married someone called Crouch and he was adopted by his step father?
or
....maybe he dropped out of the sky, with a couple of my ancestors? :-)
Catherine

Going on my theory that he was raised by his grandfather, you may like to reconsider the 1871 census that you have ruled out:-
1871
Name: Thomas Crouch
Age: 7
Estimated Birth Year: abt 1864
Relation: Grandson
Father's Name: John Tarry Crouch
Gender: Male
Where born: Olney, Berkshire, England
[Buckinghamshire]
Civil parish: Olney
Town: Olney
County/Island: Buckinghamshire
Country: England
Registration district: Newport Pagnell
Sub-registration district: Olney
ED, institution, or vessel: 2
Household schedule number: 19
Household Members:
Name Age
Thomas Crouch 64 born: Emberton, Berkshire, England
[Buckinghamshire] - (Ag.Labourer)
Martha Crouch 62
Josiah Crouch 31
John Tarry Crouch 27 born: Emberton, Berkshire, England
[Buckinghamshire] (Ag.Lab.)
John Crouch 3 born: Newport Pagnell, Berkshire
Thomas Crouch 7(?)-this is marked on the original!

..........although the father does look to be John Tarry Crouch, the grandfather is Thomas (Ag.Lab.)

Catherine
Many thanks for all your researches and after 5 years of frustrating searches I also conclude that he dropped out of the sky! Only thing shown on his death cert is an age of 62 - no birth date or place. As to the Olney connection - that'e exactly where I started and spent a year reasearching both sides of the family down to C18th. Then I received the bitrth certificate for Thomas to find he was Thomas William and born to Josiah (not John Tarry) and Jane Elizabeth Pargeter - he went on to marry Sarah Ann Nutt and remained living in the Buckinghamshire/Northamptonshire area. So not my grandfather!
Hey ho!
Mike

Further to the helpful (albeit not moving me forward) suggestions I have spent time researching court records and yes I could link Thomas Crouch to court/prison records and make him my grandfather but still nothing DEFINITIVE and still no birth date or place. Hey ho
Mike

Since my last post I have tried to track him down by going down the line of his occupation (iron stone miner). I have a Thos Crouch as a (coal) miner lodging (with William Cartwright) in Nottinghamshire on the C1881 with a good match to the birth year but have tried the 'Where born' and cannot trace that at all. I've followed a couple of miners through into the Yorkshire area but they all end up marrying and staying in Yorkshire so no help there. Any new members got more ideas?
Thanks
Mike

Still searching! I've found a Thomas Crouch boarding with Charles White at Blackwell, Derby on the C1881. He's working at a colliery so that would fit my gf's later occupation (ironstone miner) and the birthplace is 'Lanoy Buckingham' which could be a mistranslation of Olney BUT the age is wrong 25 (b:1856). Using that info you can get back to parents of Thomas and Esther through C1871 and C1861 but the ages there are even worse: so another dead end?
Mike

It's been a while away from this helpful Forum but I'm still trying to trace my paternal grandfather Thomas Crouch.
My latest research from FindMyPast shows: Parish Records of baptisms “Solemnised in St Margaret’s Workhouse, Kensington, in the County of Middlesex, in the year 1863”.
This shows a Thomas Crouch born on 30th March 1863 being baptised by his Mother, Jane, “single woman”, (no father shown) on 26th June 1863.
The City of Westminster Register Office advise me they have no record of this birth nor does Kensingtin & Chelsea Register Office. Any thoughts please?
Mike?

Thomas Crouch
England and Wales Birth Registration Index
Name Thomas Crouch
Event Type Birth Registration
Registration Quarter Jan-Feb-Mar
Registration Year 1862
Registration District Kensington
County London
Event Place Kensington, London, England
Volume 1A
Page 140
Line Number 143

Thanks Malyon. I had come to the conclusion that although Jane had him baptised in the Workhouse he had been born before she went in and elsewhere in 'central' London. But a year different? What do you think?
Mike

Oh! and secondly. I had picked that birth up but tied it to a death in Kensington in Q JFM, Vol 1a Pg 107?