Genealogy Chat

Thanks Lady Lunar Tournai - Do you have a link with Tournai in Belgium? We have friends in La Louviere, Belgium. I did see the regiment were in Canada & Spain in 1812, all I have to do now is find out where! The overseas birth is interesting, did you find that on 1837.com?

Ooooooo very posh my Lady Lunar! lol

Hi Stu Yes the over seas birth was on 1837's oversea section. My family does have a conection to Tournai in Belgium and also the towns with the same name in France but that was centeries ago, the chances of my tracing the family back that far are slim.

Just looked at the 1851 census entry again and it could well be 'Isley Dlou' . . . . only adds to the confusion though ! ! !

How about if it's not an island at all, and wasn't even two words originally?? Don't forget this is likely a phonetic interpretation if what Eliza said, or how she spelled what she had been told. Merry

Just had a look on multimap spain for places with Isl at the begining of the name: 1 Isla Cristina, Isla Cristina, 21410 2 Isla Mayor, Isla Mayor, 41140 3 Isla, Arnuero, 39195 4 Isla, Gautegiz Arteaga, 48314 5 Isla de León, San Fernando, 11110 6 Isla de Tarifa o de las Palomas, Tarifa, 11380 7 Isla Plana, Cartagena, 30868 8 Islares, Castro-Urdiales, 39798 9 Islas Menores, Cartagena, 30384 10 Islas Columbretes, Castellón de la Plana, 12005 11 Islallana, Nalda, 26190 12 Isla Plana, Alicante, 03138 13 Isla del Moral, Ayamonte, 21400 14 Isla de Pedrosa, Marina de Cudeyo, 39719 15 Isla de la Toja, O Grove, 36991 16 Isla Canela, Ayamonte, 21409 Could 5 or 15 be possables?? bearing in mind Toja mighr have bee said as Toya.

I live in Ibiza and have for the past 35 years and have never heard of any such place. In Spanish Isla means island. Maybe she was born in Ibiza!!!!

It´s me again. Maybe it is Menorca. The British were in Menorca for many years (don´t know the exact dates at this moment). In Spanish it is 'Isla de Mahon'. Mayonese was invented there!!! It is pronounced like Maou.

Stu, Reading up on the War, it seems that only 6 'lucky' wives out of every 100 got to accompany their husbands to war! The womenfolk were pretty much on the frontline with their men. They helped tend the wounded amongst other things. The conditions sound dreadful. Oops, forgot the birth was prior to Civil Reg ... what a pain. However, if you find her father's service record, it should be noted on there ... not that it helps by then, because you should know where this wretched place is from his movements! Your ancestor's middle name may be significant, you'd probably thought that anyway. And don't forget that the Peninsular War included Portugal too! Regs Jane

What a surprise this morning to find several more answers to my posting, I can't thank you all enough! I have plenty of leads to follow up over the next few days, months . . . . or could it be years! It's nice to count on so many helpful people.

Still can't get to see the image !!!!! This has been driving me mad all night BUT I think I've got it?? LISBON !! Reason - I believe at that time Lisbon was one of the main bases for British Troops. ALSO - the Spanish name for Lisbon is LISBOA !! Think phonetically - If asked about her place of birth - she could well have said - ' ...is Lisboa (pronounced ' islisboa' )?? If she spent some time there, she definitely would have referred to it by the original pronounciation. What do you think ?? I know it's Portugal now but I think it was under Spanish Rule then. Dea x

Never thought of Lisbon, I also didn't know Portugal had been under Spanish rule. I also can't see the image this morning, trying to view the actual 1881 image is the same as yesterday 'Error processing request'. The 1861 & 1871 just says 'Spain, British subject'. It's the 1881 census which says 'Isley Blou (or Dlou)'

Autonomous communities Autonomous communities of SpainMain article: Autonomous communities of Spain Spain consists of 17 autonomous communities (comunidades autónomas) and 2 autonomous cities (ciudades autónomas; Ceuta and Melilla). Andalusia (Andalucía) Aragon (Aragón) Principality of Asturias (Principáu d'Asturies in Asturian/Principado de Asturias in Spanish) Balearic Islands (Illes Balears in Catalan / Islas Baleares in Spanish) Basque Country (Euskadi in Basque/País Vasco in Spanish) Canary Islands (Islas Canarias) Cantabria Castile-La Mancha (Castilla-La Mancha) Castile and Leon (Castilla y León in Spanish) Catalonia (Catalunya in Catalan/Cataluña in Spanish/ Catalunha in Aranese) Extremadura Galicia La Rioja Madrid Murcia Navarre (Nafarroa in Basque/Navarra in Spanish) Land of Valencia (Comunitat Valenciana in Valencian /Comunidad Valenciana in Spanish, as official denominations From Wikipedia - What about the Spanish for the Balearic Islands?

Stu, If you're still tuned in, what was her father's name? I'm so irritated by this I might just rush over to Kew to sort this wretched placename out! Regs Jane

Stu, Having a pre-dinner google around and offer the following: For the record, here are some PRO references: Service Returns - WO 25/909-911 (for those serving in the Napoleonic Wars). Not sure exactly what these files contain, but I believe it's a list of those who served - a kind of 'roll call' taken every six months. It seems that your man must have been in the 3rd Battalion - 'The 3rd Battalion first saw action at Corunna in 1808 and then took part in the Peninsular War, There followed the battles of Quatre Bras and Waterloo which cost the battalion 363 casualties out of a strength of 624. Two years later it was disbanded' The other 3 battalions were either in North America or the UK during the PW. Another name thought - could it be Iberia? Remember that the info gleaned from a couple of websites suggests that the womenfolk were indeed on the front line with their men, so a 'back station' might not be a realistic option for a placename. Back to the kitchen .... meanwhile you can dust off your copy of the 1812 overture and imagine .... Regs Jane

Hi Jane, Just finished Sunday dinner and a bottle of wine (shared with the wife of course!) and decided to see if there were any more replies Her father's name was William Kelly born c1786, that's all I know I'm afraid. I seem to have really started something here, but I don't have a copy of the 1812 overture unfortunately!

Stu, Supper over, washing up done ... no wine ... It would help if you knew William's origins, because I've found this one listed in the National Archives online catalogue: WO 97/229/30 WILLIAM KELLY Born MUCKNEY, Monaghan Served in 1st Foot Regiment; Royal Artillery Discharged aged 44 1812-1838 I guess that he was discharged in 1838, aged 44 although I think the dates are sometimes a bit out - this was an individual record rather than a batch, so we need to think about whether or not he's your 1886 man. It's a relatively (no pun intended) common name. The individual here would have got a decent pension after some 26 years' service! Now all we need is a peek at that file ... AND a copy of the 1812 to fuel the imagination! Regs Jane