Emerson Family Genealogy Research

The Emerson Family History Project

The SMITHs . . .

The Smith’s Family History begins in the early 1800’s . . .

The 1800's . . .
Very little information is known about our SMITH side of the Family , except that they were originally from England. James Smith was born in Woolwich, England about 1820. About 1838, James and Susannah married. In March of 1840, at St Mary Magdalena’s Church, William George, their son, was baptized.

James Smith was a private in the Army of the 29^th Foot. This battalion was stationed at Woolwich from January through August 1840 through 1841.

William George Smith (Senior), born 8 March 1840, Woolwich, England, like his father, James, was in the British Army. He was recruited in January 1855 at the age of 15 and retired in February 1878, serving just over 21 years in the military. His tour of duty took him to Ireland, Scotland, Canada, Trinidad, India, Burma, Portugal, as well as throughout England.

In September, 1867, William’s troop ship headed to Canada. It took 26 days to sail to Canada. In October that same year, William was promoted to Corporal. In April 1868, William was stationed in Hamilton, Ontario, where he met and eventually married Sarah Mason on 10 Jun 1868 in Hamilton, Ontario.

According to his military journal, William sailed to Jamaica on the HMS Tamar, during September through December 1869. In 1870, William missed muster attending to a sick wife. It is believed that Sarah may have had a miscarriage or may have had a child who died at birth, as verbal family history indicates there were two daughters of William and Sarah. If this is true, this child, possibly a female, may be buried in the West Indies (Trinidad, Tobago, or Jamaica – still researching this).

The journal also notes that William was promoted to Sergeant in June of 1870. Then, in March of 1873, William was assigned to the HMS Orontes to spend 32 days at sea. The troopship was to return to Ireland from the West Indies. It was during that time, at sea, that Sarah gave birth to their first son, William George Smith, Jr. On the ship’s log, the record reads: “5 hours, 8 knots, 5 tenths E 1/2 N, 0, S E NE, 30.49.60, 5:10 am Birth: The wife of Sergt George Smith, 29the Regiment, of a son.”

In addition to my great-grandfather, William George Smith (Junior), William and Sarah had two other children:
Charles Henry, born 1877
Edith Lilian, born 1880

After his retirement from the military, William (Senior) died in 1876 in Herefordshire, England. In 1887, Sarah, along with three her children, William, Charles, and Edith, set sail for Canada, on the Parisian, a passenger ship headed for the Port of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. Once in Canada, Sarah returned to her family in the Hamilton, Ontario area.

In Hamilton, Ontario in 1897, William George (Junior) married Jessie Agnes BELL, daughter of Robert P BELL and Eliza Amelia BUSH. William (Junior) and Jessie had the following children:
William Robert, born 3 October 1898
Lillian Gertrude (Winnifred), born 12 February 1900 (my grandmother)
Agnes Rose, born 1904
Clara Bell, born 1906
Beatrice R, born 1908
Margaret, born 1910

(to be continued) . . .

If you want to contact me for genealogy research or information, try my e-mail:

JeanM@Emerson.name

Jean M Emerson

Fort Lauderdale, Florida