George Dawson was raised in a small market town in England called Ramsey. The town is 140 km directly north of London in what is now called Cambridgeshire, but in the 1800s was the county of Huntingdonshire. George was born in 1817 or 1818 but a birth record cannot be found, which makes it difficult to identify his parents with any certainty.
In 1836 or 1837 George married a woman named Mary Taylor, who was from the London area — St. Catherine’s in Middlesex to be specific. George was about 19 but Mary was 24ish.
We know nothing about Mary other than that, because London had a huge population and Taylor was (and is) a common name. So there is currently no confirmed information about either of their parents, but the search will continue.
But we know the couple had their first child, John George, at the end of 1837. Then son William was born at the beginning of 1840. In the 1841 census, the family was living at Stocking Fenn Bank in Ramsey, and George was shown as an agricultural labourer. Since ‘fen’ means marsh, Stocking Fenn Bank was obviously the bank of a waterway.
Son James was born in 1842.* Then there was Frances Dawson (born 1845 and died 1845), and Mary Ann was born in 1846 but drowned in 1848 while playing with other children along the banks of one of the waterways.* Then Saran Ann Dawson (born 1849 and died 1850). A daughter named Emily was born in 1851, and finally, Georgiana was born in 1854.
As there were gaps between some of the births, an explanation would be if George was serving in the military, but there are no records to support this. As far as we know, George never left Ramsey.
Ramsey is unique because it is built on a waterway called the Great Whyte, which was also a ‘fen’ or natural canal. This waterway would play a significant role in the life of George Dawson, who was listed as a ‘lighterman’ on the 1851 census. Lighterman was part of a group of old occupations that includes wherryman and waterman who operated small boats or barges that ferried people and goods across or along waterways such as canals or fens.
At the time, roads were rough and bridges were few in England, so taking a boat across rivers and canals was often the only way to get from one side to the other, and a man who had access to a boat could make a living. In some areas, like London, watermen were licensed, and a guild controlled who operated where. Outside of London, it was maybe more a matter of if you had a boat, you staked out a spot.
George was listed as an agricultural worker in the 1841 census, but in that census a Thomas Dawson, 35, who lived in Ramsey was shown as a waterman. It is very possible that Thomas was an older brother or an uncle of George’s and had trained him as a waterway worker by the 1851 census. However, we don’t know the exact relationship between this Thomas and our George, because we haven’t been able to definitively identify George’s family before he married.
George was shown to be a lighterman in the 1851 census, and by the time his daughter Georgiana was born in 1854, he was a waterman (shown as such on her birth certificate), so the names lighterman and waterman may have been interchangeable. Lighterman probably indicated that the boat operated was lightweight. The family's residence was Newtown Stocking Fen, which could have been the same location as the 1841 census. In the 1851 census, another family named Dawson is living on the same street, just four households away from George. The head of that household was 24-year-old Thomas Dawson, who could have been George's younger brother or a cousin.
In the 1861 census, George and Mary have daughters Emily and Georgina (the extra ‘a’ in her name from her birth certificate was missing and this letter does not appear in her name after that in any documents). The family had moved from the Stocking Fenn address to ‘Great-White.’ The official spelling now is ‘Great Whyte’ but spelling was fluid in those days as there were no dictionaries or atlases to refer to and most people couldn’t read or write anyway. The Great Whyte was the main street of the town but was originally a fen that had a culvert built over it to create a roadway in the 1850s. George and his family may have originally lived on its banks close to where he operated his boat but by 1861 that address would have been on the roadway.
George’s sons had all left home by 1861. Where eldest son John was in 1861 is unclear. Census records in England are very comprehensive, however, some pages have been lost and others mis-transcribed. In addition, census records for those serving in the military overseas at the time of the census may not be available. But by the 1871 census John was married, and he and his wife were living in York. John was listed in the 1871 census as a publican (pub owner, manager or employee) and shopkeeper.
Son William served for more than 21 years in the military, which included 4 1/2 years in Malta, 2 years in Gibraltar and 2 years in the West Indies. William married and had children while he was in the army, and the family followed him from posting to posting. A daughter was born in Malta in 1868 and a son in Gibraltar in 1879. The couple also had other children who were born in England, probably between overseas postings.
Son James married in 1866, and by the 1871 census he was living with his wife and two young children in the Greater London area.
Daughter Emily married a woolcarter from Yorkshire and was living with him in the 1871 census in Bradford near Leeds in Yorkshire. By the 1891 census they had nine children living at home aged 1 to 19.
Unfortunately, George died between the 1861 and 1871 censuses. His widow, Mary, moved in with her eldest son John and his family in Gates Fulford, York, maybe helping out in the pub/shop that her son owned or managed or maybe looking after the children while they ran the business.
York is nowhere near Ramsey. It is, in fact, more than 200 km north, but at least three of Mary's children were in Yorkshire by 1871. It is not clear what drew them to this area, but it was the centre of the industrial revolution in the north of England so there should have been plenty of work. Ramsey, however, was closer to London, and since Mary was born there, it would seem more likely that family members would have gone there, but it would appear that only James went south.
Daughter Georgina married Joseph Henry Lowe in York in 1875, which indicates that she too had moved to Yorkshire. Georgina does not appear in the 1871 census anywhere. Since her brother, William, was serving overseas and had his family with him, it’s possible Georgina was living with them and helping out as a nanny or housekeeper for the family. William and has family do not appear in census records during that time. But William did settle in York eventually when he retired from the army, so Georgina may have moved to York with them. However, a letter written by Isabella Pickles Lowe to her son James Edward Lowe during World War II explains that "Grandma Lowe" was from the Galashiels area of Scotland. James Edward Lowe's "Grandma Lowe" would have been Georgina Dawson Lowe. So it is also possible that she lived in Scotland before marrying Joseph Henry Lowe in 1875, which may mean the family had a Scottish connection that has not been found (yet).
By the 1881 census, George’s widow Mary was staying with her son, William, who was now retired from the army and living on a military pension. William, his wife Emma and two of their children were resident at 68 Frances Street Gate Fulford, York, which was the same area where John was living in 1871.
Son James was still in Greater London in 1881 with his wife and children and was working as a dock worker. James lost his first wife between 1881 and 1891 and remarried by 1891.
The Dawson family had several losses between 1881 and 1891. Mary's sons John and William both died — William potentially in 1886 at age 47. Mary herself disappeared before the 1891 census, and records show a 72-year-old Mary Dawson died in 1884 in York. James lived until at least 1911. Emily may have died in the 1920s, but daughter Georgina survived to a ripe old age, dying at age 90 in 1945.
Prepared using information available as of 26 March 2022.
In the 1861 census, George and Mary have daughters Emily and Georgina (the extra ‘a’ in her name from her birth certificate was missing and this letter does not appear in her name after that in any documents). The family had moved from the Stocking Fenn address to ‘Great-White.’ The official spelling now is ‘Great Whyte’ but spelling was fluid in those days as there were no dictionaries or atlases to refer to and most people couldn’t read or write anyway. The Great Whyte was the main street of the town but was originally a fen that had a culvert built over it to create a roadway in the 1850s. George and his family may have originally lived on its banks close to where he operated his boat but by 1861 that address would have been on the roadway.
George’s sons had all left home by 1861. Where eldest son John was in 1861 is unclear. Census records in England are very comprehensive, however, some pages have been lost and others mis-transcribed. In addition, census records for those serving in the military overseas at the time of the census may not be available. But by the 1871 census John was married, and he and his wife were living in York. John was listed in the 1871 census as a publican (pub owner, manager or employee) and shopkeeper.
Son William served for more than 21 years in the military, which included 4 1/2 years in Malta, 2 years in Gibraltar and 2 years in the West Indies. William married and had children while he was in the army, and the family followed him from posting to posting. A daughter was born in Malta in 1868 and a son in Gibraltar in 1879. The couple also had other children who were born in England, probably between overseas postings.
Son James married in 1866, and by the 1871 census he was living with his wife and two young children in the Greater London area.
Daughter Emily married a woolcarter from Yorkshire and was living with him in the 1871 census in Bradford near Leeds in Yorkshire. By the 1891 census they had nine children living at home aged 1 to 19.
Unfortunately, George died between the 1861 and 1871 censuses. His widow, Mary, moved in with her eldest son John and his family in Gates Fulford, York, maybe helping out in the pub/shop that her son owned or managed or maybe looking after the children while they ran the business.
York is nowhere near Ramsey. It is, in fact, more than 200 km north, but at least three of Mary's children were in Yorkshire by 1871. It is not clear what drew them to this area, but it was the centre of the industrial revolution in the north of England so there should have been plenty of work. Ramsey, however, was closer to London, and since Mary was born there, it would seem more likely that family members would have gone there, but it would appear that only James went south.
Daughter Georgina married Joseph Henry Lowe in York in 1875, which indicates that she too had moved to Yorkshire. Georgina does not appear in the 1871 census anywhere. Since her brother, William, was serving overseas and had his family with him, it’s possible Georgina was living with them and helping out as a nanny or housekeeper for the family. William and has family do not appear in census records during that time. But William did settle in York eventually when he retired from the army, so Georgina may have moved to York with them. However, a letter written by Isabella Pickles Lowe to her son James Edward Lowe during World War II explains that "Grandma Lowe" was from the Galashiels area of Scotland. James Edward Lowe's "Grandma Lowe" would have been Georgina Dawson Lowe. So it is also possible that she lived in Scotland before marrying Joseph Henry Lowe in 1875, which may mean the family had a Scottish connection that has not been found (yet).
By the 1881 census, George’s widow Mary was staying with her son, William, who was now retired from the army and living on a military pension. William, his wife Emma and two of their children were resident at 68 Frances Street Gate Fulford, York, which was the same area where John was living in 1871.
Son James was still in Greater London in 1881 with his wife and children and was working as a dock worker. James lost his first wife between 1881 and 1891 and remarried by 1891.
The Dawson family had several losses between 1881 and 1891. Mary's sons John and William both died — William potentially in 1886 at age 47. Mary herself disappeared before the 1891 census, and records show a 72-year-old Mary Dawson died in 1884 in York. James lived until at least 1911. Emily may have died in the 1920s, but daughter Georgina survived to a ripe old age, dying at age 90 in 1945.
Prepared using information available as of 26 March 2022.
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