The Turle Children ~ Part 1

Welcome to this update on The Crescent, Taunton, Somerset, One Place Study. This post will start to look at the lives of the children of Henry and Jane Turle (nee Hobbs) and will probably cover a few updates as they spread out across the world! 

So, this is where you got up to the the Turle family tree:

We can see that Henry and Jane had 8 children, 7 sons and 1 daughter. Two of their sons died in infancy (see post). At the time of writing that post, I was unable to establish a definitive General Register Office (GRO) death record index for Henry Turle although I was able to establish that he was buried at Holy Trinity Church in Taunton, Somerset. A wonderful friend, Liz Craig (https://twitter.com/WillsmanOneName) got curious and took the time, and a second pair of research eyes, to see if she could find this record, which although listed on FreeBMD, was not listed on GRO website. By changing the spelling of the surname from Turle to Tinle, she found the matching record [1]:

Without requesting the death certificate, I cannot be definitive, however, I am fairly certain that this is Henry Turle and will update the family tree accordingly. I would like to thank Liz for her help and all the support that she gives to me and my One Place Study. You can find out about Liz's awesome One Place Study of The Temple Lodge Home for Inebriate Women on her website. 

 

The next son who was born to Henry and Jane Turle, was Robert Hobbs Turle in about 1847, in Taunton, Somerset. Robert was living with his parents at the time of the 1851 [2] and 1861 [3] England Census' (see post). By the time 1871 England Census, when the family are living at 1 The Crescent, he is not listed there with them. I started my research on him with a full name search on Ancestry. The top result returned was for a entry in the Masters and Mates Certificates record set [4]. From this document, we establish that Robert was born on 13 December 1846 in Taunton, Somerset. His address is given as The Priory in Taunton. He is awarded the Certificate of Competency in the Merchant Service as Second Mate on 6 February 1867 after passing an ordinary exam in London on 4 February 1867. The first ship he served on was the Norfolk (11920) from 21 October 1861 to May 18 1862. He then served on the Essex (45025) 4 times between October 18 1862 and October 10 1865. The final ship listed was the Sussex (23238), which he served on twice between October 21 1865 and January 6 1867. I have not needed to look into the Merchant Service much before so this will make for some interesting research to add to my One Place Study. If you have any hints or tips for researching the Merchant Service, please let me now or leave a comment for me. 

There is no definitive entry for Robert on the 1871 England Census. However, I did find a Robert H Turle listed in the 1879 edition of the New York City Directory [5], with the following entry: "Turle Robert H, mer, 36 Whitehall". Has he emigrated to the United States of America? 

The next record I find for Robert on Ancestry is on the occasion of his marriage union to Kathleen Gordon Ford in Kings County, New York in the United States of America on 27 May 1880 [6]. So it seems that Robert emigrated to the USA sometime between 1867 and 1879, although I have not been able to locate a record to confirm when this occurred yet. Robert and Kathleen are listed living together at 97 Clark Street in Brooklyn, Kings, New York, USA, on the 1880 United States Federal Census [7]. 

Robert and Kathleen are residing with her father, Gordon Lester Ford, a Lawyer, his wife Emily Ellsworth Ford nee Fowler, his sister, Eliza Ford, and her 3 brothers, Worthington Chauncey Ford, Malcolm Webster Ford and Paul Leicester Ford and 3 sisters, Rosalie (Rosa) Greenleaf Barr nee Ford, Mabel Percy Ford and Emily Ellsworth Ford. His occupation is a Grain Broker. 

We find an entry for Robert in the 1880 Brooklyn, New York, City Directory [8] as follows:  "Turle Robert H, broker, 12 Bridge, h 36 E. 32d". 

His Father in Law, Gordon Ford, has a listing in the same City Directory [9] as follows: "Ford Gordon L, manager, 154 Nassau, h 97 Clark, B'klyn".

Robert has further entries in the New York City Directories in 1883, 1884, 1886, 1888 and 1889. 

So Robert and Kathleen moved to a new home by 1883, but only a short distance away from her family on Clark in Brooklyn. 

For the 1890 US Federal Census, only a partial record exists, which does not cover the area of Brooklyn were it is likely Robert and Kathleen were living at the time it was taken. 

The next possible record found for Robert is a New York Naturalization record for a Robert H Turle of 34 Monroe Place, Brooklyn, New York City on 19 October 1892 [15]. Is this the Robert Hobbs Turle that I am researching? I need to look at other documents to collaborate this information. I return to searching the city directories of New York and find additional entries as follows for Robert:  

So, Robert did move to 34 Monroe Place as we can see that his business address of 352 Produce Exchange is the same as that were listed in the New York city directories in the late 1880's for him. He has also expanded his business, being a merchant at 156 Franklin which then moved into canned goods from 105 Hudson. 

The next entry we find for Robert and his family in the official records is on the 1900 United States Federal Census [18]. 

So from this document we can see that Robert and Kathleen are living at 34 Monroe Place, with their two daughters, Millicent Worthington Turle [19] and Hildegarde Elleford Turle [20] along with a servant, Kattie Gariety. They stated that they had 3 children but only two are living. I did find a record on Ancestry for the birth of a female child on 7 November 1888 whose parents were Robert Hobbs Turle and Kathleen Gordon Ford of 65 Clark Street [21]. Sadly, no name was given for the child on the index transcription and I could not find a matching death index prior to June 1900. Short of requesting the birth certificate, we will not know any further information for certain. 

From the census, we can also see that Robert stated that he emigrated to the US in 1875 and is now a naturalized citizen. I have been unable to find a definitive record for him arriving in the US in the records available currently. 

Robert passed away in Brooklyn, New York, United States of America on 13 May 1905, aged 58 years [22]. He is buried at Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Westchester, New York, United States of America [23]. His Will and Probate, including Petition Papers, detail that his wife, Kathleen Gordon Turle, and daughters, Millicent Worthington Roelker nee Turle and Hildegarde Ellsford Turle, survive him [24].    

You can find some great images of the buildings on Clark Street and Monroe Place where the Lord and Turle families live on the NYC Municipal Archives Digital Collections website in the Brooklyn 1940's Tax Photo Collection. 

On the next update, I will look into the where the other children of Henry and Jane Turle went to beyond the 1871 England Census when they were living at 1 The Crescent as part of my One Place Study of The Crescent, Taunton. In the meantime, I hope that you have enjoyed reading this blog much as I have enjoyed researching this family for my One Place Study. 

It would be wonderful to hear from you via the comments section on this blog or via my Facebook page. If you would like to see the tree that I have been building for my One Place Study for each individual house, it is on Ancestry under 1 The Crescent Taunton One Place Study. This study is also part of the Society of One Place Studies. 

[1] General Register Office (https://www.gro.gov.uk/) - Deaths GRO Reference: 1848 M Quarter in Bridgwater, Volume 10, Page 307
[2] Ancestry.com 1851 England Census - The National Archives; Kew, London, England; 1851 England Census; Class: HO107; Piece: 1922; Folio: 484; Page: 25; GSU roll: 221078-221079

[3] Ancestry.com 1861 England Census - The National Archives; Kew, London, England; 1861 England Census; Class: RG9; Piece: 1616; Folio: 15; Page: 1; GSU roll: 542840

[4] Ancestry.com UK and Ireland, Masters and Mates Certificates, 1850-1927 Certificate Range 2: 84470 - 84649 - Original data: Master's Certificates. Greenwich, London, UK: National Maritime Museum.

[5] Ancestry.com U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995 - New York, City Directory 1879 pg 1474

[6] Ancestry.com New York, Extracted Marriage Index, 1866-1937 Certificate Number 1424

[7] Ancestry.com 1880 United States Federal Census - Year: 1880; Census Place: Brooklyn, Kings, New York; Roll: 840; Page: 127A; Enumeration District: 006

[8] Ancestry.com U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995 - Brooklyn, New York, City Directory 1880 pg 1521

[9] Ancestry.com U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995 - Brooklyn, New York, City Directory 1880 pg 499

[10] Ancestry.com U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995 - New York, City Directory 1883 pg 1651

[11] Ancestry.com U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995 - New York, City Directory 1884 pg 1774

[12] Ancestry.com U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995 - New York, City Directory 1886 pg 1940

[13] Ancestry.com U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995 - New York, City Directory 1888 pg 1993

[14] Ancestry.com U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995 - New York, City Directory 1889 pg 2008

[15] "New York Naturalization Index (Soundex), 1792-1906," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-L937-P9Z7?cc=2043782&wc=SFZ9-ZNL%3A1400001601 : 4 February 2015), Roll 272, T620-T650 (Triwasch, Jacob-Tierney, William J) > image 3532 of 5018; citing NARA microfilm publication M1674 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).

[16] Ancestry.com U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995 - New York, City Directory 1894 pg 1416

[17] Ancestry.com U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995 - New York, City Directory 1899 pg 1330

[18] Ancestry.com Year: 1900; Census Place: Brooklyn Ward 1, Kings, New York; Page: 14; Enumeration District: 0006; FHL microfilm: 1241043

[19] Newspapers.com - 'Miss Hildegarde Turle, Easter Bride. Hers to be a notable wedding' - The Brooklyn Daily Eagle 12 Mar 1911 pg 47 (Millicent Worthington Turle is named as younger sister)

[20] Ancestry.com New York, New York, Index to Birth Certificates, 1866-1909 - New York City Department of Records & Information Services; New York City, New York; New York City Birth Certificates; Borough: Brooklyn; Year: 1885 Certificate number 8407

[21] Ancestry.com New York, New York, Index to Birth Certificates, 1866-1909 - New York City Department of Records & Information Services; New York City, New York; New York City Birth Certificates; Borough: Brooklyn; Year: 1888 Certificate number 10853

[22] Ancestry.com New York, New York, Index to Death Certificates, 1862-1948 - New York City Department of Records & Information Services; New York City, New York; New York City Death Certificates; Borough: Brooklyn; Year: 1905 Certificate number 9258

[23] https://www.findagrave.com/ (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/146554385/robert-hobbs-turle)

[24] Ancestry.com New York, Kings County, Probate Records; Author: New York. Surrogate's Court (Kings County); Probate Place: Kings, New York - Robert Hobbs Turle