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Charles TONGUE

CharlesT

New Member
I would appreciate any help anyone is able to give me in my search for the birth of my elusive great 2X gt grandfather Charles Tongue.
Charles was born sometime between 1839 & 1841. Birthdate & place varies according to census
1841 - aged 2 yrs born in county - living with Elizabeth Tongue aged 21 not born in County & lodging with a William Lam & family on Hill St, Green's Village, Birmingham
1851 - unable to trace Charles or Elizabeth
1861 - Charles aged 20 a miner - surname and birthplace noted as Not Known lodging with the Thomas Roe family on Chester Rd Brownhills
1862 - married in Stonnall "of Brownhills" to Emma Upton - aged 21 - a miner - father stated to be Charles Tongue labourer
1871 - aged 30 born Dudley Port, Tipton living on Chester Rd Brownhills
1881 - aged 39 born Birmingham living on Chester Rd Brownhills
1891 - aged 51 born Birmingham living on Chester Rd Brownhills
1901 - aged 60 born Dudley living on Chester Rd Brownhills
1911 - aged 69 born Womborne a widower living with son on Church Rd Brownhills
1914 - aged 72 years - in Brownhills - obituary says he came from "the Dudley side of the District"
There is another family in Birmingham in the same time frame with the father Charles Tongue - Japanners/jewellers but I have traced these and it is not my family of Tongues, unfortunately.
 
Frustrating with so little to go on and doubly frustrating because it's a direct ancestor.

First thoughts would be that Charles was illegitimate and that his father's name is false. If Elizabeth was living with someone in 1851 though not married he might have been listed under that name, though not knowing where Elizabeth came from is not gonna help. Are the witnesses for his marriage significant?

If Charles was illegitimate then there appear to be some other illegitimate Tongues registered in Aston/Bham between 1841 and 1851, though they also don't seem to appear on the censuses.

One of them, an Emma Tongue reg Bham 1843 seems to marry a John Roderick in 1861 as Emma Hems giving father as a Thomas Hems. There is no birth registered for an Emma Hems, nor does she appear on any census.

She the has 2 sons and a daughter. The daughter dies young but the sons appear on the 1881 census as step sons to a John Bowen, his wife is Emma.

The is no marriage for a John Bowen to an Emma Roderick but there is a marriage for a John Bowen to an Emma Tongue in 1867, when she gives her father as a John Tongue.

Very tenuous but that's it.
 
Thanks so much for your response! Much appreciated MWS. My working theory has been that Charles was quite possibly illegitimate and that the father's name on his marriage certificate was incorrect. There was a family of Tongues in Chaddesley Corbett, Worcs that I have a hunch might be connected. There was an Elizabeth Tongue baptized there in 1817 to a Charles and Sarah nee Rider and that Charles was a labourer - quite possible that Charles put his grandfather's name on the marriage certificate. The witnesses were a Sarah James and Jas. Hand or Iland [hard to distinguish] and as far as I have been able to discern there are no other connections to either of these people. I have searched extensively for a baptism for Charles within a 10 mile radius as I have been unable to find a birth registration but that has been a brick wall too. As if that isn't enough of a problem his wife Emma Upton seems to be equally elusive but I digress! Thanks again for your suggestions.
 
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