Weston Family

[morrl02]

I am interested in any information regarding the surname Weston, particularly in the Jewellery Quarter area, Icknield Street etc.

I have information on my ancestor Thomas Weston, who I believe may have been the son of Thomas Weston and Elizabeth Walton, he was born approx 1855.

Thomas later married a Louisa Deakin (daughter of Frances Shaw and Edwin Deakin, Later step daughter to Thomas O'Brien), although I am not sure they ever actually married as I have never been able to find a marriage certificate, which i desperatly wanted in order to prove that Thomas' father was in fact Thomas Weston as above.

Any information on the surname Weston from this area would be gratefully received as it may fill in some of the missing gaps I have, or give me a clue to some information I am working on!

 

[mikejee]

Do you have details from directories ? If not then I can probably help. In 1855 relevent Westons were :Weston James, lapidary, 88½ Hockley street
Weston Thomas Chesmer.lapidary 88½ Hockley street
Let me kno wif you want me to look in further years

 

[morrl02]

That is great, and maybe the right track.

I know that in 1861 there is a Thomas Weston and Elizabeth Weston living in Birmingham, I believe their son Thomas Weston shows as being 6 years old. Thomas Senior is just shown as a jeweller.

In 1871 Thomas senior is still working as a jeweller and his son Thomas is shown as a thimble maker. All following census and family information I have is that junior Thomas was a galvinzer and eventually moved to Tividale, Dudley Port, dying in Tipton in 1915. I am unsure how connect the galvanizing industry would have been to him working as a thimble maker? I am trying to fill any missing gaps, employment information, addresses as all the information I have is very sketchy.

 

[John Young]

Hello morrl02,

Being a "Galvanizer" fits nicely with working in "Jewellery trade" in aspects of E.P.N.S ,,,Electroplated Nickel Silver and this is Hallmarked items eg Silver Flatware & Holloware + thousands of small(thimbles?) pieces,
Just a bit adding to Mike,s great info for you,
cheers J

 

[mikejee]

Here are all the references I have for Westons from directories (including one already given for completeness) in 1815, but then disappears.. Early directories don’t always give full address, but Thomas (or an earlier one) is there.

1815 Weston thomas, Lapidary, Navigation St
1818 , 1823 , 1829. 1833.No relevent Thomas Weston (there is a hosier, a plasterer, a gunmaker and a grocer, all Thomases, but I don’t think any are the same one)
1839 Weston, H.J. writing engraver, 12 St Pauls (presumably means St Pauls Square)
1841 Weston James printer & engraver 185 Livery St (this might be the same as the H.J.Weston in 1839)
1845-1849 Weston James, lapidary, 86 Hockley st.
1849 Weston James Francis, steel polisher, 88½ Hockley st
1855 Weston James, lapidary, 88½ Hockley street (Post office dir)
1855 Weston Thomas Chesmer.lapidary 88½ Hockley street
1855 Weston James, chain maker, 86, Allison st
1855 Weston James Francis lapidary, 34½Gt Hampton St. home 9 Balsall Heath Rd
(Whites directory)
1862 Weston Henry James, engraver, Victoria St, Green lane
1862 Weston James lapidary, 86 hockley St
1862 Weston Mark, brassfounder, 46 Kenyon St
1862 Weston Thomas, jeweller. 26 Cottage Lane

I don’t know if you want me to go any further. I checked. The Thomas you have found in 1861 is the one in cottage lane.