ENGLISH ANCESTRY

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William BUTLER		Catherine HOUGH/HUFF
b. abt 1794 ? bur. 30 Jun 1826 St. Nicholas, Nuneaton, Warwick, Eng Father: ? Mother: ?	1st Married 10 Jan 1815, Chilvers Coton, Warwick, Eng	bap. 25 Dec 1791 Ryton On Dunsmore, Warwick, Eng d. 5 May 1854, Nuneaton, Warwick, Eng Father: John Hough/Huff(possible) Mother: Elizabeth (Pollard?)(possible)

  PURE CONJUCTURE;
  WARNING !!!
  At the present time, this family is pure conjecture, as being the family of James Butler.
It is based on the contents of a letter (shown at the bottom of this page),
written to James by his brother Robert, in 1850 (the original is in the hands of a family member, who I only recently contacted).
Until the discovery of this letter, I had been stone-walled on James's ancestry for over 15 years. I didn't even know he had a brother Robert!
Subsequent research, has turned up the family on this page, as most closely fitting the information.
Only time, more research and a little luck *fingers crossed* will prove if I'm right!
 

• 1841 census:
  Nuneaton, District 13, Warwick:
  179 Back St HARRIS William 60 Weaver Y
  HARRIS Caroline 50 Charwoman Y
  BUTLER Robert 16 M S Y
   
• 1851 census:
  Back St., Nuneaton:
  Catherine Harris, Widow, age 59, b. Ryton on Dunsmore, War.,
  chairwoman. (living alone)
   
• Here's how I think James's early life went;
  James was the second born child, of William Butler, a brickman by trade & his wife Catherine (sometimes known as Caroline). He spent his early years growing up in the town of Nuneaton, Warwickshire, Eng. James always stated he was from Warwickshire, on all Australian certificates & newspaper articles.
• James's father William died in Jun of 1826, at the age of just 32.
• James Butler was apprenticed to Joseph Buswell, a Nuneaton ribbon weaver, on 18th December 1827, aged 10. Mother's name given as Catherine Butler. He completed this apprenticeship before leaving the Nuneaton area.
• James's mother remarried in Oct 1831, to a William Harris, a weaver by trade. It is this event, I think, that either James didn't approve of or maybe he disliked his step-father or vice-versa, that had James leaving home at a young age.
• If the below family is correct, Robert would have been about 6 years old, when his mother re-married. If James did leave home at around that point, it fits with the 1850 letter's contents, "I was nothing but a little boy when you left home".
• I have no idea where James got to for the next 5 or so years. According to newspaper articles in Australia, James landed in Sydney (then known as Port Jackson) in about 1836/1837. He then traveled over-land down to Melbourne, which was still in it's infancy, having been established in 1836. Where he started a brickmaking business. For the rest of James's life see his page (link provided below).
• I have no idea if James ever sent his brother Robert the money he was requesting. Though James obviously thought enough of his brother to keep the letter that he'd written. James named his 1st born son 'Robert', just eighteen months after this contact was made.
   
• The situation in Hong Kong at the time of Robert's letter would have been fairly intense, as the 2nd Opium Wars were just about to begin.
• I have yet to find any evidence of Robert in Australia. Nor have I been able to establish just which "John Turner" may be the one mentioned in the letter. The state of New South Wales existed until the 1st of July 1851, at which time it was seperated into the states of, New South Wales & Victoria. Robert's reference to "N.S.W." would cover a huge amount of land.
• Furthermore, while Robert mixes between referring to his mother as "your & my" (he is obviously refering to the same woman) in his letter to James. He called the Turner's "his" cousins. Could they be relatives of William Harris and not part of the Butler/Hough family at all? Robert probably would have grown up knowing William Harris's relatives as his own. 
• William Harris appears in the 1841 census, with his wife "Caroline", & Robert Butler(age 16). Catherine is yet again a widow by the 1851 census, she is still living in the same street she had been in 1841.
• No James Butler appears in either 1841 census of Nuneaton, nor the burial records for this period
• The marriage certificate of Ann Butler to Thomas Edwards, confirms she is the daughter of William Butler, brickman
   

1. MARY ANN BUTLER, bap. 1 May 1815, Nuneaton, Warwick, Eng - d. ? - m. 31 Oct 1843, Nuneaton, Warwick, Eng to William GREEN
   Children:
   • Hannah GREEN, bap. 27 Oct 1844, Nuneaton, Warwick, Eng - d. ? - (possible m. 11 Jan 1963 to Joseph PARKER)
   • Emma GREEN, b. 4 May 1846, bap. 26 Jul 1846, Nuneaton, Warwick, Eng - d. after 1871?
   • Thomas GREEN, b. 15 Jan 1848, bap. 13 Feb 1848, Nuneaton, Warwick, Eng - d. after 1901 - m. ? to ?
     Children:
     • Frank GREEN, b. abt 1867, Rotherham, Yorkshire, Eng - d. after 1901
     • Sarah A. GREEN, b. abt 1872, Attercliff, Yorkshire, Eng. - d. ?
     • Mary GREEN, b. abt 1873, Attercliff, Yorkshire, Eng. - d. ?
        
   • John GREEN, b. 12 Feb 1851, bap. 24 Feb 1851, Nuneaton, Warwick, Eng - d. after 1901 - m. 28 Jun 1875, Nuneaton, Warwick, Eng to Sarah WARD
     Children:
     • Elizabeth Mary GREEN, abt 1875, Nuneaton, Warwick, Eng - d. ?
     • Emily GREEN, b. abt 1877, Nuneaton, Warwick - d. ?
     • Sarah Ann GREEN, b. 1879, Chilvers Coton, Warwick - d. ?
     • William (Edward Ward) GREEN, b. abt 1884, Nuneaton, Warwick - d. ?
     • Herbert GREEN, b. abt 1891, Nuneaton, Warwick - d. ?
     • Reginald GREEN, b. 1893, Nuneaton, Warwick - d. after 1901
        
   • Charles GREEN, b. abt 1852 - d. after 1871
      
2. JAMES BUTLER, bap. 29 Apr 1817 - 1st m. 1849 to Jesse MCAUSLAND & 2nd m. 1851 to Elizabeth WATSON nee CLARKE
    
3. ANN BUTLER, bap. 29 Sep 1820, Nuneaton, Warwick, Eng - d. ? - m. 16 Feb 1840, Chilvers Coton, Warwick, Eng to Thomas EDWARDS
   Children:
   • John EDWARDS, bap. 12 Jul 1840, Nuneaton, Warwick, Eng - d. (young?)
   • Joseph EDWARDS, b. abt 1842, Chilvers Coton, Warwick, Eng. - d. after 1901 - m. 1873, Coventry, Warwick to Joanna LESTER
     Children:
     • Ann EDWARDS, b. abt 1876, Chilvers Coton, Warwick, Eng - d. after 1901 - m. 1896, Warwick, Eng to John TERRELL
     • Thomas EDWARDS, b. abt 1878, Chilvers Coton, Warwick, Eng - d. after 1901
     • Edith EDWARDS, b. abt 1883, Chilvers Coton, Warwick, Eng - d. ?
     • Emily E. EDWARDS, b. abt 1887, Chilvers Coton, Warwick, Eng - d. after 1901
     • Joanna EDWARDS, b. abt 1890, Chilvers Coton, Warwick, Eng - d. ?
     • Sarah Lester EDWARDS, b. 1892, Nuneaton, Warwick - d. after 1901
     • Beatrice H. EDWARDS, b. abt 1896, Chilvers Coton, Warwick - d. after 1901
        
   • Emma EDWARDS, b. 13 Oct 1847, Chilvers Coton, Warwick, Eng, bap. 8 Mar 1848, Nuneaton, Warwick, Eng - d. after 1901 - m. 4 Oct 1866, Chilvers Coton, Warwick, Eng to Joseph FORD
     Children:
     • William FORD, bap. 8 Aug 1868, Chilvers Coton, Warwick, Eng - d. ?
     • Joseph FORD, bap. 8 Aug 1868, Chilvers Coton, Warwick, Eng - d. ?
     • Charles FORD, b. abt 1870, Stockingford, Warwick, Eng - d. after 1901
     • Sarah A. FORD, b, abt 1871, Stockingford, Warwick, Eng - d. after 1901 (possibly 1903?)
     • Joseph FORD, b. abt 1872, Chilvers Coton, Warwick, Eng - d. after 1901 - m. 1898, Warwick, Eng to Ada BENFELL(query)
     • Ellen FORD, b. abt 1876, Chilvers Coton, Warwick, Eng - d. after 1901 - m. 1895, Warwick, Eng to Joshua BROWN
     • Alice FORD, b. abt 1878, Chilvers Coton, Warwick, Eng - d. after 1901
     • Henry FORD, b. 1880, Chilvers Coton, Warwick, Eng - d. after 1901
     • George FORD, b. abt 1882, Chilvers Coton, Warwick, Eng - d. after 1901
        
4. CAROLINE BUTLER, bap. 11 Apr 1823, Nuneaton, Warwick, Eng - bur. 23 May 1824, St. Nicholas, Nuneaton, Warwick, Eng.
    
5. ROBERT BUTLER, bap. 12 Mar 1825, Nuneaton, Warwick, Eng - d. after 1850
    

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	William Harris
2nd Marriage 2 Oct 1831, Nuneaton, Warwickshire, Eng	b. abt 1781 Warwickshirte, Eng d. abt 1845, ? Father: ? Mother: ?

1. SOPHIA HARRIS, bap. 16 May 1832, Nuneaton, Warwick, Eng - bur. 4 Jun 1836, Nuneaton, Warwick, Eng
    

Letter From Robert Butler to his brother James Butler:

• Dated Jun 1850 to James Butler:
  Dear brother this my own hand writing.
  Dear Brother,
  I write these few lines to you, hoping that this will find you in good health, at this present time, as it leaves me in very good health, at this present time, thank the lord for it.
  Dear brother, I was very surprised to hear that you had sent a letter to my mother, for we thought that we should never hear from you again. for your poor mother, thought that you was dead. That she should not hear anything of you. But I am very glad to hear that you are doing so well, according to what you state, as your mother sent the letter to me, when I was in Ireland to read and I was very glad to hear from you. I thought of writing a letter to you before but being as my mother rote to you I thought you might write to her and then I would hear more about you and how you was situated.
  Dear brother, "your sister Mary is married and her name is Mrs. Green, and Ann is married and her name is Mrs. Edwards".
  Dear brother, my mother sent me word, that " my cousin John Turner was come out to New South Wales" and sent me word whether you have heard anything about him "and his brother who is gone a Merica" but I can't say.
  Dear brother, I enlisted for a soldier on the 15th Jan 1846/45, I was twice on ----- since i enlisted 59th Regiment is on --- we sailed on the 17th Jun 1849 out of the cove of .... and we sailed into Victoria Town...... Hong Kong, China on the 11th of Febuary 1850....
  Dear James Butler, I send my very best love to you and I would like to see you very much indeed. If it be that I could see you and away again. If it was no more than that and your mother and sisters would be very proud if they could see you, and that is for me. I don't remember when you was at home as "I was nothing but a little boy when you left home". But if I was to see you I might remember but I can't bring you to mind
  Dear Brother, if you can do anything for me, so as to get me out to you. I would like to come to New South Wales to you and I might be of some service to you. And if so be, that you would send me some money to buy my discharge and to bring me out to you. I will come out to you in a short time. I could return the sum of money. that you send me and perhaps be of a great service to you in your old age. I have in mind?? a good ---- and I can buy my discharge for the sum of 15 pounds, and I can't say what it would take to pay for my passage out, but about 30 or 40 pounds would put a damper?? it and that is not much. And if you can send that, if it is nothing but to see me, --- if so , I can send it to you I would write with a free heart if it was but nothing only to see your pretty face.
  Dear brother James Butler, please to write as soon as you can for I am anxious to hear from you and I am writing home to --- today 15th mar and the mail runs in 6 weeks and I understand that New South Wales is about 6000 miles from Hong Kong, China.
  Now for the best for you,
  Robert Butler, 1st company, 59th regiment
  From brother Lance Corporal Robert Butler
  No. 1854 Lance Corporal Robert Butler, 1st Company, Hong Kong, China.
   
   

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