Thread: James Finigan, born London 1846, lived in Liverpool in 1881 census

Hi,

I'm hoping someone will be able to help me with information about my great-great grandfather, James Finigan. The only records I have for him are an entry in the 1881 census for Liverpool, which gives his place of birth as London (though the same census record lists his son Thomas as 23 and a labourer when he was actually 2, so I'm not sure how much stock to put in that) and his marriage certificate to Elizabeth Robinson in Liverpool in 1875.

There is a family story that James's children, Thomas and Charlotte Finigan, were orphans and were sent to separate poor schools. Thomas was sent to a school in Liverpool (I believe it to have been Nash Grove, as I think I have him there in the 1891 census), while Charlotte was sent to Ireland (I've been unable to identify where, but probably somewhere in Northern Ireland).

James's marriage certificate states that his father was Thomas Finigan, and that James was a widower, so there will be a previous marriage, but whether in Liverpool or London I don't know.

I've been unable to find any evidence of death for James or his wife (nothing I can conclusively prove, at any rate), and I'm starting to think they might have emigrated and left the children behind.

That's the background. What I'm really after is anything that could tell me a) what happened to James and Elizabeth in the 1880s, and b) who James was married to previously, where, and when. Any information on James's parents would be awesome, but I think I'm pushing my luck there.

Adam Short

Hello Orinoco77

Do you have the 1881 census reference number plese


elsabels

I have found the census, in the household ar 3 ROBINSON children listed as boarders, pre Elizabeth is the nother, then there is THOMAS single unmarried 23 Labourer b Toxteth Park, and finally a baby Charlotte, therefore Thomas appears to be an Adult.....

elsabels

Name:Charlotte Ann FiniganGender:FemaleBirth Date:abt 1881Christening Date:9 Jan 1881Christening Place:West Derby, Lancashire, EnglandFather's name:James FiniganMother's name:Elizabeth

1901 in london
Name:Charlotte A FiniganAge:23Estimated birth year:abt 1878Relation:ServantGender:FemaleWhere born:Liverpool, Lancashire, EnglandCivil Parish:FulhamEcclesiastical parish:St OswaldTown:LondonCounty/Island:London
Registration district:FulhamSub-registration district:North East Fulham Household schedule number:7Household Members:NameAgeEliza Thomas63Ellen M Thomas32Maude E Thomas30Arthur G Thomas28Emily Moule23Helen Dixon68Charlotte A Finigan23Ellen Search19


Source Citation: Class: RG13; Piece: 61; Folio: 64; Page: 2

@welshlady, yep, that's my Charlotte. She was apparently an imposing lady in later years, having risen from her meagre beginnings in the tenements of Liverpool to be a governess, first in London and then in Ireland. Sadly it's her beginnings that are shrouded in mystery for me at present

Hello Orinoco

If you scroll down on this you will see that it is an Orphange
institutions.org.uk/orphanages/LAN/lancashire_orphanages.htm

@elsabels thanks, I wasn't sure on that point. Would that indicate that both parents were dead, or is it not that simple? As I said earlier, I've not managed to find a death record for either parent that I'm happy with, so I wondered if they'd disappeared (perhaps overseas) instead.