Hello
You can find them on the 1881 census living at Toxteth Park, Liverpool.

Josia B Homewood aged 61 born 1820 and Susan Ann born 1822, aged 59.

There is a death registered for Susan aged 85 years at Toxteth Park in the June quarter of 1907, 8b 128. You could obtain a copy of the death certificate, on-line by quoting that reference.

I have written a journal called "and finally" which details all the information you will get from a death certificate.

Good luck............

Hello,
Thanks for your quick response but unfortunately I knew all that. Her death certificate does not give any further information.
My interest is in Thomas Purdy and his brother John Purdy. My current brick walls are Susan Homewood's parentage as well as the birth details of the two Purdys - the latter because they are variously described as born in Liverpool or Ireland and I can not find certificates for either.

Where is your interest?

My interest was in trying to help you with your enquiry.

According to 1881 census:
Susan A. HOMEWOOD - 1881 British Census / Lancashire
Wife: Birth: <1822> United States.

So it looks like you need to be searching there for the marriage as well as Susan's birth, and parents.

Yes. Thanks for your help

In 1850 US Census

Name: Josiah B Homewood
Age: 30
Estimated Birth Year: abt 1820
Birth Place: England
Gender: Male
Home in 1850 (City,County,State): Southwark Ward 1, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Family Number: 957
Household Members:
Name Age
Fredrick Plummer 60 possible Susans father??
Josiah B Homewood 30 occupation Mariner
Susan Homewood 30 born Delaware
Mary Homewood 1 born Pennsylvania


Mary is probably your Mary Elizabeth who married Thomas Purdy.

According to a tree on Ancestry Thomas Purdy was born 1839 Liverpool and was a Master Mariner wife Mary E Homewood born 1849 Philadelphia.
It has Marys parents as Josiah Boydell Homewood b 1819 Bethnel Green and Susan Ann Bannon b 1821 Philadelphia, d 1907 Toxteth Park.
Josiahs parents Thomas & Mary Ashley.

Looks like Thomas Purdy and Mary Homewoods children were born at sea or in Liverpool.

Do you have copy of Thomas and Mary Elizabeth Homewoods marriage certificate?? I couldn't find them in the England BMD.

Do you have information on Josiahs parents Thomas Homewood and Mary Ashley and his birth/baptism details.

Many thanks for the information on the 1850 US census which I had not seen.

Thomas' family came from Ireland and he has left a confusing story of his birth. He was a Master Mariner and I have copies of his various marine certificates; all these give a date of birth as December 1836 in Liverpool. On one it says 18 December whereas another gives 21 December, the rest not giving a day of the month. Being a mariner he was often at sea during the census; however, he was at home on 30 March 1851 when his age is given as 15, thus confirming 1836 as his birth year but it says he was born in Ireland. To add further confusion, his marriage certificate says he was 30 on 29 May 1869 which puts his birth as 1839. However, as he was marrying someone much younger I wonder whether he portrayed himself as someone a bit younger. As yet I have not found any formal record of his birth or baptism. The official birth registration in England and Wales started in 1837 and the Irish records are difficult or impossible to find.

I have an early copy of his marriage certificate: it is handwritten on blue paper and was issued by the British Consul in Peru. It has come down to me via the daughter of his eldest daughter Edith; I knew both Edith and Mary, her daughter. Details of the marriage certificate are: 1869, marriage solemnized at Lima. 27 May 1869 Thomas Purdy, 30, Bachelor, Master Mariner, residence Callao, father Thomas Purdy, Master Mariner and Mary Elizabeth Homewood, 20, Spinster, residence Callao, father Josiah Boydell Homewood, Master Mariner. Married in the Consulate General at Lima by Civil Contract by Wm Stafford Jermingham, H.B.M. Charge d'Affaires & Consul General to Peru. Witnesses Charles Evans and Eliza Mary O'Connor. The other curious aspect of this certificate is that he says his father was a Master Mariner; in fact he had by then died but he was a Master Tailor (This caused me some confusion when I first found him as I misread the entry in his daughter's marriage certificate as Master Sailor!).

Thomas and Mary had 9 children: Edith Oceana, born at sea, 1871; Victor Fiddes, born at sea 1872; Thomas, Liverpool 1874; Flora Clinton, born at sea 1875; Charles James born ? 1879; Mary, Liverpool 1880; Nellie, Liverpool, 1881; Norman, Liverpool, 1884; Marie, Liverpool 1889. I have certificates for the first 4 only.

I have quite a bit of information on Josiah's family through an LDS Pedigree Source file, so do not know how accurate it is. Also, Jim Wilkinson has published a lengthy account of the Homewoods. I can give you details if you are interested.

Now that you have given me another possible clue to Susan's family name and an address I will follow it up. One detail I am trying to unravel is how the three masted ship, The Virginia Dare, is connected with the Homewoods or the Purdys. I have the full maritime history of Thomas Purdy and his brother John Purdy but this does not include the Virginia Dare.

Hope this is useful and look forward to hearing from you.

My only interest is in helping you find some clues.

According to the England Probate & Wills Josiah was a ship owner, perhaps this is the connection to the Virginia Dare.

England & Wales National Probate Calendar 1861-1941
Name: Josiah Boydell Homewood
Probate Date: 7 Jan 1887
Death Date: 5 Nov 1886
Death Place: Chester, Cheshire, England
Registry: Chester

The Document Reads

HOMEWOOD Josiah Boydell

Personal Estate 3,230 9s 9d

7th January The Will of Josiah Boydell Homewood formerly of New Brighton but late of Clarendon road Egremont both in the county of Chester Shipowner who died 5 November 1886 at Clarendon Road was proved at Chester by Robert Martin of 56 Edge lane Liverpool in the County of Lancaster Contractor and Andrew Thoms of 4 Hardy Street Liverpool Paper Merchant two of the executors.


You might find some clues for Susan from her death certificate as well, but they record only what the informant knew about her.

Deaths Jun 1907 (>99%)
Homewood Susan Ann 85 Toxteth Park 8b 128

Good hunting

Many thanks

Hi,

I just found this stream via a google search. I am descended from Thomas Purdy's sister, Ellen, who married John Ryan (also a Master Mariner). Thomas & Ellen's father, Thomas (a Tailor as you point out) married Elizabeth Clinton 30 Jan 1825 in Liverpool and then some of their children were born in Liverpool and some in Ireland. In Ireland they appear to have been born in Tanderagee in Armagh, and Thomas is shown as a tailor there in an 1846 directory.

It is interesting that Thomas and Mary had a son Victor Fiddes, as Thomas's sister Martha married a James Fiddes in Victoria, Australia, in 1863...

If you have found out any more information since you last made this post about the Purdys I'd love to hear

Jenny Joyce
Sydney, Australia

Dear Jenny,

Many thanks for your message. How interesting to hear from someone descended from Ellen Purdy and John Ryan. Although I knew about John Ryan I have very little detail on him other than him being at 13 Chester Street, Toxteth Park in the 1861 census. I also knew of Elizabeth Clinton and her marriage to Thomas Purdy (senior) (the tailor) in 1825 but do not yet have any details of her birth. The name Clinton appears in my family a number of times: Flora Clinton Purdy - daughter of Thomas Purdy and Mary Elizabeth Homewood; John Clinton Purdy, son of John Purdy and Bess jackson (J C Purdy is my maternal grandfather) and Douglas Clinton, my twin brother.

I knew Edith Purdy, the daughter of Thomas Purdy and Mary Elizabeth Homewood, as my brother and I used to stay with her and her daughter Mary Barbara Triebel when we were youngsters. However, I knew little about my mother's immediate relations as she died when we were quite young. However, a chance discovery put me in contact with the family in Ireland a few years ago and I have been over to meet them and to see Tandragee where they came from.

I did not know about Martha marrying James Fiddes in Australia.

My brick wall is still Susan Ann Bannon or Cannon and my connection with the Virginia Dare. However, I am continuing the search, if rather slowly, and would be very interested to hear more of what you know.

Regards

Marlinwine

I am the great grandson of Thomas Purdy master mariner of Liverpool. His daughter Nellie Haworth nee Purdy was my paternal grandmother.
I hope this may be of some interest. My grandmother often told me tales about him, and how several of her siblings were born at sea.mShe told me that he was commodore of the line and sailed on the far eastern trade routes. I think the line he was with became the Blue Funnel Line, but not sure on this one I know he was in sail for much of his career. She told me that they lived on the Boulevard in one of the big old multi storey houses in the Toxteth area which sadly in later years became very run down. One of Nellie's sons Kenneth Thomas Haworth my uncle followed in his grandfather's footsteps becoming first mate in the merchant navy. He emigrated to Canada in the 1940s and became a captain on the Maid of the Mist steamers that took tourists to the foot of Niagra Falls. If anyone has any more information regarding this side of my family I would love to hear from you.

My Father Maurice Ronald Haworth was a nurseryman. He ran away to sea on a tramp steamer and always had a great love of the sea obviously inherited. At one time in the 1940s he owned the yacht Capellar (not sure of the spelling) which broke the record for the Rock Ferry to the IOM race I think in the1930s he did not own her at the time. Despite many efforts to date this record has never been beaten. He went on to study and passed his yachtmaster's ocean going certificate and delivered several boats to their owners in the Mediterranean. Sadly he died in 1971 aged 62. Again any information on my family would be most welcome. Ron

To asheppard, marlinwine, jennyjoyce and ronhaworth,
I am a great granddaughter of Thomas Purdy. I live in Canada and have been searching for more about his ancestry. Many thanks for the details here. I'd like to know more about his siblings; are there others besides John, Ellen and Martha? I have traced the Homewood line through Josiah Boydell Homewood back to 1587, mostly using Familysearch.org and Ancestry.ca.I believe Susan Bannon's father was James Bannon, and his mother Elizabeth but can find no more on them than is posted here.
If one of you sees this, let's exchange more....? Gillian Richardson, British Columbia Canada