DNA Discoveries – breaking through family history brickwalls

A recent difficult case highlighted the usefulness of DNA testing alongside traditional research methods.

George Williams was born in 1877, the son of George Williams, a soldier in the 3rd Hussars.  When George’s younger brother was born in 1880, George Williams senior was this time described as a bandsman with the East Kent Militia.  The family were living on Military Road in Canterbury but when the census was taken the following year, George was not in the household.  Although his location could not be found in 1881, George was still in Canterbury the following January when he was imprisoned for 21 days’ hard labour for stealing cake from a baker’s on Military Road.  By June it seems George had left his family as his wife baptised her youngest child with only her name appearing on the baptism record and an indication that she was in receipt of parish relief.

There was no record of George in the 1871 census as he was stationed in India at the time with the 3rd Hussars.  His army record gave his birthplace Bethnal Green.  When he married he stated his father to be John, a cabinetmaker. 

George’s whereabouts are not known between January 1882 and March 1886 at which point he enlists with the Middlesex Militia, 4th Battalion Royal Fusiliers.  Here he states that he had been living at 82 White Street in Bethnal Green and working for a Mr A T Juist of Homerton.  He gives his trade as a musician and states that he is single.  He declares his previous military service with the 3rd Hussars, giving his discharge date of October 1879. 

At this time of March 1886 he claims to be 33 years and 11 months old.  This differs from his age on his previous army record where his birthday was around the November/December time rather than April.  This gives a year of birth around 1852 rather than 1847 which the Hussars attestation in December 1866 at the age of 19.  When he left the Hussars in August 1879 he gave his age as 31 years and 9 months.  His intended place of residence was 47 Military Road, Canterbury.

George’s second army record stated him to be present for militia training in 1887 but the record ends after this date and it is unknown what happened to him after this time.

George consistently gave his birthplace as Bethnal Green in his various army records.  It may be that he was not born there, however, and simply remembered this being where he grew up.  George initially enlisted in 1866 at Aldershot, giving his trade as musician.  This therefore may be an indication that he had joined the army as a boy and been a bugler or drummer boy with the Hussars before joining them properly as an adult.

Perhaps George still had connections in Bethnal Green which is why he returned there after his relationship with Emily broke down.  The person, John Abbott, who lived at 82 White Street (the address George gave in his army record of 1886) appeared to have no connection with the Williams family.

There are no census returns or baptism records that fit with the given information about George being born 1847-52 at Bethnal Green with a father named John who was a cabinetmaker.  In such a situation it is usually the case that the individual is under a different surname.  Perhaps George’s father died, or he was illegitimate and his mother was living with another man.  For this reason, George joined the army as a boy soldier and the Williams surname was his original name but he appears in census records under a stepfather’s name.  It had not proved possible to find George prior to 1866 or after 1887 and for this reason an Ancestry DNA test was used try to trace the earlier origins via an analysis of DNA matches.

DNA matches were sorted into groups to find those linked to your Williams side.  These were then gone through to find matching common ancestors.  When looking at the tree of one of these matches the surname of Abbott caught my eye.  George Williams had stayed with John Abbott when he went back to Bethnal Green.

Looking further it was discovered that John Abbott of Bethnal Green was a brother to to this match’s ancestor, Ann Abbott.  The Abbott family was therefore investigated and it was found that John did indeed have a brother named George and he had been born in April which was one of the suggested months of birth for George. [The 1837 date in the baptism register here was an error; it should read 1847, the year of birth indicated for George in the 1851 census below].

1851 Census: 22 Camden Street, Bethnal Green, London

Name	Relationship to Head	Status	Age	Occupation	Where Born
Thomas ABBOTT	Head	Mar	40	Silk Weaver	London Bethnal Green
Louisa ABBOTT	Wife	Mar	36	Silk Weaver	London Bethnal Green
Ann ABBOTT	Daur	U	18	Silk Weaver	Bethnal Green
William ABBOTT	Son		11		Bethnal Green
John ABBOTT	Son		8		Bethnal Green
Edward ABBOTT	Son		6		Bethnal Green
George ABBOTT	Son		4		Bethnal Green
Mary ABBOTT	Daur		2		Bethnal Green

John Abbott of 82 White Street (the address George Williams gave on his army record) had married Emma Bass in 1864.  Here he named his father as Thomas Abbott, a weaver.

His sister, Ann, by now married to John Redburn, acted as a witness.

John and Emma had a son named Thomas.  He went on to have a son Charles, who had a son Charles, who had Catherine G. – another of the DNA matches.  There were a number of matches via the Redburn line.  There also connections to Southon which was the surname of the husband of Mary, the youngest Abbott child.

When John’s younger brother, Edward, married in 1870 he named his father as Thomas Abbott, a carpenter.

The family disappear after the 1851 census and the various children are not found again until they are adults.  It is not known what happened to Thomas and Louisa.

Thanks to the DNA connections which strongly connected to the Abbott family, combined with the known fact that George Williams stayed with John Abbott, it was possible to confirm George Williams being the same person as George Abbott.  This allowed the earlier ancestry to continue to be traced.