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Hello everyone

I have just discovered that my great grandfather's older sister Janetta came out to NZ in 1860 on the same voyage (the Matoaka) as my great grandparents, William and Sarah Hopkins. She was married to John Worgan in 1855, and they had a daughter Julia Janetta Worgan (baptised in the Forest) who died on the voyage aged 13 months.

On checking Janetta's baptism, I found a rather fractured record. I know from other records that she was born c1827, and the only feasible baptism record is for a Janette Hopking, baptised 28 January 1827, parents Thomas and Sarah (correct names for 'our' Janetta's parents). She is called Janetta in every other record I know, including her burial record in NZ.

Year: 1827
Month: Jan
Day: 28
Parents_Surname: HOPKING
Child_Forenames: Janette
Fathers_Forenames: Thomas
Mothers_Forenames: Sarah
Mothers_Surname:
Residence: Tankerhoops [?]
Occupation: Labourer
Officiating_Minister: J Formby Curate
Event: Baptism
Memoranda: Daugh[te]r of
Notes:
Register_Reference: PFC 209 IN 1/3
Page_Number: 90
Parish_Chapel: Lydney

Her baptism record gives the residence thus: Tankerhoops [?] I presume the ? means the transcriber had problems reading the written record.

My great great grandparents (Janetta's parents) lived in Aylburton. Could someone please have a stab at interpreting Tankerhoops for me? Is it the name of a farm for instance?

Thanks for any help you can give.
John

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On the 1841 census

Gloucestershire Lydney, District 2 (all of the Parish of Aylburton) - Page 2

listed as HOPKIN

Thomas - 35 - Ag Lab - all born in County
Sarah - 35
Priscilla - 16
Charles - 12
Mary - 11
Elizabeth - 8
William - 6
Emma - 4 - FOD records - christening Emma HOPKINS- 16 October 1836 (Aylburton Parish of Lydney- labourer & little farmer)
Thomas - 3
John - 2

On Page 1 - starting with Daniel ROBINS age 70 and his wife is the name of the area - if you use Ådvance Search - residence - containing Tanker - the ROBINS baptisms come up as Tanker-hopes

Tankhopes - (looks like) - written over two lines

On the 1851 Census, Gloucestershire, Aylburton

HOPKINS

Thomas - 50 - Ag Lab - all born Aylburton
Sarah - 46
Janetta - 24
Elizabeth - 18
William - 16
Thomas - 13
John - 11
Henry - 9
Philip - 8
Sarah - 6
Alfred - 4
Charles BATH, Visitor, unmarried - 25 - labourer, born Lydney

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I have an 1828-1831 map of Gloucester & Forest of Dean. (Cassini Historical Maps).
Tankerhoops appears on the map on the road between Aylburton and St. Briavels. It seems to be more or less at the centre of a line between Bream and Hewelsfield. If you look at the Ordnance Survey option on multimap.co.uk it was between Willsbury Farm and Old Bargains Wood, more or less where Barnard's Wood is now.

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Thank you both very much for your prompt replies. I haven't asked any questions recently but am thrilled to see the value of service in this Forum is as strong as ever.

I will follow up both of your posts with interest.

Two matters:
1. mpgriffiths - I am not sure who the people are in the 1841 Census, because some of the children's names do not fit with my known genealogy. The problem is the usual one - too many Thomas's and Sarah's amongst the Hopkins family on both sides of the Wye - to this day in NZ the first boy in each generation gets labelled Thomas (me and my son included). And the Hopkins family I descend from all lived within a small area between St Briavels, Aylburton, Hewelsfield, Brockweir, and Hudnalls. The Emma you have located is a problem child. Mike Johns has her listed as a daughter to Charles Hopkins and Mary Kear (Charles is a brother to my great great grandfather Thomas - the 1851 Census Thomas). In fact, going by the FoD parish records, I believe her to be the daughter of my ggf Thomas. She married Edmund Fletcher and migrated to NZ, and was said to be a sister to my great grandfather William.
The 1851 Census records are definitely my family - thank you.

2. The Robins name is interesting because I had an uncle with that surname, long since deceased. He was of Welsh descent, but came to NZ as a first generation migrant (in the 1930's?) from Gloucester. I wonder if his family came from the Forest as well. My father and this uncle had an awful relationship, and I always wondered what was behind the animosity. I will never know!

Thank you both once again. I will explore the maps with interest. I wish I had known all this when my wife and I were in Britain and explored the Forest... John

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Hi

Just a little Tangent about the Robins name, I descend from the Robins family. although I do not think Daniel is one of mine. Mine lot came over to Aylburton in c1830 from Uley and Owlpen. My family is found on the 1841 census of Aylburton a village to which I know vey well.

Pete

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Thank you Pete. I know virtually nothing more about my uncle, except that his name was William, and his mother lived in NZ as well. I do not know her name, and as far as I know I never met her. However, my younger brother may know, so I will check it out with him - he was raised by this uncle and aunt after our mother (aunt's sister) died when he was a baby.

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Thanks again - I found the location on the map as you suggested. How frustrating - my wife and I went up the road from Aylburton to St Briavels in 2004, so we would have passed the location without knowing it. It was a beautiful day, the Forest was looking its best, and I had to stop the car because the road was covered in young pheasants that just didn't care! So I have been there without knowing it. Sigh...

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Perhaps a good reason for another future trip "home" to the Forest?

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Yes and we have so many reasons to go back to the Forest. All good ones but no money.

In spirit we live there.

Rita
NZ

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Lovely thought, but at our age we need to watch our savings. The airfares aren't too bad on their own, but when you bring our banana republic money to Britain it suddenly melts away! The exchange rates are the killer of course.

To make it worth your while to go to Britain from the uttermost ends of the earth, it needs to be for at least a month (our first was for a month, then the next one two years later was for 6 weeks), and the living expenses, transport etc means that for a couple you really need to budget for something like $NZ15 - 20,000 for a decent trip.

I still recall on our first trip in 2004 I bought a g & t for my wife and a pint for me on The Strand. I was very quiet when I got back from the bar because I had made the mistake of translating what it cost into $NZ!

And then there are the grandchildren in Auckland, Hokitika, and Western Australia to visit. The rugrats will always take priority over another trip to Britain I am afraid!

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On google maps you could try taking a virtual trip down the road . . . While they don't always cover all the streets and roads, they do cover many. Just drag the little figure to the street you would like to view. This resource allowed me to see that my great-grandfather's house in Cardiff is roughly under the stadium, (at least I've been there, albeit in ages past) and that the section of Eastgate in Gloucester where I believe my gg grandmother lived and died is now a Starbucks . . .or some type of shop anyway. But it has given me, eighteen years from my last trip "home", sight of my beloved Boxtree Cottage and the orchards where my grandfather played as a boy . . .not quite as good as the real thing but satisfying in its own way. (Disconcerting though, I would have sworn the retaining wall and gate were much, much higher).

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old-maps.co.uk
co-ords 359127 204014

on the 1878 - 1881 1:2,500 map

just south of Warren House marked as Tankerhoops

The Warren House, Aylburton, Lydney GL15 6DX

http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2729440

.... and a variation....

http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~cbennett/lydney1876.htm

Morris & Co. Commercial Directory & Gazettee of Lydney 1876

ALYBURTON
LEWIS Richard, farm bailiff, Tankrope farm

Year: 1865
Month: Oct
Day: 29
Parents_Surname: LEWIS
Child_Forenames: Richard Frederick
Fathers_Forenames: Richard
Mothers_Forenames: Eliza
Mothers_Surname:
Residence: Aylburton
Occupation: Bailiff
Officiating_Minister: E.T.Hoare Off[iciatin]g Min[iste]r
Event: Baptism
Memoranda: These three entries ought to have made in the proper order but Mr Hoare did not give in the Certificates at the proper time. B.P[hilpot]
Notes:
Register_Reference: PFC209 IN 1/5
Page_Number: 122
Parish_Chapel: Lydney

1871
Richd Lewis 46
Eliza Lewis 48
Sarah Lewis 15
John Lewis 13
William Lewis 8
Frederick Lewis 5

1881 Warren House nr Priors Mesne
Richard Lewis abt 1826 Ross, Hereford, England Head Aylburton, Gloucestershire
Eliza Lewis abt 1824 Penault, Monmouth, Wales Wife Aylburton, Gloucestershire
John Lewis abt 1859 Bream, Gloucestershire, England Son Aylburton, Gloucestershire
William Lewis abt 1864 Aylburton, Gloucestershire, England Son Aylburton, Gloucestershire
Frederick Lewis abt 1866 Aylburton, Gloucestershire, England Son Aylburton, Gloucestershire
Cornelius Drew abt 1867 Aylburton, Gloucestershire, England Grandson Aylburton, Gloucestershire
William Drew abt 1869 Aylburton, Gloucestershire, England Grandson Aylburton, Gloucestershire

--
Ἀριστοτέλης A Gloster Boy in the Forest of Dean ><((((*>

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I am contacting you because I have recently had a breakthrough on my HOPKINS line in Gloucester. As I have a Janette (sister) of my GGGrandfather in my line I think we are connected. I was pointed to this Post last week. I will briefly list the following so you can see the connection:

William HOPKINS b about 1730.
Phillip HOPKINS b 1773 Aylburton m Sarah Jane.
Thomas HOPKINS b 1804, Aylburton m Sarah.
These are the parents of 13 children. One of whom is Janette b 1827, Lydney. She is an older sister to John b 1839, Lydney - my 2nd GGrandfather.
John had a number of children, one of them, is Henry my GGrandfather.
Henry moved to Glamorgan in 1891, married and had children, one of them is George my Grandfather.
George married had 3 daughters all of them migrating to Melbourne before 1950.
My grandparents also migrated to Melbourne in 1952.
There are relatives in the Caerphilly area of Wales and in the Lydney area of Gloucester.

I see you have had your answer to the place name of Tankerhoops.

Contact me if you would like to go further with this.

Gillian

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Hi Cuz

Well, how exciting - you are the first person I have had contact with who is a descendant of Thomas and Sarah, apart from my rellies in NZ! Woohoo!

I am not sure if you are aware of this, but half of Thomas and Sarah's children emigrated to NZ (in the 1860's), and as far as I have been able to discover, the others stayed in Britain. I also think that Thomas and Sarah must have been first cousins.

Janetta only survived a short time in NZ, before dying of pueperal fever - very sad.

I have a number of documents and photos that I can share with you, all related to this line. My great grandfather who came here in 1860 was William, a brother to your Henry (and Janetta of course).

I have a brick wall with Philip (or Phillip, depending on where you find him). I have not been able to find a baptism record for him, so I do not know his birthplace or parent's names. I notice you have a William as his father - I would be very interested to find out more.

I had hopes that I had found a baptism for Phillip in Llangogo, across the river from the Forest, but that Phillip has been claimed by two people I have corresponded with via this forum. They seem to have adequate proof that this record does not relate to our Phillip. If you want to search the Parish Records on this site, his family name is Hopkin, the baptism is 1772, the parents are William and Frances, chapel is Llandogo, Monmouthshire.

I will email you so that we can continue this off-line so I can send you any documents you would like from me. Wow, I am all of a pother!

John (Thomas John Hopkins actually, adopting the family names I assume!)

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That was quick. As the thread was quite old I wasn't sure if there would be any action. Yes! We are distant cousins.

You are right. I did not know that half the family left Gloucester for New Zealand. As I was stuck with a very dodgy 1911 Census record for my Henry I had 'stuff all' until the last two weeks. It was if the family were dropped from outer space for a brief period of time. I am yet to find anything for the 1901 census, and cannot find my Grandfather, George's details anywhere. A frustrating business.

The Philip info I have is also what you have discarded. I put that aside with a big question mark as I could not confirm him. Obviously, I need to cast the net wider.

Will contact you off list about records and other information.

Gillian

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Yes, Phillip and Sarah are really frustrating. Have a look at this thread:

http://www.forum.forest-of-dean.net/index.php?id=8328

BTW, you will find a number of threads over the years if you search for Hopkins and Fletcher that show you some of the information that has come to light.

I look forward to hearing back from you when you are ready.

Cheers
John

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I have contacted you directly John.

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