William DOWNEY

Abt 1750 - Bef 1837  (~ 87 years)

• Name	William DOWNEY
  Birth	Abt 1750
  Gender	Male
  _UID	160957646E4C4144BF9FB6A4C34F0C503F41
  Death	Bef 20 Jun 1837	Foxearth, Essex
  Burial	20 Jun 1837	Foxearth, Essex   [1]
  Notes	The construction of William Downey's family is largely based on circumstantial evidence. Prior to early March 2014 I thought the William Downey who was born about 1789 (and is now assumed to be the son of this William Downey) was born in Suffolk. But I then found an 1851 census entry for him which gave his birthplace as Foxearth, Essex. Foxearth was and is a small village only 2.5 miles from Long Melford but, crucially, is just over the Suffolk/Essex border. So I then looked at the Foxearth Register of Baptisms and Burials (at SEAX). I started searching for Downey at 1789 and in 1798 found the baptism of James the son of William and Mary Downey. No day or month is given. That was the only Downey I found but there is a gap in the register between June 1795 and January 1796. I then looked at the Foxearth Register of Marriages, working backwards from 1800 but could not find any Downey marriages. Certain census entries suggest that William and Mary Downey had at least two other children besides William and James: - an end-to-end review of the 1841 census of Foxearth reveals - Samuel Downey, aged 35 - John Downey, aged 47. - an end-to-end review of the 1851 census of Foxearth reveals - John Downey, aged 59 (the same John as in 1841). Putting the above together suggests the William and Mary Downey's family comprised: William born c. 1789 John born c. 1794 James born c. 1798 Samuel born c. 1806 The birth year of 'about 1850' used for William is based on his being 87 when he died in 1837. In 2021 Colin Stewart asked the Essex Record Office Search Service for help in finding out more about William Downey's ancestry. They failed to find his birth in a variety of Parish registers belonging to parishes around Foxearth but did find what was almost certainly William's marriage and the burials of William and his wife. Colin thinks William might have come over from Ireland, some time between his birth and his marriage.
  Person ID	I2918	Great Horkesley, Essex
  Last Modified	13 Jan 2022

  
  

  Family	Mary RAYNER,   b. Abt 1855   d. Bef 9 Apr 1837, Foxearth, Essex
  Marriage	Apr 1785	Liston, Essex   [2]
  Children	1. William DOWNEY,   b. Abt 1789, Foxearth, Essex d. Sep 1857, Sudbury RD (Age ~ 68 years)   2. John DOWNEY,   b. Abt 1794, Foxearth, Essex d. Sep 1868, Sudbury RD (Age ~ 74 years)   3. James DOWNEY,   b. Abt 1798, Foxearth, Essex d. Yes, date unknown   4. Samuel DOWNEY,   b. Abt 1806, Foxearth, Essex d. Mar 1856, Sudbury RD (Age ~ 50 years)
  Family ID	F968	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	13 Jan 2022

  
  

• Documents

  William Downey c.1750 - 1837 A report of research carried out for Colin Stewart by the Essex Record Office

  
  

• Sources

  [S33] Parish Register, Foxearth parish register via ERO Research Service, 2021. (Reliability: 3). [S33] Parish Register, Liston parish register via ERO Research Service, 2021. (Reliability: 3).