George and Mary Ann’s oldest daughter, Ann, married and moved to London. Their younger daughter, Mary Ann, married and lived in Beccles. Mary Ann was only 27 years old when she died.

George Oxborough

Born: 1821 in Beccles, Suffolk, England

Father: Charles Oxborough (1784 to 1869)
Mother: Frances Rayner (1787 to 1845)

Spouse: Mary Ann Cooper (1814 to 1868)

Married: 1841 in Beccles, Suffolk County, England

Children:

Ann Oxborough (1850 to 1934)
Mary Ann Oxborough (1854 to 1881)

Died: 1883 in Beccles, Suffolk County, England

Timeline:

1823 Death of sister, Elizabeth
1824 Death of sister, Charlotte
1825 Death of 2nd sister, Charlotte
1826 Death of 2nd sister, Elizabeth
1826 Death of brother, Henry
1828 Death of 2nd brother, Henry
1841 Beccles, Suffolk County, England
1845 Death of brother, Stephen
1845 Death of mother, Frances
1847 Marriage to Mary Ann
1850 Birth of daughter, Ann
1851 Beccles, Suffolk County, England
1854 Birth of daughter, Mary Ann
1861 Beccles, Suffolk County, England
1863 Death of 2nd brother, Charles
1868 Death of wife, Mary Ann
1869 Death of father, Charles
1871 Beccles, Suffolk County, England
1878 Death of sister, Frances
1881 Beccles, Suffolk County, England
1881 Death of daughter, Mary Ann
1883 Death and Burial

Occupation: bricklayer journeyman

Records:

1841 to 1881 England Census Records
England, Select Births and Christenings, 1538-1975
England & Wales, FreeBMD Marriage Index: 1837-1915
England & Wales, Criminal Registers, 1791-1892
England & Wales, FreeBMD Death Index: 1837-1915

Variations of Surname: Oxborrow, Oxbrough, Oxburgh

Spouse:

Mary Ann Cooper:

Mary Ann was born on 17 AUG 1814 in Kessingland, Suffolk County, England. She died in 1868 in Beccles, Suffolk County, England.

Mary Ann’s father was John Cooper. He was born in 1789 in Kessingland, Suffolk County, England. He died in 1844 in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk County, England.

Mary Ann’s mother was Charlotte Bonnett. She was born in 1786 in Kings Lynn, Norfolk County, England. She died in 1866 in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk County, England.

Mary Ann had three brothers and sisters:

Robert Cooper (1813 to 1813)
Charlotte Cooper (1816 to 1816)
Jeremiah Cooper (1821)

Mary Ann had previously married James Thurston on 29 OCT 1834 in Henstead, Suffolk County, England. Four known children were born to this marriage. The three oldest children were born in Kessingland. The youngest child was born in Beccles.

Charlotte Thurston (1837)
Hannah Thurston (1837)
George Thurston (1842)
Georgiana Thurston (1845)

James Thurston was born in 1813 in Carlton Colville, Suffolk County, England He died in 1847 in Henstead, Suffolk County, England. James was 34 years old when he died.

Daughters:

Ann Oxborough:

Ann was born in 1850 in Shipmeadow, Suffolk County, England. She died in 1934 in Bermondsey, Surrey County, England.

Ann married Louis Vincenzo Gardiner in 1868 in Beccles, Suffolk County, England. Two known children were born to this marriage:

Henry Gardiner (1870)
Louisa Gardiner (1872)

Louis Vincenzo Gardiner was born in 1846 in Beccles, Suffolk County, England. He died on 12 OCT 1929 in Bermondsey, Surrey County, England.

Mary Ann Oxborough:

Mary Ann was born in 1854 in Beccles, Suffolk County, England. She died in 1881 in Beccles, Suffolk County, England. Mary Ann was 27 years old when she died.

Mary Ann married John Balls in 1870 in Beccles, Suffolk County, England. One known child was born to this marriage:

Mary Ann Balls (1871)

John Balls was born in 1850 in Beccles, Suffolk County, England. He died in 1923 in Byker, Northumberland County, England.

After Mary Ann died, John married Mary Lydia Byles in 1882 in Beccles, Suffolk County, England. I could not find a marriage record.
The marriage date and place are based on information taken from the 1911 England census and their oldest son’s birthplace.

Five known children were born to this marriage. The oldest child was born in Beccles. The other children were born in Newcastle Upon Tyne.

John Henry Balls (1884)
Mary Elizabeth Balls (1889)
James Balls (1894)
Lydia Balls (1898)
Henry Balls (1903)

Mary Lydia Byles was born in 1860 in Halesworth, Suffolk County, England. I do not know when Mary died. Mary would have been 63 years old when John died. She may have remarried.

Notes:

The surname, Oxborough, originated in Norfolk County, England. It appears in church registers as early as the mid-16th century. As the world population grew, these Oxborough ancestors moved to other counties in England. By the late 19th century, some had immigrated to Canada and Australia.

Creating Your Family Tree

Interested in building a great family tree? Remember these important steps:

Look in your photo albums. You may have old pictures that your parents or grandparents gave you. Or, ask them for copies of photos that they have in their possession. Many people will write names and dates on the backs of photographs. Letters, diaries, and family bibles are also excellent sources for births, marriages, and deaths.

Talk to your older relatives to find out about your ancestry. They may relate stories about an ancestor that you can add to your family tree. Family history is usually not found in newspapers. It is more of a verbal memory that is passed down from generation to generation.

Find the right family tree builder that suits your needs. You can choose one that has a paid subscription like Ancestry.com. There are also free sites like FamilySearch.org.

When you start building your family tree, add documentation to your ancestor’s profile. The records can include birth, marriage, death, census, military, city, and county directory listings. Any information that you can find will help create a life story about your ancestor.

If you have a unique surname, like Wakenight, you may find databases on the internet that are useful in your search. I use SurnameDB.com for my English surnames. There are many others on the internet for other countries like Ireland, Italy, and Germany.

Genealogy is the study of a person’s “line of descent.” As you create your family tree, you would typically start with one individual and go “back into time.” You would add their parents, grandparents, and so on.  There are also family trees that go “forward into time.”  Many of these family trees start with a famous person, such as a president or royalty, and move forward into the present time.  The purpose of this type of pedigree is to establish a person’s bloodline with that famous person.

There is no limit on how big your family tree can grow. The blank canvas is there for you to use. Cherish your family history, and it will be there for generations to come!