ESSEX-UK-L Archives

Archiver > ESSEX-UK > 2003-03 > 1047088798


From: "evans-gunther" <>
Subject: Newcomer - GUNTHER
Date: Sat, 8 Mar 2003 10:59:58 +0900


Hi Listers,
I am a newcomer to this List and emailing from Japan.

I am on a quest - maybe something like Don Quixote - trying to find my great
grandfather and possibly his family.

From his own words my great grandfather - Charles (Carl) GUNTHER was born in
Switzerland and came to the UK in 1845. From various documents his birth
can be guessed at for between 1835 to 1840 (different ages are given on more
or less every piece of evidence). This means that he may have been between
5 and 10 years old when he arrived. He may have come with his family or
with an elder brother. We have a story that his brother (no definite name
known - could be Fritz or Martin) and he ran away from an over strict
father. But whether they ran away from Switzerland or from somewhere in the
UK is uncertain (or even elsewhere in the world!).

Nevertheless, they must have entered and lived somewhere in those early
years. Charles GUNTHER's father was also called Charles and was described
as a labourer. But that is all that is known. The younger Charles or Carl
ended up serving in the Army but it is unclear which regiment and when,
except that it was between 10 and 11 years service and part of it in
America, possibly Canada.

By 1865 he was in Staffordshire, 1869 at Chester picking up a small pension
for the Rifle Brigade and in 1870 he got married to Mary GITTINS in Denbigh,
Denbighshire, N. Wales. After that I have records until his death in 1896.
They had 16 children - at least 12 of them grew to adulthood. At present
the family has a collection of over 300 names of people descended from
Charles and Mary, but cannot find out very little, despite searching in the
PRO, for Charles' early life.

He may have entered by a port in the Essex area and there may be some
GUNTHERs on census reports from that area - 1851 being the first possible
one. So any help with finding clues would be gratefully accepted. I am
unable to surf the Net so hope Listers will be able to check in the Essex
area.

Looking forward to any replies.
Best wishes from Japan,
Charles (W. Evans-Gunther)

This thread: