Herman Grabowski/Ellen Andrews

[orchidhunter]

Hi everyone,

I have a great grandfather Herman Grabowski (there are other spelling variants: Grabouski, Grabowsky) who was born in Poland in 1823 and came to England some time in 1850s. He married Ellen Andrews on 16 Sept 1860 at St Saviours, Southwark Parish Church (that which today is Southwark Cathedral). He was an engineer (possibly a ship'sengineer).

I am seeking information on the year he arrived in England, on what vessel he arrived, and from where in Poland he originates.

I am struggling at the moment. Any help would be wonderful.
thanks

[Jane M]

There's an excellent article in Practical Family History January 2008 about immigrant ancestors. maybe you can get a back copy?
In a nutshell, from 1793 it was required for aliens to sign a declaration at their port of arrival in the UK. Apparently the majority of the early records have been destroyed. Certificates of arrival were issued from 1816 onwards but only survive for the period 1836-1852, these can be found at The National Archives in Class HO 2. It's a slim chance that Herman might appear. An index of surnames to these certificates is available but only for 1826-1849, so if he arrived after 1849, it would be quite a search.
Passenger lists for those arriving in the UK from ports outside Europe & the Mediterranean Sea (BT 26) only cover 1878-1888 & 1890-1960, so not of any help to you & you would need to know his port of entry.
He probably became a naturalised British subject & these records are at The National Archives. For the dates 1844-1871 (HO 1) HO 45 covers 1872-1878, HO 144 covers 1879-1934. These have been indexed & you can search by name at the TNA online catalogue https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/d...tm?source=home

I had a quick look but didn't find anything, perhaps the name spelling is weird?

Hope that helps,

Jane