Samuel j bennett

[spectacles]

hello I am trying to find the record of birth of SAMUEL J BENNETT born at sea off the Cape of Good Hope abt 1852.I believe his father was possibly the ships Captain.

[olliecat]

Hello spectacles and welcome to the forum.

Have you searched the GRO overseas births indexes or the marine births indexes? You should note that before 1854 registration of births on British registered and colonial merchant ships and Royal Navy vessels was irregular. See this guide for further information.

There is this following registration but the date is not very specific.

1837-1862
BENNETT, Male (unnamed)
Country: At sea
Page: 242
(Source: GRO Marine Births Indices (1837 to 1965)

You could check with the GRO to determine if this is a likely birth record for Samuel.


By the way, is this your Samuel in Ohio?

name: Samuel J Bennett
event: Death
event date: 06 Apr 1933
event place: Lakewood, Cuyahoga, Ohio
gender: Male
death age: 81y 1m
marital status: Married
race: w
occupation: Florist
birth date: 06 Mar 1852
birthplace: Off the coast of Africa
estimated birth year: 1852
burial date: 08 Apr 1933
cemetery: Lakewood Park
father: John
father's birthplace: England
spouse: Eleanor S.
(Source: Family Search)

[olliecat]

I see that Samuel BENNETT was in the 1881 census in Chepstow in Monmouthsire and it look like he married Eleanor Sarah HUGHES in 1880. His age is a little out - born abt. 1855 in the Cape of Good Hope.

1881: Piece: 5219; Folio: 64; Page: 53 (crown copyright, care of the TNA)

What does his marriage certificate say about his father?

[spectacles]

On his marriage cert .it says aged 26(birth would then be 1855) and father William a mariner.One census in America says father John .All other records say born abt 1852.His naturalization papers in 1897 says he first arrived in America in 1869
I have a newspaper article of his obituary and it says he was born on his fathers ship so am assuming his father could have been the captain /master.There was a ship called Countess of yarborough that left Australia in late 1851 so this could be it but I am unable to find any more info.It also states that he was on the sailing ships not steam.

[spectacles]

thanks for replying yes this is the Samuel Bennett