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  1. #1
    Stephen_P
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    Question Mystery Royal Navy ship in 1871 census

    Hi - I’m looking for help in identifying a Royal Navy vessel in the 1871 census. It appears to be a considerable size as there are pages and pages of crew, together with their functions aboard, but I cannot discover its identity.

    Its census reference is RG10/5780.

    My relative, a Henry Atherley, appears to be a 19-year-old captain’s servant on page 10.

    Any suggestions?

    Best, Stephen

  2. #2
    IanStockbridge
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    The numerous names relate to Seamen who were at sea, so could be on different ships, or he may even have been at a shore base (The Navy still calls them ships). Unfortunately the names are not in any particular sequence so its not easy to connect him with a particular Captain which would have helped. You would need to get his service record from the PRO, that would give you the names and dates of all ships and shore establishments he would have been assigned to.

  3. #3
    Stephen_P
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    Thanks for the heads-up, Ian, little wonder the ship seemed so large!

  4. #4
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    Stephen

    There is only one officer mentioned by name in the census, and that is Commodore Frederick Henry Stirling (not on board). He was in command of the Australian Squadron from April 1870 - May 1873, with HMS Clio as his flagship. My guess is that Henry was his servant on the Clio.

    Martin

  5. #5
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    Have you tried a different supplier in case it's a glitch with whatever supplier you use?

    Although I must say it doesn't look that way to me. The fact that the enumeration starts at folio 1 may suggest that the front page of the enumeration (containing details of the vessel) was lost before it was filed and foliated at the National Archives.

    Full reference: The National Archives; RG 10/5780 ff 1-13.

    Can you not work out the name of the vessel from service records? The mixture of people may suggest a shore base but I know nothing about the navy.

  6. #6
    malcolm99
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    Quote Originally Posted by crimea1854 View Post
    There is only one officer mentioned by name in the census, and that is Commodore Frederick Henry Stirling (not on board). He was in command of the Australian Squadron from April 1870 - May 1873, with HMS Clio as his flagship. My guess is that Henry was his servant on the Clio.
    It certainly seems to be HMSS Clio.

    The Hobart Mercury gives a list of officers as of 18 December 1871> https://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/arti...&searchLimits=
    and some of those listed match those on page 28 of the census.

    There’s a Wikipedia page on the Clio with a link to a photograph of the ship in 1903>
    http:
    //en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Clio_%281858%29
    Last edited by notanotherminer; 09-03-2012 at 2:57 PM. Reason: Repaired URL which wasn't working.

  7. #7
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    Since it now looks almost certain that he was serving on HMS Clio, it might be worth you consulting her 'Ships Description Book' at the National Archives (ADM 38/7806). Henry should be entered into her as one of the crew, in which case his entry would provide you with a physical description, when he joined and left the ship, and any previous naval service.

    Martin

  8. #8
    Stephen_P
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    Thanks so much to all who have responded to date, especially to malcolm99 for the interesting links and Martin for his National Archives reference. It does seem more than likely Henry was serving in the Clio. I am having some difficulty in locating a service record, however, and am wondering if was conceivable that, as captain's servant, he might be employed personally by the captain as distinct from being on the RN books? Nonetheless, I have a cousin who is due to visit Kew personally in the next few weeks and I shall see if she might be able to make more progress.

    Stephen

  9. #9
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    Stephen

    Continuous Service only became compulsory from 1873, which means he might have only signed on for the duration of Clio's commission, then decided the navy was not for him, in which case there will not be a service record.

    Martin

  10. #10
    Heatherk
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    Hi Stephen, my relative appears in the line above Henry Atherley. He was George A Rassell (recorded as Russell). I found him on the 1871 census on The Genealogist website and they give the name of the ship as Cockatriel. I think it's more likely it was HMS Cockatrice, launched 1860 - see Wikipedia. According to the Genealogist both George and Henry were on the same ship. Hope this helps, kind regards Heather
    Last edited by Heatherk; 25-05-2018 at 7:50 AM. Reason: Add info

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