Liverpool & South West Lancashire FHS - Forum

Hi all,

Now I've got over the shock of my email account and consequently other accounts including Liverpool and S.W.Lanc's Genealogy being hacked into I'm back on the research trail and asking for some help from you good people. But before I ask the question I'd like to put on record my thanks to Katie for her support and practical help given to me at what was a horrible time.

Here goes:

My Grt, Grt, Grandfather William Jackson born c.1806 in Ireland (I think in Belfast but not sure) was the Captain of the Brig 'Maria' of Belfast which took Immigrants from Ireland and possibly Scotland to Canada (and possibly U.S.A). He had a Son Robert Kelly Jackson who was born on 9th June 1834 and Baptised at St Andrews Presbyterian Church, Quebec, Canada on 20th June 1834.

I've searched high and low for information on William and the Brig 'Maria' with limited success. I've found one sailing of the 'Maria' which fits in nicely with Roberts Birth and Baptism. She left Dublin on 21st April 1834 and arrived in Quebec on 14th June 1834. The only other information I have on the on the ship was that it had 366 Settlers and the Master of the Ship was Brown (no Christian name given).

So, looking at all the information I have from the Baptism document, it states Roberts Father's name was Captain William Jackson of the 'Maria' of Belfast and his Mother's name was Elizabeth Jackson. Therefore my theory is that Elizabeth was with her husband William on the trip, Robert must have been born on board prior to reaching Quebec and then Baptised 6 days after arriving.

The voyage I mention above with Brown the Master of the 'Maria' fits in perfectly with Robert's birth and Baptism but I can't find any record of William or Elizabeth as passengers or crew on that Voyage?

I don't know whether it's helpful or not but Elizabeth Jackson's maiden name was Perry.

Can anyone help or give me any pointers on what is a really interesting but frustarting puzzle,

cheers

Roy

According to The Ship's List the Maria was a Ship Maria you said it was the Brig Maria so how about this one

Brig Mary Arrival June 11 1834 at Quebec left 22 April 1834 from Dublin. The column for master has a dash in it. She carried 137 settlers.

My understanding is that a Brig was smaller than a Ship but I could be wrong!

Hilary
Ed Officer

Hello HappyChappy

I am a a Liverpudlian (And I come from the Spion Kop) No seriously I would do it for any fellow Liverpool Pal. These Low Lifes causing all this distress Grrr my niece was reeled in last year by a crank on facebook and he was a conman.

Back to the original request let me think of what records are at Kew for 1834 for ships and Crew Lists

Hi All,

The sailing list that I've got describes the Maria as a brig, as it does other ships but your right Hilary, I think a brig was smaller than other sailing ships. Here is a description of a brig from Wiklopedia:

''A brig is a sailing vessel with two square-rigged masts. During the Age of Sail, brigs were seen as fast and maneuverable and were used as both naval warships and merchant vessels. They were especially popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries. Brigs fell out of use with the arrival of the steam ship because they required a relatively large crew for their small size and were difficult to sail into the wind. They are not to be confused with a brigantine which has different rigging. In the narrow technical field of sailing rigs, a brig is distinct from a three-masted ship by virtue of only having two masts.''
Seems a bit odd doesn't it that a sailing ship was 'difficult to sail in the wind' !

regards,

Roy