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Thomas Longley 1760 to unknown

Thomas Longley (Abt. 1760) m Elisabeth Williamson (Abt. 1760) 13th July 1783

These names and dates are speculative and need to be substantiated.

Polite note: This page is the text from a document that I maintain, in which there are many images. I have published the words of the document, along with other documents, such that it might prove useful to others. If you get in touch, and we can share research, I’ll happily share images.

This post is part of my broader research into the Longleys of Leeds.  

At the moment, there are a number of clues that the parents of Thomas (b1784) are Thomas Longley and Elisabeth Williamson:

  1. At the marriage of Thomas (b1784) and Sarah Mitchel (b1781), a witness is listed as Thomas Longley. This may be his father, a brother, a cousin or a more distant relative. It’s unlikely to be a brother with the same name, and there’s no reason to think it’s a cousin, so it’s most probably his father.
  2. The average marrying age at this point in time was early 20’s, and then children tended to appear relatively quite quickly thereafter – Thomas (b1784) himself marrying at the age of 19. Assuming the name Thomas was bestowed upon the first born son, we can assume that Thomas was oldest of his brothers, putting his father’s year of birth at about 1760 +/- 5 years.
  3. The only birth record for a Thomas Longley (b1784) has no image attached to it, and shows father as Thomas and mother as Elisabeth, Reference is: Source Citation: Place: York, Yorkshire, England; Collection: Kings Court, Holy Trinity ; -; Date Range:  1616 – 1812; Film Number: 1068426. Holy Trinity church, now demolished, was in central York – less than 400m from Saint Sampson (which we will come to).
  4. The York connection is possible, after all, it is only about 25 miles from York to Leeds, and we do find other connections between the cities, including Christiana Hodgson who marries John William Longley.
  5. The birth record (previous point) is supported by a record of baptism from Holy Trinity, York. Dated February 26th 1784, Thomas Longley is baptised, with the parents being Thomas and Elisabeth. What makes this connection increasingly likely is the occupation of Thomas’ father – which is recorded as “bricklayer”. It seems highly probable that Thomas took not only his father’s name, but followed his profession too.
  6. Of the children that I have found that may be the siblings of Thomas (b1784), one is Elisabeth Longley (b1797). She was born to Thomas Longley of High Street, St Peter’s. I am as certain as I can be that she died a year later of Smallpox, and her father at the time of her death is recorded as Thomas Longley of Quarry Hill. Given the proximity of High Street, Quarry Hill and St Peter’s to one another, this is further evidence, though why his address would move around needs to be thought through.
  7. There is a recorded wedding between Thomas Longley and Elisabeth Williamson in York on 12th July 1783, at Saint Sampson, York (FHL Film Number 990915). Saint Sampson is a church in central York. Given that the marriage would typically take place within the parish of the bride, this looks good. The only issue with this is that a wedding in July 1783, and a birth in February 1784 means that the birth was early (7 months), or that the wedding was a shot-gun affair, when Elisabeth became aware that she was pregnant.
  8. The marriage record for Thomas and Elisabeth shows Thomas’ profession as “Bricklayer” – a profession that we know runs through the family at least until the mid 1840s – resident in York.
  9. In the marriage record that I’ve found, Elisabeth Williamson’s parish is listed as St Maurice, which was in York.
  10. The shared name between (possible) mother and daughter/ possible sibling adds further weight to the case that Thomas (b1784) and Elisabeth are siblings, and that their parents are Thomas and Elisabeth.

    Transcript: Thomas son of Thomas Longley bricklayer & Elisabeth his wife baptised February 26 1784.

    Based on the above, on the 29th December 2014, I have decided to update the tree with this marriage date, and move forwards on the basis that the evidence is very strong.

    Transcript: Thomas Longley of this parish Bricklayer and Elizabeth Williamson of the parish of St Maurice Spinster by Banns and Certificate July 13th 1783.

    Transcript: Banns of marriage between Thomas Longley and Elizabeth Williamson were published on Sunday 15th, 22nd, 29th 1783. The said Thomas Longley of this parish Bricklayer and Elizabeth Williamson of the parish of St Maurice, spinster married in this church by banns and certificate this thirteenth day of July in the year one thousand seven hundred and eight-three by me the bell curate. This marriage solemnized between us Thomas Longley and Elizabeth Williamson in the presence of George Hopkinson and John Aldridge.

The children of Thomas and Elisabeth

Thomas Longley, builder and bricklayer.

NOTES TO EXPLORE
Elisabeth Williamson
Elisabeth Williamson baptism on 17th August 1763, Saint Michel-le-Belfry, York. Father Robert, mother Mary. The location of the baptism ties up well with the marriage, and the timing of her baptism would make her a little under 20 at their marriage, which is not unheard of.

Elisabeth Williamson birth 29th January 1762, baptism 21st February 1762 St Peter, Leeds. Father Matthew Williamson. This record would tie in nicely with the Leeds connection, but not the York marriage, unless she was born in Leeds, and her parents moved to York. If this happened, it might explain why she and Thomas moved to Leeds after their marriage, but this is pretty far-fetched.

Thomas Longley
Thomas Longley (married man) of Bank, Leeds, buried Parish church in Leeds 19th February 1830, aged 65 (making year of birth 1765). If this was Thomas that married Elisabeth, it would make him 18 at the time of their marriage, which is possible, but slightly unlikely.

Thomas Longley born 5th September 1762 and baptised 17th October 1762 at Leeds Parish Church, Leeds. Father Thomas Longley. This would put him at 20/21 when he was married, which is more in keeping than the death record above. If this was our Thomas, then he would have had to have moved from Leeds to York before marrying Elisabeth, which is unlikely as he is much more likely to have lived at home until his marriage.

It seems unlikely that our Thomas was an only child. Finding his siblings will help confirm or reject the theory relating to his parents.

At the moment, I have:
·       Thomas, b1784 (My confirmed ancestor)
·       James, b1788
·       Robert, b1792
·       Edy, b1794
·       Elisabeth, b1797

The first clue is thrown up by the Baines Directory and Gazeteer of 1822 (http://www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/YKS/WRY/Leeds/Leeds34Dry.html) records the following Longley’s:

·       Robert Longley, Bricklayer and Builder, Upper High Street
The High Street is located relatively near to St Peter’s Square
·       Thomas Longley Junior, Bricklayer and Builder, St Peter’s Square
The birth record for Eliza Longley shows Thomas Longley living at St Peter’s Square, so this is our Thomas
·       Thomas Longley Senior, Bricklayer and Builder, Upper High Street
·       Thomas Longley, Bricklayer and Builder, 2 Spinner Street, Bank (IS THIS THOMAS LONGLEY born about 1760, MARRIED TO ELISABETH WILLIAMSON???)
So far as I can tell, Spinner Street no longer exists, but was near Holdforth Gardens etc., towards Wortley. Although Wortley does feature at points in my research, particularly in relation to the brickworks, it is only less directly related ancestors. Therefore, I don’t believe that this Thomas is one of ours. NB. More research suggests that the area of Bank was to the South-East of the city centre, located just North of the docks.

Based on my previous notes, my original suspicion was that this Robert Longley is a brother of Thomas (1781). This was based on the 1841 census that shows Robert and Elizabeth Longley of “High Street” have living with them an “Elizabeth” who is older and is shown as “Independent Means” – so widowed:

Transcript: High Street Continued. Robert Longley (50), Bricklayer. Elizabeth Longley (55), Elizabeth Longley (70) Independent Means.

Her recorded age would put her birth at 1771, but we can adjust this by +/- 5 years for rounding, so her year of birth could be as early as 1766. Thomas – as the first born in 1781 – would make Elizabeth 15 at his birth. Possibly with a little modesty on her part regarding her age, it’s possible. This doesn’t feel correct for the family, but it’s an outside chance. The High Street, doesn’t seem to exist any longer, but the census entries on the High Street near Robert Longley are High Court and York Street, both of which are close to St Peter’s Street and St Peter’s Square. There is a christening record for a Robert Longley in 1792, with the father as Thomas and the location being High Street, St Peter’s:

Transcript: Robert Longley, High Street St Peters, March 11, (Robert)

None of this is cast iron, but it’s possible.

I’m as certain as I can be that Thomas Longley Senior is the father of Thomas Longley Junior.

I have no reason to believe that the final Thomas, living in/ on Bank, is anything to do with us.

The same 4 Longley’s appear later in the same Gazette as “Bricklayers and Slaters”, and a Joseph Longley is recorded simply as a “Bricklayer”.

Pigots of 1829 (http://www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/YKS/WRY/Leeds/Leeds29Dry.html) only records Thomas Longley Junior of 59 St Peter’s Square as a Bricklayer. This is the only Longley in this record.

Pigots of 1834 (http://www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/YKS/WRY/Leeds/Leeds29Dry.html) shows only 2 bricklayers, these being Thomas Longley of Duke Street and Thomas Longley Junior of 22 Quarry Hill, and an entry for Thomas Longley Junior at the Marquis of Granby, 22 Quarry Hill.

James Longley, baptised St Peter’s Church 20/4/1788, listed as Quarry Hill. Looks like birth is 15/2/1788. A builder living in St Peter’s Street in 1841. Possible contender, but unless a twin of Samuel, one of them cannot be mine. Even if twins, why would they be baptised a week apart.