Can't help you Penny but I wonder what is was that made a lad born in Ropley leave that small village (even today) to join the Royal Navy? Mike Waterlooville

People in agricultural areas joined up when farming went through a downturn, particularly after the Napoleonic wars. Also some else from the village may have been in the Navy & encouraged him. I think he met his future wife through the Navy, as she was the sister of a shipmate. In addition I understand that every county had to send a certain number of men to the Navy & the men got a golden handshake to join up - a sovereign possibly, which of course went to their families. Thanks for the census info - I have most of the census info for the families but my real brickwall is George Courtney. I have him documented after 1891 but nothing before then for him or his parents. On his marriage cert, his father is supposed to be George too, & he was born in Portsea, but despite intensive searches on line and at the Portsmouth record office at the Museum I have drawn a blank when I try to prove it. I thought at one time he might have been born in Wareham. A lot of Courtneys born there moved to Soton & Alverstoke but descendents of the Wareham Courtneys disagreed with that, so am at a standstill. I have tried to find the records of the railway company at Kew but was not successful. I know he was on the ferries as it is on a birth cert for one of his children. Penny Basingstoke UK ----- Original Message ----- From: <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Monday, November 27, 2006 9:17 PM Subject: Re: [PORTSMOUTH-GOSPORT] Subscribe: researching COURTNEY; LAVENDER;STONEHAM; ... > Can't help you Penny but I wonder what is was that made a lad born in > Ropley > leave that small village (even today) to join the Royal Navy? > > Mike > Waterlooville > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > [email protected] with the word > 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the > message > >