Theresa Green <[email protected]> wrote: : Perhaps if I think in "reverse" I might have more success. Do you know : where records of people signing on (military or naval recruits) are kept : (ie for the years 1845-50) - would it be Dublin? I doubt that it would be Dublin. More likely such a record, if it exists, would be at the National Archives at Kew outside of London. See http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/documentsonline/royal-navy-service.asp for a list of Royal Navy Enlistments, 1853-1923, which unfortunately is a little late for the period you seek. Two other possible sources they have are Wills of Royal Naval Seamen from 1786 to 1882 and Certificates of service from 1802 to 1894. -dja