I've got only questions rather than answers. Food for thought, really. All three addresses are within spitting distence of one-another. Looking at what seems to be 3 Devonshire Place (it isn't numbered) and 79 Albany Street in Google Streetview, the latter is much more modest and may have been a shop or other small business. If you'll excuse the pun, I am hard put to it to imagine the Resident of the former being seen dead at the latter unless she had fallen on (relatively) hard times. She may, of course, have been taken there in an emergency -if she had been taken ill or had an accidenet in the street, for instance. Do the censuses show 3 Devonshire Place as a shared-occupancy building with several families? That would make sense. About a month ago, you posted a similar query on the Middlesex List, where you said that when she died she was described as living at 79 Albany Street, but you didn't say where she died. Here, you say that that's where she died but do not say where she was living. Clarity is needed, please. What class of person are we talking about: moneyed, middle or serving? The contents of the wills would be a clue. She would have been about age 32 in 1821. Under what circumstances could a 32 year old be described as residing anywhere for 'many years since'? That seems too young to me. Bearing in mind the posting from Judy, are you sure she wasn't 10 years older? Since 1841 ages over 15 were rounded down to the nearest 5 years, the age of the Ann that Judy gives would then be right, and the description of 'many years since' could be much more appropriate. I assume she never married, otherwise you wouldn't have been looking for her birth under that name. How do you know? Does her will name any relatives? As I said, just food for thought. HTH Riger Lovegrove Please do visit the LOVEGROVE Information Centre on http://www.lovegrove.f9.co.uk/ons/ For information about the Guild of One-Name Studies, or to see if a member is researching your surname of interest, go to http://www.one-name.org > -----Original Message----- > From: David Railton [mailto:railton.david@btinternet.com] > Sent: 08 October 2011 19:34 > To: MIDDLESEX_COUNTY_UK@rootsweb.com; LONDON > Subject: [LON] Surname GRAIN > > Ann GRAIN was a beneficiary of a will dated 1821 which > described her as > '.now and many years since residing at No 3 Devonshire Street Portland > Place.' In her own will of 1850 she describes herself as ".late of > Devonshire Street, Portland Place but now of Charles Street, > Manchester > Square.". > > > > Ann died in 1853. Based on the age given on her death > certificate she would > have been born in 1788/89. Her place of death is given as 79 > Albany Street > Regents Park although the Death Duty Register shows it as 79 > Upper Albion > Street, Regents Park. I can find no trace of her in the 1841 > or 1851 census > either by searching her name and possible variants or any of these > addresses. > > > > The only Ann Grain I can find of about the right age was born in > Leicestershire but this does not appear to be her. > > > > Does anyone have any ideas? > > > > David > > > > >