Help needed with Pearce and Goyen connection St Austell, Cornwall, England

Question

I’m wondering if anyone can help clear up some confusion with the parents of my gg grandfather Francis Pearce.  His parents were Nicholas Pearce b. 1825 St Austell, Cornwall, England and d. 1861 St Austell, Cornwall, England (I have a birth record but no death record) and his mother was Mary Goyen who was possibly b. 1821 Beer Alston, Devon, England and died sometime after 1881 (I have no birth or death record).

It appears Nicholas married Jenepher Hambly Henwood in 1844 and she died in 1854 (no death record). He then married Mary Goyen but I can’t find a marriage record. When Mary Goyen married Nicholas Pearce, she had a son Nicholas Goyen b. 1844 St Austell, Cornwall, England and d. 15 JAN 1927 29 Kimpton St. Banksia NSW (I have no birth record).

Nicholas Goyen is living with Nicholas Pearce and Mary in the 1861 census and listed as the stepson of Nicholas.

Family Tree (https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/details/KHK3-F56) has Nicholas Goyen as the son of Peter Goyen b. 1 Sep 1822 Cornwall, England and d. 23 May 1901 Talbot, Victoria, Australia.

I don’t know how Nicholas or Peter Goyen got to Australia and if they went together or separately.

So, my questions are:

Was Mary married to Peter Goyen at some stage or was he the father and Nicholas was illegitimate?

What was Mary’s maiden name?

Answer 1

Hi Carla
I haven't found what you are looking for, but did find some extra information that might help - 

This might be the marriage of Nicholas Pearce and Mary Goyen (even though it is transcribed as Uren) on 2 October 1855 at Charlestown. They are both widowed and both living at Holmbush.  

And this might be the record of the death of Nicholas Pearce from Royal Cornwell Gazette

I don't think Peter Goyen is the father of Nicholas Goyen. The family tree in FamilySearch doesn't actually cite a source for Peter as Nicholas father and there is a record of Peter Goyen's marriage to Mary Ann Bawden on 4 Aug 1845 and if Peter survived until 1901 then his wife can't have married Nicholas Pearce.  Perhaps he is an uncle or other relative to Nicholas Goyen?

Lastly Mary Pearce in the 1871 census is born in Cornwall but I think it should be Bere Alston in Devon, just over the border from Cornwall.

Comments

Hi John

I think that's a great bit of sleuthing! I might add a profile for her using this information and put in some research notes to back the decision up. The marriage certificate also has her fathers name so may be able to do some digging in the Devon area to see if any birth records exist for her.

I'm sure you're also right about Peter Goyen not being the father but it's always possible he is a relative of some description.

The death record for Nicholas also fits with a date of 1863 that I had but didn't use as I had no sources so feel comfortable going with this as well.

I also managed to find the emigration records for Nicholas Goyen's son from one of the links you supplied.

Thanks for all of your great work on this.

Answer 2

I do a lot of work with Cornish profiles and so far cannot find a baptism, definitely not on OPC Cornwall.
 I see that your brother is married to my 2nd cousins daughter.

Gary

Comments

Hi Gary

WikiTree definitely highlights how small a world it really is!

Thanks for looking into the Cornish records for me, this is just one of my many Pearce mysteries!

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I'll have another look, I only went for a couple of the easier options. I trip over Pearce, with various spelling variations a lot.
 Didn't expect to connect thru' the Stevens family.

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Thanks Gary. It's a nightmare trying to wade through all of the Pearce, Pearse, Pierce, Parce variations I've come across. I didn't realise how common the name Pearce was in Cornwall until now!

Answer 3

I think it's your Nicholas Goyen who married Martha Cock in 1866 at the Registrar's Office in St Austell.  They emigrated to NSW Australia in 1879, with their children. 

The emigration record has a link to more details on a pdf, which says one of the children was born in Wales, and two of them in America. 

Comments

This is my Nicholas' son who is also a Nicholas! Thanks for the info 

Answer 4

https://www.freereg.org.uk/search_records/5817b9efe93790eb7f74eadc/mary-wren-nicholas-pearce-marriage-cornwall-charlestown-1855-10-02

Freereg has the marriage as ‘Mary Wren’ and the entry names Mary’s father as William Goyen. 

It also has Nicholas Pearce’s first marriage to a Jenepher Minear. 

https://www.freereg.org.uk/search_records/5817b867e93790eb7f71f06b/jenepher-minear-nicholas-pearce-marriage-cornwall-st-austell-1846-12-26

Comments

Great find, L Felix! 

Working on the assumption that the Cornwall OPC is correct about her first married name, ie that  Wren is a mis-transcription of Uren, this is what I found:

Mary Goyen (spinster, daur of William Goyen) married widower John Uren in 1848 at St Austell:

https://www.freereg.org.uk/search_records/5817b868e93790eb7f71f3db  and

https://www.cornwall-opc-database.org/search-database/more-info/?t=marriages&id=1894931

In 1851, Mary Uron (sic) and her husband John were with his 17 yo daughter in St Austell.  They had a lodger who was born in the same place in Devon as Mary (which I think should read Bere Alston):

https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:SG2G-S6N

Also in 1851, Mary’s 7 yo son Nicholas R Goyen was a visitor in another household, again in St Austell:

https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:SG28-2VD

And it looks like Mary (Goyen) Uren was widowed in 1854:

UREN, JOHN       59   GRO Reference: 1854  D Quarter in SAINT AUSTELL  Volume 05C  Page 86

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Nice work L Felix! Jenepher Minear makes far more sense for Nicholas' wife ........ considering that is one of their children's middle names!

It looks like the Cornwall records decided to throw me a red herring with the reference to Mary's fathers name being William Sayers?

Many thanks for your work on this.

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Thanks L Parr, it looks like you've unpicked this nicely!

It will now be interesting to see if I can track down any info on William Goyen and how the mystery people Nicholas was visiting in 1851 fit into the picture.

Thanks very much for helping me unravel this puzzle.

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I'm also guessing since Mary married for the first time in 1848 and her son was born in 1844 that he is illegitimate and his father will remain a mystery ......