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I was just flicking through a couple of folders, to see what I could look up, to defer housework, when I suddenly realised two ancestors who didn't morph into the same family tree for 2 generations, both had 'dealings' with Lord Palmerston! :-S
The first was my G x 4 grandfather (my grandad's side) Henry Floyd, who not only was involved in the building of Romsey Abbey School in 1828, and buildings on the Broadlands Estate, but also had a 'chat' to him in Romsey High Street when Palmerston asked Henry (apparently the fattest man in England, when he died in 1842), how he'd achieved his corpulence, to which, Henry pointed to one of his sidelines - a Pork Flesh shop.
The second was my G x 2 grandfather's brother, (my gran's side) James Prior, who was convicted in 1851 of trying to derail a train in Cheddington, Bucks.
He was jailed for 2 years, but declared insane and put into Peckham Lunatic Asylum. This happened a lot at the time, because the Government paid for prisoners, local councils paid for lunatics.
James made two escape attempts, one in 1852, one in 1853, when he joined the Army, and couldn't be found.
In both cases, various letters pas between the Superintendant of the Asylum and Palmerston (or, more likely a minion), about the search and recapture of James, and the search and failed recapture of James.
After the second escape, it was decided that, as he'd only been imprisoned for 2 years, and that two years was up, he should be declared sane, and formerly discharged from the Asylum!
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What an interesting coincidence.
You seem to have very well documented characters in your tree.
Are the findings all yours or have you shared research with other people.?
Many of my folk were working on the land either digging fields in Sussex ( Dad's side) or in Herefordshire on my mother's side.
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Henry Floyd was what started my interest in genealogy.
Gran had what looked like a carbon copy of a funeral notice folded in a picture frame.
I could see part of a headline - 'Heaviest'.
I asked her who it was, an she said she didn't know, as it was 'something to do with my grandad, who died 6 weeks before I was born.
I borrowed it, took a copy, and started looking. This was about 30 years ago.
The Floyd family were major builders in Romsey, and, I believe, the Isle of Wight in the 1800's. Henry was a foreman Bricklayer, so would have been going around checking every construction the Floyds were doing.
It took time, but as the internet grew - so did the information!
Most of the information on Henry was /is gleaned from newspapers.
James Prior took years!
In the 1851 census, he was in Aylesbury Prison.
I couldn't find anything else about him.
About 8 years later, I joined Lancashire Library, and found a few newspaper cuttings about his 'deed' - but nothing else - they may have mentioned his going into an asylum.
Another 2 or 3 years later, I joined FMP, and found Asylum Records for a James Prior. It's a pretty common name, but on reading the records, they mention, after his first escape, visiting James' brother, George (my g x 2 grandfather), who was a metropolitan policeman, to see if James had gone there.
George joined the Met, the same year his brother was incarcerated.
The asylum records of his escapes are amazing!
Apparently, he achieved his escape(s) when he was on gardening duty.
The first time, they were about to walk back to the asylum, when James said he had to fetch is jacket, which was behind a cottage - and he jumped over the fence.
The second time, he escaped 'On pretence of keeping a call of nature'!
I've also found out quite a bit by looking in the 'petty sessions' section of newspapers - like my Suffolk GG grandad was fined for keeping his children off school to harvest his vegetables (he was a market gardener).
Another Suffolk ancestor, Jacob, (an ag lab) attacked his neighbours sheds with an axe - as they were built on Jacob's land.
Jacob got off with a warning, but his female 'help' was charged with affray, for fighting with the maid from the other house! :-S
Quite a few were picked up for being drunk and disorderly.
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