David Eades of Galveston, and George Eades of Kansas

Originally published 26 Jan 2014

This post is about people I'm not even sure I'm related to. [ Update 2020: Yes, I am related to George and David! ]

My great-great-grandfather, Joseph Eades, had a brother George. On the 1861 census, George was living on Bell Barn Road, Birmingham with his wife Elizabeth & 4 children. In 1871, Elizabeth is living on Bishop St South with 2 children. She is head of the household, but is shown as married, not widowed. So, what happened to George?

One of George & Elizabeth's children was David, born 1849. He isn't with his mother on the 1871 census, but on the 1880 census for Galveston, Texas there is a David Eades age 29, born in England. Could this be 'my' David? A newspaper report from the Galveston Daily News of 21 May 1890 sheds some light on this. Sadly, it is a report of the inquest into David Eades' suicide. On 20 May 1890, David shot himself with a revolver while 'suffering from mental derangement'. The report states that David was a native of England, and had been a resident of Galveston for 15 years. He left a wife & 5 children. According to his wife's evidence, David was born on 18 August 1851, and was a native of Birmingham, England. Is this George & Elizabeth's son? I can't find any other David Eades born in Birmingham around this time, so it would seem likely, but for one glaring discrepancy: George & Elizabeth's David was baptised on 10 October 1852, and according to the parish register was born 7 November 1849, a completely different date to the one given by David's wife.

Now, getting back to David's father George. On the 1870 census, in a boarding house in Junction City, Kansas, are George Eads (sic), age 50, a stone mason from England, and David Eads, 20, a farm labourer from England. By 1880, George is in Gaylord, Kansas, now age 56 & with no occupation shown. In 1900 (the 1890 US census was destroyed by fire), George is in Harlan (7 miles from Gaylord). The census records that he was a widower, born May 1820 in England, who immigrated to the US in 1868 & is now a farmer. So, is this George my gggrandfather's brother? The date of birth fits, as 'my' George was baptised in June 1820, and the immigation date fits with George disappearing between 1861 and 1871. The one anomaly is that on the 1870 Kansas census, George is a stone mason with real estate worth $1000, & a personal estate of $300. This seems unlikely for an ag lab (agricultural labourer) from Birmingham. Apart from that, it certainly could be Elizabeth's husband who went to America in 1868 with one of their sons.

If there are any descendants of any of these people reading this, especially if you know anything which could help clear things up one way or another, please leave me a message below.