Was your Surrey Ancestor . . . . a Naval Officer?
Where your most recent ancestors lived isn’t necessarily where they started. This is the story of a family whose ancestry was firmly in Portsmouth back to the early 1800s but whose roots were in Surrey.
Our family is the Blandford family; a family with a long military history. From James Moorsom Ernest Blandford who served in the Royal Air Force to his father Ernest James Moorsom Blandford who along with his father, grandfather and great grandfather all served in the Royal Navy or ancillary trades.
Expecting a continuation of Portsmouth roots it was a surprise to discover that one of them, James Moorsom Blandford, was baptised on 7 April 1820 in Great Bookham, Surrey.. His father, another James Blandford, a Royal Navy Lieutenant had also been born in Surrey; being baptised in Great Bookham in 1789.
In the late 18th century, the Royal Navy was a popular career choice for a young gentleman from Surrey, so the origins of many Naval Officers maybe further away from the sea than first thought, just like the Blandford family. There are many resources that you can find to trace naval ancestors, especially if they are officers.
The Naval Biographical Dictionary of William Richard O’Byrne has an entry for James Blandford. It reads: James Blandford (b) entered the Navy, 18 May, 1805, as Fst.-cl. Vol., on board the Revenge 74, in which ship he continued to serve until Nov. 1811, under Capts. Robt. Moorsom, Hon. Chas. Elphinstone Fleming, Sir John Gore, Hon. Chas. Paget, and the flag of Hon. Arthur Kaye Legge.
James reached the rank of Lieutenant and took part in the battle of Trafalgar. He continued his career through to 1814 when he was invalided out of the Royal Navy on half-pay.
He married Ursula Collier in Sunbury on Thames, Middlesex on 29th May 1819 and they set up home in Thames Ditton, Surrey. Their first child James Moorsom Blandford (clearly named after his first naval Captain) was born in 1820, followed by a daughter Ann in 1823. The marriage appeared to be unsuccessful and by the time the 1841 census was taken James and Ursula were estranged. James Blandford was living in Portsmouth on his naval pension with his son. His wife and daughter remained in Surrey. He and Ursula are never again recorded together.
Where there’s a will
In the biography, there was a letter (b) after James Blandford’s name; this meant there was another officer of the same name who joined the Royal Navy before him. James Blandford (a) is recorded in the Navy List as a retired Commander, so is clearly a different person. Were they related?
The father of James Blandford (b) was called Elijah, so James (a) and James (b) were not father and son. Elijah’s father was called James but this James would have been too old to have been James Blandford (a).
Elijah had two full brothers, Samuel and Nathan, and one half-brother Job Blandford all born and baptised Epsom in Surrey. The identity of James Blandford (a) was revealed through the will of Nathan Blandford.
The will dated 6 June 1839 revealed that Nathan Blandford was a Commander in the Royal Navy. He had been was baptised Nathan, but had been known as James throughout his Naval career. The will also gave some insight into the relationship between him and his nephew. It read:
“This is the last will and testament of me Nathan Blandford of Epsom in the County of Surrey a retired Commander in her Majesty’s Royal Navy in which service I was enrolled and served in by the name of James Blandford notwithstanding my having been baptised at Epsom aforesaid on the second day of July one thousand seven hundred and seventy by the Christian name of Nathan.” It went on to say. . . “I hereby release and give up unto my nephew James Blandford a Lieutenant in the Royal Navy all and every the sum and sums of money I have at various times lent and advanced to him and I do hereby discharge him from the repayment thereof.”
The will confirmed James Blandford followed his uncle Nathan into the Royal Navy, although James never rose above the basic commissioned rank of Lieutenant. It also suggested that his nephew borrowed a bob or two from him on several occasions. James may have believed that he was in line for a large inheritance, but his uncle had other ideas and merely absolved him of repaying his debts.
Like his father, Nathan Blandford left most of his money and stock to his Housekeeper, but that is a story from Surrey for another day
The link between the Blandford family in Surrey and their first appearance in Portsmouth was not an easy search but the naval connection was a great clue. Portsmouth in its day was dominated by the Navy and the infrastructure needed to keep it going. This means that many men alone, or with their families, migrated there for employment. It seems that the first James Moorsom Blandford, a carpenter, did just that in the 1830s. He remained in Portsmouth until his death in 1891. His descendants still live in the area.
Sources:
Trafalgar Ancestors: https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/trafalgarancestors/
The National Archives: https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/help-with-your-research/research-guides/royal-navy-commissioned-officers/
Portsmouth:
https://www.portsmouth.gov.uk/ext/libraries/resources-on-family-local-and-naval-history
National Museum of the Royal Navy, Portsmouth
National Maritime Museum: National Maritime Museum
Royal Museums Greenwich: https://www.rmg.co.uk/discover/researchers/using-the-collections
