William Fry

Fry Family

Fry: of English origin, possible meanings variation of 'free' or 'small person or child' [1]

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Part 1: William Fry (? - ?)

Nothing can be confirmed about the life of William Fry except that he had a wife called Hannah/Anna (surname possibly Ogborn) and they had six children: John, Nancy, an unnamed girl, Anna, William and George. Some family trees available on the internet suggest that William's parents were John Fry (1731-1790) and Grace Heath (1727-?), that he was baptised 06 January 1753 in Winscombe, Somerset, England and died in Winscombe in 1796. However though there is documentation (a marriage record for a William Fry and Anna Ogborn 09 April 1770 in Winscombe and a burial record for a William Fry 01 May 1796 at St James the Great Church, Winscombe) as yet there is nothing to prove they are one and the same.

John was baptised 03 March 1772 in Winscombe. Nothing else is known of him.

Nancy was baptised 24 May 1773 in Winscombe. Nothing else is known of her.

An unnamed girl was baptised sometime between 05 and 14 April 1776 (the original register was not legible). Nothing else is known of her.

Anna was baptised 02 January 1779 in Winscombe. Nothing else is known of her.

William was baptised 23 January 1782 in Winscombe. Nothing else is known of him.

George was born c1783. More information appears in Part 2 about him.

Part 2: George Fry (c1783 - 1868)

George Fry was the youngest child of William Fry and Hannah (maiden name unknown). He was born c1783 and baptised 10 October 1783 in Winscombe, Somerset, England. He married Joanna Goss 22 October 1811 at Westbury on Trym Parish Church, Gloucestershire. Joanna was born about July 1787 in Bristol and baptised 07 September 1788 at St Nicholas Parish Church, Bristol. Her parents were listed as Andrew Goss and Mary ?. George and Joanna had one child, George Jr born 1814. Joanna died 28 February 1820, aged 32, and was buried 04 March at Holy Cross Temple Church.

George married again 07 August 1825 at St Andrew Clifton Parish Church. His bride was Charlotte Augusta Goss and it is quite likely Charlotte and Joanna were sisters. George's second marriage was illegal (a law that came from the church's prohibition of marriage by affinity and was only overturned with the Deceased Wife's Sister Marriage Act 1907) which is why it took place in a different parish. Charlotte's parents were known to be Andrew Goss and Mary Elizabeth ?. Andrew was a butcher in King Street, Bristol, in the 1790s. Charlotte was born c1801 and baptised 23 August 1801 at St Nicholas Parish Church, Bristol. She and George had ten children.

Like his father-in-law, George was a butcher with a business/home in Prince's Street for some 30-40 years. In the mid-1830s he was sued as an insolvent debtor but recovered. When he retired, he and Charlotte moved to 5 Nelson Street where he died 05 June 1868. Charlotte died 20 August 1876 in Bristol.

George Jr was born c1814 and baptised 17 July 1814 at St Stephen Parish Church, Bristol. He married Eliza Davis 26 June 1837 at St Andrews Clifton Parish Church. They had two known children, George and Eliza. George was a butcher like his father and a green grocer at 56 Stoke's Croft. He apparently rented a stall for his butcher business and in June 1839 was sued as an insolvent debtor. Later that year, he and his family went to Australia as free settlers, embarkation number 3896, possibly arriving in South Australia before settling in Tasmania (known as Van Diemen's Land at the time). He leased a farm from the Van Diemen's Land Company and became a successful farmer and merchant. He died 05 May 1877 in Tasmania. [2]

Henry c1826 - ? (This person is still being researched.)

Charlotte Elizabeth c1828 - ? (This person is still being researched.)

Alfred c1830 - ? (This person is still being researched.)

Charles (c1832- 1905) More information appears about him in Part 3.

Samuel c1833 - ? (This person is still being researched.)

Eliza Augusta c1834 - ? (This person is still being researched.)

Lucy Ann c1836 - ? (This person is still being researched.)

Frederick c1840 - ? (This person is still being researched.)

Edward Carey c1843 - 1918 (This person is still being researched.)

Emma Ellen c1846 - ? (This person is still being researched.)

Mr Fry Sr [George Fry], copied 1862
Anonymous

Mrs Fry Sr [Charlotte Augusta Fry née Goss], copied 1862
Anonymous

Part 3: Charles Fry (c1832 - 1905)

Charles Fry was the fourth child of George Fry and Charlotte Augusta Goss. He was baptised 29 January 1832 at St Stephen's Parish Church, Bristol. He was a master mariner and ship owner and consequently does not appear in many census records - being away at sea many of those times! He married Sarah Louisa Bryant 04 October 1860, at St Paul's Church, Bedminster Parish, Bristol. They never had any children but Sarah was involved in the upbringing of Sarah's niece Agnes Trickey.

In 1868, Charles and Sarah sailed to Bombay (now Mumbai), India, on board his sailing ship, the 'Glenlyon'. In their company was the 18 year old Agnes. At their destination, she met Charles William Cayzer (whom Charles Fry knew from a previous visit) and fell in love. She stayed behind to marry him as Charles Fry had to return to England with his cargo. Sarah accompanied Charles on many voyages, as was a captain's wife's privilege at the time. In 1881, the couple were actually in England to be counted in the census, living at Hampton Terrace, Westbury on Trym Parish, Bristol. Charles retired from life on the sea and became a Marine Superintendent in Liverpool for his nephew-in-law Charles Cayzer's company. Age and illness made his work difficult to undertake (he was obliged to physically check the cargo holds as part of his duties) though it took a long time for him to be persuaded to retire. In 1899 he moved back to Bristol. Sarah died in April 1905 and Charles felt the loss of his constant companion keenly. He died exactly three months later, 20 July 1905. [3]

Footnotes

[1] www.surnamedb.com/Surname
[2] Information about George Fry Jr's life in Australia came from someone who is likely a descendent.
[3]England and Wales Census 1841, 1851, 1861, 1871, 1881, 1891, 1901, 1911, Robson's Directory Gloucestershire 1839, Somerset Marriages post 1754, National Burial Index, Australian Death Index 1787-1985, 1793-94 Matthew's New History of Bristol or Complete Guide and Bristol Directory, Pigot’s 1830 Directory Gloucestershire (Ancestry.co.uk and Findmypast.com); General Registry Office (GRO) certificates; Bristol Mercury newspaper archive (http://newspapers.bl.uk/blcs/); London Parish Registers (www.parishregister.com); The National Archives (www.nationalarchives.gov.uk); Mark George's website which includes the Fry family (htttp://freepages.genealogy.rootsweeb.ancestry.com/~markgeorge/WebPages/index.html#surnames); 'A Victorian Shipowner: A Portrait of Sir Charles Cayzer, Baronet of Gartmore' (1978) Augustus Muir and Mair Davies, published by Cayzer, Irvine and Company Limited; Cayzer Family Archive (Registered Charity Number: 1122921)