Engineers Barracks from Havre de Pas, Jersey 1809
Looking at maps, it seems odd that the Channel Islands are part of the UK. They are closer to France than to England and those same maps show more French place names than English. What I find even more surprising is that my English family has ties to Jersey.
In his later years, knowing my interest in family history, my father would sometimes reminisce about his WWII experiences. One of the things he talked about was how he was on Jersey when war was declared on Germany in 1939. He cut short his time on the island to get back to his home in London. I never clarified why he felt the need to get home or what he was doing in Jersey in the first place. Looking at the records, it seems he wanted to go home to enlist as he joined the RAF by November of that year. In any case, he was probably on the island for a vacation as it was a known resort before the war. WWII's beginning put paid to holidays and it wasn't long until Jersey and the rest of the Channel Islands were occupied by the Germans.
But long before the German occupation of 1940, my mother's side of the family had more solid links with Jersey. I had been hunting for William and Eliza Chubb in the 1881 census and found an Eliza Chubb of the right age in St Helier, Jersey. She was listed as a widow born in England. It was tentative especially as she could have been born anywhere in the country but what had happened to William? Would I ever know? The newspaper article showing that my great grandparents, William Strange Chambers and Sarah Ann Conway Chubb, married in St Helier went a long way to confirming that I had the correct Eliza in the 1881 census.
While the English census includes Jersey, the records of vital events are not held by the General Register Office in England. Some parish records for the Church of England are available on the regular subscription sites but nothing for nonconformists. If there was one thing I was sure of, my Chubb family were nonconformists.
Looking for further information, I recently took a look at the Jersey Heritage site at https://www.jerseyheritage.org/ which has a link to the Jersey Archives. On the archive portion of the site, I was able to search for the name of William Chubb who must have died while he and Eliza were living in St Helier. A teaser of an entry came up for the death of a William Chubb that looked likely and also one for William John Stainer Chubb which was their son's name. I took out a subscription to the site and searched a bit further. Their helpful videos explained how to order vital records so it looks like I will finally be able to order my great grandparents' marriage certificate. I wonder what else I will be able to find?
If you are looking for ancestors who disappeared in the mid-nineteenth century you might find that they moved to the Channel Islands. They were a popular place to move, particularly with people from Dorset.
Image:
A Picture of Jersey; or, Stranger's Companion through that Island
(1809), J. Stead - "Engineers Barracks from Havre de Pas"
By
Man vyi - own photo of 19th century book illustration, Public Domain,
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