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William RowsellBirth: 1 November 1843 in Crewkerne, Somerset, England
Death: 2 July 1916 in Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Utah, USA 3rd great-grandfather (my relation)
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FamilyParents
Spouse & Children
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Historical OverviewWilliam Rowsell was born and raised in Crewkerne, Somerset, England. He was the son of Douglas Rowsell and Ann Cleal.
William married Mercy Webber on 25 December 1864 in Bourton, Dorset, England. William and Mercy likely met while boarding at the same house in Crewkerne when they were both working as weavers, as they were both recorded in the same household in the 1861 census. Together, William and Mercy had two known children, Rosina and William D. Rowsell. William and his family joined the Mormon church in the early 1860s and in 1873 they immigrated to the U.S. to join the rest of the Mormons in Utah. Shortly after arriving in Utah, Mercy became ill and died on 2 May 1874. The next year William married Grace Lye in Salt Lake City on 15 February 1875. Grace was also from Somerset, England, joined the Mormon church, and immigrated to Utah. Grace and William had at twelve children, including my great great-grandfather Walter Rowsell. William died 2 July 1916 in Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Utah, USA. - Last updated 27 December 2018 |
Timeline
1843 Birth Register
(GRO Certified Copy)
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1 November 1843 - BirthWilliam Rowsell was born 1 November 1843 in the town of Crewkerne. He was the son of Douglas Rowsell and Ann Cleal. He was one of the youngest children of Douglas and Ann. - Last updated 14 May 2017
Crewkerne, Somerset, EndlandSource: General Register Office, Certified Copy of an Entry of Birth, County of Somerset, Chard Registration District, Crewkerne Sub-district, William Rowsell, born 1 November 1843 in Crewkerne, registered 27 November 1843; General Register Office, Southport, England.
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1843 Baptism Register
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26 November 1843 - BaptismOn 26 November 1843, only a couple of weeks after his birth, William was baptized in the parish church in Crewkerne. - Last updated 5 January 2019
Crewkerne, Somerset, EnglandSource: Church of Crewkerne (Church of England, Somerset), Register of Baptisms in the Parish of Crewkerne in the County of Somerset (1842-1965), p. 29, number 227, William Rowsell, baptized 26 November 1843; FHL Microfilm 1526554, Item 22.
All images below are from the Old UK Photos website. Each photo is a link to the website.
For more photos and information about Crewkerne, see the Crewkerne page here.
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1851 UK Census
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1851 - Residence (Census)William was 7 years old in 1851. His parents, Douglas (age 50) and Ann (42) had four other children. The family was living on South Street in Crewkerne, Somerset, England.
Douglas was a general laborer, likely working with various people in the community. Ann was a glover (someone who makes or sells gloves). - Last updated 5 January 2019 
Crewkerne, Somerset, EnglandSource: 1851 England Census, Crewkerne, Somerset, ED 8a, Folio 369, p. 14, Dwelling 54, South Street, Douglas Rowsell Household; digital image, “1851 England Census,” Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com), accessed January 2016.
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1861 UK Census
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1861 - Residence (Census)By 1861 William was living as a boarder in the household of Henry Diamond and his family. William was on 17 years old, but at this point his mother had passed away and his father's presence is unknown.
William was working as a weaver for a woolen web business. His future wife, Mercy Webber, was also a boarder in the same household. She was also a weaver, likely for the same company William and Henry worked at. William and Mercy likely met while boarding for Henry Diamond. - Last updated 5 January 2019 
Crewkerne, Somerset, EnglandSource: 1861 England Census, Crewkerne, Somerset, ED 4, Folio 65, p. 25, Dwelling 111, Viney Bridge, Henry Dimond Household; digital image, “1861 England Census,” Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com), accessed December 2018.
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1863 LDS Baptism (Membership Record)
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12 August 1863 - Baptism (LDS)William Rowsell joined the Mormon Church on 12 August 1863 in Crewkerne, Somerset, England. His future wife, Mercy Webber, had previously joined the Mormon Church on 27 November 1860 and so it is likely he joined after having a number of discussions with her, while living at the home of Henry Diamond (see 1861 Census above).
William was baptized by a man named William Mills and was confirmed by Edmond F. Bird. While looking at other church membership records, it appears there were a number of people from the Diamond family who also joined the Mormon Church. - Last updated 6 January 2019 
Crewkerne, Somerset, EnglandSource: Crewkerne Branch, England, British Mission (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, England), Record of Members, 1848-1879, number 101, William Rowsell, born 1 November 1843, baptized 12 August 1863; FHL Microfilm 86993, Item 4.
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1864 Marriage to Mercy Webber
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25 December 1864 - Marriage to Mercy Webber
Bourton, Dorset, EnglandBourton is about 45km north east of Crewkerne.
Source: Parish Church of Bourton (Church of England, Dorset) Record of Marriages, p. 53, number 106, William Rowsell and Mercy Webber, married 25 December 1864; digital image, “Dorset, England, Church of England Marriages and Banns, 1813-1921,” Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com), accessed December 2018.
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1871 UK Census
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1871 - Residence (Census)In 1871 William and Mercy's little family was living in Misterton, Somerset, England. Misterton is a tiny village just south of Crewkerne.
William and Mercy had two children, Rosina (age 5) and William D. (age 11 months). Rosina was born in Bourton, Dorset, suggesting that William and Mercy lived there for a period of time after their marriage there. William D. was born in Crewkerne, Somerset, so they likely moved back to the Crewkerne/Misterton area before he was born. William was working for another web weaving business, this time as a girth web weaver. - Last updated 6 January 2019 
Crewkerne, Somerset, EnglandSource: 1871 England Census, Misterton, Somerset, ED 1, Folio 7, p. 4, Dwelling 20, [no street name], William Rowsell Household; digital image, “1871 England Census,” Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com), accessed December 2018.
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1871 UK Census
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23 July 1873 - Immigration to United StatesBy 1873 William and his family decided to leave England and head west to join the other Mormons in Utah Territory. The family made their way north to Liverpool and in early July boarded the passenger ship Nevada.
According to a history on FamilySearch, the ship departed Liverpool on 10 July 1873 towards New York City. There were 587 total passengers, 283 of which were members of the Mormon Church. They arrived in New York City on 23 July 1873 and then boarded a train to join the rest of the Mormons in Utah. - Last updated 6 January 2019 
Liverpool, Lancashire, EnglandNew York City, New York, USASource: United States, Treasury Department, Customs Service, Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1820-1897, S.S. Nevada, arrived 23 July 1873, Line 392, Wm Rowell [Rowsell]; digital image, “New York, Passenger Lists, 1820-1957,” Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com), accessed December 2018.
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2 May 1874 - Death of wife, Mercy (Webber) Rowsell
Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Utah Territory, USASource: Salt Lake City (Utah) City Recorder, Record of Deaths in Salt Lake City, volume 1 (numbers 0001-7960) (1847 – 1884), p. 158, line 6286, Mercy Rowsell, died 2 May 1874, Ward 9, Salt Lake City; FHL Digital Collection 4139616, digital image, “Utah, Salt Lake County Death Records, 1849-1949,” FamilySearch (http://www.familysearch.org), accessed January 2019.
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15 February 1875 - Marriage to Grace Lye
Records for the Endowment House are not available to the general public, so I don't have a copy of the record to cite as my source. - Last updated 6 January 2019
Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Utah Territory, USASource: “William Rowsell,” PID KWZR-C56, Family Tree, FamilySearch (http://www.familysearch.org), accessed January 2019.
Note: Endowment records are not available to the public. You must be temple recommend holding member of the Mormon church, and even then you are not allowed to make photocopies of the endowment records, so the FamilySearch Family Tree is the best source I can provide for their marriage. |
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Children of William Rowsell and Grace LyeWilliam and Grace had a total of 12 children together.
Source: FamilySearch Family Tree and various sources of my own research.
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1900 U.S. Federal Census
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1900 - Residence (Census)By 1900 William and his family moved from Richmond to West Jordan, Salt Lake County, Utah. I am not sure the exact date when they moved here.
William was 57 years old and Grace was 47 years old. Five of their children were still living with them:
The census has some incorrect information on it. It shows that William immigrated in 1870, when it was really 1873. It also shows his birth date in 1842, when it was really 1843. - Last updated 6 January 2019 
West Jordan, Salt Lake County, Utah, USASource: 1900 U.S. Federal Census (Population Schedule), West Jordan, Salt Lake County, Utah, ED 67, Sheet 9, Dwelling 147, Family 150, William Rowsell household; digital image, “1900 United States Federal Census,” Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com), accessed January 2019.
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1910 U.S. Federal Census
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1910 - Residence (Census)In 1910 William and Grace were still living in West Jordan, Salt Lake County, Utah. William was 66 years old and Grace was 56 years old. They only had two of their children still living with them; Grace (age 21) and Alonzo (age 14).
This is the last U.S. Federal Census that William appeared in before his death in 1916. - Last updated 6 January 2019 
West Jordan, Salt Lake County, Utah, USASource: 1910 U.S. Federal Census (Population Schedule), Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah, ED 116, Sheet 2A, Dwelling 29, Family 29, William Rowsell household; digital image, "1910 United States Census," Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com), accessed April 2017.
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1916 Death Certificate
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2 July 1916 - DeathWilliam died on 2 July 1916 in Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Utah, of stomach cancer. He was 71 years old. - Last updated 6 January 2019
Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Utah, USASource: Utah, State Board of Health, Death Certificate, Certificate 932, William Rowsell, died 2 July 1916, in Third Precinct, Salt Lake County, Utah; digital image, “Utah Death Certificates, 1904-1956,” FamilySearch (http://www.familysearch.org), accessed March 2014.
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1916 Obituary
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4 July 1916 - ObituaryWilliam's obituary was published in the Salt Lake Tribune on 4 July 1916. Below is a transcript of the obituary. - Last updated 6 January 2019
OLD UTAH RESIDENT DIES FROM CANCER Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Utah, USASource: “Old Utah Resident Dies from Cancer,” obituary, Salt Lake Tribune, Salt Lake City, Utah, 4 July 1916, p. 3, col. 2, William Douglas Rowsell; digital image, “Salt Lake Tribune, 1916-1917,” Utah Digital Newspapers (http://digitalnewspapers.org/), accessed December 2015.
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5 July 1916 - BurialWilliam was buried in the West Jordan City Cemetery on 5 July 1916.
His wife, Grace, was also later buried right next to him. - Last updated 6 January 2019 West Jordan, Salt Lake County, Utah, USASource: “William Douglas Rowsell, Sr,” Find A Grave (http://www.findagrave.com), West Jordan City Cemetery, West Jordan, Salt Lake County, Utah, William Rowsell, born 1 November 1843, died 2 July 1916, memorial 19532580, accessed January 2019.
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Disclaimer: All of the information on this site is according to my personal knowledge from conducting thorough research. There are many online trees and other information available online that may have more information than this site, but I do not add information to this site unless I have verified or discovered the information myself. Also, at any time I may change/update information on this site based on new evidence. If you have any questions about the information on this page or you are a distant cousin, let me know!
