THE QUALTROUGH FAMILY

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THE TEXAS QUALTROUGHS

Articles from the USA

by Elizabeth FeisstChart 22

Two brothers have left behind a fairly large group of Qualtrough descendants in Texas. Back in the early 1980s when I was researching for the book A QUOTA OF QUALTROUGHS (on line at the website) I gathered an outline of these two branches of the Qualtrough family and this can be seen on Chart 22 in the above book online. However there were many gaps, many unknowns and what have turned out to be a couple of errors, which I have recently corrected.

The brothers who went to Houston were Walter Qualtrough and Richard Goddard Qualtrough. Both were the younger sons of Rev John Qualtrough and his first wife Emma Freeman Thompson. Walter was born in June 1853 and Richard G. in Dec 1854, both baptized in the Parish of Andreas, Isle of Man. Both were educated at the prestigious King William’s College in Castletown- Walter attending from 1865-1869 and Richard G from 1866-1870.

Walter then apparently went to a London Seminary where he was expected to fulfill his father’s desire for him to become a clergyman of the Church of England. Walter however had other ideas, and before his ordination decided to leave the Seminary and join the British Navy. By the early 1870s he was in Canada, where he met and married his Canadian-born wife Annie Elizabeth (maiden name possibly Willoughby, but yet to be proved) and together they had 9 children, one dying in childhood. Some family members believe Annie was French Canadian from Quebec, but this has not been proven as yet. However it would appear that a large portion of their married life together was lived in Fort Erie, Township of Bertie, Ontario (near Niagara Falls). An entry in the "Welland County Farmers Directory ca 1891" for Township of Bertie has Walter owning 5 freehold acres on Niagara River Ridge and his postal address was Amigari.

Walter’s and Annie’s youngest child, James, was born in 1896 and Annie died either at the birth or shortly after, because census records show that in 1897, Walter and his tribe of 8 surviving children ranging in age from 20 down to just a few months of age emigrated from Ontario to Houston, Texas where his younger Richard Goddard Qualtrough was working for the South Pacific Rail Road.

Richard G or R.G. as he was known (the 1900 census sees him recorded as Argie Qualtrough) had emigrated to Houston by about 1875. What he did in the intervening years following his education at King William’s College is not known. There is a possibility that he went to Ontario first as the burial plot at Municipal Cemetery, Paris, Brant County, Ontario where his elder brother Joseph Thompson Qualtrough is buried (he died there in 1873) is registered in the name of Richard Qualtrough, so presumably RG was there when his brother died and purchased his burial plot.

On moving to Houston, he was soon working for the Rail Road, and also must have met his young wife Matilda Scherwin who was born in Louisana, as in the 1880 census RG was aged 26 married to Matilda, who was aged 17, and his occupation was given as a Baggage Master with the Rail Road. There was no occupation given for Matilda. RG & Matilda had 4 children, 2 sons and 2 daughters, John, William, Jeannette or Janette and Emma..

On the death of his wife, Annie, Walter must have been encouraged to emigrate to Houston by his younger brother RG and his wife Matilda, as I am sure that RG would have wanted to support his recently widowed brother and young family. And this he did.

The older of Walter’s children soon began spreading their wings. While Joseph, the eldest, was still at home in 1900, the military records census for 1900 shows that John Freeman Q, the next son, as serving "in the field" in the US Army in the Phillipine Islands. Walter Richard had left home and William Francis was found living on his own in Houston at age 17. At home with their father, in 1900, were Emma, Annie, Arthur and James.

By the 1910 census, several of Walter’s family were married. Joseph Q had married Hattie ( maiden name unknown), John Freeman Q had returned from the Phillipines, left the Army and was living in El Paso in West Texas, working on the Railroad and had a young son John Morrison Qualtrough by his wife Minnie Maud Toler. William Francis Q had married Ray Fennel and had two young children, Walter Frank Q & Annie Ray Q (At this point, William Francis, Ray and their children have not been found in the 1910 census). Walter Richard Q had married Jennie Hayden Sharp and they were living in Sanderson, Terrell Co. Texas. Walter and Jennie’s first child, Raymond H was born in 1911.They later had a son John Q, and a daughter Jane. Emma had married Thomas Flavin and had a young son, Thomas, born about 1905, Annie had just married Henry C Nagel and their son Henry was born in 1911. Arthur and James were still single and living at home with their father Walter along with Annie & Henry Nagel.

Arthur married Rosemary Eitzen and they had a daughter Jane born in 1919. James married Lois Gilliland and they had three children, Lois Lee, Thomas James and John Thomas. James & Lois divorced and he married Mattie Geneva Deaigh in 1941 and they had a daughter, Elizabeth Elaine Qualtrough born in 1943.

In 1900 and 1910, RG & Matilda’s family were all still at home, Jeannette was the first to marry about 1905 to John C Woodworth and they had a daughter, Bernice. John married Mamie (maiden name unknown) and they had one son, Richard Carroll Q bn 1918. Emma married a Mr Jurgens and had a son Jack. They lived their married lives in New Orleans, Louisiana. William married Viola Wileman and they had a son Henry Mosehart Q born 1915 in Houston. .

Walter died in Houston in 1934 (I found a copy of his obituary at the HoustonChronicle.com website where they have an archival section on "What’s Happened in the past 100 years", so Walter’s death must have been considered a "worthy event"! Richard Goddard had pre-deceased his brother by some years, having died before 1917 (a Houston directory for 1917 says that Matilda was a widow) but the records at the Manx Museum, Douglas, IOM, list Richard’s Will as being probated in 1920. This is currently being checked.

Descendants have of course spread out from there and can now be found all over the US and in Europe. Many still of course live in Texas. There is still much more work to do on this branch to complete the jigsaw, and I am indebted to Jane Lawrence of Arizona, who has become a dear friend and who has so willingly taken upon herself to "locate Qualtroughs" for me!! Thanks Jane. I am also thankful to Jane Qualtrough of Mexico City whose memories have been invaluable (Jane is the daughter of Arthur and Rosemary Qualtrough, mentioned above). Also I gratefully thank Olive Qualtrough, widow of Henry (son of William Q & Viola Wileman) who still lives in Houston and who has been able to fill in many gaps for me. The search continues….. I still have many names to place into families and there is two lines to be contacted, the descendants of Thomas James Q & John Thomas Q, both sons of James Qualtrough and Lois Gilliland. Also to be contacted is his daughter by his second marriage, Elizabeth Elaine Qualtrough. So you see there is still much work to be done…..

February 2002

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© Copyright by Malcolm Qualtrough, Elizabeth Feisst and the late John Karran Qualtrough.