Subsequent research revealed that he had been a baker or confectioner, had become bankrupt in 1848, and died in 1858. Ancestry suggested a few hints today which seem to have filled in this gap, and possibly explained how Emma Hewes and her family came to be living in Oxford.

Henry appears in the 1841 census¹ in the household of Elizabeth Braggs:

High Street, Colchester, Essex, England
Elizabeth Braggs, Female, 35, Confectioner, Not Essex
Matilda Simpson, Female, 15, ?, Essex
Henry Hewes, Male, 20, Baker, Essex
Elias Taylor, Male, 15, Baker, Not Essex
Sarah Pullin, Female, 15, ?, Not Essex

Elizabeth is probably the wife of William Braggs, who appears in Pigot’s directory of 1823-24, and whose death is recorded in Colchester in 1850.

Henry, of full age, bachelor, baker, son of Stephen Hewes, marries Emma Griggs, of full age, spinster, daughter of John Griggs, at Holy Trinity, Colchester, Essex, England on 19 May 1844.²

Henry William Hewes is listed as both a confection and a baker and flour dealer in White’s Directory of Essex in 1848³.

Henry is listed as bankrupt in 1848⁴, but declares a dividend⁵.

Henry is listed in the household of Catherine Horn, in Oxford, in the 1851 census⁶.

Household at 15 Corn Market St, Oxford, Oxfordshire, England
Catherine Horn, Head, W, F, 61, Confectioner employing 4 men and 1 boy, Oxford
John Horn, Son, U, M, 32, Hatter, Oxford
Edward Horn, Son, U, M, 30, Confectioner, Oxford
Mary M. Horn, Daughter, U, F, 26, Assistant, Oxford
William H. Horn, Son, U, M, 20, Cook, Oxford
Thomas R. Bolton, Grand Son, U, M, 21, Surgeons Assistant, Oxford
Elizabeth Millson, Serv., U, F, 23, House Servant, Berks. Staniford
Henry Hewes, Serv., Mar, M, 29, Confectioner, Essex Colchester
John Phillips, Serv., U, M, 26, Baker, Oxon. Barton
Charles Fox, Serv., U, M, 20, Baker, Oxon. Aston.

More details of 15 Corn Market St, Oxford

It is possible that Henry found work in Oxford as a solution to his financial difficulties, or to establish a new reputation. His wife Emma, and their four children, are living with her mother, Margaret, at Eld Lane, Colchester, in the 1851 census. Presumably Henry has recently moved to Oxford, and Emma and the children at some point after March 1851 follow him to Oxford. This explains Emma’s presence in Oxford in the 1861 census.

The death on “June 20, in London, aged 40 years, Mr. Henry Hewes, late of 4 Head Street, Colchester, baker” is reported in The Essex Standard, and General Advertiser for the Eastern Counties 2 Jul 1858.

• https://vc.id.au/blog2/2007/07/emma-hughes-conundrum-solved/
• https://vc.id.au/blog2/2007/07/emma-hewes/
• https://vc.id.au/blog2/2007/08/hugheshewes-update/
• https://vc.id.au/blog2/2007/08/hugheshewes-update-2/

A lot has happened since then. Building on information supplied by descendants of Margaret Hughes Van Cooten I have been able to extend the family tree for her descendants.

The advent of DNA testing has introduced the ability to match the genetic tree with the genealogical tree. In this case, there are good matches between John Hughes Van Cooten’s descendants and those of Margaret Hughes. This confirms that they are siblings. A match with a descendant of John and Margaret’s half-brother John Rhodolphus Van Cooten confirms their relationship as being descendants of John Lucius Van Cooten.

I’ve yet to identify a match with descendants of Emma through her first husband Henry William Hewes.

The one for John Hughes showed a birth date of 23 August 1856 to parents Thomas Hughes and Frances Hughes formerly Applebee. Not a match.

The one for Margaret Hughes showed a birth date of 22 Dec 1858 to parents Emma Hughes formerly Griggs and Henry William Hughes (deceased). This is clearly a match, and the information for the mother is consistent with that for Lucius Cooten born in 1862.

FreeBMD shows a death registered in March 1858 for a Henry HEWES in Watford. This is possibly Emma’s husband.

Searching FreeBMD for the births of John Hughes in Berkshire between 1850 and 1865 shows births in Reading in March 1853 (ref 2c 351), June 1855 (ref 2c 326), September 1856 (ref 2c 306), and September 1861 (ref 2c 319). The best information that I have at the moment for the birthdate of John Hughes VC is 7 Nov 1855. I guessed that the September 1856 registration seemed most likely. I’ll order the March 1853 one next and see what it shows.

Margaret Greggs, Head, Widow, Female, 62, Nurse. Almswoman, Essex West Bergholt
Emma Hewes, Daughter, Married, Female, 30, Bakery Wife, Essex Colchester
Emma Hewes Jr, Grand daughter, Female, Unmarried, 6, Scholar, Essex Colchester
Isabella Hewes, Grand daughter, Female, Unmarried, 4, Scholar, Essex Colchester
Henry W. Hewes, Grand son, Male, Unmarried, 3, Scholar, Essex Colchester
William I. Hewes, Grand son, Male, Unmarried, 1, At home, Essex Colchester

This definitely matches very well, however it seems that Emma’s maiden name might be Greggs rather than Griggs. FreeBMD shows no Greggs/Hughes marriages at all. There’s a birth registration for an Emily Hewes in Colchester in December quarter 1844, but no births for Emma Hewes anywhere in the approximate time range. FreeBMD doesn’t show a death for a Margaret Griggs/Greggs of the right age in the right area to give a clue as to which might be right. FreeBMD tells us that Henry W. is Henry Walter.

I can’t find a Henry Hewes in the 1851 census that looks as though he is the husband of this family. Presumably he is still alive at this point as Emma’s condition is reported as married, rather than a widow.

I’ve ordered birth certificates for the birth of John Hughes registered in Reading in the September quarter of 1856, and the birth of Margaret Hughes registered in the March quarter of 1859. If Margaret was born in 1859 she would have been 2 in 1861. I can find no trace of her in the 1861 census. This is a bit of a puzzle.

The story so far is that John Lucius Van Cooten married firstly Frances Mary Theresa Kent, and secondly a Mary Hughes (according to one old family letter) or Emona Hughes (according to John Hughes Van Cooten’s marriage certificate). The first marriage ended in separation as Frances Mary Van Cooten is a witness at the marriage of her son John Rhodolphus in 1860. I suppose that the second marriage should really be considered a de facto relationship as divorces weren’t really obtainable at this time. I’m not expecting to find any formal documentation regarding this relationship.

The known children of JLVC and Mary/Emona Hughes were John Hughes VC born in Reading, Berkshire in about 1855 according to a variety of sources, and Margaret Hughes VC born in Oxford, Oxfordshire in about 1859. I have never been able to find a marriage for JLVC and Mary Hughes, and a search for the birth of John Hughes Van Cooten in Reading drew a blank.

A search of the 1861 census shows a family living in George St, St Mary Magdalen, Oxford, Oxfordshire, England

Emma Hughes,Head,Wid,F,38,Waistcoat Maker,Essex Colchester
Isabella Hughes,Dau,Unm,F,15,,,Essex Colchester
Henry Hughes,Son,Unm,M,13,Errand Boy,Essex Colchester
William Hughes,Son,Unm,M,11,Shop Boy,Essex Colchester
John Hughes,Son,Unm,M,5,,Berks Reading

and nearby at Beaumont Buildings No 9

John Cooten,Lodger,Mar,M,44,General Agent,Sommerset

This looks as though it fits. John Lucius Van Cooten is living less than 200 metres from the Hughes household. The children above were born in about 1846, 1848, 1850 and 1856 respectively.

By the 1871 census we find living at 38 Maine Street, Chalgrove, Oxfordshire:

John Cooten,Head,Mar,Male,49,Schoolmaster,“Somerset, Bristol, Hot Wells”
John Cooten,Son,unmar,Male,14,Scholar,”Berks, Reading”
Margarett Cooten,Dau,Female,12,Scholar,Oxford

So it looks as though Mary/Emma is no longer alive.

At this stage I had been unable to find any evidence of a Hughes family matching the one above in the 1851 census. Nor was I able to find a Emma marriage to a person with the surname Hughes in the Colchester area, nor any children with the surname Hughes matching the names above in Colchester. Something didn’t seem to fit!

I checked out the archives of the Rootsweb mailing list for Essex to see if anyone had posted a query for Hughes in Colchester. This alerted me to the possibility that an alternative spelling of the name in this area was ‘Hewes’. I also had another look at a birth certificate I had ordered in 1992 and had discounted as having a connection. This birth certificate was for a Lucius Cooten born on 6 March 1862, child of John Cooten and Emma Cooten, formerly Griggs. Even though the birth was in Bendington near Wallingford, the surname Griggs didn’t make any sense.

On the assumption that this certificate was in fact relevant I did a FreeBMD search for an Emma Griggs marrying someone with the surname Hewes. Bingo! In the June 1844 marriages there is a Henry HEWES marrying in Colchester with a possible partner of Emma Griggs! And this entry was only added in this month’s update! A FreeBMD search for Hewes births in Colchester results in

Hewes, Isabella registered in Jun 1846
Hewes, Henry Walter registered in Sep 1847
HEWES, William registered in Sep 1849

These are the only children with these names, and the dates match really well.

So, it seems that our Hughes family in Oxford in 1861 was originally the family of Henry and Emma Hewes (born Griggs) of Colchester, Essex. It also seems that John Hughes and Margaret Hughes VC had another brother – Lucius, born in 1852, who possibly died in infancy.

Now to find the Hewes family in the 1851 census. What happened to Henry Hewes? How did they get to Reading? Is it worth getting the birth certificates for John Hughes born in Reading in 1856, and for Margaret Hughes born in Oxford in 1859?