James Lanyon’s Grandsons

James and Mary had two sons and five grandsons to carry on the family name.

Thomas Lanyon 1750-1823

Thomas was baptised at Breage in 1750, he was a tinner at St Michael’s Mount and married Sibella Dusting/Disting at St Hilary in 1778. They had four children:

  • Catharine 1778-1779 died in infancy
  • Catharine 1781- in 1822 a Catherine Lanyon married Richard James at Breage could be this Catharine?
  • Thomas 1783-1859
  • William 1791-1871

Thomas senior was buried at St Hilary in 1823. Sibella was buried there in 1830.

Cornish Tin Mne – Internet Archive Book Images, No restrictions, via Wikimedia Commons

James Lanyon 1758-bef. 1851

James was baptised at Breage in 1758, he too was a tinner and he married Ann Sirrell at Breage in 1789 (William Lenine was a witness). They had eight children:

  • Margaret 1790-1872 baptised at Germoe in 1790 and two possible marriages may be hers – William Pearce 1809 at Germoe and George Gregory 1838 at Uny Lelant – two children from the marriage to George
  • Ann 1791-1873 she married William Bosanko at Germoe in 1834 no children
  • Catherine 1793-1883 in 1818 she gave birth to an illegitimate daughter at Sithney (Catherine Lanyon of Rosladen, Breage). In 1822 she married Richard James a miner at Breage – three daughters. Catherine died at Germoe aged 90.
  • Florence 1796-1875 she married Joseph Thomas at Germoe in 1821 – six children
  • William 1799-1854 was a tin miner, he married Mary Curnow at Germoe in 1822 and they had four children: William 1824 no further trace, Maria 1827-aft. 1901 married John Thomas – six children and two daughters who died in infancy. He then married Ann Beckerleg in 1834 and they had one daughter.
  • Elizabeth 1805- had an illegitimate son William baptised at Germoe in 1826 no further trace of him. Elizabeth then married William Peters at Germoe in 1829
  • Mary 1807- no further trace
  • James 1810-1829 he died age 19 at Germoe

There is no one traceable to continue James’ line. He died before 1851, his widow is listed on the 1851 census as living with her widowed daughter Ann Bosanko and is described as a pauper aged 83.

1851 Census for Germoe

John Lanyon 1763-1835

John was baptised at Breage in 1763 and like his brothers he was a tinner. He married Florence Michell (a relative of his mother) in 1789 at Breage. Their only daughter Ann was baptised at Germoe in Sep 1790, her mother Florence was buried in Jan 1791 aged just 28. Ann married James Provis at St Hilary in 1815.

John married for a second time in Aug 1792 at Breage to Catherine Pope (Witnesses Richard Michell and Thomas Kitto). They had three children:

  • John 1793-1869
  • William 1795-1802 died young
  • Florence Michell 1797-1864 she married Michael Benny at Helston in 1818, they had six children and she died in London in 1864

John senior died at Germoe in 1835 age 77 which gives him a date of birth of 1758, he could have been baptised when he was age 5 or his family may have miscalculated his age when he died.

There were lots of mines in the Germoe/Breage/St Hilary area.

Mines

We don’t know which mines they worked in but this film will give you an idea of what it was like.

Richard Lanyon 1770-aft. 1841

Richard was baptised at Germoe in 1770, he was a blacksmith at Marazion. He married his cousin Jane Lanyon at St Hilary in 1794. They had eight children:

  • William 1794-1871
  • Richard 1796-1797 died in infancy
  • Jennifer Jane 1797-1877 married Charles Gundry, a farmer, three children
  • Richard 1799-1835 died age 35 at Marazion, unmarried
  • Catherine 1802- aft. 1881 married John Roberts, a miner, she was still alive in 1881 and according to the census her two daughters Eliza (tailoress) and Jane (dressmaker) were living with her and her grandson William, illegitimate son of one of the daughters.
  • John 1804-1806 died in infancy
  • Mary John 1806-she married Thomas Harris Roberts at St Hilary in 1841 no further trace
  • Julia 1809-1843 living with her father on the 1841 census and dead by 1843

Richard senior was still alive in 1841 and living with youngest daughter Julia but after that no trace of his death. He’s often confused with the Richard Lanyon who died at Lostwithiel in 1848.

Victorian Blacksmith – Summer A. Smith, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

James Lanyon 1759-1848

James was the son of James and Catherine Brownfield. He was baptised at Breage in 1759 and married Grace Harry at Germoe in 1790. They had five children:

  • James 1790- he was a labourer and married Christian Arthur at Breage in 1812, one daughter Mary Anne baptised at Camborne in 1812. There is a Christian Lanyone on the 1841 census living at Helston but no sign of her husband. No further trace.
  • John 1794-bef. 1796 died in infancy
  • John 1796-bef. 1808 died in infancy
  • Jennifred 1799- no further trace
  • John 1808-1855

James’ wife Grace Harry died in 1815. In 1819 he married again in Mawgan in Meneage to Ann Rogers. They had one son:

  • Thomas 1819-1855

James died at Mullion in 1848 and Ann Rogers died in 1863 at Mullion.

Out of the five grandsons of James Lanyon and Mary Pearce there were only five great grandsons with children to follow.

William & James of Germoe

William and James were the sons of James Lanyon and Mary Pearce. James was baptised at Breage in 1686 and married Mary Pearce at Breage in 1712. They had two sons and two daughters, this post is about their sons.

William Lanyon 1724-1804

William was baptised some twelve years after his parents’ marriage, presumably there were other children who died in infancy or stillbirths and miscarriages to account for the large gap. He married Florence Michell at Germoe in 1749. They had eleven children:

William & Florence’s tree
  • Thomas 1750-1823
  • Florence 1752-1791
  • William 1753-1831 William’s first marriage was to Mary Gibbons at St Hilary in 1781 and they had a child, Mary baptised in 1803. She married James Pearce in 1823 and they had nine children. Mary was baptised in Feb 1803 and her father remarried in Jul 1803 so presumably her mother Mary Gibbons died in childbirth. William’s second wife was Honour King and they married at St Hilary (witnesses to the marriage Thomas Lanyon and Benjamin Rodda). Honour Lanyon died on 8 Mar 1807 at St Hilary age 44. On 11 Jul 1807 (he didn’t hang around!) William (widower) married Honour Edwards at Breage (Witnesses: Benjamin Rodda and William Edwards.) They had a daughter called Mary Anne baptised in 1809 and buried at St Hilary in 1813 age 4. So William had three wives, two called Honour and two daughters both called Mary! William was buried at St Hilary in 1831 and without any male heirs his line died out.
  • Mary 1755- she married James Rodda a widower at St Hilary in 1781. They had seven children including Benjamin who was a witness at his uncle William’s weddings.
  • James 1757-1758 died in infancy
  • James 1758-1851
  • Elizabeth 1760-1809 no trace of a marriage
  • Catherine 1762- she was baptised at Breage and married Richard Ellis, a carpenter at St Hilary in 1781 – five children
  • John 1763-1835
  • Margaret 1765-1855 she was baptised at Germoe in 1765. At Sithney in 1792 a Margaret Lanyon baptised an illegitimate child also called Margaret (not sure if it is this Margaret or not) in 1796 she married Nicholas Edwards, a tinner, at Breage – five children. Nicholas died in 1814 and in 1827 Margaret married John Symons, a widower, at Breage. She died at Godolphin Cross in 1855 aged 89, she was living with her son Nicholas.
  • Richard 1770-1848 married Jane Lanyon his cousin

With four sons having children of their own this branch of the family is thriving.

James Lanyon 1729-

James was William’s younger brother. He was baptised at Germoe in 1729 and married Catherine Brownfield there in 1755. They had nine children:

James & Catherine’s tree
  • Catherine 1755- no further trace
  • James 1757-bef.Aug 1758 died in infancy
  • James Aug 1758-bef. Dec 1759 died in infancy
  • James 1759-1848
  • Loveday – Apr. 1762 died in infancy
  • Jennifred – May. 1762 died in infancy
  • Loveday 1763-1763 died in infancy
  • Jane 1767-1820 married Richard Lanyon her cousin, the son of William Lanyon and Florence Michell
  • Loveday 1769-1854 married James Thomas at Germoe in 1801 – six children

Out of nine children only three survived to adulthood.

James senior died after 1769 (when his last child was born) but there is no trace of his burial, Catherine his wife was buried at Germoe in 1816/7 aged 88.

Saint Germochus or Germoe was an early 6th century saint active in Cornwall and Brittany. he was the patron saint of Germoe, he is said to have been a king and friend of St Breage. In the churchyard there is St Germoe’s chair. I wonder how many Lanyons sat in it?

St Germoe’s Chair also know as the Throne by Raymond Cubberley, CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons