One Name Place Study: Henry Townsend of Columbus

Townsends of Franklin County Ohio
It's once again time to investigate the Townsends of Franklin County, Ohio in an effort to find relatives of William James Townsend who was born around 1842 in Franklin County, Ohio.

The next individual listed 1880 US Census is Henry H Townsend. Henry indicates in this census that he was born around 1845 in Pennsylvania. His parents are listed as being from England. His occupation is a marble dealer.

Other household members include Anna M Townsend born around 1849 in England. She's 31 and again, her parents are from England. According to this document, they have a son named Grant Townsend who is 10 and a daughter Lulu C Townsend who is 7. Both children were born in Ohio.

At first glance, the birth place of Pennsylvania three years after William's birth in Ohio is making a close family relationship doubtful. Further, Henry states that his parents are from England and William has reported that his parents are from Maryland. Townsend is a common name so these little clues can help me quickly filter out likely connections. The important point to note is that some census information is incorrect, so I decided to investigate the family outside of this recordset.

I discovered a will for Henry when I was searching through probate records for anyone with the Townsend name in Franklin County, Ohio. I discovered his will was dated 22 September 1886. I found a death date for F H Townsend on 22 September 1886 and discovered this was the same person, though his occupation was now an upholsterer. Using FindAGrave, I discovered that he's connected with his mother and siblings, though no father is connected. His mother is Harriet Burgess Townsend born in England. So, the census record does match these new findings and a likely relationship between Henry and William Townsend is doubtful.

Ulysses Grant Townsend
Thanks for traveling Ulysses! 


While investigating Henry's family, I discovered this photograph of his son Grant Townsend and learned more information about him.

Grant is actually Ulysses Grant Townsend who was born 25 March 1870 in Zanesville, Ohio. He took a trip to France in 1918, thanks to a passport I have this photograph. He's a smart-looking man. I'm not certain what else happened to him.

Lulu C Townsend was born on 6 July 1873 in Zanesville, Ohio. She married Cory Ulen of Bainbridge, Ohio on 24 Jun 1903 in Franklin County, Ohio. She died eight years later in Columbus.

I had fun looking into this family but was so disappointed to not find a close connection to my Townsend family.


Previous Posts:
What I Know about William James Townsend


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