We have now established the names and whereabouts of Arthur Askey's grandparents.

On the paternal side Samuel Askey and wife Elizabeth, who had been born in Liverpool, were living in Woodruff Street, Toxteth Park and Samuel senior was employed as a sailmaker. On Arthur's maternal side his grandparents William and Martha Bowden were living across the road from the Askeys, also in Woodruff Steet. William had been born in Davenham, Cheshire, and Martha in Widnes.

We now need to track the family back by using the 1881 Census. If you don't subscribe to a genealogical census provider this census is best found on the free-to-use International Genealogical Index site: www.familysearch.org/
Here we find the 34-year-old sailmaker Samuel Askey (Arthur's grandfather) living at 5 Devonshire Street, Toxteth Park, with wife Elizabeth and their children, Thomas, Georgina, Joseph and Samuel (Arthur's father).

However, also living at the property is Samuel's mother Elizabeth, aged 64, a widow, the head of the household, along with her son Joseph C Askey. We discover that Elizabeth (Arthur's great grandmother) had been born in Whitehaven, Cumberland (now Cumbria) in about 1817. She is described as an 'annuitant' (pensioner) living on her own means. So some of Arthur's roots lie in Whitehaven.

Researching the 1871 Census return we see the family already living in Devonshire Street at that time with Elizabeth head of the household. However, 10 years earlier in the 1861 Census we discover Elizabeth's husband (and Arthur's great grandfather) living with his family in Northumberland Street, Toxteth Park. And he is another Samuel Askey! Samuel is described as working as a dock gateman, born about 1821 in Acton, Cheshire. He and wife Elizabeth had the following children in 1861: Samuel (age 14) Thomas (12) Jane (6) Joseph (4) and George (two months).

A quick search of the freebmd website: wwwfreebmd.org/ reveals that Arthur's great grandfather Samuel Askey died in 1866 at the age of 47. As his first child (Samuel) was born around 1847 it is safe to assume that Samuel (snr) had married Elizabeth shortly before then. Sure enough, a search of the FreeBMD site reveals that Samuel (snr) married Elizabeth Walton in Livepool in June 1845. So now we have the maiden name of Arthur Askey's great grandmother! A request for the marriage certificate would give us the name and occupation of Elizabeth's father, but more of that in a later blog.

The information from the Census returns we have researched so far enables us to grow Arthur Askey's family tree thus:

Further research on Arthur Askey's paternal descent can be done by using birth and marriage certificates and the parish registers, but more about these in a future blog.

Next week we will look further back in the Census records to trace Arthur Askey's maternal descent.

Tip: When using the Census returns use them in conjunction with a map of the area to get an overview of the place you are researching. www.old-maps.co.uk/ is a free site which will give you a 19th century view of the area you are researching in. Also read the schedule to the Census - it will describe precisely the streets the enumerator has visited. Also look at the names of families in the immediate area - it is amazing the number of families who lived next door to each other that are related.

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