Henry Moseley and His Four Wives (1803-1869) of Derby, Derbyshire

The project began with a single photograph: a gravestone for Anne MOSELEY, Henry Moseley’s fourth wife, slowly being swallowed up by a tree. Intrigued, I decided to investigate further.

What I found was a man who suffered immense tragedy throughout his life, experiencing the loss of three young wives and three of his children. The story is a sad one, especially given that the only tree associated with his name is the one physically consuming his grave.

The headstone is situated in Nottingham Road Cemetery in Derby and reads:

In memory of ANNE MOSELEY
Fourth wife of Henry Moseley
Died April 17 1865 aged 56 years

HENRY MOSELEY
36 Corn Market Derby
Died January 19 1869
Aged 65 Years

FANNY VERNON
Niece of Anne Moseley
At Rest August 28 1900
Aged 71 years

 

Henry MOSELEY was born on 7 July 1803 in Leeds, Yorkshire. He was the first of six children born to George MOSELEY, an innkeeper who ran the Saddle Inn on Briggate, and George’s second wife, Frances JACKSON. George died in 1822 at 49, followed by Frances five years later in 1827.

Henry pursued a trade as a carver, gilder and jeweller, a profession shared by his uncle, Robert MOSELEY. Robert was a successful silversmith and jeweller, active in Derby from 1800 until his death in 1856. Henry and Robert worked in partnership from 1841 to 1846 under the name “Moseley and Nephew.” Following the partnership’s dissolution, Henry established his own independent firm, “Henry Moseley & Co.” They were also active as picture dealers and print publishers.

Henry married Mary YOUNG, a spinster, on 28 August 1828 at St Werburgh Church in Derby; he was 25, she was 22. They had one child before Mary passed away in March 1832, aged just 26.

1. Rosamond MOSELEY, born 22 July 1829

Henry married again just two years later, on 8 May 1834, taking Mary’s younger sister, Harriet YOUNG, as his second wife (Harriet was 20 and three months pregnant; Henry was 30). They had two children before Harriet died in November 1838 at 25, leaving Henry to care for a 10-year-old, 3-year-old, and 1-year-old.

2. Henry George MOSELEY, born October 1834
3. Mary Eliza MOSELEY, born November 1837

A third marriage followed on 8 August 1840 to Fanny WALKER in her home parish of Sutton on the Hill, Derbyshire. Fanny was 23 and Henry 37. The 1841 census located them living at Corn Market with Henry’s sister Elizabeth and two servants (Joseph Paynter, 17,  and Jane Campion, 15). Henry and Fanny had two children.

4. Alfred Walker MOSELEY born May 1841
5. Frances Jackson MOSELEY born Feb 1845

On 26 February 1846, Henry and his uncle Robert dissolved their partnership. Just a few months later, in October, his third wife Fanny died at the age of 30. Henry was again left a widower, caring for two young children (aged 4 and 18 months), in addition to the three from his previous marriages (aged 17, 12, and 8).

Henry quickly set up a new partnership with James Brabazon MURPHY, his first cousin’s husband, and carried on trading as “Henry Moseley and Co.”

He married for the fourth and final time to the spinster Anne THOMPSON on 7 May 1848 in Burton-Upon-Trent, Staffordshire. Anne was 39, Henry 45. The lack of children in this marriage may be why Anne survived longer than the previous wives. Just four months after their wedding, on 11 September 1848, the company was declared bankrupt. This led to a stock sale in November and multiple court appearances in Birmingham throughout 1849. Henry successfully resumed trading in March 1849, but debts lingered into 1850.

Newspaper articles reproduced with the permission of the www.thegazette.co.uk,  British Newspaper Archive and The British Library Board

In 1851, the family lived at 5 Babington Lane, Derby, with a single servant. But in 1855, tragedy struck yet again: Henry’s first two children both died within a short time frame. Henry George, aged 20, was notably the first person to be interred in the new Nottingham Road Cemetery. Rosamond died shortly afterwards at age 25. And more tragedy followed when three years later, in 1858, Henry’s son Alfred also died, aged 16.

By 1861, the household at Babington Cottage included Henry, Anne, the two surviving daughters (Mary and Frances), Anne’s niece Fanny VERNON, and a servant.

Anne died in 1865 at 56, and Henry followed four years later in 1869, aged 65. The family had moved to 36 Corn Market—the address listed on the headstone—before his death. His daughters Mary and Frances remained at this address, continuing in their father’s trades as Gilder Silversmith and Jeweller & Dealer, respectively. They later moved to 61 Friar Gate, and eventually number 62. Neither sister, nor Fanny Vernon (who died in 1900), ever married or had children. With Frances’s death in 1931 at number 62 Friar Gate, Henry’s lineage ultimately concluded.

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Henry Moseley’s Family Tree

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UPDATE

I was sent a lovely email by Ryan Goh, a wristwatch and pocket watch collector based in Singapore, thanking me for my article on Henry Moseley. He had recently acquired a pocket watch marked “H. Moseley DERBY” (which had made its way to Thailand, of all places) and thought it unlikely he would find out more about the maker.

“I’m a wristwatch collector based in Singapore who has very recently started collecting pocket watches as well. I purchased my first pocket watch from a Thai eBay seller, and it arrived at my doorstep a couple weeks ago. Upon opening the watch, I found that the hallmarks in the silver case date to 1859, the movement was signed “H. Moseley DERBY“, and one of the components featured very exquisite floral themed engravings (photos attached). There were countless independent watchmakers back in the day that have become virtually unknown today, and I assumed H. Moseley from Derby would be one of them because the seller did not see it fit to include his name in the listing title or description. Nevertheless, I thought I’d try my luck with a quick Google search anyway. Imagine my surprise when I found that another hobbyist had written a lengthy article about the tragic life of a Henry Moseley who had worked as a carver, gilder, and jeweller in the city of Derby in the mid 1800s! Not only do the initials, period, and locality match, but being a jeweller would explain why Mr. Moseley would be dealing in pocket watches and being a carver would explain the exquisite engravings.

“I‘m writing to thank you for unearthing the story behind my first pocket watch, which would otherwise be just another old pocket watch from just another forgotten watchmaker. I hope that my sharing was able to add some value to your efforts in genealogy as well!”

This is the pocket watch Ryan bought, signed “H. Moseley DERBY” along with some beautiful engraving inside.