Sarah Jane (Elson) Prince (abt. 1839 - 1881)

Born about 1839 in Canada West

Ancestors

Daughter of John Elson and Mary (Unknown) Elson

Wife of Henry Prince — married about 1860 in Ontario, Canada [uncertain]

Descendants

Died 5 Nov 1881 at about age 42 in London, Ontario, Canada

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Liander Lavoie [send private message]

Biography

Sarah was born about 1839.^[1][2] She was the daughter of John Elson and Mary.^[3]

On the 1881 census, there is a 75 year old widow named Mary Elson living with Henry and Sarah Jane and their children. Presumably that is Sarah Jane's mother.

Sarah died in London, Ontario, on November 5, 1881.^[4] She died 9 days after giving birth to her last child, which suggests that she may have died as a result of complications in childbirth.

Goodspeeds 1889 History of the County of Middlesex, Canada reprint shows p. 57 the second marriage of 14 Dec 1837 of Sarah Jane's mother the text reads

John Elson to Mary Bioito, of London.

The photo album of the late Charlotte Box has Mary Boits - wife of John Elson died April 10, 1887. Age 78 years (England) Mother of Sarah Jane Elson who was the wife of Henry Prince Buried in Hyde Park Ont next to photo of sister

Elizabeth White - wife of Joseph Prince who was born in England died in Musoka District, Ont. about 1894, Sept 20th parents of Henry Prince both parents buried in Hyde Park, Ontario.

Research Progress

• Censuses: I've found Sarah Jane in the 1852, 1861, 1871, and 1881 censuses. Were there any censuses before that in Ontario/Canada West?

• Birth record: Impossible to really search for until her parents' names are known.

• Marriage record: I've searched online and haven't been able to find the record of her marriage to Henry Prince. I've posted questions about this on several forums, but so far no one has attempted a look up.

• Death record: I have found Sarah Jane's death record (see Sources section).

I do not have experience with less common sources, so I have not yet researched any other types of records. I have done general searches on FamilySearch and come up empty.

Blog Posts

The following posts on my genealogy blog, Stories of a Canadian Family, document my research on Sarah Jane Elson:

• Finding Mary Elizabeth Prince's parents - I established that Sarah Jane Elson and Henry Prince are my ancestors.

• Slight progress on Sarah Jane Elson - I found a link in the censuses to Sarah Jane's sister, Ann (Elson) Flint.

• The Never-Ending Search for Sarah Jane Elson's Marriage Record - I found a promising collection in the FamilySearch catalogue, and plan to go look through it at the local FamilySearch Centre.

Timeline

c1839 Born, in Ontario

1852 Census, in Westminster, Canada West; age 12; mother Mary, age 29; siblings: Ann, age 14; Elisa, age 10; Elisabeth, age 1 (relationships assumed, not stated in census)

c1860 Married, to Henry Prince

1860, August 24 Birth of daughter, Mary Elizabeth

1861 Census, in Canada West; age 20; husband Henry, age 25; children: Mary Prince, age 1. Mary Elson, age 48. Elisabeth Elson, age 9. Elisa Elson, age 18.

c1862 Birth of son, John Henry

c1863 Birth of daughter, Sarah Jane

c1865 Birth of daughter, Harriet Ann

c1867 Birth of daughter, Ida Elizabeth

c1869 Birth of son, Robert James

1871 Census, in London, Ontario; age 30; husband Henry, age 36; children: Elizabeth, age 11; John, age 9; Jane, age 7; Harriet, age 6; Ida, age 4; James, age 2

1871, September 24 Birth of son, William Edward

1874, November 3 Birth of daughter, Alice Matilda

1878, September 30 Birth of daughter, Isabella

1881 Census, in London, Ontario; age 42; husband Henry, age 45; children: John Henry, age 19; Jane, age 18; Harriet, age 16; Ida, age 13; James Edward, age 11; William, age 9; Alice, age 5; Isabella, age 3. Mary Elson, age 75 (widow). James Prince, age 33

1881, October 27 Birth of son, Joseph Samuel

1881, November 5 Death, in London, Ontario; age 42

1915, January 27 Death of husband; age 77

Sources

1. ↑ According to her tombstone, she was 42 years old when she died in late 1881.
2. ↑ A birth date of 8 April 1835 was previously entered here without a source, but that doesn't seem to line up with what we see in other sources, so I've removed it for the time being.
3. ↑ Maternal relationship is confirmed by an exact HVR1 match between this FamilyTreeDNA mtDNA test for Lianne Lavoie and this FamilyTreeDNA mtDNA test for their maternal line cousin Jon Shidler.
4. ↑ Death record and tombstone.

• 1852 Canadian census, Westminster township, Middlesex, Canada West

• 1861 Canadian census, Canada West (see image)

• 1871 Canadian census, London, Ontario; age 30; husband Henry, age 36; children: Elizabeth, age 11; John, age 9; Jane, age 7; Harriet, age 6; Ida, age 4; James, age 2.

• 1881 Canadian census, London, Ontario; age 42; husband Henry, age 45; children: John Henry, age 19; Jane, age 18; Harriet, age 16; Ida, age 13; James Edward, age 11; William, age 9; Alice, age 5; Isabella, age 3. Mary Elson, age 75 (widow). James Prince, age 33.

• Death record

See also:

• Sarah Jane Elson on FamilySearch Family Tree