The Willis Tree

The mystery surrounding what happened to my 2xGreat Grandfather William Nicholls – who was last recorded as a Gunner in the Royal Artillery stationed at Fort St George in Madras, India in 1876 [see A Biography of my Great Grandfather, William NICHOLLS (1870-1932)] – is a few steps closer to being solved.

Thanks to Sylvia – a new contact on the Who Do You Think You Are? online forum - I have been able to add more information to what I had so far found out about William and his family.

A record of William’s death and burial have been found – he died in Madras in January 1877 aged 31.  No more details are known at present.

His two youngest children – Charles and Henry – both sadly died before their first birthdays.

The search for more about their sister, Elizabeth Ann Nicholls continues.

My next search is to find the military records for William and his compatriot, John Gorman (who married William’s widow the year after his death).

Sylvia advises:

Paul – my guess is that John Gorman was probably retired to pension, in which case you should be able to find a service record for him in the collection of “Chelsea Pensions” records digitised by FindMyPast.
Sadly no such record is likely to exist for William Nicholls because he died in service.

The only way to trace his service will be through the muster and pay lists held at The National Archives in Kew. The catch is that the R.A. was such a large organisation and unless you know which company William was in, you (or a researcher) may not know where to start. However, it is reasonably likely that Ellen’s 2nd husband had served in the same company, so once you know this, it may provide a starting point for further research.
Sylvia