Mary O'Connor of Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, says: I have a copy of the Birth Registration of my grandfather Thomas Augustus Wright, b. 13 December 1865 at the Jolly Bargeman Beerhouse, Cheshunt Marsh, Hertfordshire. It states that his father Thomas Wright was a taverner, and his mother Martha,( the informant of the birth) lived at the same Beerhouse. I have come to a brick wall in finding out anything about this Beerhouse where they lived and worked, and had their child. Any info on this place would be greatly appreciated.

If you look at a general map of the area it is likely that the Jolly Bargeman was on the Lea Navigation Canal (providing refreshment to the men who worked the canal) and a check of the 1881 census CD shows the following entry for the Jolly Bargeman, Cheshunt, Herts:

Eliza NEWMAN	Head, widow	52	Beerhouse Keeper	Ware, Herts
Joshua NEWMAN	Son	16	Baker	Whitechapel, Middx
Eliza Elizbth. NEWMAN	Daur	13	Scholar	Whitechapel, Middx
Edith Mary NEWMAN	Daur	10	Scholar	Whitechapel, Middx
Issabella HAYES	Daur	22		Spitalfields, Middx
George Wm. WARD	Son In Law	31	Labourer At Powder Mills	Coaton, Northants
Rose Elith. WARD	Grand Daur	5	Scholar	Guilsbrough, Northants
Alfred E. WARD	Grand Son	3	Scholar	Coaton, Northants
William G. WARD	Grand Son	2		Cheshunt, Herts

Looking at its neighbours it can be seen that they are given the address Cheshunt Marsh. It was a neighbour to Lock House, Cheshunt Marsh, (which would have been on the canal by a lock, and it is not far from a house called Prospect House on Windmill Street. If you look at a map of the Cheshunt area in the 1880's (Old Maps of Hertfordshire) you will see  Prospect House, on Windmill Street, adjacent to the railway station. Cheshunt Marsh, and the Jolly Bargeman, were to the East of this point - and may actually have been in Essex - and if not were very close to the boundary. If you look at a modern online street map, such as multimap, you will find that Windmill Street is now called Windmill Lane.

I also checked the 1882 Kelly's Directory for Hertfordshire and found the following entry:

Newman, Eliza (Mrs), beerretlr [beer retailer], Riversde [Riverside].

and this is common for other beer retailers - where the name is often not recorded in the trade directory.

I could not (from my limited library) find any information about your Wright family.

So where can you find more information. I am sure that there must be a least one good genealogical library near you, in Toronto, and the LDS are bound to have a Family History Centre (address on familysearch). In should be possible to find the Jolly Bargeman on the 1861 and 1871 census microfilms - and maybe your Wright family was there on one occasion. Looking at the 1851 and 1891 censuses could tell you a bit more about who was there - and hopefully the 1901 census will soon be available to you online. The LDS Family History Centres should be able to make microfilms of some trade directories available.

If you can add to the information given above tell me.

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