The Foinquinos from England #2

Last time, I talked about Messod and Hana Benabou from Gibraltar, and their children. It seems that only Leon (Judah) and his brother Isaac moved to England, all the other ones stayed in Gibraltar or went back to Tangier.

Isaac seemed to be the manager of the lithography shop Leon opened in Liverpool that employed 10 people in 1862. He got married that year with Elizabeth Maddocks and changed his surname to Francis James, dropping the Foinquinos surname. He had 3 daughters, Emilie, Amy and Florence Dale James. After that, it is hard to follow his descendants among all the other James in England and elsewhere.

I will therefore concentrate my efforts on Leon/Judah's descendants from Liverpool. He is Messod and Hana's first son and he is the best known thru the archives found. He is born in 1830 in Gibraltar and leaves for England where he settles in Liverpool and get married at 22 with Sophia Watts. Like his father, he will have 10 children. Four die the same year of their birth (the first two Hana Clementine in 1854, Julia 1856-1857, then Florence in 1864 and Frederick in 1866). The other children are:

Charles Meshod also known as Chas, (1857-1916) is listed as Merchant Commissioner in 1889. He married Edith Annie Smith and dies in Southport. His name is in the archives of Ellis Island, when he visited the United States and arrived in New York in 1890. He only had one daughter, Marjorie Foinquinos, who died in 1997 single.

Georges (1859-1941) married Lydia Kenney. He had a son George Harold that we found visiting Brazil with his wife Mildred, and also a daughter Dorothee Foinquinos who married Harry Elstone.

Emily (1861-1944), marries Richard Marshall Roberts. She is Elizabeth Simpson 's grand mother , Elizabeth as you recall was the english genealogist of the english family.

Samuel Henry (1863-1891) marries Louise Pemberton. His son, Herbert Watts Foinquinos, took the family name of his grand mother, Sophie Watts. We find his name in the Arras Memorial archives, as a Lance Corporal in the english infantery. He is listed under the Memorial Plaque Names #10 in Arras. He died during the first World War, on May 24. 1917. Marechal Haig, commander of the british army, launched a massive attack between April and May 1917 in the Pas-de-Calais to break the german blockade, although it is not successful, it weakens the german army. Thousand of deaths on both sides are the result, and numerous memorials commemorate this battle in Arras.

Leon et Sophia last 2 children are his son Alfred (1867- ? ), not much is known about him, and Ettie Louise (1870-1940) who stayed single. Carole Bendrihem et Simone FM de Haifa are still searching their archives, so it is possible that we might know more soon.

In conclusion, they are children that we can easily follow and other not. As it is almost the norm with the Foinquinos who are always mobile, each settles according to his wishes, luck or where love takes him. Many change names and religion. They take a new name when they convert or take the name of their mother or grand mother, Sophie Watts.

As for Leon, Messod son, he continued living in Liverpool where he founded with other jews of the city, the first jewish temple, he owned a lithography shop, is listed as Merchant Commissioner and established numerous import export and freight transport companies. He also applied for a patent on enveloppes in 1867 and died at 50 from apoplexia. According to the death certificate,his son George was present.

To judge from the wedding certificates found, many of Leon sisters, daughter, grand daughters stayed singles. As Simone FM was reminding me, girls received dowries before getting married, which might not have been the simplest thing as in this case they were many . We also noticed that many of the Foinquinos males die young leaving widows and children behind them.