I am attempting to discover the family and parents of my GtGt/gfather, JOHN WAKEFIELD. As an 18 yearold he became involved in the notorious Oct 1831 riots in Bristol. As a result, he won a free trip, for a lifetime, to Sunny Australia. I have a transcript of the 1851 Census of St George, and found the names of William Wakefield (53), Henry Wakefield (43), and Isaac Wakefield (42), along with a Charlotte Wakefield (widow 73), -- It is highly likely that these are the family of our John, as, all his sons bear the same names. John's death cert gives no information as to his parents, or place of origin. it is only through the brief Australian prisoner records, that I have traced him back to Bristol, where the Gloucestershire Records Office, shows that he was -- arrested at his (parent's) home in St George and charged on Nov 4 1831, he was sentenced in March 1832, and started his voyage June 1832, arriving in late Dec 1832.
If anyone has any light on this matter, I and the rest of the Wakefield family here in New Zealand would greatly appreciate to hear from you.
Len Wakefield