Ancestors of Henry Mercer

1. Henry MERCER b. 11 May 1839, Kingston Upon Hull, Yorkshire, England, m. (1) 5 Oct 1864, in Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, England, Louise Juliette EMERSON, b. 2 Jun 1844, Le Havre, France, d. 6 Mar 1884, Sheffield, Yorkshire, England, m. (2) 3 Dec 1892, Charlotte O'BRIEN. Henry died 5 Jan 1908, Sheffield, Yorkshire, England.

Henry was left as partner with his brother Fletcher in the family seed crushing business while the other two brothers, William and Francis Palmer, acted as brokers for them in Hull and Liverpool.
He left the business in the 1880's and retired to Sheffield where he lived until his death.

Parents

2. Fletcher MERCER b. 4 Oct 1802, Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, England, occupation Seed Crusher, m. 20 Dec 1832, in Lincoln, Lincolnshire, England, Milicent Ann MOXON, b. 1816, d. 1878, Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, England, buried: Morton Churchyard, Gainsborough. Fletcher died 3 Jul 1876, Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, England.

Fletcher was apprenticed by his father to Messrs. W Jones & Company and later with Cropper, Benson & Company, both of Liverpool. It was on one of his periodic visits home from Liverpool that he met and fell in love with Millicent Ann, then a schoolgirl of seventeen, living in Lincoln.
One fine morning, armed with a licence, he rode on horseback to Lincoln and there they married. Shortly after the marriage they moved to Hull and it was while there that their four children were born.
Later he joined his father in the family business in Gainsborough, and on the death of his father he moved into the family residence in Caskgate Street. He was the church warden between 1853 and 1856.
He lived a quiet life, devoting himself to the working up of the seed crushing business.

3. Milicent Ann MOXON b. 1816, d. 1878, Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, England, buried: Morton Churchyard, Gainsborough.

Grand Parents

4. William MERCER occupation Bookkeeper, and Mary Elizabeth PALMER, d. 1812, m. 27 Dec 1828, Mary Ann LACY. William died 1845, Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, England.

He was a bookkeeper with the firm John Tidd, Sooby Stuart, Mercer and Company, owners of a large fleet of whaling ships operating out of Hull and Liverpool.
The whaling fleet, the names of some of which were the Abram, the Hickman, the Albion, the William and the William Torr, came to a sad end, being lost in a storm off the coast of Greenland. The firm then continued with their Baltic trade in linseed, cotton seed and rape seed, which they crushed and made into cake for cattle, selling the oils extracted. In 1821 Mr Sooby retired and the business was then called Tidd, Mercer and Company.
From his immaculate appearance he earned for himself the soubriquet, "Bandbox Billy."
He built Cedar Cottage in North Marsh Road

5. Mary Elizabeth PALMER d. 1812.

6. Francis MOXON b. 1874, m. 22 Aug 1813, in Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, England, Elizabeth HILL, b. 13 Sep 1789.

7. Elizabeth HILL b. 13 Sep 1789.

Great Grand Parents

8. William MERCER and Unknown _____. William died 1815, Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, England.

He came to Gainsborough at the end of the 18th Century from a village named Maltby, in the North East Riding of Yorkshire, with his two sons, Joseph and William.
He was buried in the North West side of the Gainsborough Parish Church.

9. Unknown _____.

10. Francis MOAKSON b. 18 Jul 1752, Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, England, and 4 Oct 1778, in Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, England, Ann SCALES, b. 7 Apr 1761, Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, England.

11. Ann SCALES b. 7 Apr 1761, Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, England.

14. Samuel HILL b. 1755, m. 19 Apr 1785, Ann WORNER, b. 30 Nov 1755.

15. Ann WORNER b. 30 Nov 1755.

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these pages prepared 15 november 1997 and updated 28 December 1999