>Alfred William INKSON b. 1 Oct 1833

This branch of William Inkson's family seems to have withered on the vine. We thought that Alfred William himself disappeared from the records after the 1861 census - there is not even a death or burial record to be found - and that although Maria Jean, his wife, survived beyond 1871 before she too disappeared from the records. What is strange is that Maria Jean is recorded as 'married' in that 1871 census and not 'widowed' so where was Alfred William, if still living? We then found a record for the birth of a Kate Emma Inkson in Kings Lynn. Her birth certificate shows that Kate Emma was born on 5 Jun 1872 to Alfred William and Mary [sic] née Gore Inkson. The address is given as Chapel Street. That means that both Alfred William and Maria Jean survived until at least 1872 but it doesn't explain where William Alfred was on census night 1871.

Their son, Robert William [one researcher states that he was Robert William Gore Inkson but that is not as per the registration record - Q2 1859 Volume 4b, Page 381] died in in 1875 when he was only 18 years old. [It should be noted that the registration of death - Q2 1875 Volume 4b, Page 250 - records Robert William G Inkson which concurs with the researcher's view. The death certificate has not been requested.] Their daughter, Sarah, died when she was only 12 years old. She was buried at St Margaret's on 18 May 1873.

Kate Emma was born more than 10 years after her older sister and a full 13 years after her older brother. All three were alive when Kate Emma was an infant but then Sarah died and Robert William followed not long after. We don't know what happened subsequently because none of the family are obvious in the 1881 census but there is a Kate Inkson in the 1891 census, working in London as a domestic servant. She is noted as 18 years old - which fits - but born in Norwich, Norfolk - which doesn't. Is this Kate Emma and what happened after that?