The Conn families of Devon and Cornwall

Research by David Conn
and
Martin Willcocks

Most of these records have been taken from the IGI and the 1901 census. None of the parish registers have, as yet, been searched. Additional material has been provided by Michael Willcocks (USA) who is a descendant of John Conn and Ann Frances Cooper. Anyone who wishes to investigate this family should contact Michael, and visit the web site www.ageofnelson.org where he provides a full and up to date account, including the Irish connections.

The River Tamar is the boundary between the Counties of Devon and Cornwall, and the family of John and Ann Conn is found initially in the parish of Stoke Dameral in Plymouth, Devon. The family then crossed over the Tamar into the parishes of Antony and St. Clement in Cornwall.

The Family of John Conn and Ann Frances Cooper.

There is considerable controversy about the origins of John Conn, but he is thought to have come from Waterford in Ireland. He was the gunner in HMS Weazle.
His first son, also called John, entered the Navy as a thirteen year old volunteer, joining his father in the Weazle,
and later became famous as the captain of HMS Dreadnought at the Battle of Trafalgar.

Ann Cooper (Frances was probably added at confirmation) was baptised at Stoke Dameral on 19 Jul 1747, the daughter of Daniel Cooper and Elizabeth Kent..

Their children were:-

1. 1764 Aug 5. Bap John s of John & Ann Frances Conn, Stoke Dameral.
2. 1766 Jul 6. Bap Ann Frances d of John & Ann Frances Conn, Stoke Dameral. Married Alexander Henderson, 21 Jan 1789, Antony, Cornwall.
3. 1768 Mar 25. Bap Robert s of John & Ann Frances Conn, Stoke Dameral.
4. 1770 Oct 5. Bap William Oakley s of John & Ann Frances Conn, Stoke Dameral.
5. 1773 Dec 14. Bap Charles Cooper s of John & Ann Frances Conn, Stoke Dameral.
6. 1776 Nov 27. Bap Mary Ann d of John & Ann Frances Conn, Stoke Dameral.

It is thought that Ann Frances died between 1776 and 1782, and on 29 Jan 1782 John married Ann Catterall at Liverpool.
They moved to Antony in Cornwall, where they had two children:-

1. 1782 Jun 3. Bap of Peggy d of John and Ann Conn at Antony, Cornwall.
2. 1784 Dec 26. Bap of Harriet d of John and Ann Conn at Antony, Cornwall.
   Harriet married James Taylor at Stoke Dameral 20 Nov 1806.

• 1797 Dec 28. Marriage of Mary Ann Conn and Robert Willcocks, St Mary's Portsea. Some members of this family are to be found in the USA.
• 1811. Death of John Conn according to his Navy records.

The family of John Conn (1764-1810) and Margaret Nelson (1767-1836)

At the age of thirteen John joined his father in HMS Weazle and he later became famous
as the captain of HMS Dreadnought at the battle of Trafalgar.
To see a summary of his career, press Captain John Conn.
He married Margaret Nelson at Stoke Dameral on 19 Jan 1792. Margaret was the daughter of the Rev Nelson of Mitford, Northumberland ,where Margaret was baptised 16 Feb 1767. It was erroneously stated by McKintyre in his Trafalgar Roll of 1913 that Lord Nelson was related to this Nelson family.
They had one child called Henry.

• 1792 Jan 19. Marriage of John Conn and Margaret Nelson at Stoke Dameral, Devon
• circa 1793. Birth of Henry, s of John and Margaret Conn
• 1810 May 4. Death of John Conn. Fell overboard and was drowned of the Bermuda Islands.
• 1836 Aug 18. Burial of Margaret (Nelson) Conn, aged 72.
• 1815 Dec 21. Marriage of Henry Conn & Cecilia Bate at St Clement, Cornwall.

The family of Henry Conn (1793-1860) and Cecilia Bate (1795-1828)

Their children were:-

1. 1817 Feb 17. Bap John s of Henry & Cecilia Conn, St Clement, Cornwall.
2. 1818 Apr 19. Bap Mary Knowles d of Henry & Cecilia Conn, St Clement, Cornwall. Died unmarried in 1898.
3. 1819 Aug 25. Bap Elizabeth d of Henry & Cecilia Conn, St Clement, Cornwall.
4. 1821 Jan 21. Bap Cecilia Ann d of Henry & Cecilia Conn, St Clement, Cornwall. Married Matthew John Moyle. At some stage moved to USA.
5. 1822 Apr 16. Bap Margaret Jane d of Henry & Cecilia Conn, St Clement, Cornwall. Buried 3 Jan 1828, St Clement, aged 6.
6. 1823 Oct 12. Bap Henry Nelson Thornton s of Henry & Cecilia Conn, St Clement, Cornwall.
7. 1825 Jun 16. Bap William s of Henry & Cecilia Conn, St Clement, Cornwall.
8. 1826 Nov 21. Hannah Foster d of Henry & Cecilia Conn, St Clement, Cornwall. Buried Dec 1843, Truro.

• 1828 Sep 1. Burial of Cecilia Conn at St Clement, Cornwall, aged 33.
• 1833 Apr 20. Marriage of Henry Conn and Mary Susanna Neupert at St Clements, Cornwall.

The family of Henry Conn (1793-1860) and Mary Susanna Neupert (1802- )

Mary Susanna Neupert was the daughter of John George and Susanna Neupert of Westminster, London. She was born 31 Mar 1802 and baptised 1 Apr 1802 at St James Church, Westminster. She had an elder brother, Edward, and two younger sisters, Georgiana and Charlotte.

Their children were:-

1. 1834 May 27. Bap Mary Georgiana Anne d of Henry and Mary Susanna Conn, Truro, Cornwall.
2. 1836 A stillborn child.
3. 1837 A stillborn child.
4. 1838 Sep 19, Bap Adolphus Arthur s of Henry and Mary Susanna Conn, Truro, Cornwall. Was married in London in Mar 1863.
5. 1842 Bap Rosina d of Henry and Mary Susanna Conn, St Clement, Cornwall. Buried Mar 1852, Droitwich.
6. 1846 Bap Florence d of Henry and Mary Susanna Conn, Pimlico. Buried Sep 1863, Southampton.

It is known that some members of this family emigrated to America.

Additional records from Devon

1581 Jun 3. Bap of Esdras the son of William Conne at Totnes.
1632 Jan 16. Marriage of William Conn and Margaret Browning at Crediton.
1637 Jun 5. Marriage of Alice Conn and Augustyne Parker at Crediton.
1637 Aug 26. Marriage of Thomas Conne and Alice Mules at Frithelstock.
1640 Nov 29. Bap of John son of Joseph and Eede Conn at Yarcombe.
1642 Oct 2. Bap of John son of William and Margaret Conne of Crediton.
1674 Mar 13. Marriage of Elizabeth Conne to Richard Willitone at Kingsbridge.
1701 Jul 26. Marriage of John Conn and Ann Lee at Plymouth St Andrews.
1708 Aug 23. Marriage of Mary Con and Christopher Rooles at Exeter St Sidwell.
1730 May 18. Marriage of Clara Conn and Henry Slade at Ide.
1735 Feb 19. Marriage of John Conn and Joanna Wright at Plymouth St Andrew.
1735 May 7. Marriage of Mary Con and Thomas Galsworthy at Pancrasweck.
1799 May 1. Marriage of Mary Conn and William Williams at Ashburton.

Additional records from Cornwall

1640 May 7. Marriage of Willyam Conn and Dorothy Payne at Easr Newlyn.
1689 Jul 7. Marriage of Grace Conn and Ralph Cory at Tregony with Cuby.
1730 Sep 21. Bap Mark s of Mark Conn, Launceston
1809 Jun 12. Marriage of Mary Conn and James Downay at Maker.

The 1901 census shows that another Conn family was living in Cornwall. Great care must be taken with this family because in the 1851 and the 1881 census the name is given as CORIN (in cursive writing it could be mistaken for Conn). I have not seen any of the original census pages, only transcriptions, so I can't comment about this family at the moment. Perhaps the Indexes to BMD might sort out this problem.

William C Conn (b. 1820, Ludgvan) married to Jane (b. 1821. St Just)

They moved to Gulval, Cornwall, where their children were:-

1. 1859 William C, Gulval. He was married to Mary A. (b. 1860, Gulval). Their children were:-
   • 1884 William C., Gulval
   • 1900. Lillian, Gulval
2. 1874.Thomas, Gulval. He married Elizabeth (b.1876, Newlyn) and moved to Penzance. Their children were:-
   • 1896. Joseph J R, Penzance.
   • 1900. Thomas, Penzance.

The 1901 census also shows that Mary R Conn (b. 1840, Gwennap) and her daughter Lillian B Conn (b. 1876, Redruth) were living in Redruth, Cornwall.