Susannah Tonks?

Timothy's daughter, Susannah, has been quite an interesting and confusing person to research. Susannah was born in 1833. We know she married my ancestor, Aaron Hill, but we don't have an exact date for that. To start gathering information on Susannah, I decided to do a census search for Susannah and her parents in 1841 and 1851 in Staffordshire, England. In 1841, when Susannah was about seven years old, I found her with her parents and some of her siblings in Willenhall, Staffordshire, England.

I then searched for Susannah Tonks in the 1851 census, and I came up with nothing. I wasn't too concerned because Susannah would about have been about 18 years old, so she must have gotten married. I then looked up the marriage of Susannah Tonks in the FamilySearch Historical Database. And what I found was quite the surprise....

Timothy Tonks: A convert to the LDS Church

It all started out with my mother's story. When she was eleven years old, she and her parents and siblings began to take discussions with the LDS missionaries. Although it required her family to makes some big changes, they embraced the gospel and joined the church together. Four and a half long years later, her parents were able to save up enough money to travel from Michigan to the closest temple, which was in Washington D.C. They were finally able to be sealed as a family. It was because of my mom's conversion to the gospel that allowed me to grow up in the LDS Church. And I think it was my mom's love for the example of her parents that led me to my interest in family history work.

While my area of emphasis is the British Isles, I have always had a great interest in Latter-day Saint converts and pioneers. I have always wondered which ancestors of mine brought the great blessing of the gospel into my life. While doing some research on the Tonks in Staffordshire, England, I came across records suggesting that Susannah Tonks (Timothy's daughter) joined the LDS Church in England. I later found out that Timothy and his wife had also joined the church. This information brought a world of questions to me about this family. I have since decided to spend some time discovering more about the Tonks family who brought the gospel to me. This blog is a way for me to begin sharing the information I have found.