Brough and Myatt

The English and Australian Descendants

of Richard Brough and Rosannah Myatt

by R. Clayton Brough and Roy Victor Brough, August 2009

Richard Brough and Mary Horleston were married on 7 August 1825 in Stoke-Upon-Trent, Staffordshire, England. Following their marriage their first child, Richard Brough Jr., was christened on 23 September 1827 in Longton, Lane End, St. John, Staffordshire.

Richard Brough Jr. married Rosannah Myatt on 2 August 1846 in Fulford Chapel, Stone, Staffordshire, and during his life he worked as a coal miner, potter and brick-burner in Staffordshire. Richard and Rosannah raised five children--including Richard Myatt (Brough).

Richard Myatt (Brough) was born on 3 May 1846--three months prior to the marriage of his mother, Rosannah Myatt, to Richard Brough. Although Richard Myatt (Brough)'s biological father was not listed on his birth certificate, Richard Myatt (Brough) often identified his parents as Richard Brough and Rosannah Myatt, and he honored them as such by continually being affiliated with them and occasionally using the Brough surname. Today the Brough Family Organization lists Richard Myatt (Brough) as an "adopted" son of Richard Brough (chr.1827).

Interestingly, Rosannah Myatt's grandparents were Thomas Myatt (chr.1764) and Margaret Brough (chr.1772), and Margaret Brough was a "7th cousin" to Richard Brough, b.1786--whom the RBFO is named after. (The common male ancestor of Richard Brough and Margaret Brough is John Burgh of Middle Hulme, Leek, Staffordshire, who lived 1508-1557.) Therefore, the descendants of Richard Myatt (Brough) (b.1846) are Broughs by "blood" through their female Myatt ancestry.

Richard Myatt (Brough) & Elizabeth Bradburne (Wilshaw) (Married: 1866)

Richard Myatt (Brough) was born on 3 May 1846--three months prior to the marriage of his mother, Rosannah Myatt, to Richard Brough, and he was christened in Longton on 12 May 1846 as "Richard Myatt". Richard Myatt (Brough) appears to have used the Myatt surname throughout much of his early life--including identifying himself as "Richard Myatt" on his marriage certificate to Elizabeth Bradburne in 1866. However, both the 1851 and 1861 Census identifies Richard Myatt as the "son" of Richard Brough and Rosannah; and by the time Richard Myatt was 35 years old he was identifying himself as "Richard Brough"--which is how he is listed in the 1881 Census. During his life, Richard Myatt (Brough) worked as a "Brickmaker" (in the 1861 Census) and a "Coal Miner" (in the 1881 Census).

Richard Myatt (Brough) and Elizabeth Bradburne had two sons, with the first son named Thomas Myatt (Brough), born on 12 April 1866 in Mount Pleasant, Longton, Staffordshire, England. Elizabeth Bradburne (Wilshaw) Brough died when she was only 25 years old on 27 November 1871, leaving her husband, Richard Myatt (Brough), a 25 year old widower.

Thomas Myatt (Brough) & Ellen France (Married: 1888; Thomas left England for Australia in 1885)

Thomas Myatt (Brough) was born on 12 April 1866 as "Thomas Myatt" (according to his birth certificate). However, he is listed in the 1881 Census as "Thomas Brough," a 16 year old "Labourer General," who was living with his father "Richard Brough," a 35 year old "Widower" and "Coal Miner." Thomas Myatt (Brough) was only five years old when his mother, Elizabeth Bradburne (Wilshaw) Brough died in 1871. From 1871 until at least 1881, Thomas lived with his widowed father, Richard Myatt (Brough). In 1885, Thomas Myatt (Brough) left England and sailed to Australia, where he identified himself as "Thomas Brough". Thomas married Ellen France on 5 May 1888 in a "private residence" and "according to the rites" of the "Baptist Church" in Lambton, New South Wales, Australia. At the time of their marriage, Thomas was a described as a "Miner" and Ellen as a "Domestic Servant." Ellen France was born in 1869 in Lancashire, England and went to Australia in 1877 when she was eight years old. Thomas Myatt (Brough) and Ellen France eventually had ten children. Their eighth child was named Roy Victor Myatt Brough, who was born on 6 February 1899.

In March 2003, Roy Victor Brough stated the following about Thomas Myatt (Brough) and Ellen France: "It appears my great grandfather, Thomas Myatt Brough, emigrated to Australia from his birthplace of Longton, Staffordshire. From my understanding, Thomas settled and remained in the Newcastle area which is 100 miles north of Sydney in the state of New South Wales. He married Ellen France who was also from Staffordshire. ...My great grandfather was a businessman. At one point in time he operated a dairy, and in later life had a garage for motor vehicle repair and a shop. I never met the man, but I do remember my great grandmother [Ellen France]. She was by all accounts a feisty lady and lived to a great age. Both are buried in the Newcastle area."

Visit here for information on the Australian descendants of Thomas Myatt Brough