- Born: 18 July 1847, Skibbereen, Co. Cork, Ireland
- Marriage: Martha Northover on 30 August 1875 in Union Hall Church, Co. Cork, Ireland
- Died: 5 November 1923, 48 Vanbrugh Hill, Greenwich, London aged 76 13
 General Notes:
Wine and Spirit Merchant in 1897. Messenger in 1901 Census.
Taken from an email received 05/02/2003 from Lynne Symms Logan
Charles John Symms Sr. was with the Irish Coast Guard then the British
Coast Guard until his retirement. He worked as a guard at the
Greenwich Observatory (astronomy) until his sight failed. His
youngest son Stanley worked at the same Observatory as a human
computer. It is possible that the father got the son the job. The
computers did all the time consuming math and computations necessary
for astronomy. I found his personal observatory code
(SYM) on the internet which leads me to believe he was eventually
promoted to astronomer. During the bombing of England he was moved to
a different Observatory in Scotland where he worked until retirement.
Charles John Symms Sr. oldest son was Charles John Symms Jr. He was
in the British Army and served for 20 years. During his service
Charles Jr. saw action in Africa. I believe this was the Boer War.
After he retired from the Military he worked 20 years in as a postal
clerk. After retiring from civil service he purchased and ran a Grog
shop. Much of the aforementioned information is from correspondence
between Charles Jr. or Harry Humphries (Thurza's husband) and my
Grandmother. I have a letter postmarked 1965 from Charles Jr.;
however, as he is almost 90 his handwriting is somewhat
diminished and is for the most part unintelligible. I plan to spend
some time learning his script in an attempt to decode what is perhaps
his last letter.
Noted events in his life were:
1. Census UK 1881: 1881, 1 Coast Guard Cottages, Hastings, Sussex.
2. Census UK 1891: 1891, 78 Wellington Street, Bromley.
3. Census UK 1901: 1901, 78 Wellington Street, Bromley.
4. Census UK 1911: 1911, 11 Annandale Road, Greenwich, London. 10
5. Resided: 5 November 1923, 11 Annandale Road, Greenwich, London. 13
6. He had an estate probated on 19 November 1923 in London. 13
Charles married Martha Northover on 30 August 1875 in Union Hall Church, Co. Cork, Ireland. (Martha Northover was born on 23 May 1857 in Bundoran, Co. Donegal, Ireland and died on 15 August 1922 in London.)
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