Robert Young was born on 12 Feb 1811, in Ireland. I do not have any information about his parents. Robert married Grace Futhey in Ireland in 1829 when he was 18 years old, and Grace was 20 years old.
Robert and Grace continued living in Ireland as they started their family. They had six children over the years. They were:
- William N Young born in 1829
- James N Young born 12 Sep 1832
- Sarah J Young born 6 Dec 1835
- Elizabeth Young born 16 Dec 1839
- Robert H Young born 23 Mar 1843
- Grace Young born Apr 1845
It appears that Robert had a run in with the law. Robert was recorded in the UK, Prison Hulk Registers and Letter Books of prisoners in England between 1802-1849. He was 26 at the time of his incarceration. Robert was convicted on 17 Oct 1837, in Chelmsford and began his stay on the ship, Fortitude, on 2 Nov 1837. The ship was moored in Chatham. Robert was incarcerated for about one year.
NOTE: A hulk is a decommissioned ship that is either technologically out of date or cannot make it through the open sea without taking on water, but is still able to float without problems. There were many of these ships available when engines started to power ships instead of sails, so the hulks were moored in harbors and used as floating prisons or for other purposes. The hulks’ place in harbors also made it easier to hold and transport convicts being sent to Australia. The first prison hulks in England appeared after a 1776 act allowed them to be used to house prisoners.
In November 1848, Robert and his family left Liverpool, England on the Charles Napier according to the Immigration New Orleans Passenger List 1820-1945 [National Archives Series Number M259_29]. They are listed on page 1 of 3 and are enumerated as passengers 17-24. The family arrived in New Orleans on 26 Nov 1848.
Robert and his family are shown in the 1850 Census as living in District 10, Tipton County, Tennessee. During this time, Robert experienced the cotton boom which was the lifeblood of Tennessee’s economy.
Robert’s daughter, Elizabeth, passed away on 25 Nov 1853, at the age of 13. On 4 Jan 1854, Grace, Robert’s wife, passed away at the age of 45. They had been married for 25 years. A couple of years later on 13 Mar 1856, he remarried to Sarah Ferguson in Tipton County. Robert and Sarah had one daughter, Milinda Catherine, born on 22 Apr 1858 in Tipton County.
Robert Young died on 26 Jan 1859, in Tipton County. He was 47 years old at the time of his death. He is buried in Mount Carmel Cemetery in Covington, Tennessee.