Author: Lilley, Thomas
Biography:
LILLEY, Thomas (b c. 1811)
His Battle of the Nile, published at Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Leicestershire, in 1835, was dated from the nearby hamlet of Overseale (Over Seal) and dedicated to the rector of Nether Seal, William Nigel Greisley (1806-47). Greisley became the ninth baronet Gresley (sic) on the death of a cousin two years later. Apparently the two had become friends as young professionals in the district. Greisley was a clergyman, Lilley a schoolmaster. A second collection, Village Musings, was published at Market-Bosworth in 1837. In the census of 1841, Lilley was registered as a schoolmaster, still living in Overseal, single, and boarding with the family of a wainwright; the birthdate given is 1811. By 1851 he had moved to Stourbridge Union, Worcestershire, but was still an unmarried schoolmaster, lodging with a widow; his birthdate is given as 1809 and the birthplace as Atherstone, Warwickshire. No corresponding birth records have been found, however, and the names of his parents are not known. Nor is it clear where or when he died, though he was certainly not the younger Thomas Lilley who was buried at Birmingham in 1859. (ancestry.co. 19 Jan. 2024; findmypast.com 19 Jan. 2024) HJ