Thanks all for the info on this thread which has proved invaluable in my searches. My grandmother was a Hewson, the granddaughter of Thomas Hewson (1840-1889), son of George Hewson son of Thomas Hewson, tide waiter of Peel, I of M. The younger Thomas joined the navy before settling in Birmingham in the 1860s, where the family remained until recent times. Would be interested to know if anyone has got any further with discovering Thomas Hewson the Elder’s Irish origins? Alex