In 1851 William Lester is living St Pancras as a servantIn 1856 William Lester marries Jane McNeil in St PancrasI think Jane (McNeil) Lester died JFM 1861 in St Pancras
There was a William Lester registered at Pewsey in 1837 and this is significant as the first son was certainly registered at Pewsey. Perhaps this is where Jane was taken for the birth of what would be an illegitimate child. William can be seen with his family in the census of 1841. By 1851, both parents had died and the children can be seen living with the grandparents at Hillcott, except for Martha who is believed died in 1842 and William who is a servant in London. He is in service to a family from Wiltshire at 12 Cumberland Place East, St Pancras and at No 10 is a shirtmaking/dressmaking business with apprentices. Maybe this is how William became exposed to tailoring. Subsequently, Jane moves to Cheltenham but they never marry. (It is worth noting that the marriages of Jane's three sisters can be found). William is something of a philanderer and Jane is happy to have the attention of a younger man. William probably spent much of his time away from the family (journeyman tailor) and maybe it was Jane who held together whatever business they may have had. Jane even describes herself as a widow in the census of 1871 - three years before he is cited on the birth certificate of Ada Florence. William eventually abandons his responsibilities and may even have emigrated. No record has yet been found of an emigration, but that would certainly explain why no death registration can be found either. One final note may be that William did indeed die before 1871, which would mean that Ada's paternal line is thrown into doubt!! She is staying with Maria Hart in Bloomsbury St in 1891. One final note, William was very sucessful in keeping his name from censuses.