Searching for an ancestor in Brazil
This is my first post, so I hope I’m putting it in the right place. My g.g.grandfather was Joseph Brook Sanders, born in Devon, England in 1836. He is with his family in 1841 and 51, but hasn’t been found in 1861. He resurfaces in Devon in 1865 when his first known child is born. He is married to a German lady named Lydia Sieffert, although I have never found a marriage record. They have three children together, including my g.grandmother.
In 1881, Lydia is in Mile End, London, England and says she is widowed. She also says she was born in Brazil, not Germany, and that she is a naturalised citizen. So that is part of this puzzle. The other part is that Joseph Brook Sanders isn’t dead, he resurfaces in Brazil applying for a passport in 1891. Also, I recently found an 1874 Freemason record for him which states ‘raised in Brazil’. I paid them to do a search but unfortunately they were unable to say where in Brazil. He was thrown out of the Fulham lodge for not paying his membership. I also found bankruptcy records in London newspapers, so think he may have fled the country to avoid his debts.
In 1871 the family are living in a house in Fulham with a servant, but by 1881 Lydia is in a room in the East End which is quite a difference. The family were definitely still in Fulham until 1875 as that is where their last child was born.
The main facts I am looking for are about his life in Brazil. Did he start a new family there? When and where did he die? Did he use the passport he gained in 1891 to maybe move again to another country? He was a master builder/carpenter so should have been easily able to find work. Any help and ideas would be welcome, this has been a brick wall for so long. TIA
TLDR: Searching for Joseph Brook Sanders in Brazil from 1875 onwards (born Devon, England 1836)