Playne family

Information has been searched from---paid for genealogy sites; free ones such as familysearch.org,  various Texas records; US immigration records, US city directories and newspapers, US burial records, and Google to name a few.

I think Edward and Maurice may have arrived in Texas via Galveston. Maurice, and maybe his US family, possibly paid for Edward's grave. As the brothers disappeared from England around the same period---1870s-- I thought a good chance that they were together when they did.

I've also been following the forum Erika originally posted on and their observations which so far, have stayed in England. 

And you might hear about family history and having a skeleton in the cupboard  and in the odd case here, this was literally true.......

 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-13052364

I know it's been over ten years, but i still try to find information on Edward, occasionally.  I struck gold this week!  I found a newspaper article from The Galveston Daily News (Texas) dated Wednesday, July 30, 1884.  I could not attach it here, so I will type what it says below:

"Hesperian:  A fatal accident occurred at Leakey, Edwards County, on Saturday last, to a man named Edward Washbourn, while digging a well.  Washbourn had been working down in the well about twenty minutes when he called for the rope and he succeeded in getting within twelve feet of the surface, when he fained and fell thirty feet and was instantly killed." 

I also found my picture of his grave.  It is also viewable on findagrave.com.  His headstone reads:

In loving memory of Edward Playne Washbourne of  Nailsworth Gloucestershire England

Died July 19, 1884

Thy will be done