Hello;

I am researching a Captain John Townsend (merchant marine (?) for the Pacific & Orient Company) and his wife Eliza Ann (Bennett) whose daughter, Eliza Ann Townsend, is believed to have been born in Shanghai, China in 1854. Eliza's mother died (unknown where) and Eliza attended school in England before being sent to live with her uncle, Dr. Thomas Bennett, in San Francisco, California in 1866. I am seeking information on how to go about research of records of British subjects living in China in 1840-1860. Suggestions?