So Back to William and his bricks. By 1870 when their daughter Annie was born they were living in lodgings in Warrington. The following year the 1871 census finds them with a house to themselves in Glazebrook, a village between Warrington and Urmston. Presumably a nicer place to live than a room in someone else's house in central Warrington.  

Whilst there may have been other temporary re-locations in between, the next positive sighting of William & Elizabeth is when their son James was baptised in St Pancras London. ( No  in St Pancras Church not in the !@£$$% railway station !!) The 1881 census finds them at 1 Leybourn St  Saint Pancras. By 1891 his son George is married and living nearby at Rhyl St.

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In 1884 William's wife Elizabeth died, I have not been able to definitely establish what happened to William after this.  A William Purser of the right age died in 1887 in Kensington, however I can find no documents to link him to Turvey, St Pancras or our Purser family. Another William Purser died in 1911 in the Bedford Union Workhouse, this William Purser was born in Pavenham, there were no other William Pursers born in Pavenham around the time of our man. So it is highly likely that previously successful Bricky & builder William died in the workhouse.

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How would this have come about?  Well,  William's Son George Thomas Purser followed him into the family business, this did not end well as we are about to see.  I would surmise that when the building firm collapsed (quite literally)  the ruin of George must have taken  his father with him. Whilst George escaped the consequences, William may have been left hung out to dry.