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England (Counties as in 1851-1901) => England => Lancashire => Topic started by: Claire1 on Saturday 29 January 05 20:15 GMT (UK)
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Hopefully SKS can help
Mary Elizabeth McKEAND had a daughter who was later adopted in 1874. The letter from the solicitor reads as follows..
"I Robert Henry BROWNELL do hereby agree to adopt Mary Elizabeth the daughter of Elizabeth McKEAD and the same Elizabeth McKEAND to have no further claim on the said Mary Elizabrth McKEAD from this date April 20th also the namer Elizabeth McKEAD to pay me the sum of 3 pounds on the 22nd day of May 1874.
Robert Henry BROWNELL
Witness: George McKEAND
29th April 1874
Received sixpence for the stamp duty
W Henry ROBINSON
Solicitirs, Walsall"
I am looking for more info on either Robert BROWNELL, Elizabeth or Mary McKEAND
Elizabeth later went on to marry Jospeh ROME and had another daughter Matilda on 05/04/1894.
Any help would be appreciated. Was it normal to not only give away a child born out of wedlock but also to pay someone to take the child?
Claire
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Hi
Give me a clue, i need one. when was the Mary Elizabeth born, and where?
Wendy
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Hi Wendy
This is the 3rd time I’ve tried to reply, but it keeps disappearing!
Mary Elizabeth was adopted in 1874 and I assume she was not very old as the stigma would have been great in those days for an unmarried mother. I believe she would have been born in either Everton or W Derby area of Liverpool
Her mother Elizabeth married Joseph ROME in 1889 in Everton. They went on to have 5 children – Joseph 1892, Edward 1897, Ada 1891, Matilda 1895 (my husbands ggm) and Elizabeth 1899.
In 1901 Joseph is a widower living at 90 Edinburgh St, Everton with all his children and his aunt Mrs C Oliphant.
There is a death for an Elizabeth ROME age 30 in 1899 in W Derby so I am wondering if she died giving birth to her youngest child
This brings me back to anther puzzle. If Elizabeth was born in 1869 and Mary Elizabeth was adopted in 1874, the dates don’t tie up. Perhaps Mary Elizabeth used only her middle name and it was her who married Joseph ROME and it was her that was given up for adoption – the dates seem better on that.
Hope you can help throw some light onto the subject
Claire
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Hi Clair
Thanks for that that would make more sense.
I did find this one and only man named Robert Henry Brownell but he was born in 1827.
Here are his details for the 1881 census but if it is him where is the adopted child? The child called Elizabeth Brownell who is 14 was with him in the 1871 census.
Any way here those details
Florence E. Barker abt 1874 Liverpool, Lancashire, England Unknown West Derby
Elizabeth Boswell abt 1867 Liverpool, Lancashire, England Servant West Derby
Elizabeth Brownell abt 1867 Liverpool, Lancashire, England Daughter West Derby
Ellen Brownell abt 1827 Scotland Wife West Derby
Ellen Brownell abt 1867 Liverpool, Lancashire, England Daughter West Derby
James Brownell abt 1864 Liverpool, Lancashire, England Son West Derby
Robert Brownell abt 1853 Liverpool, Lancashire, England Son West Derby
Robert Hy. Brownell abt 1827 Norton On Moor, Staffordshire, England Head West Derby
Catherine Mc Cauley abt 1800 Ireland Lodger West Derby
Wendy
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Thanks Wendy
It gets more confusing by the minute!
Claire
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Hi Clare
My name is Jonathan Bryan. Elizabeth McKeand is my 2nd great grandmother. My greatgrandmother is Ada Rome. I am also looking for the same Mary Elizabeth Mckeand who was adopted by Robert Henry Brownall. My nana, Josephine Rome daughter of Ada had a copy of the adoption letter. Have you been able to get any further researching her? Can you please get in touch? I am also trying to found out about Mrs C Oliphant and I believe my McKeand branch of my tree may now be wrong. You can contact me directly at (*).
Regards
Jonathan
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Hi Jonathan,
Claire has not been online since 2005 but I think I have tracked her down on another website. Just sent a message with a link to your reply so lets hope she reads your message very soon.
Regards
Sarah :)
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What a shame,
But according to Joseph Romes marriage his wife doesn't state her fathers name either,so I suppose that is the problem here,and she is 23 years old making her birth 1866,so adopted at eight,
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There is a baptism record dated 17 Jul 1866 for Eliza McKeand in Liverpool. This is the same year Elizabeth was born. It also records a George and Elizabeth as the parents. Could the father George be the same George as the witness on the adoption letter? If this Elizabeth is the same Mary Elizabeth, where does the name Mary come from?
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Furthermore, how can she be born and christened Elizabeth McKeand and then later be adopted by Robert Henry Brownell as Mary Elizabeth McKeand and then later be married to Joseph Rome as Elizabeth McKeand again. Having said that, three of her children all have a copy of this adoption letter and Elizabeth McKeand does disappear of the Census for 1971 and 1981. Maybe she reverted back to her original name when she got married. is that possible?
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I have discovered that Robert Henry Brownell and his wife adopted many of their children. Most of their children in the Census records do not have birth records with the surname Brownell and later Census records actually show some of their children as Adopted.
In the 1871 and 1881 Census records they have two daughters, Elizabeth and Ellen. They both have the same estimated DOB. Ellen is the only child that has a Brownell birth record. Although Mary Elizabeth was not adopted until 1874 I am wondering if she was actually living with the Brownell family in 1871 and the adoption was not made official until 1874.
The McKeand family have a Census record for 1881 and Elizabeth is the only one missing from that record, perhaps because she was already living as a Brownell with the Brownell family at that time.
I cannot find a 1871 Census record for the McKeand family to backup my hypothesis.
From my research I am almost convinced that the Elizabeth Brownell living with the Brownell family is the same Elizabeth McKeaned that was born to George and Elizabeth McKeand. I think that later when she married Joseph Rome she used her original family name. Certainly her birth sister Louisa was witness to her marriage.
There is still one thing that is still puzzling me though. Why does the adoption letter say Mary Elizabeth McKeand?
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I have now found the 1871 Census record for the McKeand family. The reason I couldn't find it before was because of a transcript error showing the family name as Heand. This record shows all the members of the McKeand family except for Elizabeth, strengthening my earlier hypothesis that Elizabeth was living with the Brownell family.