skeletons

[Redroger]

Red Roger I thought of that after I posted I would have to count the cutlery. The one I would love at the dinner party would be my G G Grandfather he was in the English Navy and would have some great stories and could tell me how he got to Australia. Take Care Lynette

Lynette My favourite is my great grandfather's brother who was arrested for highway robbery in Lincolnshire in 1832. The day after the robbery he married a sister of one of his accomplices. The accomplices and my family seem to have been in contact for over 40 years! All 3 robbers were transported to Australia. My relative died in 1841, his few possessions were sold to pay for his funeral, value £4 approx! The funeral cost the state NSW around £5!

[HarrisonHart]

So far I've found
* 1 Solitary Birth out of wedlock so far (super catholic fambam) in everyone from my folks gen back.  But in my gen its a 50/50 split of married/unmarried.

* BUT Almost NO first births occuring 9+ months after marriage (ie everyone was knocked up already when they married - I often wonder where they managed to get pregnant... since sleepovers were not allowed in the parents house and there were no cars!  There was a lot of outdoor activity in ye olden days)

* My great grandad and great grandma managed to marry 3 weeks before grandads birth (and by looks alone - my great grandad IS the father of grandad, a rootschatter suggested he may have been at sea)

* A cousin murdered (actually the killer convicted of manslaughter) by his wife.  Still a sore point some 40 years later.

* Great Great Grandad used his British India Privilidge to score young - sometimes terribly young - wives.  A 17 year old when he was 30. A 13 year old when he was 41  .  A 34 year old when he was 70.

One side of my family was very catholic, like, their Wills were all 'donate to this catholic thing and that catholic thing' and they really lived that kind of God fearing straight life, from what I can tell.  Not found a lot of skeletons though I live in hope as thats where the skeletons are just better hidden! 

Other side of my family is more colourful.  But not found things like others yet, eg interesting court docs etc.

[Treetotal]

It would all be very boring without the skeletons wouldn't it...we owe them so much 
Carol

[Redroger]

Harrisonhart, Remember that prior to 1929 the minimum age for a girl to marry was 12; 14 for a boy. We find this quite shocking today, but i do not believe it is possible historical data by today's ethos.
In my own tree one i do like is from my maternal grandmother, who was very religious and lived with us when i was a boy. She was very much for following the rules, though this did not stop her supporting the suffragette movement. However the case in mind was that her older sister had married a man a few years young than herself, she died, left him a widower, he remarried and the second wife died, so he remarried, this time to a younger sibling of my grandmother and her sister, forbidden both by judicial and canon law at that time (c1900) Guess who was a witness? my grandmother! She must have known, the only surprise to me is that she did not speak when the minister asked for impediments!!

[chirp]

Yes most of us have them, the good the bad and the ugly. The two which have occupied quite a bit of my research time are the murderer who was fined a shilling and dismissed by the court, and the one who spent time in Newgate Prison for fraud. Turns out he was innocent and granted a pardon by Queen Victoria. Looks like he had been framed. Sadly, he did not live long afterwards.

[777777]

Two of my great-grandparents were illegitimate, and one of my great-great-great-grandfathers was a bigamist. However, the biggest shock of all to my staunchly Catholic family was that we have very, very distant Protestant ancestors. The horror!

[ThrelfallYorky]

I've got a bit of the reverse - Anglican and Non-conformist families .... and deep in the past (not as far as the Reformation!) R.C. forbears on three lines!!
My ancestors were almost all so boring and respectable it seems - the middling sort, farmers, tradesmen, etc. A few seemed to have a few odd children with uncertain origins around, on one line but.... ah well, we can't all have exciting ancestry, can we?

[lizdb]

Keep at it ThrellfallYorky -  I thought mine were boring but tucked away are all sorts of gems . . .