Connecting to Dots - Parish records - am I assuming?

[galaxydreaming]

Hi people,

I wonder if I am missing something in my research.  I have got back to my ggg grandfather, Eardley Bell born to a Robert Bell and Maria Iremonger in 1815 in Saleby Lincolnshire - that is fine.

I know that Robert Bell was a farmer, I know that he died in Saleby in 1835 age 86 and I know that he was a widower when he married Maria in 1814.

I have estimated his DOB from the burial record age of 86 in 1835 to 1749.  I found a Sarah Bell who died in Saleby in 1813 (1 year before he married Maria) and another family member apparently employed a researcher to investigate and he found Robert was married to a Sarah (how do they know that?), so going with this I looked for a Robert Bell born in 1749 and marrying a Sarah at some point in time.

The most likely is a Robert Bell born in Strubby - close to Saleby found on IGI, who married a Sarah Bullivant in 1773 (I think) in Strubby, I was only able to find the M. record on FREEREG not IGI.

Ok for the question - after all of this I just feel like I am doing a lot of assuming - how do I KNOW this is my guy?  How do I know his 1st wife WAS Sarah and he IS Robert Bell born in Strubby... Do I order the parish records for Strubby and hope for more?  What do people do to feel certain you have your man/woman?

Any tips or help would be appreciated.

[Nick29]

I don't think you can ever be 100% certain, unless of course that the person has such an unusual name that they couldn't be confused with someone else of the same name.  I think you just have to look at the facts available, and look at the probabilities.  Much harder when you're dealing with people with a name which is common in the area you're looking in, and doubly difficult because people had the habit of naming their children after other people in the family.

[galaxydreaming]

Thank you for contributing, I was kinda hoping you wouldn't say that, I feel like anything further back now could potentially not really be my ancestors in that case you know, not unless A LOT of the info stacks up like age, name, occupation, and parish records maybe add a bit more.   

[MarieC]

I agree with Nick - it's really hard to tell from Parish Records if it is a common name.  I'd get the PRs anyway, just to see if there are any little clues - and then make a tentative decision based on the balance of probabilities.  I don't know how the researcher came up with that - he may have assumed also!

Good luck!

MarieC

[sillgen]

Hi
Searching the parish records will pay dividends as you will get the burials which rarely show up on the IGI but also you can pick up a much wider picture of the family and there are ofetn extra snippets such as occupation or address.   You might also find another Robert Bell dying earlier etc.!  Witnesses for both marriages would be interesting too.
Andrea

[galaxydreaming]

Yes I hope to find something that will help me identify if the Robert Bell marrying in Strubby to this Sarah is the same Robert Bell marrying Maria later in Saleby... all I have so far from Saleby Parish records is:

This written by hand as a paragraph - not on a form as others were
"Robert BELL of this parish, widower and Maria IREMONGER of this parish, spinster were married in the church by licence this 31st day of March in the year one thousand eight hundred and fouteen by me - Francis Wilson, Rector.   This marriage was solemnised by Robert BELL and Maria Iremonger in the presence of (rest not clear)."

I assume it was by license because he was quite a bit older when he married his 2nd wife Maria.. 65 years old.

[sillgen]

Have you tried to trace the licence?  That might have more information.
Andrea

[galaxydreaming]

No? Can you do that? How do you do that? 

[sillgen]

Not all of them survived but if they do then the local archives office will probably have them - or know who has!
Andrea