bastardy bonds

[coombs]

Hi

I take it that you have found the baptism? What makes you think that she had 5 illegitimates by 2 fathers? Have you found any likely candidates for fathers?

Ben

[crunchie01]

hi,

i have found the baptisms for all 5 children.

when the eldest got married he used the name marshall as a middle name on his marriage cert.

on the second childs baptism winn was his middle name

on the fourths child bapptism it say reputed father john marshall - same as the middle name for the first child.

the baptism records for my ancestor is unreadable, i have a copy of the bishops transcript which doesnt give any details or clues to a father.

your opinion appreciated.

[coombs]

Hi

That seems very interesting. Quite often mothers would give the fathers surname as a middle name if the baby was illegitimate. This was often a way if the father disputed paternity or he couldnt marry the mother. Sometimes that was a way of exposing the alleged father.

Where did the baptism take place?

Ben

[crunchie01]

the baptism took place at stibbard.

[peggypatch]

Unfortunately, there don't seem to be any surviving overseers' or churchwardens' accounts for Stibbard from the right period. You have the name of at least one father already, have you checked the children's marriage certificates to see if they named a father? You can try the quarter session records to see if there is any record of a bastardy bond there, you can also look to see if John Marshall left a will where he may have mentioned his illegitimate children. If men recognised their offspring they sometimes gave apprenticeships to them or counter-signed the apprenticeship indenture, but it doesn't look as if any apprenticeship papers have survived for Stibbard either, so this avenue is no help for you this time.

[coombs]

Hi

The options described above are an avenue to research. It might even be an option to check newspaper records. Some do survive for this period.

Ben

[crunchie01]

hi,

many thanks for all your advice.

lt seems though all records for stibbard haven't survived, so it looks as if my chances are running out. do the quarter session records remain for stibbard?

lydia's first child was baptised john waller in stibbard in 1798, although when he married in 1840, he used the name john marshall waller, he was an inkeeper and his abode was stibbard, do you think i will be able to find anything from this?

lydia's second child was baptised thomas winn waller in yarmouth in 1800.

lydia's third child was baptised ann marshall waller in stibbard in 1801, baptism records stated reputed father as john marshall.

lydia's forth child margaret in yarmouth in 1802

fifth child richard waller in stibbard 1805, this is my ancestor who father i am trying to trace, could it be all children born stibbard are to john marshall??...

i have found a birth of a john marshall in stibbard in 1745, died stibbard 1828 aged 82. lydia was born 1772, so if this is the john marshall he was 27 years older than her. i cant find a marriage of a john marshall in stibbard.

all opinions on this matter appreciated.

thanks

[peggypatch]

Some records have survived for Stibbard, but as with most parish deposits, it is largely a matter of luck if the relevant records for the period you are interested in have survived. Quarter Session records are court records for an area, rather than just a parish, so they are quite consuming to search, but can be worth it. There is good survival of the quarter sessions books, but you will need to go the NRO to search them.

I would be happy that John Marshall is the father of child 1 and 3 at least. Have you looked to see if he left a will? Was he married to someone else - you haven't found a marriage, but did he have other children baptised in the parish? Did they leave wills that may mention half brothers and sisters? As well as checking who was named as father in the illegitmate children's marriages, who were the witnesses - any links there? Second child had the middle name Winn, is there any evidence of a man named Winn in the parish?

[peggypatch]

Hi

The options described above are an avenue to research. It might even be an option to check newspaper records. Some do survive for this period.

Ben

This is interesting. I was not aware/have never noticed any newspaper reports that might shed light on an illegitimate child's parentage. Have you seen articles that might help with this in newspapers then? Would be interested to know more.