Head & Taylor families

[andres girl]

Hi, I am new to this board and am hoping some-one can help me with my Head & Taylor families.
I have John Taylor c1715? married to Mary Head on 29.9.1740 in Ripe. They had the following children all baptised at St John Sub Castro. Mary baptised 3.8.1742, Susannah baptised 14.9.1743, Thomas Head Taylor baptised 21.1.1744, Ann baptised 9.4.1747, Lucy baptised 22.12.1748 & Sarah baptised 10.7.1753.
Lucy is my 3 x gt grandmother.
I know that Mary Head's parents were Edward & Mary-she appears to have been an only child. Mary  (wife of Edward) & her daughter Mary Taylor,were mentioned in the 1760 will of John Payne of East Grinstead. There are 2 Edward's that could fit the bill-one born 1679 the other 1680. Is it possible to find out which one is my ancestor? Also I know nothing of John Taylor's parentage or where he was born. Any help would be most appreciated.

[Roy G]

I am thinking out loud, so correct me if I go wrong, but can I throw the following into the pot for consideration.

You write that Mary Head was the only child of Edward and Mary and the family had a connection with East Grinstead.
If so, a baptism in EG on 2 December 1715 (IGI) would also seem to fit.
As for her father, assuming her parents Edward and Mary also had family Roots in EG, I am drawn to a baptism of an Edward Head in EG on 6 July 1681 (IGI) son of Edward and Elizabeth.

John Taylor/Tailor/Tayler was born c1715 and came from the area around Ripe.
There are no Ripe baptisms that I could find for him, but of others in that area, the best fits from the IGI would have been John of Alfriston baptised 1718 or John of Ringmer baptised 1714.    Roy G

[andres girl]

Thank-you very much Roy, your info is a great help in tracking down previous generations. I can now try to establish if one of the John Taylor's is mine!
 

[andres girl]

Hi Roy,
Have checked out the info you gave me for Edward Head bpt 6.7.1681-his parents names are Elizabeth & Richard (not Edward).
I have 2 other Edward's born in East Grinstead! One bpt 23.8.1689 son of Edward & Susana the other bpt 9.1.1691 son of William & Jane. The only  repetition of any of  these names in the offspring of John & Mary Taylor is Susanna but, that could just be coincidence.
I guess it will be difficult to find out just which one was the father of Mary -you are, by the way, correct that her baptism was 2.12.1715. I found one death in 1715 on the IGI for an Edward Head but didn't find any more. If that was the husband of Mary it could account for the lack of other children although, as I mentioned, in the will of 1760 she is called Mary "wife" of Edward Head & not "widow".
I can't find a marriage for Edward & Mary either.  The more I delve the more tricky it seems to get!

[Roy G]

Sorry about typing Edward when it quite rightly was Richard.  Can I put it down to a senior moment? 

What I did find curious was that by using the same IGI batch number for Mary's baptism (C070562) you also got another baptism for an Anne Head, daughter of Edward and Susanna baptised in 1685.  That batch number however did not link you to the same couple that produced Edward in 1689. 

You also say you cant find marriages either, but have you tried looking for them in Kent or Surrey?  East Grinstead in Sussex is pretty close to both and also on the main coaching route into the centre of London itself.      Roy G

[andres girl]

Hi Roy,
I frequently have 'senior moments' so no problem. Thanks for the info- I will try your suggestion & try a little further afield for a marriage.  I did a blitz on all births & marriages for the name Head in East Grinstead & found them back as far as the late 1500s. Unfortunately not in a way that I could follow a direct line & nothing I could connect to Edward.

[Roy G]

I believe you are at that stage where you have to start thinking outside the conventional box,  Look for them appearing as witnesses on sibling's marriages, on wills, on land deals, or perhaps as miscreants that offend against the Law, the King or the Church. 

Another thought is to have a chat with Maureen Stanley on Genes Reunited who shares your ancestry and seems to place Mary 1715 in the same tree as Edward 1690.  Perhaps she too is speculating, or is it that she knows something we don't?   
Roy G

[andres girl]

Hi Roy
Cest moi! I got the info from a distant Canadian relative!  Will keep pegging away at the info I do have & see what I can find. Trouble is I'm in Nottingham so can't get to the records office in Sussex to do any research.

[Ladyhawk]

can't get to the records office in Sussex to do any research.

Here's the link for Sussex OPC   

http://www.sussex-opc.org/index.php?no=1