William Joseph Matthews..Baptism..1829

[stapler40]

Hello
What does it imply when the entry for a baptism simply lists the name of the child and neither of the parents. I'm looking for a William Matthews, and I have found the following:

William Joseph Matthews: May 24th, 1829..St. Patricks, Belfast.

On his marriage certificate, 1848, to Bridget  McKenna, it lists his father as Arthur. I have been working from their daughter, Catherine (born Belfast 1854) backwards but have hit a wall with William. If Arthur was his father, then who was his mother?

Any help is very much appreciated.

Take care, stay safe and look after one another.

Cheers
Stapler40
Toronto

[TheWhuttle]

Hi stapler40,

Possibly the child was a "foundling" - deliberately left outside someone's door one morning.
Perhaps (any old) ?Arthur's door ...
[As such Arthur may not be the immediate biological father, but the child's "adoptive" father.]

Also, it was common for "unplanned" children to be brought up as "late" "offspring" of the grandparents.


If born in to a Roman Catholic scenario, then the baptismal date is likely to be "close" to the actual birth date, especially if it was deemed that the child was vulnerable and might die imminently.
If left unbaptised then the child's soul would be considered as having been left "In Limbo", unable to ever benefit from the full power of Christ's redemptive actions.
[Protestant theology removed this belief from its canon during the Reformation.]

Lots of young folks were flooding in to Belfast in the early 19thC, due to the industrial revolution.

The Ulster Historical Foundation claims to offer a complete record of all early RC church records.
Ref: www.ancestryireland.com

A brief skim threw the birth/baptism indexes there threw up:
  John MATTHEWS
  Year: 1827
  County: Antrim
  Father: Arthur

Could this John (aged 2 in 1829) be WJM's older brother?
[It's a PAYG site, so ye'll hae tae pit yer haun' in yer pooch to see the full details!]

At least that is one hook for you to play with ...

Safe (voyage) onwards,

Capt. Jock
[Trawler of the murky depths.]