Multiple illegitimate children: how unusual?

[Frankie93]

... I think I found another child, Henry b. 1838.  That would make 11 illegitimate children, and never married.

Margaret had a sister, Elizabeth, who also never married. I do wonder if the first four children were hers and not Margaret's. Again, no baptism and no GRO registration. Found on 1841 census. The first four children appear in the early censuses in the household of Margaret and Elizabeth's father, Henry Berry b. c 1796, and appear as his grandchildren. Henry b. 1838 also vanishes off the radar!

[Annie65115]

I have someone in a tree that I’m researching who had at least 11 illegitimate children between 1920  - 1939. Most of these babies died. I’ve reason to believe that the later children had the same father, and Mum was listed as his housekeeper in the 1939 census. I don’t know about the earlier children but will be interested to see which household she was in in 1921.

In situations like this, there was clearly an established relationship which just hadn’t been formalised (I think the father of the later children was still married, and divorce was still pretty uncommon and costly). But of course there were also girls and women for whom pregnancy was an occupational hazard; and there were some who were repeatedly taken advantage of, in family or institutional settings 

[Frankie93]

I'm reading The Five at the moment (Hallie Rubenfold) which is about the victims of Jack the Ripper. The first, Polly Nichols, is thought to have lived with several men not her husband - her husband lived with one of the neighbours and looked after Polly's children and one of her own. It does seem that flitting from relationship to relationship wasn't hampered by marriage to someone else and result in illegitimate children.

So in your case, Annie, there would have been income from her "job" as housekeeper or support from the man. In my case, I cannot understand how she could have managed - she was listed as labourer on a farm - although she didn't have to support all 11 at one time, at one point she had six. I wonder how she managed to survive financially.

[coombs]

Maybe my ancestor Emma Auber was a "lady of the night". She had 5 illegitimate children. Unless she was getting financial support from a man. She did give one of her children Gore as a middle name. Again, DNA testing is coming on in leaps and bounds so we may be able to find elusive fathers through autosomal DNA, but I still wonder how much you can actually rely on DNA to smash down those brickwalls?

[Fogmoose]

Maybe my ancestor Emma Auber was a "lady of the night". She had 5 illegitimate children. Unless she was getting financial support from a man. She did give one of her children Gore as a middle name. Again, DNA testing is coming on in leaps and bounds so we may be able to find elusive fathers through autosomal DNA, but I still wonder how much you can actually rely on DNA to smash down those brickwalls?

It would be a mistake to assume that a woman of that era who had multiple illegitimate children was a member of the world's oldest profession. Illegitimacy rates were due to a combination of many factors. Population growth, geographical location, climate, farming practices, religious schisms, and changing cultural and economic conditions would be just a few of those. The vast majority of illegitimate births had nothing to do with prostitution.

[Frankie93]

What options were there for a single woman of little means to support a lot of children? Before the welfare state and not including the workhouse.

My Margaret was a farm labourer. No marriage and no suspected fathers. Could the father(s) be forced to pay for their children's support - and was that likely in reality? I have heard of bastardy bonds but although I have many illegitimate children in my tree, I only found one where the father had actually been identified as financially responsible. Mostly I found illegitimate children born to one mother numbered one or occasionally two (and then they married). 11 is my all time record and I cannot imagine how Margaret could have supported this many without ever marrying.  Her father was also an ag lab. Small North Yorks rural community.  I can't find the children anywhere, no deaths, marriages or appearing within other households.

Intriguing.

[Fogmoose]

I myself likewise have found many illegitimate ancestors, and in only one case so far was the father brought to court and even in that case the women in question still ended up in the workhouse, so she apparently never collected anything substantial from the father. You can't get blood from a stone, so to speak. Most of these people were dirt poor, after all.

[Fogmoose]

What options were there for a single woman of little means to support a lot of children? Before the welfare state and not including the workhouse.

My Margaret was a farm labourer. No marriage and no suspected fathers. Could the father(s) be forced to pay for their children's support - and was that likely in reality? I have heard of bastardy bonds but although I have many illegitimate children in my tree, I only found one where the father had actually been identified as financially responsible. Mostly I found illegitimate children born to one mother numbered one or occasionally two (and then they married). 11 is my all time record and I cannot imagine how Margaret could have supported this many without ever marrying.  Her father was also an ag lab. Small North Yorks rural community.  I can't find the children anywhere, no deaths, marriages or appearing within other households.

Intriguing.

In a word, few. You could apply for the poor rolls, or go to a workhouse. Neither was an appealing prospect.

[Frankie93]

Sad to imagine.