Bigamy? Faked death? Amazing coincidence? Something else?

[asingardenof]

People invented names or used other family names in records.
The two women are together as mother and daughter in 1871 and 1881.
Maybe Sarah was registered under a different name from a relationship or, since we can’t find a birth, she may have been taken in by Charlotte, as you say.

I've done a bit more digging and the residents of 46a Circus Street in 1861 were the Dignam family, originally of Dublin, whose daughter Mary was then 17. Two years later, Mary would marry William Christopher Eden, with both of their addresses given as Circus Street.

[heywood]

Oh that’s a good connection. I had seen the Dignam name but didn’t go any further.

Liverpool Electoral Registers show Charlotte Eden there 1870/72.
Before that (late 60s, I think) women weren’t shown but not too sure about that.

[asingardenof]

Actually I've misread that, it just says the Digman family are at no. 46, along with the Guyer family. There's no mention of anyone in the cellar, something that is definitely recorded for other properties along Circus Street. I'm going to tentatively suggest that Charlotte and her family might already be living in the cellar at 46a but didn't appear on the census, given that it was only two years later that William and Mary got married.

[asingardenof]

Moving to Somerset.....

 Charlotte Sandell bap Walcot St Swithins. 8th Jan 1815 daughter of John and Sarah of Avon Street . Father a Mason.


   Tazzie

Nice one!

[heywood]

1861 2693 /56/35
46 Circus Street
The Dignams look to be the main family with the ‘Guyers’.
The second family name looks to be McGuyer, rather than ‘Guyer’ so could be McGuire

Only some of the houses show ‘Cellar’ as the residence of other households as in number 44.
It may be that the McGuyers are living in the cellar or occupying a separate room and Charlotte and family have been omitted. Alternatively Charlotte and family were not there on census night.

Comparing 1871 to 1861, number 44 has several households, whereas 46 - just two - the O’Donnells and Sarah Eden, secondary.

1881, there are only two people at 46.

It doesn’t really help though.

[asingardenof]

It was worth a try