Genealogy Chat

I desperately need some help. I never seem to be able to find the information I need. What route do I take on ancestry to find the maiden name of my great grandfathers 1, 2, 3, and 4 wives. Although I put in all the information like birth dates and places etc I can never get any further. I feel I'm going badly wrong somewhere, particularly when I just put in a few details on 'tips' and someone comes back with the answer in a few minutes. I would like to be able to look them up myself. Gloria

Are they using the free bmd part? Could you give an example please?

Thanks for replying Pippa. At present I have the 14 day free trial, I was going to buy a month and see how I got on but if this is all I can access then I wont bother.

There are lots of things to access. What are you wanting to know so you can be helped.

Gloria, the key is to be looking in the right place! If you are trying to find out who your great grandfather's 4 wives are you will need to be buying marriage certificates. You don't mention dates but have you been able to find them on censuses? If so you will at least know the wives' first names. If you are lucky you might find the marriages on FreeBMD (either its own site, or on Ancestry). In this index you can click to see others on the page - with luck you will find a possible bride with the right first name. But BEWARE this index is not complete. The alternative is to look through all the index pages (free on Ancestry) to find your great grandfather - in this case you cannot check the wife's name easily and would have to order the certificate just in his name. If his name is a common one you might have resign yourself to getting some wrong certificates! There are no shortcuts to this - you need the certificates to be sure of your facts. Hope this helps Anne

Gloria People use a variety of ways of finding maiden names. You're never going to find a maiden name listed on the complete indexes as they stand because the search facility doesn't allow for it. Free bmd usually gives a maiden name but it's not unknown for several names to show up, which means you still don't have a definitive answer. If you are lucky enough to find a listing on Lancashire bmd, Yorkshire bmd or one of the other county listings then you usually do get a definitive answer. BUT none of this can be taken as a given and the only sure way of knowing for certain is to get the marriage certificate. Ancestry is an excellent resource and anyone serious about locating their ancestors will be hard pressed to make any headway without it. A good tip is next time someone finds something for you, ask them for a step by step guide to where they looked, this will get you into the swing of doing it for yourself. You are always welcome to consult people on here who are extremely willing and helpful. .

Sorry. I haven't made myself very clear it's four great grandfathers and their respective wives. I've got all the census records back to 1841 I would just like to move sideways from them and find out more about their children, but mainly the wives. It's Herbert (b.1858), son of John(b.1818), son of William Oliver (b.1792) all from Chilton Candover, Basingstoke. The wives are Jane, Eliza and Elizabeth respectively. Gloria

Firstly...........anything which occurred before the latter part of 1837 will only be on Parish records. Some of these are on the LDS website, which is www.familysearch.org Marriages after 1837 will appear on the GRO records.............you have been given details above of the way to access these on Ancestry. Incidentally, the bmd's are free on Ancestry...........no need to subscribe. Reg

Just for ref..........Herbert in 1861 Name: Herbert Oliver Age: 3 Estimated Birth Year: abt 1858 Relation: Son Father's name: John Mother's name: Eliza Gender: Male Where born: Chilton Candover, Hampshire, England Civil parish: Chilton Candover County/Island: Hampshire Country: England Registration district: Alresford Sub-registration district: Alresford ED, institution, or vessel: 5 Neighbors: View others on page Household schedule number: 2 Household Members: Name Age Elizabeth Chivers 12 George Chivers 14 Allen Oliver 5 Authur Oliver 7 Eliza Oliver 41 Herbert Oliver 3 John Oliver 43 You will see that the reg'n dist for CC is Alresford, so the births etc will be registered in that district. The only proviso is that reg'n wasn't compulsory until 1875................. This looks like the birth of one of Herbert's brothers.......the cert would tell his mother's maiden surname Name: Arthur Oliver Year of Registration: 1854 Quarter of Registration: Jan-Feb-Mar District: Alresford County: Hampshire Volume: 2c Page: 133 But you won't need to buy it.......this is the marriage of the parents Eliza Chivers 1853 Apr-May-Jun Alresford Hampshire View Record John Oliver 1853 Apr-May-Jun Alresford Hampshire Reg

You don't say when Herbert might have married.............is this him? Jane Barnes 1883 Jan-Feb-Mar Basingstoke Berkshire, Hampshire View Record Herbert Oliver 1883 Jan-Feb-Mar Basingstoke Berkshire, Hampshire All the records I have posted can be found on freebmd. Reg

From the IGI...........on the LDS website WILLIAM OLIVER Male Marriages: Spouse: ELIZABETH CAVANAGH Marriage: 02 NOV 1807 Chilton Candover, Hampshire, England As you are obviously asking for advice, can I point you in the direction of 'getting started' on your GR home page........it may prove useful to you Reg

I can't thank you all enough, I was getting so frustrated because I could find the males but not females. I think I will have to backpeddle a bit and try not to go round in circles. REG, They are all absolutely correct, at least they are the same ones I have. Many thanks for the advice I also think I need to organise myself a bit more so that I don't keep going off at a tangent. Truly grateful Gloria

Sometimes if you're lucky, the wife's mother, father or siblings live in the same household which would of course give you the maiden name. It's always worth looking to see if the bride's family live next door if you can work it out. Also, if the wife's first name is not too common you can do a search using just the first name, date and place of birth. Even if that throws up several names you will have a shortlist of possible surnames.