Genealogy Chat

Daniel was my great-great grandfather. I know his name, that he was born in Horncastle, Lincolnshire, that he was married in London in July 1850, aged 23, but that's it. I have obtained his marriage certificate, but the section for the father's name and occupation have been left blank. So is there any easy way for me to find out who his father was? And why was it omitted from the certificate?

Steven One of the reasons for there being no fathers name could be that he was illegitimate. Obviously if this is the reason you may never find out who his father was. However sometimes a middle name or the entry in the parish register can give a hint as to who he was Jeanette x

Dunno if you have looked at the censuses ? In 1871, the only Rowbothams who were born in Horncastle, were actually living there. This family has some grandchildren that might be linked. The HEAD - Henry - is -a l m o s t- old enough to be your mans Dad ... Your man should be circa 44 in this census, but I cant find him ... 1871 England Census Name Age in 1871 Birthplace Relationship Civil Parish County ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Clara Mills 7 Sheffield, Yorkshire, England Granddaughter Sheffield Yorkshire Isabella Mills 39 Sheffield, Yorkshire, England Daughter Sheffield Yorkshire Maria Mills 2 Sheffield, Yorkshire, England Granddaughter Sheffield Yorkshire Amy Rowbotham 7 Sheffield, Yorkshire, England Granddaughter Sheffield Yorkshire Henry Rowbotham 57 Horncastle, Lincolnshire, England Head Sheffield Yorkshire Marian Rowbotham 14 Sheffield, Yorkshire, England Granddaughter Sheffield Yorkshire Mary Rowbotham 66 Sheffield, Yorkshire, England Wife Sheffield Yorkshire This may be his family ... did he marry a HANNAH (she seems a bit old?) , maybe age is wrong - havent viewed image. Alice Louisa Rowbotham 3 months Horncastle, Lincolnshire, England Daughter Horncastle Lincolnshire Charles Rowbotham 12 Horncastle, Lincolnshire, England Son Horncastle Lincolnshire Daniel Rowbotham 14 Horncastle, Lincolnshire, England Son Horncastle Lincolnshire Elizabeth Rowbotham 21 Horncastle, Lincolnshire, England Wife Horncastle Lincolnshire ->Hannah Rowbotham 59 Boston, Lincolnshire, England Head Horncastle Lincolnshire Lucy Gaunt Rowbotham 20 Horncastle, Lincolnshire, England Daughter Horncastle Lincolnshire Richard Henry Rowbotham 22 Horncastle, Lincolnshire, England Son Horncastle Lincolnshire Thomas Roland Rowbotham 17 Horncastle, Lincolnshire, England Son Horncastle Lincolnshire

Heres a death - right sort of age - but after the 1871 census, so I dont think he was the ex-dad of that family ... This one ties in better with a London marriage - altho I could not find him in the census ..... maybe he didnt declare Horncastle as pob ? Name: ROWBOTHAM, Daniel Record Type: Deaths Age at death: 46 Quarter: March Year: 1874 District: Kensington County: Greater London London Middlesex Volume: 1a Page: 49

Offered for the sake of completeness - wrong pob .... right dob ,,, Albert Rowbotham 2 Enfield Son Enfield Middlesex John Rowbotham 43 Nottinghamshire, England Head Enfield Middlesex Matilda Rowbotham 40 Birmingham Wife Enfield Middlesex Sarah Ann Rowbotham 18 Birmingham Daughter Enfield Middlesex William Rowbotham 11 Enfield Son Enfield Middlesex

Thanks all! The one that Laird reports as dying in 1874 was the right man. Incidentally he was reported as having been the beadle of St Georges Church, Kensington, which suggests a character out of 'Oliver Twist'. I should think that he would have to have been 'respectable' to get this sort of position, so the odds are against him being illegitimate (although Dickens implied that beadles might well be bastards!). Yes, he was missing from the census in 1871 - sometimes it seems as if half of my relations missed any given census. The ones you list as living in Horncastle are interesting, as they include a Daniel, and also a Lucy, which is a name that continued in the next generations of Daniel's descendants. The Lincolnshire Family History Society are offering an indexed disk of the 1841 census, so I think that I might try to find him there.

this lot (from 1837Online search) on 1861 include a Daniel of astonishing longevity - aiming for Methuselah, one feels! ROWBOTHAM, Daniel 999 M Bermondsey ROWBOTHAM, Joseph B 3 M Bermondsey ROWBOTHAM, Lucy G 4 F Bermondsey ROWBOTHAM, Mary 999 F Bermondsey ROWBOTHAM, Mary A 6 F Bermondsey ROWBOTHAM, William A 999 M Bermondsey Without looking at the image (and I haven't any credits just now) I can't tell either what the ages might really be nor where the PoB is - only that it doesn't come up with Lincolnshire or Horncastle. They do seem to be in the same household, judging by the link refs. Christine

Thanks Christine! I have now looked at the image for this familyand it was smeared, as if someone had spilled water over the original return, making it very difficult to read - hence some of the ages defaulting to 999. The transcriber had him down as born in Leicestershire, with no attempt to transcribe the town, but, if you look carefully, you can see that it is supposed to be Lincolnshire Horncastle. This all proves that, to be certain of your information, you really have to look carefully at the image and not just the transcription. I am not blaming the transcribers, as many images are difficult to read or interpret without the background information that we would have.

Thanks for letting us know the outcome. It's really pleasing to feel I've helped. Better go and get some weekend shopping done now, I guess. My husband notices if I hog the computer for the whole weekend - especially if he ends up starving. ;-) Christine