Genealogy Chat

Advice please on making certain that I'm looking at the same person in a number of different records:
My great grandfather is named on my Grandfather's marriage cert as Stephen John Chicken, in the 1901 census as Stephen, on another son's baptism record as Stephen John, on the 1891 census as John, 1881 as Stephen J and on his own marriage record as John. I haven't got his marriage certificate, just a transcript of the parish record from Durham Records on line.
Is there a way of checking his marriage and birth certificates without buying copies of them?
I asked Durham Records and they replied that they would sell me a copy but they had no facility for members of the public to go and look at them.
Unfortunately for their descendents my ancestors had a lot of Johns and Stephens, singly and in combination so I want to be sure I've unravelled them properly before moving up a generation.
Any advice gratefully accepted.
Maureen

Unfortunately as you have found, individuals names can vary over the years so the best way to make sure you have the right person is to try and look at the big picture and make sure it all fits together rather than relying on names alone.

By the big picture, I mean occupations, addresses, relations living at the same address and so on. If you plan to move back a generation it's always worth making sure you have the current generation nailed down.

If you can't get hold of a birth or marriage entry from the relevant parish register it's always going to be worth ordering a certificate for £7 unless you are certain you can start work on the next generation back with sufficient confidence.

The register office won't usually give you any additional information without you ordering a certificate.

Hope this helps

Thanks, I'll just keep plodding on through the census entries and parish registers for now then, and see if I can tie up the loose ends before moving up a generation. It's comforting to know that it's not just me being dense!
Maureen

Can you be sure that the transcript of the marriage entry of John Chicken refers to your relative? In my experience marriage certificates are the most valuable record for linking one generation back to the next. And often you can find additional clues, occupation details, possible siblings acting as witnesses etc.

For the work it takes to find and issue an old document, £7 seems quite a bargain. If you are unsure that you are ordering the correct certificate, you can ask the GRO to cross check for other known information. If the entries don't match with your cross check you get a aprtial refund of the £7 fee.

Dont forget the English naming pattern when names of children were named after parents,siblings.

So you get lots of sons and daughters with the same name.
You need the certs to verify the correct fathers name and occupation. so you can trace them on the census.
Hope all the fathers are not miners if they are from Durham.
Apart from that certs are invaluable because you get witnesses names on marriages which frequently are family


Margaret

Is this one of the son's baptisms?

CHICKEN, Stephen John Christening
Gender: Male
Birth Date: 7 Dec 1900
Christening Date: 6 Jan 1901 Recorded in: Dalton le Dale, Durham, England
Father: John CHICKEN
Mother: Mary Ann
Source: FHL Film 1514627 Dates: 1888 - 1901

There's this Stephen John on the 1901 census. father's name is John:
1901 census
9 Silver St., East Murton, Dalton le Dale, Easington, Houghton le Spring, Murton Colliery
John Chicken, head, 31, coal miner, born Murton Colliery
Mary Ann, wife, 38, born Cothol, Durham
Stephen John, son, 3 months, born Murton Colliery
Mary E. Bryers, step-dau, 15, born Houghton le Spring
Ethel Bryers, step-dau, 12, born hetton le Hole, Durham
Margaret Ann Smith, boarder, 20, school teacher, born Houghton le Spring

Free BMD:
John Chicken married Mary Ann Bryers, Sep. Q, 1900, Easington. (10a 723)

Sorry, just realized this is the son of the Stephen John that you're talking about.
I agree, though that Stephen J. on the 81 census and John on the 91 census are the same guy.

Yes, most of the family were miners, or at least worked at the mines and they did call sons after fathers or uncles. These are all in my family tree, but I hadn't seen the 1901 census of that family. I've got Mary Ann's surname as Luther, born at Coxhoe but it looks from the above as though she married twice.
I think I'm going to order a copy of my g-grandfather's marriage certificate. I'd hoped to be able to go to the office or a library and browse through the microfiches to track that generation but it seems unlikely I can do that.
Thanks for taking the time to look.

Good idea Maureen to get the cert to be certain you have the correct family.

Here is John Chickens marriage from Durham County Council site.
John Chicken married 1900 to Mary Ann Byers /Mary Ann Luther.So you have her maiden name

Google English naming patterns and see how it worked