Genealogy Chat

My g grandfather had a brother William Hodgkiss born 1843 in madeley shropshire.(parents mary hodgkiss and thomas powell,he was born before they married.)I have a marriage for him in 1869 in madeley to eleanor france (1842?)her father is unknown.Eleanor died in 1878 leaving 2 daughters mary selina hodgkiss(have her birth cert which confirms mothers surname as France)and elizabeth. hodgkiss(both born in cornsay durham) I have NOW received a death cert for william hodgkiss1892 and the informant is a william swift and he is stated as brother in law.? Looking at the 1891 census i have a william swift living a few doors away from william and his daughters in durham. my problem is -- is it a mistake and william swift wasn't a brother in law maybe just a friend or neighbour. i can't find a birth for an eleanor france ( to see what siblings she had). I can't find eleanor and william hodgkiss on the 1871 census. I did think perhaps william hodgkiss had remarried after eleanor had died but can't find any record of that either. THANKS to anyone who has read all this and hope you are following me. any suggestions? best wishes Chris

Did William Hodgkiss have siblings? And couldn't William Swift have married Wm Hodgkiss's sister? Mumsy.

Thanks mumsy,Sorry I should have said William only had a brother Richard Powell born 1846(my g grandfather). chris

Anymore suggestions ? thanks chris

Chris How about William marrying again? - I've found it several times in my tree - especially when a father has been left with children:-( Perhaps a quick trawl through FreeBMD might bring something up?? Hope this helps Bacardi XX Oops - just re-read your message and you have already considered this - erm - no help at all then was I? (Was there anyone else with William on the 1891 Census?)

Thanks bacardi, no, on the 1891 census william is just living with his 2 daughters. I KEEP thinkin that because on the marriage cert eleanor france's father is unknown maybe she was brought up by a completly different family.More CONFUSION now i have found the 2 daughters 0n the 1881 census (down as neices) WITH A william and catherine davies living in cornsay durham. what a headache this all is !!!!! CHRIS

Hi, probably not much help to you, but I found a William Hodgskins in 1871, occupation coal miner, born Madeley Wood, Shropshire c.1842. He's living with wife Elleanor (aged 29), also born Madeley wood, at 20 Dudley Port, Tipton, Staffs. Name: William Hodgskins Age: 29 Estimated Birth Year: abt 1842 Relation: Head Spouse's Name: Elleanor Gender: Male Where born: Madeley Wood Civil Parish: Tipton Ecclesiastical parish: St Martin County/Island: Staffordshire Country: England Street address: Occupation: Condition as to marriage: Disability: View Image Registration district: Dudley Sub-registration district: Tipton ED, institution, or vessel: 13 Neighbors: View others on page Household schedule number: 32 Household Members: Name Age Elleanor Hodgskins 29 William Hodgskins 29 View Original Record View original image

yes.

Could this possibly be Eleanor's birth record? From freebmd Births Mar 1841 (>99%) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- France Female Madeley 18 111

Linda, You are a STAR, I feel sure this is them on 1871 census. THANKYOU SO MUCH. Will just have a look at free bmd at that birth. if i could get Elanor's birth cert and found out who her mother was it could be a great help.Chris

Linda, You are a STAR, I feel sure this is them on 1871 census. THANKYOU SO MUCH. Will just have a look at free bmd at that birth. if i could get Elanor's birth cert and found out who her mother was it could be a great help.Chris

Thankyou ed and yes linda i had a look at this birth on ancestry and there is another one for a selina France1843 in madeley as well. This could be another clue because william and eleanors daughter was called Mary selina (unusual name for the time).Just going to see if i can find any France's on 1851 census in madeley. Thanks Chris.

Glad to help a little. And good luck with your search!

Could William Swift be a step brother rather than a brother in law. At that time the two were interchangeable. Kath. x

Hi Judith,WOW Thankyou very much for this.All the pieces are slowly fitting together. This is definitely eleanor on the 1851 census.The william davies 1847 is the same one that eleanor's daughters are staying with on the 1881 census (down as neices)SO her mother was selina.I will send for eleanor/ellen birth certificate. Just got to find out where my william swift fits in to all this.!!! maybe another day Thanks again chris

Thankyou kathleen, Yes perhaps it would be an idea for me to look for william swift on previous census's to see if he fits in the puzzle.Have now found that eleanor had step family (davies)maybe one of them married a swift ??? i'll keep lookin. THANKS cHRIS

...wow you've had some good help! I'd just add that Kath is very correct in saying that 'brother in law' instead of 'step brother' was very much the phrase used in those times. I have a similar situation in my Mothers lineage. sometimes you have to get the pen and paper out and map it. Happy hunting. Bob

Hi Chris, You may be able to find out more by looking through the baptisms for Madeley at the Archives in Shrewsbury. That may give you a few clues. Its free too! Allie

Yes, thankyou Bob and Allie.Everybody has been so helpful .Chris

There are a couple pf possibilities here: first, the registrar can only record what the informant tells them, so the informant could have got it wrong, or even lied! The other possibility is that he meant half-brother or step-brother, as people frequently mix these terms up with brother in law. regards, Deb