Why would a woodman move to Hampstead Marshall in 1780s?

[bspinner@cogeco.ca]

I have a marriage in Hampstead Marshall in 1783 (with numerous baptisms thereafter). Both the groom and bride are described as "of this parish".

However, no one with either of their surnames - Knapp and Simons -appears in the PR or BT before that event in 1783. Therefore I assume that they had only recently come to the parish.
They stay for a few decades: only their KNAPP children are baptised: no other Knapps. Then they move south to HAM: Burghclere, and then my ancestor moves on to East Woodhay HAM in 1820s.


Why would a woodman move to H.M. ? Where might he have come from?

I know little of this part of Berkshire history, but I am willing to learn as much as possible (before I start studying the PRs of all the adjacent parishes).

Thanks in advance.

[Geoffers]

[I have a marriage in Hampstead Marshall in 1783 (with numerous baptisms thereafter). Both the groom and bride are described as "of this parish".]

otp is a commonly used phrase, it often means little other than the party/ies had been in the parish for a short while prior to marriage.

Was the marriage by banns or licence? If by licence then the licence bond may survive giving a little more information. If by banns then check the banns register. Usually when the groom/bride are described as otp there is nowt more in the banns, but just once in a blue moon some more detail is given.

Who are the witnesses to the marriage? You'll sometimes find that these are relatives and the names may tie in with other records to give you a clue that you're on the right track.

In the marriage register were either bride or groom minors? If so, you should see some text 'with consent of....' and then the name of the parent/guardian and often with the word 'father' written afterwards.

Marriages often occurred in the bride's parish, you've checked earlier - but have you looked to see if there are any burials for say, 40 years after this date? The burial register may just note that the deceased came from the parish of 'xxxxxxx'.

[However, no one with either of their surnames - Knapp and Simons -appears in the PR or BT before that event in 1783. Therefore I assume that they had only recently come to the parish.]

First thing to try is the Berks FHS surnames interests list. You might find someone who has already doen the research. Similar lists exist for other counties.

If that fails, one of the ways of the ways to narrow dthe name of the parent/guardian and often with the word 'father' written afterwards.

If that fails, one of the ways of the ways to narrow down a search area is to try and work out the distribution of a surname around the period. The idea is that you take a source and note down the occurrence of all entries relating to the surname and plot them on a map. Where there is a cluster of the surname, that's the area where you first try parish registers. It doesn't always work, especially with common surnames - and if a family had moved more than about 20 miles then unless your source can be analysed on computer (e.g. the 1881 census) then searching can be a very long job.</P>
Three sources for this period strike me as a being worth a shot.

1) The Land Tax Returns. These can be found in many County Record Offices for the period 1780-1832 - not all are a complete run. The National Archvies (TNA) at Kew have the 'Land Tax Redemption Office Quotas and Assessments' for 1798 in class IR23. I've found these easy to use. In view of the location of Hamstead Marshall, you may have to also try Hampshire returns.

2) The National Burial Index - available on CD-rom. Despite its name, it is not complete and some areas are sparsely covfails, one of the ways of the ways to narrow down a search area is to try and work out the distribution of a surname around the period. The idea is that you take a source and note down the occurrence of all entries relating to the surname and plot them on a map. Where there is a cluster of the surname, that's the area where you first try parish registers. It doesn't always work, especially with common surnames - and if a family had moved more than about 20 miles then unless your source can be analysed on computer (e.g. the 1881 census) then searching can be a very long job.</P>
Three sources for this period strike me as a being worth a shot.

3) The 1881 census - I know it's a century later, but if your couple came from a rural location (likely considered the groom's job), then although they may have moved away from their 'home' parish, other members of the family may have remained behind or in neighbouring parishes.

[Why would a woodman move to H.M. ?]

Hamstead Marshall is quite a wooded area, I'd guess for work.

[Geoffers]

[Where might he have come from?]

See suggestions above - also see if there are any applications for settlement in the parish - if they survive, these are most likely to be held by the County Recoits name, it is not complete and some areas are sparsely covered. I have no idea of the coverage for West Berkshire. But, even if there is only partial coverage for this area, it may be worth a shot to see who is bried where.

[Why would a woodman move to H.M. ?]

Hamstead Marshall is quite a wooded area, I'd guess for work.


[Where might he have come from?]

See suggestions above - also see if there are any applications for settlement in the parish - if they survive, these are most likely to be held by the County Record Office.


If you cannot get to the Record Office/s then many of these records are also available on film at mormon church (LDS) centres.

Geoffers
CHarlbury, Oxfordshire

[bspinner@cogeco.ca]

Thanks to Geoffers in OXON.

Following your suggested strategy, this line was found nearby in Speen BTs via a FHL film.

I now have them back to 1722 in a marriage George KNAPP and Eliz. HIGGS.
Also his mother, Mary SIMMONS and her parents also in Speen.

[Geoffers]

Well done - glad to read that you managed to get somewhere with this.

Other records you might try looking for include -
Militia ballot lists from the mid-18th century,
wills,
Parish registers, do look all the way through them, sometimes you find a really helpful cleric has added odd snippets or notes about his parish.
If the family seem to have stayed in one area back to the 1720s, try looking at the Hearth Tax returns from the second half of the 17th century to look at where your surname is shown.
If your family were woodman over several generations, did they work on an estate and if so, do records survive in the record office?

[birdlip]

Geoffers... what a fantastically detailed and informative response. It will be helpful to everyone that reads it.

I do love this forum, and how nice bspinner that you came back to say how you'd got on. Cheers to you both, birdlip

[christopher_n_lewis]

A quick look at the Berkshire Burials Index (5th edn.) suggests that Bradfiled and Tilehurst may be fruitful, but there are entries from all over the County. The Berkshire Overseers Papers name index also has plenty of KNAP (KNAP, NAPP) entries.

Both can be bought from Berks Family History Society, and I think they have a search service

HTH
Christopher