My Beds names

[bridgy]

:):)
Hello everyone
Haven't long joined this excellent site so thought I'd list the names I'm researching.
Main name is BRIDGES - from Ampthill, Houghton Conquest and Wilstead (A branch of this family came out to Australia in 1852, settled in Queensland and helped to populate this country).
HODGSON (married into the Bridges family and as yet very elusive)
BENNETT (or Benet from Haynes)
BRIGHTMAN (Mary Brightman was wife to George Bridges who came to Aust)
Have a lot of info on this mob after they came to Oz but naturally would love to find out more about their lives in the 'Old Country'.
Bye for now.
Bridgy |biggrin|

[michaelpipe]

Hi Bridgy,

Tell us who you are looking for with as much as you know, and someone should find them.

Michael

[bridgy]

Hi Bridgy,

Tell us who you are looking for with as much as you know, and someone should find them.

Michael

Hi Michael |wave|
Thank you for your message. As I said know a lot about these families in Oz but would like to know more about them in Beds. The one I really want to know more about is Phillis HODGSON who married Thomas BRIDGES in Houghton Conquest 13/5/1794 (IGI extracted). She was his second wife - first wife Sarah PEAK. Phillis and Thomas had 13 kids and I feel I should find out what I can about this lady seeing as she give the world so many of my husbands ancestors :D:D. Have been in contact with other descendents and even they don't know anything about Phillis. Have a photocopy of their marriage entry in the church register but it only gives their names - no witnesses or where either the bride or groom were born.
So if someone can help me find out about Phillis I'll be so happy.
There will be others so be warned.
Many thanks once again for your welcome.
Regards
Jan

[davidcarca]

Oh that it were that easy Michael!

Jan posted the same request last September on another Beds board which I'm not allowed to mention here but it involves chat and roots, and a team of researchers went through this family in great detail. I think the conclusion was that she may well have been from Barnard Castle/Staindrop, Co. Durham, but proving it is a different matter.

Jan - have you found out who the witnesses were at her marriage? These might provide the only clue as to where she was from. If, as you said on the earlier thread, you got a scan of a page from Bedford Library then I have a feeling that this might be of the typed transcript, which doesn't include witnesses, as Bedford Library doesn't hold microfilms of the original parish registers.

The marriage entry will only show their parishes of residence at the time of the marriage, not their places of birth

You need to order and view the microfilm at your nearest LDS Family History Centre of which there are many in Oz.

David

[michaelpipe]

Hi David,

At the time I was smitten with optimism!!!

Michael

[bridgy]

:):)
Hello David
Nice to 'meet' you on another board. Was hoping that different posters would know something different - the reason I posted on here.
Thank you again for your interest and reply. The only info on the copy of the parish register was the name of the bride and groom - nothing more.
We don't have an LDS centre here but I belong to the local Family History society and I believe I can order a copy of the microfilm through them so will try that.
Thank you again for your interest.

And Michael - optimism is a necessity in this world, so continue to be optimistic in every thing you do. :D:D

Regards to you both
Jan

[michaelpipe]

Good luck Jan,

I should have known better, because I have searched before in Bedfordshire for my Standley/Stanley ancestors and found nothing but confusion.

Hopefully you fare better!

Michael

[Sadnew]

Hi Bridgy

Very interested to find your posting as I've been looking at the Bridges family of Houghton Conquest just this week hoping to make a connection to my own Bridges ancestors.

My 4th Great Grandfather was James Bridges b.c. 1791. He married Hannah Phillips on 16 Oct 1819 at Old Warden, Beds. The marriage record shows he was a widower but I've yet to find a first marriage. After the marriage James lived in Hartford, Huntingdonshire and died there in 1848. The 1841 census records that he wasn't born in Hunts.

As James married in Beds I decided to make a concerted effort to search the records for a possible birth in the county. The IGI records a baptism of a James Bridges son of Thomas & Sarah Bridges on 19 Sept 1792. I'm currently working hard to either prove or discount the link, which is where you may be able to help. As you are aware Thomas Bridges married Sarah Peak before Phillis Hodgson and I believe James was the only child of the marriage. Have you come across any information regarding James during your research?

Any help gratefully received.
Regards

Sadie

[davidcarca]

There's also a James Bridges baptised at Harrold Beds on 11 Sept 1791, who may have been the James who married Martha Wrench at Milton Ernest, 4 miles away, on 28 Feb 1815. Martha Bridges age 19 was buried at Milton Ernest on 6 June 1815.

But Milton Ernest is 13 miles the other side of Bedford from Old Warden.

Your James appears to have been non conformist as there's a petition on A2A, held at Huntingdon Records Office, for James Bridges' house at Hartford to be used as a Meeting House. These petitions were submitted by dissenters and non-conformists requesting permission to hold services in a meeting house, usually their private home.

If he was from a non conformist family, as opposed to converting when he was an adult, he may not have been baptised in the established church.

I can't see what happened to James from Houghton Conquest - I can't see that he was buried in Beds, nor is there an obvious marriage on the IGI. There don't seem to be any other contenders for the Milton Ernest marriage other than the James from Harrold - but if the widower who married in Old Warden really was James from Harrold via Milton Ernest what were he and Hannah Phillips from Hartford doing in Old Warden?

David

[bridgy]

Hi Sadie
Sorry it's taken so long to reply. May have some info on the James you're looking for. Will PM you with it plus info on someone who could help you further.
Regards
Jan

[davidcarca]

Jan

Any chance that you could post info re James on the board? That way future researchers will be able to find it, and I for one would be interested to know what became of him, having become hooked by Phyllis a few months back!

David

[bridgy]

Hello again David :D
My pleasure to post what I have on James. The reason I sent the PM to Sadie was to post my email address and also to offer to contact a lady who may help. Actually don't have much on James except his birth date - 16 Sep 1792. He married Hanna PHILLIPS (bc1796) 16 Oct 1819. His father was Thomas, mother Sarah PEAK (1769-1795). Thomas and Sarah were married 1 Jun 1792. This was Thomas' first marriage. His second was to the infamous and hidden Phillis.
All births, deaths and marriages were in Houghton Conquest. If this helps others, great and if I learn anything else, will post info.
Many thanks for your interest.
Regards
Jan

[davidcarca]

I question whether the James who married at Old Warden was the James from Houghton Conquest in the light of Sadie's find that James was a widower. I think he is more likely to be the James who was the known widower in Milton Ernest.

Which begs the question as to what happened to the Houghton Conquest James!

David