BURWELL LINCOLNSHIRE

[zebrainbexhill]

Hi
Does anyone know where to find parish records for Burwell Lincolnshire?
Or is anyone researching the name Blackwell in the same place?
Thank You
Zeb

[Jan1954]

Hello Zeb,

According to the Burwell page of GENUKI, the Lincolnshire Family History Society have published several Marriage indexes and a Burial index for the Louthesk Deanery, under which Burwell falls.

[Pam Downes]

Hi Zeb,
What time period are you talking about?
There seem to be very few Blackwells in the whole of Louth registration district, or Louthesk deanery (the ecclesiastical 'district').
If the people concerned are no longer living, can you give us a few more details?
Pam

[zebrainbexhill]

Hi Pam
my Blackwell from Burwell is Joseph Blackwell born 1811. He was a waterman. He spent most of his life in St Ives Hunts, even married there. A few of his sons were watermen so it is possible his father was too.
Thank You for your help

[Pam Downes]

Hi Zeb,
First the bad news.

Only three Blackwell marriages in Louthesk deanery 1700-1837, all of them women, none in Burwell.
Nine Blakewell marriages, 5 grooms, four brides, none in Burwell.

Only one burial 1813-1900 (Benjamin, aged 24, in Louth, in 1828).
There's a Blacksell buried in Louth in 1851, which may or may not be a mis-recording/spelling by the vicar.
On the same burial index as Louthesk deanery are Bolingbroke, Calcewaithe and Candleshoe, and Horncastle deaneries. (Link to the parishes in those deaneries from the top of the Louthesk deanery page.) One further Blackwell burial, a infant Thomas in Horncastle in 1851.
Five Blakewell burials, all in Horncastle deanery, between 1848 and 1865.

Publication of baptism index for Louthesk deanery 1754-1812, at least two years away.
Burwell not on FreeREG.
No immediately obvious baptism for Joseph on the IGI or Familysearch beta site, that I can see.

But:
There is a Burwell in Cambridgeshire, and it's not that far from St Ives.

Apart from 1841, the only census on which I can find Joseph is the 1871, where it says his birthplace is Burwell Lincoln.
Look at the shape the letters 'Cambs' make in the previous person's birthplace. Squint your eyes a bit, and I can make the shape of 'Lincoln' turn into 'Cambs'. Remember that the image you're looking at is the enumerator's writing - you're not looking at the two individual household schedules which would have allegedly been completed by different people - and the enumerator has written what he thinks was written on the original schedules.

In the 1851 census, there's a Samuel Blackwell born 1801 in Burwell, and he's a waterman living in Cambridge. Am I putting Burwell and waterman together and getting 4 or 5? i.e. Samuel a possible sibling of Joseph?

Cambridgeshire FHS have an online baptism and burial indexes for 1801 - 1837. Google, and then select 'searchable databases'. Searching for Blackwell in Burwell should elicit some details.

I haven't tried looking for any sons of Joseph and Eliza who are not at home in 1851 and 1861 - the logic for the search being that the surname has been mistranscribed but that they will be easier to spot and that dad might be with one of them.

If you have a local LDS FHC then you can order in the film of Burwell PRs (both Cambs and Lincs if you want!) to view as they may contain more information than is given in the online indexes.

At the moment I certainly wouldn't say that Joseph definitely came from Burwell, Cambridgeshire, but I would certainly say that it looks more likely than him coming from Burwell Lincs.

Forgot to say - it's always dangerous to to assume someone's birthplace when you can only find that detail on one census.

Pam

[BeeE586]

I have family from the village of Burwell in Lincolnshire and have visited the place several times. There is (or was) some very fine wooden carving in the church and even though it was decommissioned much work has been done on the structure. However, it is a dying village, no school, shop or post office, one pub and an old Butter market building - very little else.

Also, it would seem strange that anyone should have an occupation as waterman if that was in connection with boats - there is no navigable water in the immediate vicinity. Perhaps the Cambridgeshire village closer to the Fens would be a better bet.

Eileen

[Pam Downes]

Also, it would seem strange that anyone should have an occupation as waterman if that was in connection with boats - there is no navigable water in the immediate vicinity. Perhaps the Cambridgeshire village closer to the Fens would be a better bet. Eileen

Hi Eileen,
Thank you for the general info re Burwell as it is now.
And also for that most important detail about the lack of local navigable water. Burwell is not a place I know.
Pam

[zebrainbexhill]

Pam
You are a STAR!
My census copies are 6 years old and frankly the copy is very faint, I have checked Cambridgeshire 1841 census and there is a Joseph Blackwell born 1811. It doesn't help that at times the family called themselves Black, this only came to light when I couldn't find Mum's grandfather on any census until he was 21, neither could I find a birth record eventually I went through St Ives Birth registers page by page and before 1891 Thomas Blackwell was Tom Black, BC also in this name. Always joked with Mum that the family were highwaymen.
Thank You again
Zeb

[Chipp'n'Dale]

In the CFHS's searchable database on their website, there are 3 Joseph Blackwell baptisms in 1806, 1810 and 1811

[Geoff Everitt]

In the CFHS's searchable database on their website, there are 3 Joseph Blackwell baptisms in 1806, 1810 and 1811

Yes, two of them have the same parents, so the first can be ignored.
1810, son of George and Ann
1811, son of Saml and Sarah
both at Burwell.

Perhaps the names of his children give a clue