Jane Laws of Godmanchester

[janbooth]

Hello Helen,

The marriage certificate does narrow down the age range for you to look in early census records as it shows that they were probably between 16-20 when they were married. This fits in very well with the census records for them both once they were married. They seem to have lived in Peterborough, Northants most of their married lives. William gives his place of birth as Orston, Nottinghamshire and there is this 1841 census entry:

HO107/854/1, folio 5, page 4
Orston, Notts

Joseph BRANSTON 45 Framework Knitter Born in county yes
Elizabeth do 55 no
William HUSKINSON 15 Ap yes

Which does not help you much with his parents. In the 1851 census of Peterborough (HO107/1747, folio 479, page 4), William and Jane are living at Boongate with daughter Henria (Henrietta?) aged 4 months.

According to the IGI, there is an extracted baptism on 29 April 1826 at Orston of a William HUSKINSON, mother Mary. What was the occupation given for Henry on William's marriage certificate? It could be that Mary was a single mother and the father's name shown on the marriage certificate was a spurious one.

I have just found an extracted marriage record on the IGI of a Mary HUSKINSON to a William KEY on 6 May 1832 at Orston and an 1851 census record of this couple in Newark where it states that Mary was born c1811 in Orston and the KEYs had a daughter Jane born c1836 in Lincs - perhaps this is William's mother???

The HUSKINSON name has a variety of spellings in the census records, i.e HUSKINSON, HUSKISSON and has even been mistranscribed as HUDDLESTON by Ancestry in the 1871 census of Peterborough although it is pretty clearly written as HUSKISSON. By the 1871, William & Jane have 7 children - let me know if you would like details.

I think the only way you are going to solve the parentage of William is to look through the parish register of Orston.

I am also having great difficulty finding Jane LAWS in the 1841 census so it may be that you will have to look through the parish register of Godmanchester to try to trace her lineage.

Sorry not to be of more help.

Janet

[helen57]

Hello Janet

Thank you for your time & response

I was in the middle of trawling through the 1841 census in the vain hope that I could find the family mis-transcribed when my washing machine blew the house fuse and everything went down

I was looking to see if I could find a John Laws with occupation (as on the marriage certificate) a Boot Closer.
And for the witnesses to see if they were neighbours etc but no joy

Williams father is noted as Henry Huskinson Labourer, which is not much help.
One site that has some of my Huskinsons on it say that Williams mother was Mary Ann Huskinson who married Henry Mees (this is also on IGI), again needs verifying

I am looking at the possibility of a name change, as it has come down through the family that we were once Huskissons.

I think I will have to invest in the parish registers for both William and Jane and hope that they are there.

Thanks again for your help

Helen