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aussieshay
26-01-2009, 8:21 AM
While trolling yesteray I came across an entry for a bastardy case heard at Spittlegate , Lincolnshire with what I think could have been my great x 3 grandfather named as the father of an illegitimate baby in June 1851.

My G x 3 was living in Spittlegate at the time also! And the mother of the baby was living in the place my relative was born in.

There were quite a few families in that Lincolnshire area with the same last name and a few with the first and last name the same.

Is there any way to confirm the right Thomas H? Was he mine or not? (This is probably the most exciting thing I've dredged up in 15 years of doing my family history)

Thanks for your ideas/thoughts.

Shay

MarkJ
26-01-2009, 9:46 AM
Have you got the birth certificate for him? If so, does it name the father or just mother?
Likewise, is there any marriage certificate for your 3xgrandfather which mentions a fathers name?
Those would be my starting point I think - then work from there. If the surname is particularly common, it may be harder to prove without doubt that the bastardy papers relate to your family, but it would certainly narrow it down.


Mark

aussieshay
26-01-2009, 10:35 AM
Hi Mark ,

Thanks for your post . I think I unintentionally confused you with the way I wrote my post.

Thomas Howitt was named as the father of an illegitimate female child by Henrietta Elson in 1851 in a petty court session and ordered to pay support.

In Lincolnshire at this time and in Spittlegate and surrounding areas Howitt/Howett was a common name as was Thomas. The IGI shows a number of them born in the area in a 40 year time period that could potentially be the father , assuming they remained in the area .

I would like to prove or disprove whether or not my great x 3 grandfather was the culprit. (It certainly might explain why he was keen to move to Australia 2 years later! )

The 1851 census wont help even with the baby's name as birth occured about a month after it was taken. I thought if I at least got that it would perhaps name the father , his occupation, and where he was living which again would narrow it down. Nothing is popping up on free BDM searches either.

Lesley Robertson
26-01-2009, 10:53 AM
Hi Mark ,

Thanks for your post . I think I unintentionally confused you with the way I wrote my post.

Thomas Howitt was named as the father of an illegitimate female child by Henrietta Elson in 1851 in a petty court session and ordered to pay support.

In Lincolnshire at this time and in Spittlegate and surrounding areas Howitt/Howett was a common name as was Thomas. The IGI shows a number of them born in the area in a 40 year time period that could potentially be the father , assuming they remained in the area .

I would like to prove or disprove whether or not my great x 3 grandfather was the culprit. (It certainly might explain why he was keen to move to Australia 2 years later! )

The 1851 census wont help even with the baby's name as birth occured about a month after it was taken. I thought if I at least got that it would perhaps name the father , his occupation, and where he was living which again would narrow it down. Nothing is popping up on free BDM searches either.


The census won't help if you search for individuals, but I think it would help if you got the film (your nearest LDS centre should be able to get it for you) and work your way round the streets of Spittalgate to see how many THs of baby-fathering age were living within a reasonable distance at the time of the birth (it's convenient that the birth and census were close - it gives you a snapshot of the actual community at the time things happened.

Lesley

aussieshay
26-01-2009, 10:57 AM
The census won't help if you search for individuals, but I think it would help if you got the film (your nearest LDS centre should be able to get it for you) and work your way round the streets of Spittalgate to see how many THs of baby-fathering age were living within a reasonable distance at the time of the birth (it's convenient that the birth and census were close - it gives you a snapshot of the actual community at the time things happened.

Lesley


Great idea Lesley! Thanks!

Shay

BeeJay
26-01-2009, 1:59 PM
If the baby was born in a workhouse the workhouse records will sometimes have additional information, either in the birth registers or even in the admission and discharge records.

Checking baptisms in the PRs around that time should help to show other Thomas Howitts in the area, like Lesley suggested.

:)