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  1. #1

    Default She married a soldier.. but who was she?

    Trying to trace the marriage of NOAH KEY who served in the 44th East Essex Regiment of Foot.

    From military records we know they sailed for Guernsey on 23 October 1804, stayed there five years, and then in 1809 moved to Alderney.

    Sometime during this period he married - probably on Guernsey - and left a pregnant wife when he sailed to Spain in 1810 with the regiment to defend Cadiz against the French. He died fighting in Spain in 1812.

    We know what happened to the baby son he never saw. Thomas was orphaned at the age of eight. Like his dad he joined the army, but then emigrated to the New World 150 years ago this year, and his many descendants are happy to be here to this day.

    But Noah Key's poor wife remains faceless and nameless. She was dead by 1818, possibly in London.

    Does Noah Key make a brief excursion into your family tree somewhere?

    And if we wanted to find a marriage between a soldier and a Guernsey or Alderney lass in the first decade of the 1800s, where would we look?

    Many thanks

    Dale (and Noah's descendants)
    New Zealand

  2. #2
    Geoffers
    Guest

    Default

    You obviously have some military record(s) which give these details, which military record do you possess?

    Have you tried the regimental registers of births 1761-1924 and the Army Chaplains returns of baptism 1796-1880? Both these are available on the pay-per-view site 1837 online This site also has the Army Chaplains returns of marriages 179-1880. If a reference is found, you can apply for a copy of the relevant certificate from the GRO, records relating to birth will include the mother's maiden name.

    The Regimental returns of marriages are not indexed, but they are held by the FRC - and as you have the regiment, they should be able to carry our a search for you.

    Geoffers
    Last edited by Guest; 12-10-2007 at 6:44 PM.

  3. #3

    Default

    Many thanks for that Geoffers, we'll take it from there.
    We do not have any military records, only the results of some paid research done for a family member some years back. But now UK records are a fraction more accessible to long-distance researchers - some records anyway.

    Dale in New Zealand

  4. #4
    Geoffers
    Guest

    Default

    I appreicate the problems of researching from several thousand miles, but when you get time, you might try to locate records relating to his military service - attestation papers, stuff generally relating to his service, where you may also find mention of a next of kin.

    In particular have a browse thorugh The National Archives (TNA) research guides relating to the British Army, click on the obvious links from here:
    https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/c...ndex.asp?j=1#b
    Geoffers

  5. #5
    Newcomer to Brit-Gen
    Join Date
    Dec 2021
    Location
    Washington DC
    Posts
    3

    Default Noah Key Descendants

    Hello Dale,
    Know this is old but on the off-chance you see this.
    We are distant relatives...may have tried to contact you before.
    I am descended from Thomas Key, the son of Noah's son Thomas.
    I have some additional information you might be interested in, but yes the mystery of Anne is perplexing.
    My email is clarkejl999atgmaildotcom
    John Clarke
    Last edited by almach; 04-03-2022 at 3:46 AM. Reason: Broken email link to prevent spam.

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