Genealogy Chat

hmmm... it's all a bit confusing really. I think I'm going to quit the computer for the night! Bye!

Different father's surname on a marriage cert (for a man) usually means either he was illegitimate and therefore took his mother's surname, or the surname he was using when he got married was not his original surname - probably because he took his step-father's surname, but could be because he changed his surname for some other reason. Or it can be that he was illegitimate and kept his mother's surname, but gives his step-father's name as his father on the marriage cert. Kate.

He could be part of one of my direct lines, until I find out his mother's name I'll never know but it's bugging me! lol Joseph was widowed in 1851 but unfortunatley I don't have 1841 access, the kind folk on here have provided those. I'm desperate for it to arrive on ancestry so I can find people who don't seem to be able to be found... Has anyone else had a different father's surname on a marriage cert before? Jo

I don't really consider anything a brick wall myself unless it stops me tracing one of my lines back... otherwise it may nag at me but doesn't bother me too much! Kate.

Oh, if he isn't your ancestor, I suppose it just depends how much you want to find out about him! Kate.

A couple of questions now I have read it again... Was the Joseph Sowerbutts you found on the 1851 single, married, or widowed? Have you found him (or any other Joseph Sowerbutts!) in 1841? Kate.

That's what I want to know as well lol! I had an inkling he was going to be illigitimate (sp?) when I first was trying to place him and realised I couldn't! But I certainly didn't expect this. The surname definatley isn't Whiteside. There are a couple of Moses' daughters who are 'possibles'. This is all pretty much assumption and I could be completely barking up the wrong tree. This is what I'm asking really. Is it worth continuing? He's a spare part! Jo

Would it be possible to look at a different copy of the marriage certificate to see if you can make out Joseph's surname better on there? For example, in the church records? (Assuming that John got married in a church) Searching on FreeBMD databases via ancestry for Sowerb*, most are Sowerby, and a few Sowerbut(t)s, so if you are sure that there is more than one letter after the 'b' his name was likely to be some version of Sowerbuts. But as to whether the Joseph you have found is the right one... Any chance that he (Joseph Sowerbuts) left a will? I've been typing this for so long I can't remember what your thread says, so I'll have to post this reply up and read it again! Kate.

You need to find a baptism record for John to see if it names a father. Why would he have the Whiteside surname if dad was Mr Sowerbutts? nell

See below:

Good evening everybody. This could probably take longer to type out than it does to solve but here goes! I have a John WHITESIDE born c.1834 in Out Rawcliffe, Lancashire. On the 1841 census he is with Moses WHITESIDE and his family. Moses 60 Margaret 56 Elizabeth 33 Moses 20 Ann 13 JOHN 7 Sarah 5 Margaret 4 Mary 1 day These are not all Moses' and Margaret's children. Mary is the daughter of Elizabeth, Sarah and Margaret are sisters, I know who their father is but no-one has been able to find him on the 1841 census. I have found an IGI record for Ann and also other children but I have found nothing for John. I already have information on him and his family from the 1861 through to 1901 (which I will add if anyone wants me to) but I can't find him in 1851. Through that information I managed to get his marriage certificate. Under Father's name is the name Joseph Sowerb... rest I can't really make out. So I did a wildcard search on 1851 and found a possible match with a Joseph SOWERBUTS born 1802 in Upper Rawcliffe. He was working as an Ag. Lab (Father's profession on cert is Labourer) as a lodger. However, I looked at 1861 and he's living with a daughter, born 1834, the same year as John. So what I'm basically trying to ask, do you think I'm barking up the wrong tree (sorry!) with this one? I need a second (or third or fourth for that matter) opinion. I know it's easy to use the most obvious explanation but it could be a complete dead end. Thanks, Jo