Genealogy Chat

England & Wales, FreeBMD Birth Index, 1837-1915
about Mabel Augusta Harris
Name: Mabel Augusta Harris
Year of Registration: 1890
Quarter of Registration: Oct-Nov-Dec
District: Bideford
County: Devon
Volume: 5b
Page: 451 (click to see others on page)

Hi All of you and thanks so much phew! as you say a lot to take in!!. First thing in the morning I will go to my dads and get b.d.& marriage of joseph edward rivers and mabel augusta harris and post it on here. then maybe when we allhave the info somebody can set me off in the right direction looking for Josephs mum my great grandmother Emily Rivers and the rest of her family. I needsome zzzzz's thanks again Jo

Hi sorry I haven't been in touch all day , problems with laptop. Anyway just to say I have been to my dads and got some useful facts and will post it all on here tomorrow. hopefully you will all come back and help me. Jo

Hi Cynthia sorry Ive missed you all today but I have got birth and death certs for joseph and mabel harris and there wedding cert. wil post all details on here tomorrow as I keep getting locked out. thanks again Jo

The suspense is killing me!

C'mon Joanne! We're ready and waiting......and Meg is chomping at the bit!! Cx.

Too right! I'm checking every few minutes.

Wonder where Joanne is? Maybe the computer is playing up??? Hope you managed to get some sleep Meg ...lol

Cx.

Hi. Ok I will tell you what we know that is definite fact. Joseph Edward Rivers (my grandad) born 25/5/1889 Wantage. Died 11/6/1960 Bideford. Married Mabel Augusta Harris Born 18/9/1890 Buckland brewer Bideford. Died 27/11/1980. Bideford. Married each other 26/3/1921 Bideford. Joseph was at that time a Batchelor Bootmaker living in Bristol. Mabel was in Domestic service at Clarence Cottage Bideford. on the marriage certificate it states that Josephs father was Joseph Rivers Deceased!!!!! on his birth certificate it has a x put through father and no name. Fact. Joseph was enlisted in the Wiltshire regiment on 11/1/1915 his number was 18429 he was a corporal he was discharged at the age of 28 as he had lost a leg. the story is he met my nan before he signed up when he was in weymouth? nan thought he had died so she started courting somebody else, he reappeared and they got back together. He was sent to Bristol to retrain as a bootmaker. (Ironic job choice with only 1 leg!) then he came back to Bideford and married Nan and opened his own cobblers. His mother was definitely Emily Rivers and she signed the birth certificate with a x. the rest we have has been found on all the census where all the family seem to have been born in woolstone or letcombe regis. I hope you all have much fun, and please try and come up with the same answers. Ha! ha! somebody asked why grandad would have left oxford and come all the way to Bideford, obviously he LOVED my nan. anyway thanks muchly Jo Have fun

p.s I do NOT have any birth or death certs for EMILY RIVERS i think as I said before my dad got a little carried away and found an Emily Rivers but he hadnt looked at the age so all that is null and void. please ask me for anything else or tell me what I can be doing whilst my super slueths are on the case. Jo

Welcome back Joanne!

Re the marriage cert of your grandparents, did he give an occupation for his supposed father Joseph, deceased? It's just worth looking for such a fella before we decide he was fictitious.

What was his age on marriage?

Who were the witnesses?

There is a medal card on Ancestry for him. Wrong transcription as it says Wales Regiment but the actual says Wilts. Date of discharge 1/3/1919.

So his war activities explain why he was in the West Country.

What a lovely story about him meeting your nan and coming back for her.

It would be worth getting his war records if you don't already have them.

So, he is definitely looking like the Joseph Edward born 1889 in Wantage, mother Emily, unmarried. And this is him in 1911, the only possible one:

BOULTER, Henry Head Married M 48 1863 Carter On Farm Berks Charlton VIEW
BOULTER, Annie Wife Married
23 years F 46 1865 Berks Wodstone VIEW
RIVERS, Joseph Edward Nephew Single M 22 1889 Under Carter On Farm Berks Wantage VIEW

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RG number:
RG14 Piece:
6443 Reference:
RG14PN6443 RG78PN316 RD116 SD2 ED13 SN42

Registration District:
Faringdon Sub District:
Faringdon EnumerationDistrict:
13 Parish:
Stanford in the Vale

Address:
Cottage Road Stanford Faringdon County:
Berkshire

Annie Boulter, nee Rivers, is Emily's sister, living with parents in 1871 and 1881. Emily born 1867:
England & Wales, FreeBMD Birth Index, 1837-1915
about Emily Rivers
Name: Emily Rivers
Year of Registration: 1867
Quarter of Registration: Apr-May-Jun
District: Faringdon
County: Berkshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, Wiltshire
Volume: 2c
Page: 260 (click to see others on page)

Emily with parents in 1871, 1881 and 1891. Joseph with her in 1891, described as son of Alfred and Martha but clearly is their grandson.

No sign of them in 1901???

We still don't have a death for Emily that fits. I had a reply from Oxford to say they would get back to me on the death in 1912, but nothing yet.

And we are still confused about Martha Rivers/Weavens/Prior.

Oh heck, there is a tree on Ancestry that says she is Martha Tyler!!!

Joanne, I think the next stage is to get Emily's birth certificate to see what her mother's maiden name is.

Don't forget the prices go up next week.

Looks likely that Alfred Rivers married Martha Weavens/Weaving/Waving, as the marriage and baptisms of children are in parish records as well as being the only marriage on freebmd.

I can only guess that in 1871 the enumerator meant to write Rivers, but the R came out as P and he missed the S off.

This is them in 1861, mistranscribed as Wearing:

1861 England Census
about John Wearing
Name: John Wearing
Age: 53
Estimated birth year: abt 1808
Relation: Head
Spouse's name: Anne
Gender: Male
Where born: Woolstone, Berkshire, England

Civil parish: Woolstone
County/Island: Berkshire
Country: England

Street Address:

Occupation:

Condition as to marriage: View image

Registration district: Faringdon
Sub-registration district: Shrivenham
ED, institution, or vessel: 6
Neighbors: View others on page
Household schedule number: 29
Household Members: Name Age
John Wearing 53
Anne Wearing 58
Emma Wearing 26
Martha Wearing 16
Albert Dawson 20


Baptisms:

International Genealogical Index / British Isles - 6
Select records to download - (50 maximum)
1. RICHARD WEAVINGS - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Male Christening: 27 MAR 1825 Uffington, Berkshire, England

2. JAMES WEAVINGS - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Male Christening: 28 APR 1827 Uffington, Berkshire, England

3. CAROLINE WEAVINGS - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Female Christening: 22 MAR 1829 Uffington, Berkshire, England

4. EMMA WEAVINGS - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Female Christening: 21 DEC 1834 Uffington, Berkshire, England

5. GEORGE WEAVINGS - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Male Christening: 25 JUN 1837 Uffington, Berkshire, England

6. HENRY WEAVINGS - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Male Christening: 22 MAY 1831 Uffington, Berkshire, England

Parents John and Ann Weavings.

Still going...

JOHN WEAVIN Pedigree
Male Family

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Marriages:
Spouse: ANN PALMER Family
Marriage: 10 OCT 1824 Lambourn, Berkshire, England

This is the best birth I can find:

England & Wales, FreeBMD Birth Index, 1837-1915
about Martha Weavers
Name: Martha Weavers
Year of Registration: 1844
Quarter of Registration: Apr-May-Jun
District: Faringdon
County: Berkshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, Wiltshire
Volume: 6
Page: 186 (click to see others on page)

Oxford records office have confirmed that the person who died Q2 1912 is aged 54, so it's not our Emily. That person did not die on 5th May, so nor is it the person buried at Didcot.

EDIT, if you can construct a sob story, which I did (and am good at, it seems), it can work!

Goodness me, well done our Meg! You have been busy!

Joanne, do send for that birth certificate in order to avoid any future errors. Meg has given you the GRO reference numbers so it should be easy. Cx.

Hi again and thanks for all that still confused about spellings etc but I will have a good look tomorrow and reply to you again. thanks so much for all your time and effort. Jo

Hi Cynthia. Just ordered the birth certificate for Emily. Can't answer all megs questions till tomorrow as I will need to go to my dads for them. Am certain though that nothing mentioned about fathers occupation on Josephs birth certificate. Sleep well thanks. Jo

I'm not sure I had any questions, Jo. That birth cert will tell us that the mmn was Weavens or similar (I'd like it to be Weaver, I am a Weaver). I am certain she is the mother.

I admit to being shell-shocked by the Prior name. What a blooming red herring, I hope, and we must notify Ancestry as soon as we are sure.

Anybody still involved here. Do you have any idea what happened to Emily? It is bothering me. I've tried everything I can think of. Marriages, deaths, emigration. Nothing is coming up. She didn't disappear off the face of the earth. There must be something.

Love to all

Margaret

Oh, I see what you mean about spellings. Yep. Weavens, Weaving, Wavens, Wevens, any variaion. I would like it to be Weaver, cos I am a Weaver!!! I think I already said that. Sorry.

Still been going though my cd, found the marriage for Minnie Rivers Emily's sister

Standford in the Vale Berkshire marriage oct 8th 1901

Minnie Rivers 21 father Alfred

Harry Richings 21 father James

in the 1911 census


Address: Lotmead Cottages Wanborough Swindon
County: Wiltshire

RICHINGS, Harry Head Married M 31 1880 Miler On Farm Littleworth Faringdon Berkshire
RICHINGS, Minnie Wife Married
10 years F 30 1881 Wantage Berkshire
RICHINGS, Louisa Daughter Single F 8 1903 School Stanford in the Vale Berkshire
RICHINGS, James Son Single M 4 1907 Stanford in the Vale Berkshire
RICHINGS, Mary Daughter Single F 6 1905 School Stanford in the Vale Berkshire
RICHINGS, Martha Daughter Single F 1 1910 Wanborough Wiltshire
RIVERS, Alfred Father In Law Widower M 77 1834 Labourer On Farm East Garston Berkshire

Annabel