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HELP needed, I'm trying to research the Morgan Line (my partners family) and have come to a complete dead end. Maybe a fresh pair of eyes could help?

John Morgan b12/12/1874 in Stepney London, Married Jane Ewers b1876 on 29/10/1898 in West Ham. On their wedding certificate i have it shows Johns father being a Thomas Morgan (deceased at time of marriage) however I cant find any information or records stating Johns father was Thomas Morgan only David Morgan. Surely a wedding certificate isn't wrong?

I just want to go further back within the Morgan side and struggling

Thank you in advance
Heather

Yes a marriage cert can be ‘wrong’.

If he didn’t know his father any name could be given

How do you know the exact date of birth?

This?
Select Births and Christenings, 1538-1975
John Morgan
Gender: Male
Birth Date: 12 Dec 1874
Birth Place: Workhouse,Stepney,London,England
Mother: Bridget Morgan

illegitimate.....

The exact date of birth is from family and family records :)

Its looking like birth certificate is wrong.

Have you got his actual birth certificate?

no sorry i mean wedding certificate which i actually have

When a child was illegitimate, they often made up a father for the marriage certificate "because it looked better".

The name used could be a family member, eg grandfather, uncle, or it could be a well-known person in the community, or it could simply be made-up ............... eg, using the surname and picking a forename at random.

Unless you can find something to identify the father, you are stuck ..................... sometimes a vicar would make a note in the Parish Register next to the cjild's baptism giving the putative father's name. Or the mother might have taken the father to court for support, and you can sometimes find that record.


But literally anything on a marriage certificate can be made up, apart form the date and place, and the vicar's name!

You didn't have to show any documents to prove that the information you give is true ................. your name, age, address, occupation, father's name, alive or dead, or occupation. Even the witnesses names could be different from their born names, unless they are "professional witnesses", ie members of the church (such as verger, warden, member of the congregation) who are paid a small fee to witness the marriage.


Death certificates are the same ................. the informant only knows what he or she has been told by the deceased.


It's all meant to make life difficult for us ........ and maybe more interesting!!

Seems his birth wasn't reg as it's doesn't show on the GRO site

The census of 1881 saying father was David Morgan isn't the same john as that one was bornc1876

A tree on ancestry has decided that's the right one because mum was also a Bridget but there were older siblings too

Mothers maiden name was thompson
Marriages Jun 1865
Morgan David Islington 1b 511
Thompson Bridget Islington 1b 511

Youngest son from the 1881 census


MORGAN, WILLIAM THOMPSON
GRO Reference: 1880 S Quarter in POPLAR Volume 01C Page 659

And john
MORGAN, JOHN CHRISTOPHER THOMPSON
GRO Reference: 1875 D Quarter in POPLAR Volume 01C Page 677

So born a year later

There is a workhouse birth record on ancestry for births reg in the workhouse St George in the east for Dec 1874 saying mother was Bridget but he was legitimate

GRO site has a birth reg for that with mothers surname Brian

Although the areas are close Stepney workhouse was still in use at the time of his birth so must be a different family

Ancestry has put the image against the Stepney birth record though

View England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1837-191
Name: Bridget Brian
Registration Year: 1854
Registration Quarter: Jan-Feb-Mar
Registration district: Newington
Parishes for this Registration District: View Ecclesiastical Parishes associated with this Registration District
Inferred County: London
Volume: 1d
Page: 171

Can you please give us ALL the info from that marriage cert., i.e. names, addresses, ages, occupations, also witnesses...............

Did it give an occupation for the 'deceased' Thomas?

Dea x

??
1891 22 Hassard Street Bethnal Green
Morgan widow born 1854 Bethnal Green (view original and it says Mrs)
John Morgan 1874 son born Shoreditch.

Maryb.

wow all these replies, I thank everyone.

Certificate information:

1898 West ham
Oct 29th 1898
John Morgan aged 35 Bachelor Seaman, residence time of marriage 16 Katherine Street. Father - Thomas Morgan Labourer (deceased)

Jane Ewers 23 Spinster, residence the same as John. Father - Frederick Ewers Labourer.

Witnesses Charles Frederick Adams and Emily Gibbs (or Libbs?)

Hope this helps Dea x

And Shirley - wow on all your information, i going through now :)

If he was 35 in Oct 1898 he was born before December 1874, by about 11 years

A tree on Ancestry says he died in 1907 in West Ham - the only John Morgan death with those criteria is for a 55 year old

Jane is calling herself Adderson in 1911, with a child born before 1906 to her 'husband', and I can't find a marriage

Name: Jane Adderson
Age in 1911: 35
Estimated birth year: abt 1876
Relation to Head: Wife
Gender: Female
Birth Place: Canning Town, Essex
Civil Parish: West Ham
County/Island: Essex
Country: England
Street address: 17 Nelson Street, Tidal Basin E
Marital status: Married
Years Married: 5
Estimated Marriage Year: 1906
Registration district: West Ham
Registration District Number: 188
Sub-registration district: Canning Town
ED, institution, or vessel: 23
Household schedule number: 122
Piece: 9493
Household Members:
Name Age
John Adderson 48
Jane Adderson 35
Martha Ewers 15 Stepdaughter
Edward Morgan 10*************
Albert Morgan 8
Alma Adderson 5
John Adderson 3
William Adderson 1

MORGAN, EDWARD ALMA (MMN) EWERS
GRO Reference: 1900 J Quarter in WEST HAM Volume 04A Page 173

Jane married John Morgan 1898 and she then married John Adderson est 1905

Found the marriage now - she called herself Ewers, but there's no obvious death for John, which is probably why she didn't use the name Morgan.

Marriages Jun 1908 (>99%)
ADDERSON John W. Ham 4a 327
EWERS Jane W. Ham 4a 327


1901
Name: Martha Ewers
Age: 4
Estimated birth year: abt 1897
Relation to Head: Stepdaughter
Gender: Female
Mother: Jane Leonard
Birth Place: Cannington, Essex, England
Civil Parish: West Ham
Ecclesiastical parish: Holy Trinity
County/Island: Essex
Country: England
Registration district: West Ham
Sub-registration district: Canning Town
ED, institution, or vessel: 36
Neighbors: View others on page
Piece: 1584
Folio: 17
Page Number: 27
Household schedule number: 166
Household Members:
Name Age
Albert Leonard 36 Occ; QMS Mercantile Marine, b. Guildford, Surrey
Jane Leonard 25
Edward Leonard 10/12
Martha Ewers 4


Would be interesting to know why they were using aliases

Did you take notice of my comment about his age on the marriage cert?

Borne out by the 1901 census.........................

ADDERSON, WILLIAM FREDERICK EWERS
GRO Reference: 1909 D Quarter in WEST HAM Volume 04A Page 168


MORGAN, ALMA GEORGE EWERS
GRO Reference: 1905 D Quarter in WEST HAM Volume 04A Page 166
MORGAN, JOHN EWERS
GRO Reference: 1907 D Quarter in WEST HAM Volume 04A Page 179