researching relative in India

[Terjon]

Please can anyone help with finding out who my great grandmother really was?
I found out that her name when she married was Ester Chunder but then someone found her marriage entry in St Thomas' Church in Calcutta which registers her as a widow. Her fathers name is given as Peter Nelson Bigely. The date was 1865. I have not been able to contact the person again and when they sent me this email they said they could find no trace of Peter nelson Bigelly. Any help would be very welcome as I have no idea of how to find her. Thankyou

[KiteRunner]

FIBIS has the second marriage, although I know you already have it, but just for the rest of us:

1865 Bengal Adolphus Hoogstraten / Ester Chunder.

There is no match on FIBIS for Bigely or Bigelly, which doesn't really help.

[Georgette]

Hello Terjon and welcome to the site

Family search has quite a few India records(FamilySearch.org - Family History and Genealogy Records ) and the Families in British India Society site ( FIBIS | Families In British India Society | Family History in British India ) has a very good search facility too.

[Georgette]

I haven't found anything on Family Search for India either

[Tilly Mint]

Hello and Welcome to FTF Terjon

Another site for you to try.

India Office Family History Search

[KiteRunner]

I don't think we know for sure that Esther's family came from Britain yet, do we? I think we need to find out where that surname comes from.

[KiteRunner]

Oh, looking around it doesn't look likely that the name was really Bigely or Bigelly - it might be worth you getting a copy of the actual marriage certificate to check how it is spelt on there. I would guess perhaps Bigley or Biggeley or something like that, in which case it looks to be Scottish or Irish. If you look the marriage up on FIBIS:
FIBIS | Families In British India Society | Family History in British India
then it will give you details of which LDS microfilm you can order to view the marriage. I'll try to link directly to the entry:
FIBIS - Powered by The Frontis Archive Publishing System

[Terjon]

Thank you all so much for your replies. How can I find out which church they married in?
The story in my family was that she was Armenian but I think if that is true it must have been her mother. A distant cousin in America ( whom I have not met) sent me a photo that looks like a wedding photo; in it she looks as though she could be Indian. They also said that the story they had passed down in their family was that she was a Maharajah's daughter and gave me her supposed birth place. They did not have her father's name . I will find the birth place and post it if you think it will help. I think that if there's anything in that story it would be Ester's mother. What can I do with the bit of film if I send for it and will it tell me anymore? Hope you can make sense of this!

[KiteRunner]

Yes, please post up the birth place - not sure if it will help until we see it!

The LDS microfilm should have the full marriage entry, you go to your nearest LDS (Mormon) Family History Centre and order it to view there, but as for what it will tell you, again, we don't know until you view it! At least you will be able to see the spelling of the surname for yourself, which should help. It will probably tell you her father's occupation and give you the witnesses' names too.

[Terjon]

Thank you. The information I have is that she was "possibly born in Karpurthala".
I don't know where there is a place to read microfilm around here, Nottingham is probably the nearest centre. Do Libraries have that facility?

[Elaine ..Spain]

Kate was recommending that the film be ordered through the nearest LDS (Mormon) Family History Centre - I would imagine it would have to be viewed there.

[Terjon]

I'll have to wait to do that. Thank you very much.

[KiteRunner]

Karpurthala is in the Punjab if that is any help, and it can also be spelt Kapurthala.