Marriage Cert Query

[Kit]

Hello all,
I've just received 2 marriage certs and they have both offerred more questions than answers. My main query being for Bride's is it common not to list the father's surname and just his given names, even though it says surname should be listed?

In both cases the bride is a spinster but has a surname as a middle name and the father's surname is listed as the middle name.

ie Mary Greenshaw Leasley, father Fennell Greenshaw and
Grace Simpson Eastwood, father David Simpson

Both groom's surnames match their fathers, Frankish and Bennett respectively.

Both certs are from different counties although I got them from the GRO. It is confusing especially for the Simpson Eastwood one especially as I have 2 women who could be the bride, one with each surname.

PS: What is a tag? I've been offline for a while.

[Uncle John]

Hello all,
I've just received 2 marriage certs and they have both offerred more questions than answers. My main query being for Bride's is it common not to list the father's surname and just his given names, even though it says surname should be listed?

In both cases the bride is a spinster but has a surname as a middle name and the father's surname is listed as the middle name.

ie Mary Greenshaw Leasley, father Fennell Greenshaw and
Grace Simpson Eastwood, father David Simpson

Both groom's surnames match their fathers, Frankish and Bennett respectively.

Both certs are from different counties although I got them from the GRO. It is confusing especially for the Simpson Eastwood one especially as I have 2 women who could be the bride, one with each surname.

I think the fathers' names are correct, but for some reason the brides have added a new surname (or there was a mistake when the certificate was written out).

Is there any possibility of getting the "original" certificates from the local register office? There may have been an error made in the copy that went to the GRO.

[Lynn The Forest Fan]

Is it possible that the surname is that of the mother & the parents weren't married? bit odd to get 2 like that at the same time.

[Kit]

I might email the local offices and see if they will help me without paying for a new cert. Money's tight at the moment and I can't justify buying a cert twice.

[KiteRunner]

It will be easier to type this up as though there was only one case - it looks a bit weird when I put it all into the plural for some reason!

Kit, the most likely explanation is that the bride was illegitimate and was given her natural father's surname as a middle name. Then because she knew the name of her father, she gave his name at her wedding.

Another possibility is that she was "legitimate" and her father' surname and middle name did match hers but there was a muddle with the certificate because she only said his first name and middle name, assuming that the vicar or registrar would add on the surname automatically (like my grandfather saying "My father was Robert Salter" when he meant "Robert Salter Bristow" - it was so obvious to him that his father had the same surname as he did that he didn't bother to mention it.)

[Kit]

Lynn you may be right with the second bride.

I thought Grace Eastwood, father Richard married Thomas Bennett, although looking at census entries Grace Simpson, father David would fit in age and residence as well. Which was why I bought the cert. Both Grace's are related so I haven't lost anything if she turned out to be the other.

I've just looked at the census and David Simpson married Sarah Eastwood and had daughter Grace. David is an engineer. So it looks like I had the wrong person.

Although you wouldn't believe it Richard Eastwood, the other suspected father is also an engineer. lol No idea on Richard's wife's surname as yet. Although odds are it is Simpson.

[Kit]

Kate for the Frankish/Leasley one I have no idea. It's my OH's side and I don't know it as well.

For my Grace Simpson/Eastwood possiblilties I have no idea when the parents married on one and from her age and date of parents marriage on the other she was illegitimate, although they did marry.

It's jsut weird to get 2 like this at once.

[Kit]

Another question how likely is it your aunt is your witness at your wedding? The witness, Ellen Eastwood, is either the sister of Grace Eastwood or the aunt of Grace Simpson.

[KiteRunner]

I've certainly got one where an uncle was a witness, so I suppose an aunt is possible too.