Whay would you make of this?

[Merry Monty Montgomery]

Bristol Mercury 1st June 1839.jpg

The above clipping was printed in The Bristol Mercury on 1st June 1839, so a couple of weeks after the marriages of two half sisters, Ann and Eliza Burchill.

However, the marriage of Eliza to Thomas House isn't in the GRO indexes (fair enough perhaps), but also she is still at home with her parents and recorded as Burchill in 1841.

So....if the marriage didn't go ahead, why didn't anyone think to have the newspaper notice amended? I'm feeling sorry for her after nearly 170 years! I wonder what happened??

[Merry Monty Montgomery]

Here she is:

George Burchell 60
Ann Burchell 50
Robert Burchell 30
John Burchell 20
Elizabeth Burchell 20
Eliza Burchell 20 <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
Mary Burchell 15
William Burchell 15
Lavinia Burchell 12
Emely Burchell 10
Luesia Burchell 8
Matilda Burchell 4
Amelia Burchell 1 Mo

At Mangotsfield, Gloucestershire

Yes there was an Eliza and an Elizabeth - George had 18 children so I suppose he had run out of ideas?!!

[Harrys mum]

Can't find a Thomas House in Kingswood or Bristol for 1841, but he could be anywhere.

Wondered if he died before the wedding??

[Harrys mum]

Merry......................why are looking at this??? Are they yours??

[KiteRunner]

As for why the newspaper notice wasn't amended, maybe they were all too shocked by whatever had happened to cause the wedding to be cancelled to think of it? Or maybe they asked to have it changed but the original entry was put in by mistake?

[Harrys mum]

There are pages of Thomas House entries in 1841... Haven't found one that says "used to be engaged to Eliza" yet.

There is a 20 year old in Glous. with his parents by the look.

[Olde Crone Holden]

Erm, now how to put this delicately.....

She wouldn't be the first bride to run home screaming to Mama when she discovered just what her marital duties entailed....perhaps the marriage was annulled?

OC

[Phoenix]

So, was the other marriage by licence or banns? Who were the witnesses? Were banns called for Eliza's marriage?

I would think that you sent off the notice a little while beforehand and whatever did happen, the household was in such chaos that nobody thought to cancell it.

[Tom Tom]

Very interesting though!

You could check the PRs to see if the vicar has written anything. I have seen entries where he has written things such as "They did not turn up" across the page.

[Mary from Italy]

perhaps the marriage was annulled?

Wouldn't the original entry still be in the GRO index, though?

[Little Nell]

Merry

We all know about marriages that don't make it to the GRO index!

[Little Nell]

Maybe irrelevant but IGI has

THOMAS HOWES
Spouse: ANN PETTEGROVE
Marriage: 20 JUL 1840 Holy Trinity, Bristol, Gloucester, England

[Mary from Italy]

That's interesting. But I can only see one candidate for Ann's birth on the IGI, and she's living with her parents under her maiden name, aged 14, in 1841.

[Southwick]

Triplets and twins? why would Eliza be the third daughter and Ann the second ? Burchell or Burchill.

[Little Nell]

Merry

There's a 20 year old Eliza with George in Mangotsfield 1841
HO107; Piece 377; Book: 16; Civil Parish: Mangotsfield; County: Gloucestershire; Enumeration District: 2; Folio: 36; Page: 31; Line: 1

but different household from the one you have.

Since there are 2 Elizas with fathers George, maybe there was a 3rd one who DID marry.
Where did you find out they didn't?

[Merry Monty Montgomery]

Wondered if he died before the wedding??

Goodness, I didn't think of that.

Merry......................why are looking at this??? Are they yours??

Their father was my 4xg-grandfather.

As for why the newspaper notice wasn't amended, maybe they were all too shocked by whatever had happened to cause the wedding to be cancelled to think of it? Or maybe they asked to have it changed but the original entry was put in by mistake?

Sounds plausible!

Haven't found one that says "used to be engaged to Eliza" yet.

PMSL! Keep looking!

She wouldn't be the first bride to run home screaming to Mama when she discovered just what her marital duties entailed

lol! My great aunt did that!

So, was the other marriage by licence or banns? Who were the witnesses? Were banns called for Eliza's marriage?

I don't know - I don't have the cert.

Very interesting though!

You could check the PRs to see if the vicar has written anything. I have seen entries where he has written things such as "They did not turn up" across the page.

I really should do that *quails at the thought of accessing Bristol records*

Wouldn't the original entry still be in the GRO index, though?

I think it would, so probably didn't go ahead.

That's interesting. But I can only see one candidate for Ann's birth on the IGI, and she's living with her parents under her maiden name, aged 14, in 1841.

Did you mean Eliza? Ann was a lot older than Eliza and none of their baps are on the IGI as far as I remember (I don't have family history prog open at the mo as I'm supposed to be at tesco!)

Triplets and twins? why would Eliza be the third daughter and Ann the second ? Burchell or Burchill.

Why not? There was one other girl born before Ann and then came Ann, then Eliza and then a load more. Ann and Eliza had different mothers. George had nine children with each of them. The current spelling is Burchill and generally was from 1800 onwards for my branch, though some records have other spellings.

There's a 20 year old Eliza with George in Mangotsfield 1841
HO107; Piece 377; Book: 16; Civil Parish: Mangotsfield; County: Gloucestershire; Enumeration District: 2; Folio: 36; Page: 31; Line: 1

but different household from the one you have.

Since there are 2 Elizas with fathers George, maybe there was a 3rd one who DID marry.
Where did you find out they didn't?

Erm..........

My George put up notices for the marriages of all his children who married. Ann is def his child as one of her Rogers children is living with grandparents on another census......

I will have to think about your Q in Tesco as I don't quite understand???

[Anne in Carlisle]

Merry, with the 1841 census being so vague might it be that she happened to be at home and her parents entered her as Burchill, forgetting she had changed her name.

My daughter has been married two years now and I STILL forget to change her name sometimes :o

Anne

[Little Nell]

Sorry Merry

I wasn't sure that you had definitely found the right family in 1841.
I think getting the cert for the marriage that did occur would be a good idea - maybe Eliza was a witness to what would have been a double wedding.

Reasons they didn't marry
change their minds
he was a potential bigamist which they discovered
he died

Also, perhaps if there was a problem (like Thos having another wife or being engaged to someone else) maybe a la Jane Eyre someone came forward at the actual ceremony. That might easily account for why the family didn't withdraw the notice, which they would have done presumably if the wedding had been cancelled a lot earlier.

In which case, the vicar may have already written the marriage details and then recorded why the ceremony didn't take place, in the register. I think they sometimes did fill it in in advance so all that was needed was the signatures.

[Southwick]

Merry have you looked around this site they seem to be on the same track as you.

Burchill family - Bitton Families Genealogy

[Olde Crone Holden]

IF the marriage was annulled then it depends which version of the GRO index you are looking at and when it was compiled.

Annulled marriages are supressed and shouldn't appear in a more recent version of the index.

OC