Hi Everyone A few weeks ago I posted my first message to this list. I was trying to establish whether Ellen NADEN = Ellen JORDAN = Ellen SCARD In addition I wanted to find marriage of Ellen to Thomas SCARD and the birth of dau Madeline. In all the records I had Madeline was Madeline SCARD, but had never found birth cert. In the space of a few hours and the help of a number of people, particularly Marlene (NZ), Chris (Canada) and Peter (Aust) problems were largely sorted out. I promised to write again after getting the relevant certificates. As briefly as I can, the facts - Marriage of Ellen NADEN and Lewis JORDAN Dec 22nd 1849 St Marys Bedford Birth of Julia Ellen JORDAN Sept 23rd 1850 St Peters Bedford (m Ellen, father Lewis - informant) 1851 Census - Lewis and Ellen JORDAN + Julia 6 months in Bedford Birth of Madelina JORDAN Aug 23rd 1854 St Marys Bedford (mother Ellen - informant, fa Lewis ) !861 Census - Lewis JORDAN (unmarried) in Linslade Buckinghamshire (actually not far west of Bedford, Bedfordshire) 1861 Census Thomas SCARD and Ellen SCARD + dau Madeline SCARD (6) Bexleyheath Kent 1861 Census Julia E JORDAN in Boarding School Bedford Marriage of Ellen NADEN (spinster!) and Thomas SCARD Mar 24th 1862 Kentish Town Middlesex Death of Lewis JORDAN Mar 23rd 1864 in Linslade Buckinghamshire 1866-7 Ellen & Thomas SCARD emigrate to Australia. Madeline (Scard) & Julia (Jordan) stay Eng Marriage of Julia Ellen JORDAN and James BEECHEY 1869 1871 Census Madeline SCARD servant in London 1871 Census James & Julia E BEECHEY + infant son living Wokingham Berkshire. Julia Ellen JORDAN remained JORDAN all her life until marriage Madeline named JORDAN on birth certificate and father's name given as Lewis JORDAN, but mother Ellen the informant and all her life (at least from 1861) known as Madeline SCARD. The 2 sisters (or half-sisters) grew up with different surnames - suggests Lewis JORDAN not Madeline's father, but I cannot (though I'd like to!) say that Thomas SCARD was. If Thomas SCARD 'adopted' Ellen's dau Madeline even before his marriage to Ellen, why didn't he also 'adopt' Julia who was afterall only 4 years older (10 in 1861). Perhaps lends credence to the idea of Thomas SCARD actually being Madeline's father - will remain a mystery I guess. Best wishes Lyn Aust