Paddy, Mad. could be an abbreviation of Madeline.  I can't recall ever seeing Madam used in parish registers. Mdm was the usual short form. Mrs was often used for the wives of gents [and for spinsters].  Jeff ----- Original Message ---- From: Paddy Buckley <paddy.buckley@lineone.net> To: bristol_and_somerset@rootsweb.com Sent: Sunday, 26 December, 2010 9:49:04 Subject: [B&S] How was the wife of an Esquire known? I think I may have finally found the 1708 burial record of an ancestor.  She had been indexed on Ancestry.co.uk as Mad Mary Cooke.  A close look at the original entry showed that it was Mad. Mary Cooke.  I am guessing that the abbreviation was for Madam, which I have never come across before in a family history context.  Has anyone else seen such a use in a parish register?  Mrs. was often used for the wife of a vicar or a doctor.  I have seen newspaper reports such as "The Lady ----- of John Cooke Esq was safely delivered of a daughter" where John Cooke was a high ranking barrister in the Inner Temple and always referred to as Esq in the period 1690-1710.  He may not have been granted a Coat of Arms. John Buckley ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to BRISTOL_AND_SOMERSET-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message