Hi all, I am seeking suggestions on tracing the mother of an 'illegitimate' child. John Kinsman alias Evans was born to Ann Evans in Hartland in 1796 and baptized at the parish church in Hartland, also in 1796. I have his baptism record and his bastardy bond and have traced him forward in time through his long life to his death. The bastardy bond lists the father, John Kinsman, and the child's exact date of birth. Ann's bastardy bond testimony indicates that she had an ongoing relationship with the father John at the time, though it does not specify whether it was exclusively a sexual relationship and I have found no evidence to date that they ever married. I located a second bastardy bond with the same father's name, John Kinsman, and a different mother (Sarah Wakely); that child was born in 1799 and there seems to only be one local candidate for the father of both children, as John Kinsman/Kingsman was not a common name in that place and time. However I have been completely stuck on tracing Ann Evans since discovering all of this a couple of years ago. There are a number of other 'illegitimate' births to women with the surname Evans in the latter part of the 1700's and the earliest 1800's in Hartland, including some with mothers named Ann Evans. The North Devon Record Office told me that that they think it is plausible that all the 'illegitimate' births to Ann Evanses could be to a single Ann Evans. However there appears to only be a surviving bastardy bond for one other Evans child (1804, interestingly specifying "Ann Evans the younger") and the baptism records for the 'illegitimate' Evans children only list the mothers. The other Ann Evans bastardy bond doesn't provide anything to indicate whether it is the same Ann Evans as the mother of John Kinsman alias Evans, and I have found no records so far that indicate anything specific about Ann Evans herself (parentage, age, etc). The younger John was placed in a husbandy apprenticeship at age 8 via the parish so he ceased to live with his mother at that point (if he was still living with her then), and his baptism and bastardy bond are the only records I have on him that list any parents at all. I have a hypothesis that the Evans women who were having 'illegitimate' children in Hartland around the same time may have been related to each other. But without any documents showing whether any of these things are true, both North Devon RO's theory and mine will stay in the realm of only-theories. Does anyone have any suggestions for what I can try next? Thank you, Liz Loveland Massachusetts, USA -- Liz Loveland lovelandfamilyhistory@gmail.com Blog transcribing a Victorian diary: http://addiessojourn.wordpress.com/ Genealogy & history blog: http://adventuresingenealogy.wordpress.com/

Hi Sher, Thank you for answering. I guess I am still not being clear enough so let me repeat that I have copies of the vital records from the original register pages, not transcriptions. Since I am in Massachusetts, unfortunately going to the North Devon Record Office in person is not feasible for me. In this situation the register page copies have not provided me with additional information. The person recording entries in Hartland at the time seems to have been rather bare-bones about it as there is not always even an occupation listed. With regards to Ann Evans and John Kinsman (the subject of my original post), I have gotten much more information from the bastardy bonds and the mother examinations than I have from the parish register entries. (Yes, I also have copies of the original bonds and examinations.) Liz Loveland Massachusetts, USA

Hi Marie, Thanks for answering with your suggestion. I have gotten partway there over the past couple of years but the same given names repeat so much, with so many 'illegitimate' births to Evans women and so few surviving bastardy bonds, that I have been finding it hard to sort out who's who from record to record. I had hoped someone might have a suggestion for a type of record that I hadn't considered, but it sounds like you and Paul agree that the reconstruction of the Evans family in Hartland is my best chance at sorting everyone out. So I will keep on going with it. Thanks again for your idea! Liz Loveland Massachusetts, USA

Liz, Ann was probably from Hartland as, from what you are saying , she was not returned to her home parish along with the children. Familysearch has: Ann Evans England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975 christening: 19 September 1779 HARTLAND,DEVON,ENGLAND mother: Elizabeth Evans Anne Evans England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975 christening: 16 January 1759 HARTLAND,DEVON,ENGLAND father: George Evans mother: Rebecca Interestingly Ann d Elizabeth named 2 of her 5 illegitimate children George and Rebecca and George and Rebecca had a d Elizabeth b 1755. You need to look at the original parish records to see if they contain additional information. The LDS seem to have a film copy otherwise I think you can order copies from Devon Records Office but this may prove expensive. Cheers Paul -----Original Message----- From: devon-bounces@rootsweb.com [mailto:devon-bounces@rootsweb.com] On Behalf Of Liz Loveland Sent: 07 January 2014 17:58 To: devon@rootsweb.com Subject: [DEV] Tracing mother of an 'illegitimate' child Hi all, I am seeking suggestions on tracing the mother of an 'illegitimate' child. John Kinsman alias Evans was born to Ann Evans in Hartland in 1796 and baptized at the parish church in Hartland, also in 1796. I have his baptism record and his bastardy bond and have traced him forward in time through his long life to his death. The bastardy bond lists the father, John Kinsman, and the child's exact date of birth. Ann's bastardy bond testimony indicates that she had an ongoing relationship with the father John at the time, though it does not specify whether it was exclusively a sexual relationship and I have found no evidence to date that they ever married. I located a second bastardy bond with the same father's name, John Kinsman, and a different mother (Sarah Wakely); that child was born in 1799 and there seems to only be one local candidate for the father of both children, as John Kinsman/Kingsman was not a common name in that place and time. However I have been completely stuck on tracing Ann Evans since discovering all of this a couple of years ago. There are a number of other 'illegitimate' births to women with the surname Evans in the latter part of the 1700's and the earliest 1800's in Hartland, including some with mothers named Ann Evans. The North Devon Record Office told me that that they think it is plausible that all the 'illegitimate' births to Ann Evanses could be to a single Ann Evans. However there appears to only be a surviving bastardy bond for one other Evans child (1804, interestingly specifying "Ann Evans the younger") and the baptism records for the 'illegitimate' Evans children only list the mothers. The other Ann Evans bastardy bond doesn't provide anything to indicate whether it is the same Ann Evans as the mother of John Kinsman alias Evans, and I have found no records so far that indicate anything specific about Ann Evans herself (parentage, age, etc). The younger John was placed in a husbandy apprenticeship at age 8 via the parish so he ceased to live with his mother at that point (if he was still living with her then), and his baptism and bastardy bond are the only records I have on him that list any parents at all. I have a hypothesis that the Evans women who were having 'illegitimate' children in Hartland around the same time may have been related to each other. But without any documents showing whether any of these things are true, both North Devon RO's theory and mine will stay in the realm of only-theories. Does anyone have any suggestions for what I can try next? Thank you, Liz Loveland Massachusetts, USA -- Liz Loveland lovelandfamilyhistory@gmail.com Blog transcribing a Victorian diary: http://addiessojourn.wordpress.com/ Genealogy & history blog: http://adventuresingenealogy.wordpress.com/ ------------------------------------------ The DEVON-L mailing list is co-sponsored by GENUKI/Devon ( http://genuki.cs.ncl.ac.uk/DEV/ ) and the Devon FHS (http://www.devonfhs.org.uk/ ) List archive for Devon can be found at http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/index/DEVON/ ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to DEVON-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message

The chances of finding any supporting documentary evidence is very limited for any relationships at that date, legitimate or otherwise.  Before Civil Registration and Census returns we mostly have to make educated guesses and sometimes those guesses may be wrong.  If there are Evans baptisms in Hartland for girls who could be the mother it seems reasonable to assume that they are prime candidates.  Of course, it is possible that these girls left the parish and others of similar age moved in but there is little likelihood of finding any surviving evidence of this happening.   All you can do is build up as much circumstantial evidence as possible and hope that the jigsaw starts to lock together.   There are two Ann Evans baptisms in Hartland and they could well be aunt and neice.   16 Jan 1759 Hartland, Ann EVANS, parents George and Rebecca https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/JWDC-WJX   19 Sep 1779 Hartland, Ann EVANS, mother Elizabeth EVANS She would have been 16/17 in 1796. https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/NYB3-TFM   George and Rebecca also baptised a daughter Elizabeth in 1755 so she could well be the Elizabeth who is the mother of Ann 1779 and the sister of Ann 1759.   On FindMyPast there are a couple of burials at Hartland of an Ann and Elizabeth Evans whose ages at death fit very well with George and Rebecca's daughters which implies they remained unmarried.   If John's mother was the Ann baptised 1779, what happened to her?   I would plot the family relationships of the Evans family in Hartland, when they died, when and who they married.  Deaths are particulary important, you can think you have found someone and then discover they died a few weeks after birth.  Are the Ann and Elizabeth buried at Hartland likely to be the ones baptised there or are there wives of Evans men who could also be candidates?   Is there any evidence of contact between John Kinsman's descendants and other Evans descendants (witnesses at marriages,  living close together etc.)?  Do the names of John Kinsman Evans's children provide any clues i.e do they reflect those of Ann senior's children or Elizabeth's or neither?   Does the 1804 bastardy bond name the child?  There is a baptism at Hartland 13 Jan 1805 of John Evans, mother Ann.  If this is the Ann Evans and child of the 1804 bastardy bond it seems odd that she named a second son John.  There is a long gap between John Kinsman Evans birth and the previous child but there may have been miscarriages or stillbirths, especially as Ann was getting older.   You mention there was only one John Kinsman but his father was also named John.  Maybe he was the father.   Whichever Ann you decide is the mother, I think they both lead back to George and Rebecca.   Joy       ________________________________ From: Liz Loveland <lovelandfamilyhistory@gmail.com> To: devon@rootsweb.com Sent: Tuesday, 7 January 2014, 17:57 Subject: [DEV] Tracing mother of an 'illegitimate' child Hi all, I am seeking suggestions on tracing the mother of an 'illegitimate' child. John Kinsman alias Evans was born to Ann Evans in Hartland in 1796 and baptized at the parish church in Hartland, also in 1796. I have his baptism record and his bastardy bond and have traced him forward in time through his long life to his death. The bastardy bond lists the father, John Kinsman, and the child's exact date of birth. Ann's bastardy bond testimony indicates that she had an ongoing relationship with the father John at the time, though it does not specify whether it was exclusively a sexual relationship and I have found no evidence to date that they ever married. I located a second bastardy bond with the same father's name, John Kinsman, and a different mother (Sarah Wakely); that child was born in 1799 and there seems to only be one local candidate for the father of both children, as John Kinsman/Kingsman was not a common name in that place and time. However I have been completely stuck on tracing Ann Evans since discovering all of this a couple of years ago. There are a number of other 'illegitimate' births to women with the surname Evans in the latter part of the 1700's and the earliest 1800's in Hartland, including some with mothers named Ann Evans. The North Devon Record Office told me that that they think it is plausible that all the 'illegitimate' births to Ann Evanses could be to a single Ann Evans. However there appears to only be a surviving bastardy bond for one other Evans child (1804, interestingly specifying "Ann Evans the younger") and the baptism records for the 'illegitimate' Evans children only list the mothers. The other Ann Evans bastardy bond doesn't provide anything to indicate whether it is the same Ann Evans as the mother of John Kinsman alias Evans, and I have found no records so far that indicate anything specific about Ann Evans herself (parentage, age, etc). The younger John was placed in a husbandy apprenticeship at age 8 via the parish so he ceased to live with his mother at that point (if he was still living with her then), and his baptism and bastardy bond are the only records I have on him that list any parents at all. I have a hypothesis that the Evans women who were having 'illegitimate' children in Hartland around the same time may have been related to each other. But without any documents showing whether any of these things are true, both North Devon RO's theory and mine will stay in the realm of only-theories. Does anyone have any suggestions for what I can try next? Thank you, Liz Loveland Massachusetts, USA -- Liz Loveland lovelandfamilyhistory@gmail.com Blog transcribing a Victorian diary: http://addiessojourn.wordpress.com/ Genealogy & history blog: http://adventuresingenealogy.wordpress.com/ ------------------------------------------ The DEVON-L mailing list is co-sponsored by GENUKI/Devon ( http://genuki.cs.ncl.ac.uk/DEV/ ) and the Devon FHS (http://www.devonfhs.org.uk/ ) List archive for Devon can be found at http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/index/DEVON/ ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to DEVON-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message