Oh Roy what a gem that tale is and don't I wish that they belonged in my family tree. Thank you for brightening my morning Tia in Australia ________________________________ From: Roy Stockdill <[email protected]> To: [email protected] Sent: Saturday, 30 May, 2009 4:39:04 AM Subject: [DUR-NBL] What the IGI doesn't tell you - a wonderful marriage entry! Being a keen aficianado of those weird and wonderful entries from parish registers, censuses, wills, MIs and other sources, etc, that we all so love, I possess a super little book compiled and published in 1996 by one Michael Southwick, of Winlaton, Tyne and Wear. This is a compendium of such tales called "Ancestral Anomalies" and in it the author includes what must surely be the longest and most wonderful marriage entry in a parish register even seen! Firstly, let's look at the usual bald entry in the IGI, totally lacking in any detail..... JOHN WATSON, spouse JAN HUNTER Marriage: 31st Jan 1672, Bedlington, Northumberland, England Batch no. M000111, source the Bedlington parish registers Now here is the full transcription from the registers for Jan 31 1672 (with little punctuation, so read carefully)..... "(marriage of) John Watson (&) Jan Hunter, both in Bedlington, was 2 several times published in ye church but John and ye bride had a great contest so they did discharge ye minister for calling them any more so, within 14 days after ye said John came to ye minister and did desire him to call them 3 times in ye church, with much ado ye minister did cause them to be called out of ye church so of ye Thursday after John and a great company of men rode abroad ye parish and several other parishes and invited all his friends and neighbours to ye wedding against that date since to accompanying him to ye church and to come and dine with him which wedding day should have been on Thursday ye 21st day of November, 1671 but by misfortune the bridegroom lay back and would not be married and doth call ye bride both whore and jade and broken faced queen, but small  that she is so kind that she will sit down upon his knee and both kiss him and clap him and call him both honey and heart, so ye wedding never went any further as yet but ye bride did invite a few good neighbours to come and eat a fat goose and a piece of good roast beef that same day and to be sure that they should provide good store of moneys along with them, but ye said John came in at night and called all that was at ye dinner both knaves and rascals and bid them begone and told ye bride before them all that he had occupied her both in ye bed and among ye meadow and in ye bier which she could not deny, so ye wedding was ended with much shame but ye bride did nothing but laugh, so fair..... "But now it happened that upon ye 30th day of January that ye said John Watson came to ye clerk Ralph Mitford and did desire him to speak to ye parson that he would be pleased to marry ye said John and Jan Hunter but ye said Janes children came to ye churchgarth and made a sore outcry that ye whole town did make an uproar so ye said John went his way and met ye bride coming to ye church to be married so they both returned and then ye bride went to friends house and John together, but some cross words began between them that ye bride did run away almost a mile out of ye town which many neighbours did follow and ye bridegroom did borrow a roaning mare of a young man in ye town and did bring ye bride back and so it happened upon ye Friday being ye 31st January that as it pleased God that both ye parties came to ye minister and clerk and were lawfully married upon ye 31st of Jan. 1672" Well, talk about a pair of star-crossed lovers!!! Several questions arise from this wonderful account of a marriage..... 1) Has anyone ever seen a more vivid and brilliant description of events in a parish register? Don't you just love that phrase "called her whore and jade and broken faced queen" and "that he had occupied her both in ye bed and among ye meadow and in ye bier"? 2) How many pages of the register did it take up? 3) Who were Jane's children, John's, illegitimate or by a previous marriage. 4) Did the couple live happily ever after? 5) Do they have any living descendants today? If so, aren't they lucky to have this amazing account of their ancestors' wedding! * With thanks to Michael Southwick and I hope he doesn't mind my repeating this classic story here. -- Roy Stockdill Professional genealogical researcher, writer & lecturer Newbies' Guide to Genealogy & Family History: www.genuki.org.uk/gs/Newbie.html "There is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about." 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I was recently asked to do a look up for a Northumberland marriage from a contact in the USA. This drew a blank and I looked a little farther afield for the surname (Sharpton). Again I drew a blank. There is only one marriage for a Sharpton in the BMD although this was in London. I then looked at the census from 1841-1901. Although I could not find any Sharptons born in Northumberland or Durham there are a number of Sharpton families, from other regions, born in the UK. However, there is NOT ONE birth registration for a Sharpton in the BMD in any district/county. This is a complete mystery and I wonder if anyone can throw any light on this. I could understand one or two names being transcribed wrongly but it simply isn't possible that generation after generation of Sharptons are not registered. I realise this is probably not the list to write to, not having found any Sharptons in the Northumberland area, but hope no-one minds. Best wishes. Vivian _________________________________________________________________ View your Twitter and Flickr updates from one place – Learn more! http://clk.atdmt.com/UKM/go/137984870/direct/01/

Hi Vivian Do you have some names and details to check out Of the SHARPTONs I found in the census, I found that some were SHARPLES, others SHACKLETON, perhaps yours has a similar origin rather than SHARPTON Nivard Ovington in Cornwall (UK) I was recently asked to do a look up for a Northumberland marriage from a contact in the USA. This drew a blank and I looked a little farther afield for the surname (Sharpton). Again I drew a blank. There is only one marriage for a Sharpton in the BMD although this was in London. I then looked at the census from 1841-1901. Although I could not find any Sharptons born in Northumberland or Durham there are a number of Sharpton families, from other regions, born in the UK. However, there is NOT ONE birth registration for a Sharpton in the BMD in any district/county. This is a complete mystery and I wonder if anyone can throw any light on this. I could understand one or two names being transcribed wrongly but it simply isn't possible that generation after generation of Sharptons are not registered. I realise this is probably not the list to write to, not having found any Sharptons in the Northumberland area, but hope no-one minds. Best wishes. Vivian

Add SHARPLIN to the list Nivard Ovington in Cornwall (UK) I was recently asked to do a look up for a Northumberland marriage from a contact in the USA. This drew a blank and I looked a little farther afield for the surname (Sharpton). Again I drew a blank. There is only one marriage for a Sharpton in the BMD although this was in London.