Mick, Here is just a little to try and help with the disconnected BIRD family tree. You may have already his details but if you follow John's The Kingsclere Families website the family of Stephen and Sarah Bird nee Cotterell should have an additional son David Bird who was baptised at St Mary's Kingsclere 22 March 1765. A speculation is that he produced a family like Francis away from the area and some of his children returned as a possible way to linking more of the fragments in the area. Fining his death/burial would help. I am also related to the GIRDLER family as I see your ancestors are too. The IGI does have a Bird=Girdler marriage in Hampshire on it. Francis Bird = Sarah Girdler at Bramshot, Hants on 01 Jan 1730. It might be a lead given the John Bradley (grandmother Mary Bird) marriage to Elizabeth Girdler 12 Feb 1849 at St Paul, Kingsclere Woodlands . Regards, Nigel > Hello Nigel. >   > The earliest BIRD name in my tree is that of Stephen BIRD, who married > Sarah COTTERALL in 1755  at St Mary, Kingsclere.  In 1796, his youngest > daughter Mary BIRD (ca. 1773) married Benjmanin MILES (ca. 1776) and they > were my 3x great-grandparents. > Mary did have a sister Sarah BIRD born ca.1762 (an earlier Sarah had died > in 1761), and I note from an earlier posting some time back by Dorothy > JONES that, in 1783, there was a Bastardy Bond concerning the child of > Sarah BIRD, living at the house of Stephen BIRD, labr, of Kingsclere, for > which Jethro CURR & Robert BRUSHWOOD, both of Burghclere, yeomen, were > bound in the sum of £100.  I don't know whether this was the same Sarah as > in my tree but it seems entirely possible, as Sarah's father and brother > were both called Stephen. > However, I don't know of any tie-up here with the MARTIN surname, unless > this was another liaison by the same Sarah!  But we are now into the realms > of pure speculation. As you say, there is too much fragmentary evidence to > build up a coherent picture. > Regards, > Mike > > --- On Sun, 29/11/09, Nigel St C Gerdes <nigel.gerdes@milnet.uk.net> wrote: >   > Mick, > > I am interested in the BIRD family because of the association with the > MARTIN  Family.  My 3x Grandfather was the elusive Robert MARTIN born ca > 1782 not in Hampshire buried 01 Aug 1842 at Burghclere with a given age of > 60 and his wife Rachel born Hampshire ca 1782 for whom no marriage has yet > been found. I have not been able to join up the numerous BIRD fragments > into a coherent tree. Robert Bird aka Martin was born  ca 1779 at Greenham > but I think he is a different MARTIN, to my 3x grandfather, since he was > buried at St Mary Greenham 20 April 1853 had a wife Sarah (marriage not > known) and the children were given the surname BIRD. > > Regards, > > Nigel Gerdes