On Sun, 2 Nov 2003 16:53:44 -0000 "Jim Wood" <jim.wood1@ntlworld.com> wrote: > Can anybody help. > I have got back to 1775 when William Taylor married Phebe Rabits at > Kingsclere. William was of this Parish, it doesn't mean that he was > born there, I know, but if he was then the only birth that seems > likely is William Taylor alias Nicholson, son of William & Elizabeth. > 24th May 1742. He had 2 siblings, Betty and Richard, both Taylor, > alias Nicholson. Also spotted was Ann Nicholson alias Taylor, born in > 1707, daughter of Thomas and Mary. Any idea why 'alias' was used. I have no direct connection to this family but a descendant of William & Phebe, Job Foster, married Emily Fisher who was my great Grand-mother's sister. Job Foster was 4th cousin of my Grandfather Frances (Frank) Cooper. I have a descendant tree for Thomas & Phebe extending to 8 generations. I too have been unable to ascribe parents to William. I have many Taylor twiglets I cannot link into a complete tree. The reason for the aka Nicholson is still a mystery and I can find no obvious reason for it any more than I can find why my Foster ancestors were Smith aka Foster who then became Foster aka Smith in the parish register over the course of 2 generations. I can tell you more about Phebe, who was the baseborn daughter of Sarah Rabbits. She was born on 13 Dec 1753, baptised at St. Mary on 21 Dec 1753, died in The Dell, Kingsclere and was buried on 20 Jan 1839. Sarah was baptised on 25 Oct 1730, the 7th child of George & Catherine Rabbetts. The Rabbits family can be traced back to a John Rabbats who was having children in the 1580-1590s and possibly earlier in Kingsclere. Some of this family later became known as Roberts. -- John Lewis <jayellatntlworlddotcom> from Bournemouth, Dorset, UK. using Debian GNU/Linux and GeneWeb genealogy software