I need more brain power, so am sending this to all Hampshire lists in the hope that someone will have some ideas, or (oh wonderful thought!) actually know the people in question. I should point out that the spelling of the family's surname changes between GILLY and GILLEY at frequent intervals, so don't take that into account. I have two marriage certificates, which I THINK are for the same person. First certificate: 2 May 1864: Anna Eliza GILLY spinster aged 21 (birth records show her to be 17, christened 31 May 1846). Married Edwin John BROWN aged 22, Southampton. Anna's father: William GILLY, deceased, land steward. (He died in 1857 so correct.) A witness is Hannah GILLY (her mother). There is no cross by her name indicating she signed it herself. An Edwin BROWN died in Christchurch December 1864. Whether the same person or not, I don't know. Second certificate, four years later: 27 Sep 1868: Ann Eliza GILLEY, spinster aged 22 (age correct). Married Thomas BARTLETT aged 22, Mousehole, Hampshire. Anna's father: William GILLEY, coachman. Doesn't say "deceased". This one has a cross by her name. NOW! The first one is definitely my g-g-grandmother's sister. But is the second one the same person? Well, (this gets complicated here) the first one's nephew (my g-grandfather) eventually married the daughter of Thomas's brother and sister-in-law, who were the witnesses on the second certificate, so there is a definite family connection. And despite exhaustive searching the only birth I can find corresponds to the details on the first certificate. So, to sum up, in the first certificate all details but the age are correct, and in the second certificate she has changed the spelling of her first name, corrected her age and is shown as spinster, not widow. Now what do I do? I could get Edwin's birth certificate which might go some way to proving the man who died is the same man she married if the age is the same. The nearest I can find on the 1881 census is a Thomas Bartlett married to an Amy. Can't find Edwin on FreeBMD. His address at marriage was 9 North Front, presumably Southampton, while hers was 38 French Street. Is it possible that these addresses could be found on the 1861 census? If anyone has any ideas about where I look next, or can see something I have overlooked, bearing in mind that there doesn't seem to be anyone else of this name around the appropriate time, I'd be delighted to hear from them. Dorothy M Whakatane, NZ http://mobile.yahoo.com.au - Yahoo! Mobile - Check & compose your email via SMS on your Telstra or Vodafone mobile.