Although this message does not pertain specifically to midwives, it does follow on, in a way, from a couple of earlier replies mentioning the gentry. They of course could do pretty much as they pleased many years ago, especially if the individual happened to be the lord of the local manor and held the advowson for the parish as well. In my family there were 4 baptisms on one day in 1812. The children, all illegitimate but born of the same parents, were born variously from 1797 to 1800. The parents had married in 1802 and there were several born legitimate. The parish register records that the dates of birth were supplied by Mr B. (older brother of the father concerned) and the original surname recorded shows both the father and mothers surnames, ie double-barrelled. This was altered to show only the father's surname. The Mr B. was the advowson-holder and the lord of the manor. Apart from that, his wife (a widow when they married) was the mother of the children's mother. All lived in perfect harmony it would seem and I've always been perplexed as to why the couple delayed getting married for a number of years - money was not a problem as the woman was an heiress in her own right. Eve and I had some correspondence a few years ago on the possible reasons for the delay but no conclusion was reached. I bet the local gossips had a field day! John ---------------------------------------- My Inbox is protected by SPAMfighter 1508 spam mails have been blocked so far. Download free www.spamfighter.com today!