Hello Peter Thank you very much for your help and thoughts. An instinct tells me that Thomas SKELTON/SKELDON/SHELDON had but a fleeting relationship with Sarah; I cannot find a marriage for the pair but have their son Thomas SKELTON's baptism down as 02 Jan 1820 in Tipton. (However, I have committed a cardinal sin in not making a note of the source - shame on me.) Thomas senior seems not to have been around to see his son grow up and it appears that Sarah re-married to a Mr BUTLER or RUTTLER (she is named in the 1871 CR as Sarah RUTTLER and the 1881 CR as Sarah BUTLER; the ages tally and she is living with her son Thomas and his wife Ann) so I think I have given the wrong impression that BUTLER was her maiden name, for which I apologise. Again, I can't find a marriage for Sarah SKELTON/SHELDON/SKELDON to a Mr BUTLER/RUTTLER, so can't identify of which family Sarah may have been a part in the earlier CRs and not having her maiden name (under which she may have married Mr BUTLER/RUTTLER) doesn't help! As for Thomas SKELTON b1820, I think he was living in Lichfield, STS, in 1841; he married an Ann BEAUMONT or PAINTER in 1843 in Dudley, but I can't find him in the 1851 CR. My direct family line moved from STS to DBY between 1881 and 1891, then to the Isle of Wight in the 1950's when my father was in the Royal Navy; again, I'm sorry if I gave the wrong impression, I'm afraid I'm not very good at this.... Thanks once again for your kind help: I shall follow your advice and look at the surname lists and submitted trees for clues. Best regards Will

Hi Will, I think you will find, if you do as Peter suggests and trace back Sarah in the census records, that she is married to a Benjamin BUT(T)LER, a Shoemaker. They appear in the 1841/51/61 census records together living in Wednesbury. In the various census records, there are 2 son in laws shown with the name CHALLINOR/CHALLINGWORTH. IGI Family Search has the marriage at Tipton on 4 March 1833 of a Benjamin BUTLER & a Sarah CHALLINGER. They also have an extracted marriage record at Tipton on 19 May 1823 of a Sarah SKELDON & a Joseph CHALLINGEWORTH. None of which helps you to find Sarah's maiden name, but I wonder if a look at the actual parish records of Sarah's 2 marriages may give you a clue through names of the the witnesses. Janet Thomas senior seems not to have been around to see his son grow up and it appears that Sarah re-married to a Mr BUTLER or RUTTLER (she is named in the 1871 CR as Sarah RUTTLER and the 1881 CR as Sarah BUTLER; the ages tally and she is living with her son Thomas and his wife Ann) so I think I have given the wrong impression that BUTLER was her maiden name, for which I apologise. Again, I can't find a marriage for Sarah SKELTON/SHELDON/SKELDON to a Mr BUTLER/RUTTLER, so can't identify of which family Sarah may have been a part in the earlier CRs and not having her maiden name (under which she may have married Mr BUTLER/RUTTLER) doesn't help!

Will, Pre 1837 events will be in Parish records on the Family Search site. I found the 1820 christening of Thomas at Tipton there. Post 1837 events will be in civil registrations on the FreeBMD site. Depending when her first husband died, you might find Sarah's second marriage on either site. You suggest she lived beyond 1881. I'd recommend that you try to find her in every census. That will be a good indication of her second marriage. If you find that in civil registrations, you can order a certificate that will give her age and name of her father. That's the way to go. Peter