Quakers - Bedfordshire?

[jimbohodge]

Hi,

I had traced my 'Custance' line back to the late 1700's and have really hit a brick wall. The last info i have is on a James custance born about 1870 - 1841 census says he was born in Bedford, lived in Dunstable from there and onwards.

The http://blars.adlibsoft.com  website was recently updated and so i found these two extracts from 'FR Records of Society of Friends (Quakers)'

Bill
Due from Mr Pew For New strap hearse shaff (shaft?) 8d
Receipted by Jas Custance

? Clerk's Accounts
J. Custance 8d

Would this suggest he was a Quaker? Would it explain why i cant find any birth record for him anywhere?
I know nothing about Quakers or potential records available?
Can somebody please help?

Thanks
Jim

[bedfordshire boy]

The two items on BLARS are dated 1782 and 1785, so to me he seems to have been a bit young for the references to be your James. But he was a saddler so I wonder if it might be his father and he carried on in the same line of work.

It doesn't imply to me that he was a Quaker, merely that he was doing work for the Quakers. Was your James married in the established church and were his children baptised in the established church? If so then it definitely doesn't appear that he was a Quaker.

But if he was a Quaker then you're lucky as Quaker records are extremely good.

If you search for Quakers on Google there are plenty of sites which explain Quakers and their record keeping.

The 1841 census merely says that he was born in county, ie Bedfordshire, not the town of Bedford.

Your James was buried at Dunstable on 4 Dec 1851 aged 78, but there is also another James Custance buried at Dunstable on 29 Jan 1811 aged 64. There was also a Frances Custance age 72 buried in Dunstable on 6 Jul 1821. The only Custance burials in Beds were in Dunstable, the first being in 1808, so it looks as though they were from out of county (or Quakers!). I can't see a marriage on the IGI between James Custance and Frances, but they baptised a daughter, Fanny, in Dunstable in 1787, the earliest Custance reference in Beds.

Regards

David

[jimbohodge]

Hi,

Thanks for that. James' marriage and his childrens baptisms all seemed to take place in the established church.

Thanks for the Dunstable lookups. It seems as though James' (1870) parents were James (1847) and Frances. And it looks as though Fanny was his sister.
James' (1870) older child was named Fanny, which looks to be after hs sister.
So why are none of the other reocrds on the IGI?
Could it be that the name was hard to read, because it isnt a very common one?

Jim

[cathymcc]

Jimbo

I cant see that surname in any books I have [and I expect it was often spelt differently- CONSTANT, perhaps?]

Your best bet would be to see if there are any surviving Wills at Beds Archives I think ...email Sue Edwards and she will let you know if there is anything or not.

I looked in the UK National Archives search site and it seems like it was a name more often found in Norfolk or Cambs [but found in London also]:  see
http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/search/advanced_search.aspx?javascriptenabled=True

cathy