Can you help solve this conundrum?

[groom]

There are similarities aren't there? The c i s is identical.

Perhaps he was a lot younger than Martha so that is why the marriage failed and he went off with Sarah. Luckily he is only a side line, but I was just interested to know if he was a relation of Martha's as the surname was the same and both parents were shoemakers. Pity they weren't together in 1881.

Thanks for looking.

[Kay99]

This could possibly be him in 1881 - listed as married
http://www.rootschat.com/links/01fwz/

[msr]

Hi Jan

I've seen the 1901 census for Francis and Sarah.  He is said to be born in Ireland, but he's only 43.
They married at St Simon in 1886.

[Millmoor]

In the 1901 census  Francis Routledge  would appear to give his year of birth as 1858 in Dublin (cant quote 1911 but look for Frank).

Interestingly there seem to be one or two instances of Routledges marrying Routledges. For example Martha's brother Francis's son Frederick married a Mary Routledge, daughter of James Routledge, a master mariner from Whitehaven.

William

[msr]

Just a spooky point of interest. 

In that 1881 census with Francis boarding in Manchester, he's only boarding with the paternal grandfather of my gt aunt's husband!

[groom]

Gosh, does that mean we are sort of very very distantly related by marriage Su?  Or more likely one of those 6 degrees of separation things. 

[msr]

Who knows Jan, but James Baldwin Knott, who was 17 in that 1881 census, went on to have a son, also James Baldwin Knott, who married my grandfather's sister Lilian.

[groom]

In the 1901 census  Francis Routledge  would appear to give his year of birth as 1858 in Dublin (cant quote 1911 but look for Frank).

Interestingly there seem to be one or two instances of Routledges marrying Routledges. For example Martha's brother Francis's son Frederick married a Mary Routledge, daughter of James Routledge, a master mariner from Whitehaven.

William

That could well have been a cousin or at least a relative, as Martha's father was Francis Routledge and he was born in Whitehaven and had a brother James.

If it is the same Francis he was 24 years younger than Martha, another reason why I'm a bit doubtful. Possible but would a 20 year old man be interested in marrying a 44 year old woman with 4 children? Also he says he is a widower on the marriage certificate, probably not likely if he was only 20.