Looking for Sarah, from Whitbourne

[cimbrio]

I am trying to confirm whether my ancestor Sarah (married name Allen, maiden name possibly Jones) was baptised in Whitbourne, Heref and who her parents were. According to a fellow Rootschat user's post some years back, there is a marriage index reference for Thomas Allen marrying Sarah Jones in Colwall on 29 May 1801. This is consistent with my family tree, as the couple had several children over the next 21 years, all born in Colwall: Thomas, Edward, William, Mary Ann, Joseph, Anne Maria, Sarah, Margaret, Henry and Robert.

Thomas Allen died in 1843, so only made it to the 1841 census, but Sarah died in 1861 and is mentioned in three consecutive censuses:
1841: living in Evendine, Colwall, age given: 60. Born in county: no.
1851: living in The Knell, Colwall, age given 71. Born in Whitbourne, ditto. The ditto refers to Worcestershire, as the people listed above her were born in Hanley, Worcestershire. Living with son Joseph and family.
1861: living in The Knell, Colwall, age given 83. Born in Colwall. Living with son Joseph and family.

Sarah died in Colwall and was buried beside her husband and two children opposite the door of Colwall church. Her age is given as 83 years.

Although not always consistent, it seems Sara's place of birth may have been Whitbourne, which I understand is a small place right on the Herefordshire/Worcestershire border (hence why she was born "outside" the county in the 1841 census).

I have tried to locate the marriage of Thomas and Sarah in 1801 but the Colwall marriages transcripts available online do not include the year 1801. FreeREG proved to be equally useless, and FamilySearch does not offer any clues. Before going on the hunt for a Sarah born in Whitbourne in or around 1780 I need to know if she was indeed Sarah Jones married in 1801. The fact she is mentioned as being born in Colwall in the 1861 census may well be a mistake, but I cannot rule it out either. No Sarah Jones appears to have been born in Colwall in or around 1780, so that appears to be wrong.

Can anyone shed any light or advise me further?
 

[mazi]

I cannot help with the marriage, but Familysearch tells me that a Sarah Jones was christened in Whitbourne Herefordshire. 10 Dec 1780, parents Edward and Mary.
Mike

[cimbrio]

Thank you Mike - the birth year would seem to fit and it may be significant that Thomas and Sarah's second-born son was called Edward, after his presumed maternal grandfather (while the eldest was called William, presumably in memory of Thomas's own father).

I have looked at a CD of Herefordshire Pre-1837 marriages and I found the marriage of Thomas Allen and Sarah Jones on 29 May 1801. Unfortunately it does not mention the bride being from Whitbourne or anywhere else (thus leaving the door open to the possibility that she was from Colwall). It may be a stretch of the imagination now but until I can see the original marriage certificate I will have to assume te Sarah you have found is the right one. Time to search for the Joneses of Whitbourne I guess! 

[KGarrad]

If the marriage was before 1st July 1837, then there won't be a certificate?

But you might be able to find a Parish Register entry.

There are transcriptions of Colwall PR's here:
http://www.parishregisters.co.uk/herefordshire/colwall/colwall.htm

But no marriages in 1801?

[mazi]

If the marriage was before 1st July 1837, then there won't be a certificate?

But you might be able to find a Parish Register entry.

There are transcriptions of Colwall PR's here:
http://www.parishregisters.co.uk/herefordshire/colwall/colwall.htm

But no marriages in 1801?

Hereford record office catalogue does not have parish marriages for that time, the records are missing, bishops transcripts are available but a search on Familysearch reveals only one marriage in 1801 in Colwall, in mid December,  as compared to the adjacent years which average about ten marriages a year.

Mike