How to find enough detail to compare people born in 1600s in Cheshire

[Kerry Challinor]

I found Thomas Chalenor, born Bunbury, Cheshire, in 1608 with father John.
I have also found Thomas Chalenor, born Bunbury, Cheshire in 1610 with father William.
I cannot tell from the Cheshire Parish Records or the Bishop's Transcripts which of them is the father of my ancestor Thomas Challinor (Chalenor) born 1640 (also Bunbury). No mothers or marriages are shown, and no grave listing. Can anyone suggest a next step? Thank you.

[goldie61]

Just a few ideas.

Have you looked to see if there are any wills for them? findmypast has Cheshire wills. These could give you the names of their children etc.

Have you searched The National Archives Discovery site for any mention of them? - possibly land deals etc?
http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/advanced-search
You may have to be a bit creative and try lots of different spellings - their site doesn't seem to pick up variations of spelling.

And you could also search the Cheshire RO catalogue.
http://archive.cheshire.gov.uk/CalmView/advanced.aspx?src=CalmView.Catalog

Do you know what their occupations were? If they worked on the land, (farmers, husbandman, yeomen, etc), they may have taken leases from the local landowner or manor. You could try searching the manor court records for rentals etc.
You should be able to find through the National Archives site where the records of the manor of Bunbury records are. My guess is Chester RO.

good luck!

[clayton bradley]

Look at the whole family, if you can find them and you might find it easier to differentiate between the two. They could even be first cousins. Later in the century sources include the Protestation Oath and Hearth Tax, but probably too late for this generation. cb

[Kerry Challinor]

Thanks, Goldie. I tried to find the protestation oaths/hearth taxes in the National Archives but was unable to find an online searchable database. Yes, they were all farmers, and yes, there were about five different spellings. I'll give what you suggest a go.

[bevo]

The Rolls of the Freemen of the City of Chester

There are a few Chalenor and variants listed.

e.g.
https://archive.org/stream/recordsociety55recouoft/recordsociety55recouoft_djvu.txt