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England (Counties as in 1851-1901) => Gloucestershire => England => Gloucestershire Lookup Requests => Topic started by: HelenX on Friday 01 May 20 17:27 BST (UK)
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I am looking for information about my great grandmother Sarah Grant FRENCH. I have been unable to find out anything about her other than she was born in approx 1863 and died first quarter of 1925. As Grant is a somewhat odd choice of name for a girl, I was wondering whether it was the maiden name of her mother or possibly grandmother? It does not appear to be connected with her paternal side of the family. This is my first posting on Rootschat.
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Welcome to Rootschat
Does she name a father on her marriage cert?
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A tree on Ancestry shows she was born in Lambeth Surrey. The 1891 census confirms that
Her parents were Francis Grant French & Elizabeth Smither
Her 1881 marriage cert has been scanned into the tree and if you contact the tree owner there is a photo of her
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www.freebmd.org.uk has this marriage
Francis French/Elizabeth Smither March qtr 1861 Brighton 2b 222
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In 1901 Sarah shows her birthplace as London
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XSDX-58H
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From the GRO website:
Sarah Ann (not Grant) FRENCH, b. March q 1861, St Olave Southwark, v. 01d, p. 44. Mother's maiden name SMITHER. Hmmm. Same quarter as her parents' marriage.
Now you can order her birth cert.
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Thanks very much duport and CarolW. I had tried to find mention of her on Family Search but had been unable to find the census records on it for 1901 and 1911 (the earlier ones gave her birthplace as England, which wasn't very helpful!)
The other info on the census' for 1901 and 1911, i.e. names of children, ties in perfectly with what I already know.
So the Grant middle name has been passed on from her father who also had it as a middle name. It will be interesting to see if the Grant name goes back further.
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Baptised at Plumstead, 29 June 1862:
Sarah Ann French, born 8 March 1861
Francis John French, born 28 May 1862
Parents:
Francis French (gardener) and Elizabeth, of Plumstead. They had married in Brighton on 3 Jan 1861.
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Francis names his Father as John French on his 1861 M/C;
(F/S.Org)
1851 we have;
John French 75
Sarah French 47
Charles French 12
Thomas French 7
James French 3**
FRENCH, JAMES mmn FINNER**
GRO Reference: 1847 D Quarter in OF BRIDGWATER UNION Volume 10 Page 320
John FRENCH, Widower, married Sarah FENNER 15 May 1837, St Mary Magdalen, Stockland Bristol, Somerset.
1841 Census
John French 62 Ag Lab
Sarah French 39
William French 8
FRANCIS French 6***
Charles French 3 ***
Sarah French 1
FRENCH, CHARLES mmn FENNER
GRO Reference: 1838 J Quarter in BRIDGWATER UNION Volume 10 Page 336
Francis French FENNER Bapt 17 Apr 1835 St Mary Magdalen, Mother SARAH Fenner
(FreeREG)
So I have no idea how Francis acquired the extra name Grant later in life ???
Trish :)
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1861 Sarah French is born c 1809 Cattgate, Somerset
(other Census c 1802-1809 Somerset)
There is this Bapt;
Sarah FINNER
04 May 1805, St Peter, Catcott
Parents WM/SARAH
Their 1st child appears to be ANN 1795 she died the following year.
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Sarah Grant FRENCH's father was a deceased shoemaker in 1881, this doesn't seem to match the Francis who was married to Elizabeth SMITHER.
Debra :)
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Sarah's address when she married was 35 Apsley Road, Clifton, and she is there in 1881 aged 19 as just Sarah FRENCH a domestic servant.
Class: RG11; Piece: 2482; Folio: 56; Page: 14
There is also in 1881 a Sarah A FRENCH aged 20 with her aunt Harriet SMITHER in Surrey.
Class: RG11; Piece: 792; Folio: 24; Page: 10
In 1891 Sarah's sister Mary Elizabeth is with Harriet SMITHER.
Debra :)
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I think that Sarah has given this 'Grant French' name to herself and her father but at the moment I have no idea who she was.
https://postimg.cc/ZBfcs21w
Debra :)
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I agree that Sarah Grant FRENCH is likely to be Sarah Anne FRENCH, and that she may well have changed her middle name to Grant, also adding Grant to her father's name, for reasons only known to herself.
There do seem to be some rats smelling in this story - if indeed her parents are Francis FRENCH and Elizabeth nee SMITHER(S) and it does seem likely that they were, Francis FRENCH had not died at the time of Sarah's marriage to Frederick William CHAPPELL, and neither was he a shoemaker. Francis was alive at the time of the 1911 census, where he is recorded as being a widower age 76, living with his housekeeper in Monkton, Pembrokeshire. His occupation (as before) being recorded as a gardener.
I don't know whether Sarah's mother was alive at the time of Sarah's marriage, but she certainly had been at the time of the 1881 census nearly 7 months beforehand.
Was there a falling out between Sarah and one or both of her parents, meaning that she moved to Bristol to become a live-in servant, possibly having little if anything to do with them from that time onwards?