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Suffolk: Sudbury - Marriage Licences, 1782-1814
 12.The Hearth Tax. Charles 2nd. 
  Allegations for Marriage Licences in the Archdeaconry of Sudbury, Suffolk. 
   Book 28. 1792-1793. 
County: Suffolk 
Country: England 
Chas. Guest, of Bury St. Edmunds, s. m., & Ann Cansdale, of Gt. Whelnetham, s. w., at same. Bn.: Ralph Guest, of same. 15 Aug 1792. 

I would guess s.m. and s.w. stand for single man and single woman.

But what's "Bn."?  Does it give me a clue as to who Ralph Guest is in relation to the groom?

Thanks very much

I have Charles GUEST (born c. 1770, Bury St Edmunds, died 28 Oct 1855, Waltham Cross, Herts). 

Married (apparently his 2nd wife) Susannah INCE 15 Nov 1807 in Clare, Suffolk.

Charles appears to have been a Captain in the Suffolk Militia - on various birth/marriage certificates of his children he's described as "Officer of Army", "Half Pay Officer", "Annuitant of Suffolk Militia", "Captain in Army" and on his death certificate as "Captain N. A. Half Pay"  I presume N.A. stands for Not Active (hardly surprising given he was 85 when he died!) and I assume that "Half Pay" basically refers to what we'd now call a pension.

So far I haven't been able to get any further back than this Charles GUEST.

Susannah INCE appears to have been the daughter of Joseph INCH (born c. Dec 1766 in Stoke by Clare, Suffolk) and Elizabeth ELLINGHAM, who were married 5 Nov 1784 in Clare. 
Joseph INCH was the son of Giles INCH (died 10 Mar 1786, Stoke by Clare) and Hannah /Surname Unknown/
Which is as far as I can get with the Inces/Inchs.
So far I've not been able trace Elizabeth ELLINGHAM beyond her marriage to Joseph INCH in 1784.

Charles GUEST and Susannah INCE had the following children;

• Susanna Emily (b. Q1 1814; m. William NOWELL 21/1/1859)
• Caroline (b. Q1 1814 Fornham, Bury St Edmunds; m. ? DODD bef 1861).  Caroline was a School Mistress in 1851.
• Charles Edward (b. c. Apr 1816, d. 3 Sep 1818 Fornham St Martin)
• John Henry (b. c. 1818 Fornham St Martin; m. 1. Rebecca ROWLEY 7 Jun 1846 in Shoreditch, London; m. 2. Elizabeth CAMAC (or CARNAC) 5 May 1849 in Langford, Maldon, Essex; d. 18 Apr 1891 in Bethnal Green).  John Henry GUEST was mainly a clerk on the railway
• Edward (b. c. 1821 Fornham St Martin)
• Jane C (b. c. 1824, Fornham)
• Charles (b. Jan 1826 Fornham St Martin; m. 1. Sarah FARLEY 24 Oct 1849 in Clifton, Bristol; m. 2. Georgeanna Down 6 Mar 1858 in Clifton Bristol; d. 26 Apr 1863 in Bristol).  Charles was a Chemist & Druggist; by 1861 he was a Homeophatic Chemist
• Ellen Sophia (b. c. 1828, Ixworth, Bury St Edmunds)

John Henry is my ancestor, through the marriage to Elizabeth CAMAC and their son Hezekiah GUEST.

If anyone else is looking at these families, or if anyone can shed any light on their further ancestry, I'd be delighted to hear from you.

Does anyone know if there are any Suffolk Militia records that might shed more light on Charles Guest's background and military career?

I'm looking for help (and/or advice) to get more on these two.

George Steventon married Mary Ann Shaw (but known in all other records only as Ann) on 24 May 1818 in Old Swinford (according to Worcestershire Marriages database on familyhistoryoneline.net)

From the 1841, 51 and 61 censuses, I know that both were born c. 1795/6, apparently in Dudley.

George died 24 April 1869 and Ann on 13 April 1868, both in Rowley Regis (I have their death certificates)

There was a family tradition, still strongly asserted in the 1940s, that an ancestor was Lifesguardsman Shaw who fought at the Battle of Waterloo.  Clearly the connection would be Ann Shaw, but what the connection is (if there is one) is unknown.

I would like to be able to trace them further back if possible, or just consolidate what I know/believe so far. 

In the 1841 census (HO107; Dudley;Worcestershire; ED 34; Page: 10; ) they are living next door to a Joel Steventon and his family.  Looking at the ages of George and Joel, I would guess they're brothers.  Both called some of their children biblical (?) names (Noah, Gideon, Nimrod, Dorcas, Zillah) and more normal names.

From the census returns I know that George and Ann Steventon had the following children:

• Ephraim (b. c. 1819, d. of typhus fever 5/1/1845 in Derby End, Dudley)
• Sarah (b. c. 1821 and so far untraced later than the 1841 census)
• Elicabeth (b. c. 1824 and so far untraced later than the 1841 census)
• Jemima (b. c. 1831  and so far untraced later than the 1841 census)
• Dorcas (b. c. 1834, married George Longstaff & moved to Barrow-in-Furness mid 1880s, d. 8/10/1889
• Nimrod (b. c. 1836, d. 10/1/1858 in a lift shaft accident at the British Iron Company's Works in Rowley Regis
• Zillah, aka Priscilla, b. 25/11/1838 in Derby End, married Henry Smith 9/6/1856 at Netherton Parish Church, like Dorcas & her family, Priscilla and her family moved to Barrow-in-Furness, but earlier - they were there by the 1871 census.  They then moved to Blackpool between 1874 and 1876.  She died 28 Apr 1893 (or 1892 if you believe her gravestone over the death certificate!).

Although Priscilla/Zillah (her name is slightly different every time it appears: she was illiterate throughout her life - marrying a Smith must have been good for her, as it meant she wasn't asked how Steventon was spelled - there's every variation of that too!) is my ancestor and link to George and Ann, it would be interesting to fill in the gaps on their other children.

Any and all assistance and referrals to on-line databases welcome.  If the only other option is my going to a local records office, which would that be?  Dudley & Rowley Regis seem to have moved county several times, at least according to the census returns.