1841/1851 Lookup WOODCOCK

[Zeb]

Got a pig of a problem here. Just found my great grandfather, William Woodcock living in Boston, Lincolnshire in 1851...

Millecent Woodcock, 54, Head, Chairwoman, Donnington
Harriet Woodcock, 26, Daughter, Chairwoman, Boston
George Woodcock, 9 Grandson
William Woodcock, 6, Grandson
Susannah Woodcock, 2, Granddaughter

I've followed them through each census to 1881 and although the family grows all the time with William moving to Birmingham/Warwickshire between 1871 and 1881 (and going blind) there is still no sign of Harriet's husband. In fact when Millicent dies between 1861 and 1871 Harriet becomes head of the household.

I'm beginning to wonder what is going on - can anyone shed some light?

Many thanks.

[karenlee]

Hi Zeb

Have you actually found a marriage for Harriet so that we have a name to search for??

Cheers
Karenlee

[Zeb]

No, thats the funny thing about it.

I can't find any mention of a single marriage and I also can't seem to locate Millicent's death but its the marriage (or lack of it) I'm more interested in.

I've been hunting through Ancestry and FreeBMD quite extensively and nothing is showing!

Whats puzzling me is that Millicent shares the same surname as Harriet. I know its possible for the parents to share the same surname before marriage but I've not come across it before.

[karenlee]

So do you have a birth certificate for any of her children? 

My initial feeling is that perhaps there was no husband as such.  Obviously her children had fathers, but were they one and the same man??  This is not a lightly made suggestion and I am sorry if I have offended, but I think it is something that you may need to consider.

Cheers
Karenlee

[Zeb]

Oh no worries about any offence, its something I've definitely thought of.

I've no certificates at the moment as I found them all within the last hour.

Found Harriet's death in September 1885 but still nothing else!

[karenlee]

Could the children have been registered under whatever Dad's name may have been, but come Census time, as the head of the household and the mother were WOODCOCK, then that's the surname that the children were given for the Census???

Just a thought, would make life rather difficult if that were the case.

Cheers
Karenlee

[Zeb]

Its certainly a possibility, I'm keeping a very open mind here as anything looks possible with this lot 

I've even thought maybe Harriet was "on the game" and the children were a result!

I've no idea what form of birth control was used back then (if any!)

[karenlee]

Mostly just cross your fingers I think, when they should really have been crossing their legs instead 

Karen

[Zeb]

hahaha I will and she should have