Jeremiah ALLEN & Elizabeth........ who ??

[Nick29]

I've traced my g.g.g. grandfather Thomas ALLEN - according to St Marys, Luton, Parish Records he was baptised on 19 March 1775, to parents "Jer" and "Eliz" ALLEN.  The parish records also note that the Jer and Eliz came from the Stopsley area of Luton.  Now, I know that Jer is short for Jeremiah, and Jeremiah was baptised at St Marys on 13 Oct 1754.

Now, I know that Jeremiah was married to Elizabeth, but I'm having trouble finding the marriage....... according to the IGI, a Jeremiah ALLEN married an Elizabeth HOW, but that was in 1763, and (assuming that Jeremiah was baptised when he was weeks old), that would only make him 9 years old when he married 

Can someone help me trace the real Elizabeth please ?

[StevenG]

Why worry about Elizabeth?  It looks to me as if you have the right marriage, but the wrong baptism.  What about Jeremiah Allen, baptised 9 Oct 1737, son of Jeremiah and Hannah Allen?

[Nick29]

Drat !  I missed that one ! 

It all makes sense now - thanks very much !   

Serves me right, thinking that Jeremiah was an uncommon name, so I didn't look for another one - I really should stop making assumptions 

[StevenG]

There are quite a lot of Jeremiah Allens around the Luton area, so I wouldn't count on that one being certain either.  Remember that you're not a long way away from Hertfordshire, so it's quite possible that your Jeremiah wasn't even born in Bedfordshire.

There are certain burials you may not have seen.
13 Feb 1784 Jeremiah Allen of Stopsley
14 Oct 1803 Hannah Allen, widow, of Stopsley, aged 80
14 Oct 1807 Elizabeth Allen of Stopsley, aged 64, fever

It's quite probable that Jeremiah (the younger) was buried after 1812, in which case the burial register should give his age at death.

[Nick29]

I'll check them out - thanks again !