Wife 20 Years Older Than Husband?

[david64]

Hi,

I have a family that is puzzling me a bit. It all fits together, but one thing that has raised some suspicion on my part is the fact that the wife is 20 years older than the husband. She was born in 1693 and is definitely the right one as both her parents and grandparents are named in a deed, the name was uncommon and died out shortly after. I can't find a baptism for the husband, but he is refereed to as the 2nd son of someone who was married in 1711. The 3rd son was baptised in 1716, so I have him as c. 1714. I have numerous wills, deeds and other effects and all point towards this marriage with a c. 20 year age difference.

Further evidence of the wife's age is shown in that she only had one child in 1736 and died in 1765.

Also worth mentioning is that she was the sole heiress to both her parents and maternal grandparents. I don't know if this would have made the marriage too appealing to turn down.

Does anyone else have any knowledge of such disproportionately aged wives?

[danuslave]

I know a modern one!  Wife now 65, husband 46 and they've been together (very happily) for more than 20 years   

Linda

[BridgetM]

My neighbor across the street is 73 and just married a man who's 54!

[Falleniceangel]

Could it be a marriage of convenience? I know many people married to keep land/money in their family line and things like that. Possibly she has married the person her house would go to?

[johngirl]

My mother-in-law married at age sixteen Her husband was thirtysix

   Johngirl

[omega 1]

Hi David

When my Greatgrandparents married in 1881,Greatgrandmother was 41 & Greatgrandad 22 .
Grandmother born 1882.

Have their marriage cert & dates of their  births from on a  piece paper my Grandmother had written  with loads of other names & dates.

Almost forgot Greatgrandmother had`nt been married before.

Omega  

[david64]

Thanks for your input. It would really help if they put their ages on the burials in those days  .

[Redroger]

My grandpaents married in 1894, the certificate says she was 35, correct, said he was 55, a 20 year gap, wrong, he was bapt in 1828, and was at least 66, a minimum of 31 years older than she was. In a similar vein whilst working on some Dorset registers the other day, for a project on the incidence of bastardy in the county in the 18th century I found a baptism which had a note saying the father was an octogenarian. Before this thread gets completely out of hand the child was legitimate.

[Plummiegirl]

Had she been married before & was a "rich" widow.  At this time she would probably have had to re-marry unless she was a very forceful lady.

My g/g/grandmother was around 10 years older than her husband.  I am 7 years older than my OH.