William Denham b1800

[rogden]

I am trying to trace WILLIAM DENHAM who was born about 1800. He died before the 1851 census and so I am unable to find his birthplace or exact year of birth. From the 1841 census his age was given as 40 and he wasn't born in Berkshire.
William Denham married SARAH ELIZABETH RICHARDS 31 Aug 1828 in Kensington and their first two children were SARAH ANN DENHAM b1833 at Pentonville and ABRAHAM HENRY DENHAM b1836 at St Pancras. By 1839 the family had moved to Maidenhead, Berkshire.
If anyone can supply information about WILLIAM DENHAM or suggestions about where I might obtain such info, I'd be very grateful.
Roger

[Jeuel]

There are quite a few William Denhams born c. 1800 on Ancestry.  The problem is, if you don't know where your chap was born you won't know which is the right one!

[Maryam]

Hi Roger

There may be another earlier child born to this couple:

St Pancras, Camden, Middlesex
Both bapt 14th August 1836
Sarah, dau of William & Sarah DENHAM of 4 Field? Terrrace; father's occupation: horse dealer
Abraham Henry, son of William & Sarah DENHAM of 4 Field? Terrace; father's occupation: horse dealer

St Sepulchre, Holborn, City of London
Bapt 14th Oct, born 13th Feb 1831
William Mathews, son of William & Sarah DENHAM of Red Lion Place, Charter House Lane; father's occupation: horse dealer

I wonder if the second name Mathews is significant?

KR
Maryam

[Captain2]

This may be record of burial for William Matthew Denham - aged 9 months. St James, Clerkenwell. 27 Nov. 1831

[rogden]

Thank you Maryam & Captain
I hadn't known about WILLIAM MATTHEW(S) DENHAM and can confirm he didn't appear in the 1841 or 51 censuses and so it is very likely he lived and died in 1831. He was the first born son and appears to have obtained his second name from his maternal grandfather, MATTHEW RICHARDS.
I wonder if the second son, ABRAHAM HENRY DENHAM was given the name HENRY after his paternal grandfather?
Is there a HENRY DENHAM or ABRAHAM DENHAMwho fathered a WILLIAM DENHAM about 1800?
Roger

[Valda]

Hi

Another child who died young.

19th April 1829 St Sepulchre City of London 
Sarah Elizabeth Denham  parents William and Sarah Elizabeth, St John Street, father's occupation labourer
buried 2nd May 1830 at the same church aged 1 year 1 month,  Smithfield Bars

If the family were following traditional naming patterns then the first son was named for the father's father (which might be the same name as the father). The second son was named for the mother's father. The third son was named for the father if his name was different from his father's.

They might have combined the traditional naming pattern with the first son receiving both paternal grandfather's names which if so would include the father's name as well.


Buried 20th January 1850 St Michael Bray Berkshire
William Denham aged 50

If the age on burial is accurate born circa 1799 though not necessarily baptised in the same year.

There is a possible on the IGI (which does not have complete coverage of all baptisms by a long way) in the London area

WILLIAM DENHAM
Birth:  13 AUG 1799 born 19th August   
Christening:  14 OCT 1799   Saint Leonards, Shoreditch, London
Father:  WILLIAM DENHAM 
Mother:  ELISABETH 
of Swanyard   


Regards

Valda

[rogden]

Thank you Valda
With your discovery of the birth of SARAH ELIZABETH DENHAM in 1829 you have provided a very logical explanation for the naming of the first born Denham children.
Assuming your hypothesis is correct then SARAH ELIZABETH DENHAM b.1829 obtained her first name from her mother's mother (who was SARAH PIKE) and her second name from her father's mother (who might be the ELISABETH you found). By coincidence the first born daughter has the same given names as her mother.
Likewise the first born son WILLIAM MATTHEW DENHAM b.1831 whose first name might well have been derived from his father's father (who you found) and his second name from his mother's father (MATTHEW RICHARDS).

I may not have found all of the children of the marriage of WILLIAM DENHAM and SARAH ELIZABETH RICHARDS but those now listed are: Sarah Elizabeth b.1829, William Matthew b.1831, Sarah Ann b. 1833, Abraham Henry b. 1835, Mary b.1839, Emma b.1843, Harriet b.1845 & William b.1847. The first four were born in London and the second four in Maidenhead District, Berkshire. In normal circumstances we would expect the 3rd or 4th son to be named after the father's eldest brother and the 3rd or 4th daughter to be named after her mother's eldest sister. I haven't yet found siblings for Sarah Elizabeth Richards to check if any of her children were named after her siblings. However, I do know that Sarah was christened 04 Dec 1808 at St Mary's, Staines, Middlesex and that MATTHEW RICHARDS married SARAH PIKE 18 Jan 1808 at St John the Baptist, Hillingdon, Middlesex.

Roger

[Valda]

Hi


St Mary, Staines Middlesex 27th February 1811 born 26th January
Abraham Richards parents Matthew and Sarah 


Regards

Valda

[rogden]

Thanks Valda
Abraham Richards is further proof I have the correct Richards family.
If my Denhams squeezed the naming convention to include both sets of parents and siblings for each child then perhaps William Denham b.1799 had a brother Henry? I know I'm clutching at straws going back for the Denham line. I  have searched IGI for further children of William & Elisabeth around the turn of the 18th into the 19th centuries in St Leonards, Shoreditch but without luck. I have a suspicion that William might have remarried because a William & Harriet did have a child there a few years later. Of course they could have moved to a nearby parish that isn't recorded on IGI.
What isn't in doubt is that several Denhams were living in this area at the time and having children baptised.
Roger