Where was Curry Rivel?

[snootycat]

One final dusting down., it seems that Curry comes from the Celtic crwy meaning boundary.
Having put that one to bed would anyone be able to assist me with  finding out more about John and his ancestors/ marriage? I would be very grateful
Thanks
Pam

[CollinEssex]

Do you know where in Essex this John Collins was born?
I've been spending time going through some online parish books via SEAX and noting down Collin, Collins and Collen families while I try and search out my Collin(s) ancestors.

The link to what I've done so far is in my sig, but if you let me know what area (if you know it) I will see if I have anything.

James

[geno500]

Hi I will look up the marriage for you at Essex Records could be the last look up I will have to do with the records coming online,so once more to that old micro fiche.

Best Regards

[geno500]

Hi I will look up the marriage for you at Essex Records could be the last look up I will have to do with the records coming online,so once more to that old micro fiche.

Best Regards

[CollinEssex]

Hi I will look up the marriage for you at Essex Records could be the last look up I will have to do with the records coming online,so once more to that old micro fiche.

Best Regards

Do you know what records will be online and when? Very frustrating over here n Greece and wanting to look through parish registers - always seems to be the one I want isn't online! Mind you, I love the fact that there are so many originals to browse through, instead of transcripts.

J

[geno500]

Hi from October the images you have been looking at on SEAX will be pay to view but there will lots more online as Essex Records are in partnership with Ancestry so the Hanningfield record you want will be on there,I will look it up today for you,at the records,all the records will still be free if you go to Essex Records and of course you can use Ancestry free there as well,I am not myself in favour of this pay to view but accept that the old micro fiche have had there day,some are unreadable and the digital images on line are a thousand times better,also for all the people like yourself who live in other parts of the world, it in many cases would be there only chance to view and trace there records.

Best Regards

There is a topic on rootschat essex detailing what the cost is and what will be online

[geno500]

Hi well the records are going online on the 2nd Oct,thats what ERO have told me this morning.
Okay to the records  South Hanningfield St Peter marriage number 25 D/P/378/1/3 John Collins of this parish married Winifred Elliot of this parish by banns 16/2/1779 witness Henry Pratt and William Dixon  Henry Pratt was proberly the church warden,there was a belief that without the church warden witness the marriage was not lawfull it was a scam but it went on for quiet a few years it made the various wardens some money all over the country.
Not sure if you know but there are also East Hanningfield and West Hanningfield
West Hanningfield  Edward Collins of Runwell married Elizabeth Finch by licence 1768 witness Francis Parnell and Daniel Dobson
Joseph Finch of Great Burn?? married Marry Finch of this parish by licence July 5th 1768 witness the same as above,interesting thing is that I looked up these two marriage licence to get the ERO ref number and found that neither was in the large number of licence held by ERO.

[findem]

Hi geno,

According to Stephen Dixon the ERO's Archive Service Manager there is no connection between Ancestry.Co and the ERO, here is an extract from his reply to me on the matter.

There’s no connection with Ancestry, EA is an entirely separate enterprise and service. Essex County Council will be organising some publicity shortly.

The revised go-live date is 3 October.

Regards.

[chrisbrooks145]

Returning to the original question for this thread.

Here are three marriage records:
1) The Ancestry record set  “Essex, England, Extracted Church of England Parish Records” includes this marriage:
“James Chipperfield & Sarah Lee, servants of Mr. Rd. Collard, both p. W. 21 Oct 1714
  “Book Marriages at Curry Rivel, 1642 to 1812.
  “Collection Essex: - Registers of Marriages, 1559-1837”

  -(sic: the “collection” named in the record is not quite the same as the “source” cited by Ancestry for the record: but both specify Essex as the county.)

2) Another record on Ancestry (England & Wales Marriages, 1538-1940) shows:
James Chipperfield and  Sarah Lee married at Walthamstow, Essex: 21 Oct 1714

3) At Freereg (http://www.freereg.org.uk/ ) there is a record for:
James Chipperfield and  Sarah Lee married at Walthamstow, Essex: 21 Oct 1714
   Church name   St Mary the Virgin
   Register type   Transcript
   Register note   “servants of Mr Rd Collard”
   Groom parish   Walthamstow
   Bride parish      Walthamstow

It is clear that all three records relate to the same marriage event.

No one has found a parish, town, village or hamlet called “Curry Rivel” in Essex. 
But  in 1714 Walthamstow was in Essex, and it had a parish church named for St Mary the Virgin. 
So it seems clear that James Chipperfield & Sarah Lee were married there: not in Somerset, and not on Curry Hill near South Hanningfield / Rettondon / Wickford (about 40 km from Walthamstow).

Whoever coded the record for FreeReg knew that the cryptic phrase “both p. W.” in the original [see record 1] probably meant “both James and Sarah were of the Parish of Walthamstow [St Mary]”.   

This Walthamstow marriage record looks like a good match for three subsequent baptism records at  Walthamstow: James Chipperfield (1715), Sarah (1722) and Richard (1727): all children of James and Sarah Chipperfield.

It seems likely that a whole batch of marriages may have been mis-coded to the mythical location “Curry Rivel, Essex”: all the Essex marriages supposedly in the in the “Book: Marriages at Curry Rivel, 1642 to 1812”.  I am not saying that they all took place at Walthamstow (though that is possible).   But the Chipperfield/Lee example shows that at least one such marriage did not take place in Curry Rivel, Somerset: so we are not dealing with a parish register that has ended up in the wrong county.

To find the correct location for a  “Curry Rivel, Essex” marriage, try FreeReg (which really is totally free, and you don’t even need to register). Then, if necessary try other sources.