Illegitimate/adoption?

[bluegirl]

Hi

Can anyone advise what the process was in the 1870's to 1890's re children born illegitimate... If their mother married later did these children automatically take married surname or did they have to be legally adopted.  Just found out my g/grandmother had 11 children of which 6 or 7 were born before she married my grandfather.  On birth indexes they have her maiden name but later on census records or marriage lines they have the married name...often with her maiden name initial showing as their middle names.     Not sure now if my paternal g/grandfather was the father.. I pulled one certificate but no father listed so i need to pull all the rest... But in short my grandfather started life as Cooper but on his marriage cert he is Scott? 

Cheers

[stanmapstone]

There was no legal adoption until 1927. The 1926 Adoption Act which came into effect 1st January 1927 was the first Act legalising adoptions. You can use any name you like as long at is not for fraudulent purposes.

Stan

[stanmapstone]

If a mother remarried, her children might take the name of their new stepfather, with their original name as an alias i.e. 'also known by'

Stan

[Joney]

Hi bluegirl,
I have practically the same situation in one of my trees. My great grandmother didn't marry until after the birth of  a total of 11 children, according to what she says is the number on the 1911 census.

I  found baptisms for the first two using her own surname, the next one is recorded with her future husband's surname which she gives as her own, but doesn't claim to be married. After that the future husband's surname is used routinely but there is a note on one of the entries that the parents are not married.

I suspect that she is wary about lying to the civil authorities but has no hesitation when it is the clergy.
Might be worth your while checking out baptisms for the children in your tree. Just a suggestion.
Hope this helps,
Joney

[bluegirl]

Thanks stan.

I will have to prove, or try to, that my ggf was the Father of these children otherwise my grandfather carries the name scott but not the bloodline.  Therefore my father and myself may not be from the Scotts bloodline either.  Bit of a shock really... I thought i was 100% yorkshire born and bred but only just found out entire paternal family (plus all the women that married in)from kent back to 1545!!! Only my dad born in yorks because grandad docked in Hull and met a girl!    Fingers crossed !!!

[Treetotal]

Hi Bluegirl...Just because they weren't married doesn't necessarily mean he wasn't their father...have a look here:
 
https://familysearch.org/

Carol

[bluegirl]

Hi joney

Thnx.  Am doubting my bloodline now if i cannot prove my ggf was the father.  Apart from using different surnames, both relatively common, nearly every woman that married in to the family was called Elizabeth which then became Eliza or something entirely different.    My grandads birth certificate will be the key.. However he used 2 different christian names and 2 surnames and we have no idea of his age as he appeared to make this up as he went along.    He had a sister Maggie ad i have letters from her but we've never found her... no idea what her real name was!!!I have employed genealogy company in Canterbury as this is where they were born and they are going to sort this for me!!   Confusing but still fun!

[bluegirl]

Thnx treetotal

Agree but wonder why she did not put father on some on birth certificates. I need to track down my grandfathers... Not too bothered about the other 10 kids.   If father not on his cert, we will never know without dna!!!

[aghadowey]

Maggie is usually a nickname for Margaret.

If no father is listed on birth certificate then try to find a baptism record- sometimes father of illegitimate child will be recorded in the register (check for all possible children in case there's a later note mentioning father of all the children).