Suffolk Marriage - William Abbott and Mary Ann Clarke (1861-1869)

[Pinetree]

William and Mary Ann were my 2xGr Grandparents and have proved a bit tricky not least because William went by 3 different surnames at various stages of his life. Abbott, Durrant and Osborne.

Although I have gradually pieced things together I have never been able to track down their marriage and would love to do so. Without getting too long winded this is what I know.

Their first child, Harriett Elizabeth Clarke, was born in 1860 in Finningham before they were married.  They went on to have two sons born in Stowmarket in 1865 and 1867 who were registered with the surname Abbott (on census returns the whole family went by the name of Osborne).

Mary Ann Abbott was buried in the unconsecrated section of Stowmarket Cemetery on 10 April 1869.

The marriage most likely took place between 1861 (both single on 1861 census) and 1865 and must have been before 1869. It may have been a non-conformist ceremony in view of Mary Ann's burial in the unconsecrated section.

Mary Ann's father was Samuel Clarke and William’s is unknown although most likely William Durrant, his step father was Walter Osborne. In 1872 he married again under the name of William Osborne as a widower stating his father was William Osborne deceased (I think this name is made up from a combination of his natural father William Durrant and step father Walter Osborne and is not a real person).

I have not been able to find anything that fits for Mary Ann Clarke marrying a William Abbott, Durrant or Osborne during this period in Suffolk so if anyone can work their magic and track it down for me I would be very grateful.

Pinetree

[lizdb]

Not sure that non-conformism would warrant burial in unconcecrated ground.

Not all non conformist churches had burial grounds, so it was not unusual for folk to be buried at the parish church even if they did not worship there ( either not going to church anywhere, or attending non conformist church)

Deaths as a result of suicide meant a burial in unconsecrated ground. Have you got her death cert to see cause of death?

If you cant find a marriage, then maybe they never actually married, just said they were!

[Pinetree]

Lizdb,

Thank you for your reply.

I have not got Mary Ann's death certificate so don't know her cause of death.  I bought a number of incorrect birth certificates for my Gr Grandfather assuming his surname was Osborne before finding the correct one registered as Abbott so have been a bit cautious about taking a "punt" on this family since  .  However I am pretty sure the Mary Ann Abbott who died in 1869 is my lady so perhaps I should send for it to complete the picture.

It has crossed my mind that they did not marry but what makes me think they did is the use of the name Abbott for registering the sons' births and at Mary Ann's burial.

Abbott was William's legal birth name but the one he seems to have used least throughout his life.  He was illegitimate and Abbott was his mother's maiden name however he was born in Hoxne so it would be unlikely that anyone in Stowmarket (or Finningham if they married there) would know the circumstances of his birth.  This makes me think there must have been some reason why he had to use Abbott on official records.

Would a nonconformist marriage require a licence which meant he had to swear to or prove his birth name?

Just thinking out loud really, I have contemplated this one for a long time so apologies for waffling on a bit.

Thank you again for your interest.

Pinetree

[lizdb]

Would a nonconformist marriage require a licence which meant he had to swear to or prove his birth name?

No.

[Pinetree]

Just looking at this again as it is still unresolved.

In all probability William and Mary Ann did not marry although I now have her death certificate which does state she was the wife of William Abbott, blacksmith.  As an aside cause of death was pneumonia 6 weeks.

Anyway it has just occurred to me that Mary Ann was only 17 when their first child was born, she would have reached the age of 21 in March 1864 and their second child was born just over a year later in April 1865.  This made me wonder if her parents may have objected to the marriage and so they waited until she was of full age and wouldn’t need their permission.

I thought it might be worth one last try before accepting that they never did marry.

Pinetree