John Waddell the Martyr

[Forfarian]

Yes, Thomas W had a brother William b. 29 October, 1710 and he is the father of the Joseph b. 1738 who may be my direct ancestor leading to Joseph b. 1799 in Franklin County, PA.

Out of curiosity, where did that date come from? I am pretty sure I got it from Gavin, but I'd be interested to know where he got it from.

Also, Gavin says that the mother of the Blind Preacher was Margaret Mayne Reid, but for some reason I have her down as Janetta Bruce, so I'd welcome clarification of that one way or another.

Freda Bingley lists baptisms in Seaforde, County Down, of James in 1738 and Thomas in 1739 to Thomas W and Jane Bruce. She attributes them to the IGI (International Genealogical Index) but I can't find them there or anywhere else on the FamilySearch web site.

[Elwyn Soutter]

Freda Bingley lists baptisms in Seaforde, County Down, of James in 1738 and Thomas in 1739 to Thomas W and Jane Bruce. She attributes them to the IGI (International Genealogical Index) but I can't find them there or anywhere else on the FamilySearch web site.

Seaforde is in the parish of Loughinisland. There are various churches there (Church of Ireland, several Presbyterian and RC). However none has records for the 1730s. The oldest is the Church of Ireland. Their records start in 1760. (Copy held in PRONI in Belfast).

So whatever the source of these baptisms is, it seems unlikely to be supported by any surviving church records.

[Forfarian]

Seaforde is in the parish of Loughinisland. There are various churches there (Church of Ireland, several Presbyterian and RC). However none has records for the 1730s. The oldest is the Church of Ireland. Their records start in 1760. (Copy held in PRONI in Belfast).

So whatever the source of these baptisms is, it seems unlikely to be supported by any surviving church records.

Rather what I thought, which is why I'm keen to know where Mike got it from.

I also have birth or dates for William on 25 January 1704, Thomas on 24 February 1707 and John on 3 October 1710 which I assume are from the same source.

[Forfarian]

The plot thickens!

Those dates of birth for the supposed sons of William W 'Crown of London' come from https://homepages.rootsweb.com/~jmbhome/1weddle.html and they match the dates of baptism of some of the family of William Waddell and his wife Mary in Dover, Kent

William, baptised 23 or 28 January 1705, buried 5 May 1705
Thomas, baptised 24 February 1706
William, baptised 29 October 1710
Sarah, baptised 29 September 1712
John, baptised 3 October 1714
Mary, buried 1 September 1715.

These are only index listings from the parish register of St Mary the Virgin, Dover. I do not have access to the original documents.

If, as that web site suggests, Mary Irvine was born in 1660, she would have been too old to be the mother of John, and probably of any of them. Also why were they in Dover rather than in Ireland?

The late Caraline Wilfreda Bingley collected a vast amount of information about the Waddells of Ireland, and she states (twice) that the William Waddell whom Mary Irvine married was the son of William 'Crown of London'. This would make far more sense. He could have been a younger brother of the progenitor of the Waddells of Ouley, whose sons went to seek their fortunes in America, leaving their uncle to found the Ouley dynasty back home.

The crucial bit of information needed to progress this is the maiden surname of Mary, mother of those children baptised (or buried) in Dover between 1705 and 1715.