Sarah Ann Bolchin / Henry Bolchin

[hj2393]

Hi everyone,

I’ve hit a brick wall in my family research.

I’m looking for some information on a woman called Sarah Ann Bolchin (unsure of spelling on surname – it’s spelt multiple ways on census records). She’s my third-great-grandmother.

I don’t know a lot about her, and everything I do know is from census records after her marriage.

All I know about her is that she was born in either Kent or Surrey around 1852, and that her father’s name is Henry. On later census records, she has put her place of birth as Tunbridge Wells, Kent; Uxtile, Kent; and Red Hill, Surrey so I’m not sure which is the correct one. In 1877, she had a son called Robert and according to the census he was born in Red Hill, Surrey. I cannot find any birth records for him and do not know who his father is – he is my second-great-grandfather.

She went on to marry Joseph Mather in May 1879 in Breadsall, Derbyshire. She had five more children with Joseph and spent the rest of her life in Derbyshire.

This is everything I know – I cannot find any records of her before the 1881 census.

I’d be grateful for any help on her life and family 

[heywood]

Hello and welcome 

There is this  birth :

Robert Balchain  September quarter 1877 Cuckfield, Sussex
The GRO index shows no mother's maiden name.
I haven't looked for him as yet in later censuses.

Heywood

[hj2393]

Thanks - I've just done a quick search on ancestry and can't find any Robert Balchain's born in Sussex on censuses so that could be him. Why would there be so many different places of birth listed for them both? It seems that every census has a different place.

Any luck on Sarah? I still can't find anything on her.

[heywood]

Lots of Balchin surnames with variations in Surrey and Sussex but nothing positive 

[heywood]

What is Henry's occupation on the marriage certificate?

[hj2393]

I don't have a marriage certificate, only the index on ancestry gives his name. Maybe it would be worth ordering one? My grandma always says that her granddad (Robert Bolchin) would say his grandfather (Henry) used to work at a big country home. She thinks as a gardener. Apparently this is where he met his wife, but I don't know for certain.

[heywood]

Yes it might be a good idea to check the marriage details and that birth certificate to see if it is your ancestor.

[philipsearching]

Yes it might be a good idea to check the marriage details and that birth certificate to see if it is your ancestor.

I agree with Heywood.

Getting the Mather/Balchin marriage certificate is an essential step.  It should show the names and occupations of the fathers, which would indicate if Henry was a gardener or not. (It might also indicate if Henry was a first name or middle name - which would help with census searches)

The cheapest and best place to order a certificate is:
https://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content/

All the best
Philip

(EDIT - I had a wild thought and wondered if Sarah might have been a widow when she married Joseph Mather.  The marriage cert should confirmj or discount this idea)

[hj2393]

Thanks guys, I'll get the marriage certificate ordered. I don't think she could have been a widow because her father's name is Henry Bolchin - surely she wouldn't have changed her surname back to her maiden name? Although I guess anything is possible, I'll let you know what the marriage certificate says when I get it