Betts in Metfield or Mendham baptism 1785/6

[lintywhite]

Would someone please be able to help me with a lookup for a baptism in Metfield or Mendham about 1785/6 for Matilda Betts.

I believe she was born to parents Robert Betts and his first wife Hannah Skirle/Skarle. Hannah Betts was buried at Metfield on 8th September 1786. Previous children for the couple had been baptised in Mendham but Matilda later gives Metfield as her place of birth in the 1851 and 1861 censuses.

I have looked at the baptisms for Matilda's siblings in Mendham on Freereg but the last one is for John Betts in 1783. If mother Hannah died in childbirth it may be a case of Matilda being baptised at home in a hurry and no record may exist.

Thank you for any help you can offer.

Kind regards,

Jenny [Brisbane, Australia]

[lanercost]

Hi Jenny, happy to say I've found what you're looking for, although I think it's the second wife. All of these are in Metfield:

20 November 1788 - Matilda dau of Robert Betts and Judith his wife, late Judith Butcher widow

Also earlier in the PRs:

5 December 1784 - Sarah dau of Robert Betts and Hannah his wife, late Scarl spinster
26 June 1787 - Hannah illeg dau of Judith Butcher widow, late Godbolt spinster
7 April 1786 - Daniel son of Robert Betts and Hannah his wife, late Scarl spinster

[lintywhite]

Thank you so much. Yes, Judith was the second wife. Because Matilda always gave her date of birth as around 1785/6 I thought her mother must have been Robert's first wife. Thank you for taking the time to look up all of these entries. It is very helpful.

Do you know if there are any plans to put Metfield baptisms pre 1800s online at all?

Kind regards,

Jenny [Brisbane, Australia]

[lanercost]

Glad I had what you're looking for I needed some early Metfield baptisms myself a year back and luckily they are all online at FamilySearch family history centres. I don't know about it being online anywhere else though.

[LizzieL]

Is anything more known about Hannah, illeg daughter of Judith, and from dates probably fathered by Robert? My OH is descended from a Hannah Betts b abt 1787 Metfield (from census). He has DNA  match with a descendant of your Matilda Betts.

[lintywhite]

Hi Lizzie,

I had a possible marriage tagged for Hannah [b 1787] daughter of Judith Butcher, late Godbold/t. The marriage was Hannah Godbold who married Thomas Lanham in 1803 at Campsea Ash, Suffolk. I had a DNA match to a descendant of this couple as well. I haven't done any further follow up but I am happy to take a further look at other possible shared matches in case I find anything more.

Can you give me any more information on your Hannah?

My interesting in Matilda [another DNA match] stems from my brickwall Ann Betts who was probably born about 1763 and who married John Edwards Buck in 1788 in Walpole Suffolk. Ann died in 1792 and her husband went on to marry twice more. What is interesting is that her son William would later adopt her surname of Betts [rather than his birth surname Buck]  It is the Betts surname that carried down to my mother.

So I have been looking at all of my DNA matches to Betts in the hope of finding Ann's origins. As you have probably found yourself, there are a lot of Betts families in Suffolk and surrounding areas. Not an easy task but every little clue may hold the possible solution.

[LizzieL]

I just checked my information on our Hannah Betts.
She married Edward Stone in Metfield on 3rd November 1807. I have found 10 children for the couple including one called William Betts Stone. The early children were born in Metfield, the later ones in Bungay. She died in Oct 1850, age at death implies birth year about  1788. She only appears on 1841 census, where she is age 50 born Suffolk. Allowing for rounding that would give a birth year between 1787 and 1791. I think I must have assumed she was born in Metfield because she was married there.
I had though she was the illegitimate daughter of Mary Betts, baptised 5 Aug 1787 in Metfield.
Mary Betts married John Hurry on 28 October 1787 in Metfield, which makes me think that John might have been this Hannah's father. I have recently discovered Mary Betts was a widow, therefore not a Betts by birth.

Now finding Hannah illeg dau of Judith Butcher widow, late Godbolt spinster baptised 26 June 1787 makes me wonder if she was our Hannah. Judith and Robert Betts married not long after her birth so likely Robert was her natural father. If she assumed the name Betts rather than Butcher, she could be the one who married Edward Stone, and the other Hannah (d/o of Mary and maybe John Hurry) married William Barnes in Metfield on 16 Feb 1813.

My OH has DNA  matches with a descendant of your Matilda Betts and with a descendant of a Lot(t) Betts who some trees have as a son of Robert and Judith, but it's looking more like he is a son of a Francis Betts.

Links to my two other threads on Lot Betts and Mary Betts widow

https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=860420.0
https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=860456.0

[LizzieL]

Just looked into the Hannah Godbold who married Thomas Lanham in 1803 at Campsea Ash. (A bit early for Hannah from Metfield and why use mother's maiden name?)

I think she is here in 1841
Piece 1041, Book  13, Folio  8, Page  11
Baptism of daughter Jemima confirms mmn Godbold

here in 1851
Piece  1801, Folio 472, Page 24
she was born in Easton, Suffolk abt 1783

[lintywhite]

Thanks Lizzie.

Ive been checking through my numerous notes on Betts in Suffolk and Norfolk but haven't anything further to add at this time unfortunately.   If I should find anything I will let you know. Before I started researching my mothers side, I never realised how common the Betts name was!

Best of luck with your research.

Jenny