Thank you. This one is driving me crazy!
I have the marriage cert of Jane Dobbin to Thomas Budden at St Anns Fort Barbados on April 28th 1831. Thomas was a Lance Corporal with 35th Regiment of Foot, born in Pimperne. Both bride and groom just made their mark. on 27th December 1831 Thomas and Jane Budden had a daughter Jane - baptised on 22nd Jan 1832 at St Anns Fort Barbados. By April 1832 Thomas had discharged himself finally from the Regiment of Foot and arrived back in Dorset- and I have a copy of the Settlement application that he made on his return to Pimperne- signed by James Farquharson.
I have followed Thomas's wife Jane Budden nee dobbin theough the UK censuses in Blandford where she states her place of birth as follows:
1841- Ireland (random!!!); 1851 West Indies British subject; 1861 west Indies Isle DOMENECK (sic), 1871 West India.
Now- I am trying to establish the birth of Jane Dobbin- in the time slot of around 1811 +/- 5 years. Was she really a British Subject? Was she possibly the daughter of a British employee (non military) at St Anns Fort? Was she possibly of mixed birth bearing in mind there are a lot of folks on slave registers with the surname Dobbin. How on earth do I go about finding out more about her origin? Any ideas please!!!
The Ireland place of birth given for both Jane (born c 1811) and her daughter Jane born 1831 before Thomas and Jane returned to England after the army discharge- is also a curved ball because there is a Jane dobbin mentioned in the slave register for Jamaica- under the ownership of a Clotworthy Dobbin who seemed to be a landowner - in Ireland.
It comes down to how much is believable on the Censuses and how much is made up to cover an awkward situation!
Any help or suggestions would be appreciated!
The mention of her being a British subject on the 1851 census is curious too. True or false?
Will we ever know?
I feel as though I am so close and yet so far! Both Jane and their daughter Jane are both mentioned in Thomas's application for Settlement back to Dorset but no details are given for wither of them.
Ideas please!
Caroline
