Thanks JM for your iinterest.
Answering :
1851 census has his father John Henry COOMBE in Woolwich as a visitor with his brother-in-law.
1841 census has Russell with his mother and siblings in Mere which is where her parents lived and her doctor brother-in-law.
Yes he was baptised as C of E; his father was an Anglican clergyman; I do not know any details of his first marriage. I think (will check) that the children of the first marriage were C of E.
Second family were brought up RC, one daughter even being a nun, and obviously accepted into a convent while her parents were still not married (although I suspect that fact was not known) . He and Margaret must have lived as a married couple as her appointment as Post Mistress is using the name "Mrs Midlane" and there are various TROVE mentions of her social life in Bena, NSW. And he lied on the marriage record by saying he was a widower - perhaps he had no idea that Bridget was still alive. I've not checked re Margaret Moore, the second wife so perhaps she was not free to marry earlier.
I wonder what the church thought (or knew) as their daughter had been married in the same church (Catholic church West Wyalong) 9 years previously.
His mother's family seemed to drift from RC to C of E also. Parents of Frances Agnes MIDLANE were RC when Frances was born at West Camel (Somerset) in 1811 and was baptised at a Catholic chapel in Shepton Mallet, some 28 miles away at the age of 3 months - quite a trek with a three-month old and her two year old sister baptised the same day. Later the family moved to Mere (Wiltshire) and became stalwarts of the local Anglican church, even to the extent of Frances' brother donating a stained glass window in memory of his siblings and parents.
I rather suspect that he left Bridget and his first family for whatever reason and met and formed a partnership with Margaret Moore. They were together over 40 years and died within a week of each other.
Interesting......
Judith
Would love to know if the two families knew of each other.
