Can anyone help me untangle a confusing situation please?

[Cambridge]

Hello,

Hoping someone can help me - I'm totally stuck!!

My 5x Great Grandmother Frances 'Fanny' Hare (Yes, I know) seems to have married a John Chesham in Biggleswade in aroun 1820ish, and had children. So far so simple.

Except in 1833, John Chesham goes to Australia and died there 21 years later.

In the menatime, Frances seems to have met John Wilson and I think had more children including my 4 x Great Grandmother Louisa.

The problem is - the kids all seem to go by either Chesham or Wilson - and Louisa goes by Chesham even though her father was John Wilson.

I'm really confused and I can only think maybe I have gone totally wrong somewhere? Can anyone help me please? Thank you for any advice you give in advance!

[BumbleB]

I'm having difficulty in finding anything for Louisa Chesham - census returns, etc.  Could you please give us a little more information - did she marry?

[osprey]

marriage in Old Warden, Bedfordshire 12 Feb 1825 of John Chesham & Frances Hare.

1861 for Louisa & Fanny

https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M7TN-4GG

[Cambridge]

Thank you!  Yes she married William Field.

I first saw her as Chessum rather than Chesham but she also appears on censuses as Wilson before she married? The family (Frances and John Wilson) lived on Palace St in Biggleswade and appear on the censuses.

Thans for your help on this. I'm wondering if her first husband abandoned her. I just find it odd that more kids were born after he left but kept the Chesham/Chessum name even though John Wilson must have been their father.

John Wilson is listed as the Head of the household on some censuses but the last one it's 'Boarder' but that could just be an error!

[Cambridge]

Ive found John Chesham on the Llloyds Convict Ship in 1833.... so I guess any of the kids born after that were John Wilsons?

[osprey]

Even if he was their biological father, he wasn't married to Fanny, and she was still married to John Chesham so they were legally Chesham. But they may well have been known as Wilson.

birth reg for Louisa
Louisa Chesham jun qtr 1844 Biggleswade vol 6 pg 59 mmn Hare

1851 census as Wilson
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:SGCC-J2V

[Dundee]

Do you have Louisa's birth certificate?  I would guess that there is no father named and her mother is named as Fanny CHESHAM formerly HARE.  The other children are also registered the same.

CHESHAM, LOUISA
Mother's maiden surname: HARE     
GRO Reference: 1844  J Quarter in BIGGLESWADE  Volume 06  Page 59 .

As adults they could use any surname they chose.

Debra 

[Cambridge]

Ahhh OK so as I read it - John Chesham marries Frances and is later shipped to Australia for trying to murder a gamekeeper....

Then Frances gets together with John Wilson and has more children. And I am descended then from John Wilson, who is Louisa's father (since John Chesham is a million miles away in Oz at that point)

Because she was still technically maried to John Chesham, the kids went by Chesham to keep up appearances I guess.

Poor Frances - that must have been quite a lot to go through. A lot of the women in my history had tough times...

I really appreciate your help with this - thank you!

[Dundee]

How do you know that John WILSON was the father?  Do you have baptisms for the children?  I can see Samuel's baptism with only Fanny named as the mother.

The 1841 census is virtually impossible to read, perhaps there is a better scan elsewhere.  Surname transcribed on Ancestry as 'Chepama'.  John WILSON is a part of their household but listed last.

Class: HO107; Piece: 2; Book: 3; Folio: 7; Page: 10

Debra