To fill in the blanks or not?

[Libby56]

I read all the time about hitting the wall and I've certainly hit one now. My gggGrandfather was married and had 6 children. His wife died 7 days after childbirth of the 7th child in 1885 at the age of 32. In 1886 the youngest 2 children were baptised and on the baptism record the mother's name appears, it's not the same name as the mother who died! I thought maybe he'd remarried but at the 1891 census the family are lodgers in a neighbouring house and there is no woman, just the father and 5 of the children. He's disappeared by the 1901 census and the children have gone their separate ways, the father died in 1904.  I'm at a loss what to do next so can anyone point me in the right direction. Please ? Or in fact should I not even try to fill in the blanks ? Any response would be appreciated

[Pennines]

Libby - have you checked the mother's maiden name of those last 2 children on the birth registers of the GRO index at the General Register Office?

https://www.gov.uk/general-register-office

That will show whether it is the same mother's maiden surname as that of your 3x Gt Grandfather's wife.

[softly softly]

Libby56, we may be able to help if you could post a few names.

John

[goldie61]

Welcome to Rootschat Libby
I'd agree, it would be helpful to have some names and dates, and then more specific help might be forthcoming.

By the way, did you see the replies to your query on your other post a couple of weeks ago?
You have not replied and thanked those who tried to help you.

[Libby56]

I'm really struggling to find my way around here so apologies...hopefully I'm getting the hang of it now. To Pennines, yes I did check the mother's maiden name and they are the same as all the children.
To John, my 3xgreat grandfather was William Ward born in Loughborough Leics. in 1843, married Ann Maria Reeves (b.1853) in 1873 in Leicester. They had 6 children, the last was Esther who was born in 1883. Ann Maria died 7 days after giving birth in 1885, Esther and her elder sister (b1881) were baptised on25th august 1886 and on the record it shows the mother was Sarah Anne.
To Goldie 61, I haven't posted before but I did reply to someone posting about relatives in Australia i will have another look, I certainly wouldn't want to appear being ignorant
regards to all 

[Annie65115]

Burial at Welford Rd (the main civic cemetery in Leicester at this time)

Annie Maria Ward of West Holme St, age 32, on 28 Nov 1885.

This grave is shared with the following:
GAMBLE   JOHN JOSEPH   1857   FEB   4   age 10   LEICESTER UNION HOUSE   
GAMBLE   MARY   1857   JUN   14   36   LEICESTER UNION HOUSE   
GAMBLE   SAMUEL   1857   JUL   23   2   LEICESTER UNION HOUSE   
GAMBLE   THOMAS   1857   DEC   3   4   LEICESTER UNION HOUSE   
WARD   JOHN   1880   JUN   21   10MTHS   FOXON STREET   

(1857 was clearly a rotten year for the Gamble family. Were they related to the Wards? Given the time between them, possibly not).

[Annie65115]

William remarried Sarah Anne HARDY on 27 March 1886 at St Pauls in Leicester -- this is the same William, age 42, of West Holme St, father John Ward.

So this accounts for the children's mother's name being given as Sarah Anne - she was actually their stepmother when they were baptised.

[Annie65115]

Sarah Ann Hardy was apparently 33 when she married William in 1886, and herself a widow. I suspect she probably died in 1889, in Leic infirmary; there was a burial in Welford Rd for a 36 year old Sarah Ann Ward on 23 Oct 1889. Unfortunately there are no other Ward burials in her grave to give a further clue as to whether this was indeed her.

TURNER   MATILDA   1865   OCT   27   age 52 LEICESTER UNION HOUSE   
DAVIS   ---   1865   OCT   27   STBN   1 GREEN STREET  CHILD OF MARY
PAWLEY   JOSEPH EDWIN   1882   JAN   10   2   NEW HUMBERSTONE
PAWLEY   WALTER NIXON   1882   JAN   23   8MTHS   NEW HUMBERSTONE   
NIXON   JAMES   1888   FEB   4   59   LEICESTER BOROUGH ASYLUM
WARD   SARAH ANN   1889   OCT   23   36   LEICESTER INFIRMARY


I cant see a burial for William Ward in Welford Rd in 1904.

[Annie65115]

Is this William's burial in Gilroes Cemetery in 1904? The age is correct:

WARD   William   61   Boro' Asylum   Leicester   25-Aug   1904

There is no-one else in this grave.