Hello,
I have traced my family tree back to my 3x great grandfather William Burton who died 25 Nov 1871 in Leicester. In the 1851 and 1871 censuses he gives his place of birth as Oakham, Rutland. In the 1851 census his age is given as 64 and in the 1861 census it is given as 74 giving a date of birth around 1787. (On his death certificate his daughter gives his age as 89 and on the 1871 census, not long before his death, it is given as 88). Assuming that the ages on the 1851 and 1861 censuses are more likely to be accurate, William Burton appears to be the son of John Burton and his wife Ann Barnett who married at Oakham on 7 Dec 1776. William, their fifth child, was baptised at Oakham on 30 Sept 1787.
The Oakham parish register entry for John Burton’s marriage to Ann Barnett in 1776 describes him as being a labourer and describes Ann as being a spinster, both were of the parish of Oakham. Neither were able to write their name and their consent is just indicated by a X.
According to all the versions of this part of the Burton family tree that I have come across, John is considered to be the son of the Rev Bartin Burton and his wife Mary who married 22 Nov 1725 at Great Oxendon, Northants. Both were described as being of the parish of Oakham and Bartin was indeed baptised there on 19 Sept 1700 being the son of Mr Andrew Burton and his second wife Sarah John, the seventh child of Bartin and Mary Burton was baptised on 1 May 1740 at Oakham and was mentioned in his father’s Will in 1764.
I have two questions:
1 What is the evidence supporting the belief that William’s father John was the son of Bartin and Mary Burton? John was a labourer and appears not to have been able to write his own name. Unless he had learning difficulties, how likely is it that the son of a clergyman would not be able to write his own name? John was of the parish of Oakham at the time of his marriage but that doesn’t necessarily mean he was born in Oakham. Could John in fact be the John baptised 29 July 1739 at Braunston the son of Augustin Burton and Ann? At the time of John’s baptism, Augustin is described as being a labourer. Augustin and Ann had 6 children baptised at Braunston but I have not yet found their marriage which, according to the ages of their children, would have been around 1728.
2 John and Ann Burton’s last child was baptised in 1790 at Oakham. There is a burial for a John Burton at Oakham on 10 Nov 1806 and also for an Ann Burton on 14 August in the same year. I have not found a Will for the John who died in 1806 but there is an 1806 Will for an Ann Burton of Oakham listed at the Consistory Court of Peterborough and dated 24 September 1806 but I have not yet investigated this any further. Many Burton family trees, however, state that William’s father John died in India (no date given) although I am struggling to find the source of this information. Does anyone know any more about this?
Thanks very much to anyone who can help.
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Topic: BURTON John of Oakham Rutland (Read 1040 times)