Allen Family History

Notes:

ROBERT ALLEN RESEARCH REPORT

[careydash041205 / 0346] 22 April 2005

The objective of this research project was to extend the pedigree of Sarah Carey of South Stoneham and Jane Dash of Bishopstoke, Hampshire. This process began by reviewing maps of the South Stoneham/Bishopstoke area to show the parish boundaries [document #1], and the physical relation between the places [document #2]. Bishopstoke is almost equidistant between Southampton and Winchester, two of the major cities in Hampshire. South Stoneham is a parish which covers the area between Bishopstoke and Southampton. Their location near Southampton may be particularly important because as large cities tended to draw people from surrounding areas. The families of Thomas and Sarah (Carey) Judd and Robert and Jane (Dash) Reading were reviewed next. While marriages had been found for these couples, only one child was listed for each. The information on James, son of Robert Reading and Jane Dash, was more precise, as it was based on census information. However, for George, son of Thomas Judd and Sarah Carey, only an estimated year was given. It was very unusual for a family at that time to have only one child. Also, the burial records of each set of parents had not been located. The burial record may give the age at death which would be valuable when looking for their respective christenings. To begin building these families, the International Genealogical Index was first consulted. All children of Robert and Jane Reading in Hampshire were sought and a list of fourteen potential entries was created [document #3]. Of these, ten were for the ancestral James Reading, and the remaining four were for likely siblings. All of the entries came from patron submissions, so additional prints of the records were not made. It should be noted in the 1861 British Census, James stated he was born at Owslebury parish. Owslebury borders Bishopstoke parish to the north. A similar search was conducted for children of Thomas Judd and Sarah, also in Hampshire. This time a list of eleven children was obtained [document #4]. Curiously, none of them were for the ancestral George Judd, although a George Judd, son of Thomas and Sarah, was christened at Wonston in 1779, about when the ancestral George would have been born. Wonston is about fifteen miles north of South Stoneham and ten miles east of Broughton, both reported residences of the ancestral George Judd. The marriage of Thomas Judd to Sarah Carey took place at Wonston in 1773, which meant a number of these children belonged to this couple. Perhaps the bigger question was whether the ancestral George Judd who married Ann Smith was the same who died at Broughton, and was perhaps born at Wonston. A search for George Judd births or christenings in Hampshire, son of Thomas Judd located thirteen entries, seven of which tied directly to the ancestral George Judd [document #5]. Other than the marriage, each had the same vague information as the family record. The others were for a grandson of the ancestral George, except one entry, George christened at Wonston as noted above. The British Vital Records Index was examined next for the same searches as above as well as for marriages of Thomas Judd in Hampshire and Robert Reading. The only relevant entries were the christenings of three of the Judd children at Wonston [document #6]. The International Genealogical Index was re-examined for the marriages of all Thomas Judds and Robert Readings in Hampshire. Twenty Thomas Judd marriages were listed [document #7]. Five of them were for imprecise dates and of South Stoneham for the ancestral Thomas Judd. One entry was the one recorded in the family record at Wonston parish in 1773. The marriage of Thomas Judd's grandson Thomas was also listed. Fourteen Robert Reading marriages were listed [document #8]. Three of the entries were for the marriage of Robert Reading and Jane Dash in 1781, though only one gave Bishopstoke as the marriage place. All of the others were prior to 1640. The original marriage and christenings records of each family were sought next. A search in the Wonston, Hampshire Parish Registers was conducted for Judd and Carey christenings from 1770-1797. Five Judd christenings were listed, all children of Thomas and Sarah. George was christened 5 December 1779 [document #10]. The marriage records were then searched from 1770 to 1780 for both Judd and Carey. The union of Thomas Judd to Sarah Carey was recorded, as expected, in 1773 [document #11]. Both were of this parish. They were married by banns, neither was able to sign their name, and the witnesses were Heneary [sic] Smith and Richard Bonner. Another Carey marriage Lucy Carey of this parish took place five years later. The marriage was also by banns and Richard Bonner was again a witness. A review of the marriages before and after the above Carey marriages failed to show Richard Bonner again, indicating he is perhaps related to the Carey family rather than a parish official. The Bishopstoke Parish Registers were examined next. Reading and Dash christenings were sought for the years 1775-1800 [document #12]. The christening of son John was found first in 1781. This was significant because he was not one of the children listed in the International Genealogical Index. Four additional children were found for Robert and Jane (Dash) Ridding. The record was unusual in that the parish clerk used a form to record the events well before it became required in 1813. Also, the age of the child being baptized and the mother's maiden name were often recorded, beginning in 1782. None of the children were named James, but there is a gap in children from 1783 to 1788 in which he could have been born, although it would be incorrect to make this assumption. In the 1851 British Census, James recorded his birthplace as the neighboring parish of Owslebury and his age as 65. This calculates to a 1785/1786 birth, and perhaps his christening record there. One additional child was found in 1785, the daughter of William Scorey or Scovey and Ann Dash. Ann was likely a sister of Jane. The marriage of Robert Reading and Jane Dash was recorded in 1781 [document #13]. One of the witnesses to the marriage was William Scorey, indicating William and Ann probably married prior to 1781.
A burial index for Hampshire was consulted next for the surnames of Judd, Carey, Reading and Dash. All Jud/Judd burials were extracted, and reviewed for the primary names and places of interest [document #14]. The family record indicated George Judd died about the year 1832 at Broughton, though his burial has never been found. The only burial remotely close to this with an appropriate age is the burial of George Judd in 1828 at Portsmouth, at the age of 50. This calculates to a birth of 1778, which is within a year of the Wonston christening. The problem is Portsmouth is about sixteen miles from South Stoneham, twenty-seven miles from Wonston, and about thirty-five miles from Broughton, and one of the largest cities in Hampshire. There was a Sarah Judd buried in 1791 at Broughton, but none at Wonston where the potentially ancestral family was located. There was, however, the burial of Thomas Judd at Wonston in 1833 at the age of 86. This calculates to a 1747 birth and is probably for the father of the family. The Carey burials were also extracted from the index [document #15]. Four Carey burials were noted at Wonston during the period 1750 to 1785. If Sarah Carey is found to be ancestral, than these individuals are most certainly related to Lucy Carey, whose marriage was found at Wonston in 1778. The Reading/Ridding burials were quite numerous and some interesting entries uncovered [document #16]. Burials for Robert Reading, and for all Readings in the parishes of Bishopstoke and Owlsebury were specially noted. A Robert Reading was buried at Owslebury in 1741. His burial is too early to be ancestral, but with the name Robert being less common and with likely connections to Owlsebury, he is probably related at some point. A burial for Robert Ridding at Bishopstoke was found in 1827. He was reportedly 70 years old, pointing to a birth year of 1757. A burial of Jane Ridding was also found. She was buried in 1834, also at Bishopstoke and was supposedly 84 years, which would point to a birth year of 1750. This seems a bit unlikely since she would have been 46 at the birth of her last child. Lastly, Dash burials were also extracted. Only two were recorded at Bishopstoke, but 86 year old widow Ann was buried in 1805, old enough to be Jane's mother [document #17]. The other, James Dash in 1768, could have been her father. These two, along with Ann Dash who married William Scorey, are the best clues to extending the Dash line, if she is related. Having gone through both families extensively, there are critical questions which need to be answered. First, George Judd, the proposed son of Thomas Judd and Sarah Carey, had temple ordinances performed in 1886, giving his birth year as 1782 and death year as 1832. Were the names of his parents known? It does not appear to be the case, or previous research would have picked it up. Also, would his proposed father Thomas Judd have been born at South Stoneham, travel sixteen miles north to Wonston to marry and have a family, be buried there, and yet have his son return to South Stoneham to marry, and then die at Broughton, more than ten miles west of both places? The burial index documented Judds in all three places meaning the families could be easily confused. Could the 1832 burial of George Judd at Portsmouth be ancestral, even though it is so far away, and there are a number of Judd burials there as well? It seems hasty to pursue the Carey line when there are major issues with George Judd. Perhaps he lived past 1837, which is the extent of the burial index. Issues with his wife Ann Smith also remain. Her death or burial has not been found and based on previous research, it does not appear either has been found in a census. To answer some of these questions, the following searches were most important: Attempt to locate a will for the Thomas Judd buried at Wonston in 1833.

Attempt to find George Judd and/or his widow Ann in the British Censuses of 1841 or 1851.

Do any of the Judds, who appear to be in South Stoneham, end up at Wonston, or does the Thomas Judd family have other family who end up back down at South Stoneham or over at Broughton?

Additional searches are absolutely necessary before George, son of Thomas Judd and Sarah Carey, can be accepted as ancestral. A similar situation exists on the Reading pedigree line. The family of Robert Reading and Jane Dash has been identified as an excellent ancestral possibility. One minor problem is the ancestral James stated he was born at Owslebury, not Bishopstoke, where Robert and Jane were found. Since the parishes border each other this is not so critical. It is somewhat important, however, as a christening has not been found for James, son of Robert and Jane. Temple ordinances were performed for both James and Robert in 1886, which indicates (unlike the George and Thomas Judd connection above) the family knew Robert was the name of James father. To solve this problem, the following searches are recommended: A will for Robert Reading who was buried at Bishopstoke in 1827.

Search the Owslebury, Hampshire Parish Registers as needed.

Locate the marriages of the other children to Robert and Jane, as they might indicate James was a witness.

Considering the amount of time remaining, efforts were focused on the Reading and Dash families only from this point on. This is because it seemed more likely the problem would be solved in the remaining time compared to the Judd and Carey lines, which had movement over several miles. James Reading stated he was from Owslebury, which neighbors Bishopstoke when a Reading family was found, but the christening for Jameswas missing. Probate records were examined next for the Reading/Ridding and Dash surnames. If a will was found for Robert, then, even without a christening, the problem might be solved. Bishopstoke was a peculiar court under the Bishop of Winchester. In effect, the court with primary jurisdiction was the parish itself. A review of extant probate records for the Peculiar Court of Bishopstoke only indicated wills exist for the years 1569-1720. In any case, we searched a combined index for wills to all of the peculiar courts in Hampshire. Only wills after 1724 were sought [document #18], but none appeared to be particularly relevant. The next court with jurisdiction was the Bishop's or Consistory Court of Winchester. A search covering the years 1725-1857 uncovered only two Reading and two Dash wills during that time [document #19]. To find so few was a little surprising. The only one with some interest was for John Dash of Bishop's Waltham, as this parish is only about five miles to the east of Bishopstoke. The others were all over twelve miles away. The Archdeaconry Court of Winchester card index to wills was searched next for the time period above. This court may have had jurisdiction for a period of time over Bishopstoke. Eight Reading/Ridding wills were found, though most were from the northern part of the county [document #20]. The will of William Dash of Wickham showed his residence was perhaps eight miles away and of some interest. The others were much further away. The last court with any jurisdiction was the Prerogative Court of Canterbury. The will indexes for this court were searched online using the same criteria as above. Eight Ridding wills in Hampshire were found [document #21]. Most were from Southampton, and another was from Winchester. None were from South Stoneham, Bishopstoke, or Owslebury. Two Dash wills were also listed, but were for persons at least twelve miles southeast of Bishopstoke [document #22]. To summarize, the probate search failed to locate a will for Robert Reading or for his wife Jane. The Reading name is in the area, but may not be from Bishopstoke or Owlsebury. Likewise, no Dash wills were found in the same parishes. Like Reading, the name was around but relatively uncommon.
The Owslebury, Hampshire Parish Registers were sought, but were not available at the Family History Library. The Bishop's Transcript copy of the registers was available, but there was one transcript for 1708, and a gap to 1780. All Reading and Dash christening, marriages, and burials were sought from 1780 to 1795, but none were found. We have initiated a search of the parish registers at the Hampshire Record Office. The marriage search for children of Robert and Jane (Dash) Reading recommended above could also best be done by correspondence as a complete marriage index exists for Hampshire up to 1837. This was also requested. The remaining time was spent looking for Jane Dash's ancestry. Other than Jane's marriage at Bishopstoke, perhaps the most important clue was she probably had a sister Ann Dash who had a child at Bishopstoke at the same time. The International Genealogical Index was examined, this time for births/christenings of Jane Dash in Hampshire in the 1740s and 1750s. A christening was immediately identified at Bishopstoke in 1756, daughter of James Dash and Ann. A search was then carried out for children of James Dash and Ann [document #23]. Seven different children were identified as follows, all christened at Bishopstoke: Name Christening William 5 Jul 1740 Ann 7 Nov 1742 Elizabeth 17 Mar 1744 Mary 12 Jul 1747 Sarah 12 Aug 1750 Hester 15 Jul 1753 Jane 12 May 1756

Jane was the youngest of one son and six daughters. The fact her father's name was James is a valuable find, because the only christening missing is James, and it is more likely Jane had a son James since that was also her father's name. James Dash and Ann Kimber married 17 March 1739 at Bishopstoke [document #24]. Searches for the christenings of James Dash and Ann Kimber were also performed. Lists of entries for each were obtained. James Dash may have come from Bishop's Waltham parish, about six miles east of Bishopstoke [document #25]. An Anne Kimber was christened at South Stoneham in 1717, an excellent time period for the ancestral woman [document #26].
The case for James Reading coming from the family of Robert and Jane (Dash) Reading is virtually made. Siblings were uncovered, including an older brother John who was previously unidentified. The finding of Jane Dash's parentage indicates the name of James could have been his maternal grandfather's name. An unusual gap in the children of Robert and Jane occurs at the time James would have been born, according to census records. If George Judd came from Wonston, several possible siblings were found. Additional clarification is needed, following the recommendations listed above. Future research on the Judd line should begin with those searches and then continue on the Reading and Dash lines based on the results of the search of the Owslebury Parish Registers and the Hampshire Marriage Index. It has been a pleasure to assist in researching and documenting your family. We look forward to continuing research according to your instructions. _2005 Price & Associates Incorporated DSP/mh