Sources of information:
1. South Stoneham, Hampshire Parish Registers (FHL #1041740)
Notes:
ALLEN (SMITH)
RESEARCH REPORT
[smith063005 / 0346]
15 July 2005
The objective of this research period was to extend the pedigree of Ann Smith to her four grandparents. Ann Smith=s christening took place at South Stoneham in 1782, daughter of Thomas and Elizabeth Smith. Previous research focused on attempting to determine if one of two marriages of Thomas Smith to Elizabeth is ancestral. Research to this point was inconclusive.
To help identify Smiths to whom Thomas might be related, the Hampshire Marriage Index was searched by correspondence. A request for all Smith marriages from 1770 to 1782 resulted in a list of 302 male entries alone during that time [document #1]. Female marriages were not obtained. Obtaining copies of all Smith female marriage would be ideal, but impractical.
At the same time, Judd, Judas, and Simmons marriages were also sought in the index for the years 1765 to 1790 [document 2]. Further analysis on these marriages was not conducted at this point.
The list was reviewed for all Thomas Smith to Elizabeth marriages. Five marriages were identified:
Year Groom Bride Place
1771 Thomas Smith to Elizabeth Simmons Hamble
1772 Thomas Smith to Elizabeth White Portchester
1772 Thomas Smith to Elizabeth Orpin Portsea St. Mary
1778 Thomas Smith to Elizabeth Judas Southampton St. Michael
1779 Thomas Smith to Elizabeth Mortemore Portsea St. Mary
All Smith marriages in South Stoneham during this time period were also extracted as follows:
1776 George Smith to Eleanor Cleverly South Stoneham
1777 John Smith to Ann Lipscombe South Stoneham
1781 James Smith to Mary Harvey South Stoneham
1782 Andrew Smith to Patty Snugs South Stoneham
It was curious that none of the Smith male=s names, including Thomas, were the same, creating the possibility they might be brothers.
As for the direction to take from here, there were two puzzling questions yet to be answered. First, what happened to Ann Smith Judd - when and where did she die? She was living with a son in the 1841 census. Did she die in 1857 as family records stated? If so, could she be found in the 1851 census, confirming where she was born, and providing us with her age? Second, if she was the daughter of Thomas and Elizabeth, it is very unlikely that they had just one child. If so, where are the christenings?
As for the marriage information above, the marriages to Elizabeth Simmons and Elizabeth Judas had been researched in some detail. The remaining three marriages were all 10 to 14 miles east of South Stoneham. The original records of each need to be reviewed in any case, because a residence could be listed in the record. Clearly, a mention of South Stoneham would be important. After reviewing previous research, it was determined the South Stoneham parish marriage registers had not been searched; therefore, each of the Smith marriages also needed to found in the original register for clues.
Because the entire 1851 census for the county of Hampshire has been indexed, parish by parish, it was decided the value of information gained by finding Ann Smith was worth the search. Most volumes were searched in their entirety. A map of Hampshire parishes was used to note the parishes searched. The entire southern two-thirds of Hampshire, including the Isle of Wight, was searched without finding an Ann Judd who was the appropriate age. The oldest was an Ann in South Stoneham, age 57, born in Stiffkey, Norfolk, who has already been identified as the wife of Edward.
The marriages above were reviewed next. First, the original entries for all Thomas Smith to Elizabeth marriages from 1770 to 1782 were checked [document 4]. Unfortunately, none of the marriages refer to South Stoneham. The closest two marriages are the two which were analyzed during a previous research project: Thomas to Elizabeth Judas in Southampton, and Thomas to Elizabeth Simmons in Hamble le Rice. A map of southern Hampshire shows the proximity of each of these to South Stoneham [document 5]. Based on distance alone, the Southampton marriage is the best. The possible Judas/Judd name connection also makes this intriguing.
The International Genealogical Index (IGI) was checked for children of Thomas and Elizabeth Smith, born in Hampshire between the years 1760 and 1800. A printout of this list revealed 33 christenings [document 6]. Five could be attributed to Ann Smith of South Stoneham, although two of these recorded Ann=s birthplace as Hamble, with the same date as the South Stoneham entry. In other words, previous researchers had attempted to put the two together. During the previous research period, Hamble parish register transcripts were searched without finding any children of Thomas Smith and Elizabeth Simmons. Clearly, the Hamble entries in the IGI were an error. A review of the remaining entries attempted to assign the children to the couples as follows:
Thomas Smith and Elizabeth Simmons Hamble 1771
- no children
Thomas Smith Elizabeth White Porchester 1772
1) Thomas Smith chr. 24 Jan 1773 Porchester
2) Elizabeth Smith chr. 9 Oct 1774 Porchester
3) Sarah Smith chr. 26 Jan 1777 Porchester
Thomas Smith Elizabeth Orpin Portsea St. Mary 1772
- no identifiable children
Thomas Smith Elizabeth Judas Southampton St. Michael 1778
1) William Smith chr. 10 Nov 1783 Southampton St. Thomas
Thomas Smith Elizabeth Mortemore Portsea St. Mary 1779
- no identifiable children
Portsea had many transient residents, partly because it is a port, which may explain why no children were found to these couples. Otherwise, Ann could fit into any of the families. No children are found to the Hamble le Rice couple; it would be strange for them to not have any children until Ann in 1782. She could have been born before William, son of Thomas Smith and Elizabeth Judas, but if so, the family returned to Southampton for the christening of the next child, leaving one to wonder why they went back and forth. She could also fit on the end of the Porchester family.
Using the Hampshire Burial Index, a list of Smith burials in South Stoneham was compiled [document 7]. The burial for the ancestralThomas seems to be the one in 1824 at the age of 84. This puts his birth year at 1740, meaning he would be 42 at the time of Ann=s christening. Two possible burials were found for Elizabeth, in 1800 and 1807. These burials were reviewed. Neither Elizabeth Smith burial contained additional information. The Thomas Smith burial added his residence was Westend, the residence of the Judds.
Still, no connection could be made to any of the marriages, making it virtually impossible to extend Elizabeth=s line. However, a review of Thomas Smith christenings in Hampshire was completed. A search of the IGI for a twenty-nine-year time period from 1735 to 1755 resulted in a list of 126 entries [document 8]. Of these, a few referred directly to a Thomas Smith, christened in 1740 at South Stoneham, son of Abraham Smith.
Continuing in the IGI, children of Abraham Smith, born/christened in Hampshire were sought. Three children in South Stoneham were listed, Abraham, Thomas and Francis [document 9]. A review of the parish registers referred to each of the three children exactly as recorded in the IGI. Thomas= christening was copied [document 10]. Abraham is an unusual name for that time period. It was noted during the previous research period that John Smith=s 1811 will left everything to his brother Levi. They were both from Westend. Levi and Abraham are unusual biblical names, indicating a possible connection. Use of biblical names may also indicate non-conformity (not Church of England).
Abraham Smith marriages were sought, and about 10 were found in Hampshire. None of these were immediately identified as ancestral.
Next, a review of records available for South Stoneham parish was conducted. The Family History Library Catalog shows parish records, other than parish registers, are available which might add to our understanding of the Smith family there. Records range from cemetery to taxation [document 11]. Of these, the church records were reviewed. Other than the parish registers, there was an excellent collection of poor rate books ranging from 1677 to 1875 and settlement examinations from 1778 to 1782 [document 12].
Poor rates are essentially a tax on the parish to pay for support of the poor. They list the annual contributions made by those who were able to contribute. These records were searched from 1783 to 1819 [document 13]. They were organized by tything or tithing, an area within the parish. Thomas Smith did not appear until 1788, when he was listed in Bittern tithing. In 1814, he was in Allington tithing, and remained there through 1819. During the five-year-period, he was consistently listed with a John Smith. Most of the other Smiths were in Shamblehurst tithing.
An attempt to locate a tithe map at the Family History Library or on-line was unsuccessful. Knowing where Allington and Shamblehurst tithings were, in relation to the rest of the parish would be helpful.
Lastly, the settlement examinations for South Stoneham from 1778 to 1782 were searched. Settlement examinations were documents which allowed people to move into another parish. They provide the names of the settlers, including children in the family, with ages and the parish of origin. The records do not survive on a consistent basis. This included about 20 documents in all for the above time period but no Smiths were found.
A great portion of this project was spent looking for Ann (Smith) Judd in the 1851 census. She was not found, and it is very possible she died before 1851, and that the year reported in family records is wrong. She also could have left the mid- and southern Hampshire area, and gone elsewhere. It is likely the 1851 census will be imaged, indexed, and available on-line, as the later censuses are now. In any case, we still believe the christening of Ann in 1782 at South Stoneham is ancestral.
Also, it is likely the christening of Thomas, son of Abraham Smith is ancestral. Determining the correct marriage of Thomas Smith to Elizabeth is a difficult problem. The difficulty arises mostly because of the commonness of the surname. Additional research in South Stoneham parish registers to uncover every Smith entry from 1730 to 1813 is necessary. This should include christenings, marriages, burials, witnesses to marriages, additional poor rate records, and monumental inscriptions. A will for Abraham should be sought in Hampshire probate records. It may also be wise to search non-conformist registers, including those of the Society of Friends (Quaker) records, because of the apparent lack of children to Thomas and Elizabeth other than Ann, and the use of names such as Abraham and Levi. Another research project or two should allow these searches to be completed.
We hope you are pleased with the progress of this research period and look forward to continuing according to your direction.
DSP/dr