Tuesday, 29 May 2007

Richards - Saddington Marriage - 11 March 1906

Fresh in today, courtesy of David Horwill's Poplar Registration District Marriage Challenge:

Married on 11 March 1906 at All Hallows Church, East India Dock Road in the Parish of Bromley, London

William Charles Richards, age 28, Bachelor, Billiard maker, living at 32 Portree Road, father - William Charles Richards, potman


to

Edith Grace Frances Saddington, age 24, Spinster, living at 32 Portree Road, father - James Edward Saddington (Dec'd), lighterman

Both the bride and groom signed their names, and the witnesses were Edward Aaron Harm and Annie Elizabeth Richards.

If any of these people belong to you, please let me know.

Wednesday, 23 May 2007

Saddingtons in Brooklyn, New York (Part 1)

Searching the Brooklyn Daily Eagle (1841-1902) website was a good lesson in how much information about people's lives can be found in their local newspaper.

The first item that I came across was an obituary for Mrs Lucinda Saddington, who died on Thursday 10 January 1901 at her home, 265 Jefferson Avenue. It told me what she died of and who her doctor was. It also told me when and where she was born, and how long she had lived in Brooklyn. Also mentioned were the churches that she had attended and the main charity that she had supported. On the family history side of things, it stated that she was the widow of Thomas Saddington, and that she was survived by two sons and four daughters - although, unfortunately, it only gave the daughters' married names, e.g. Mrs Edwin Ives, Mrs George H. Pettit, Mrs E.L. Tarbox and Mrs Frank H. Adams.

Further items told me that one son, John F. Saddington, was a well known local builder, specialising in residential property, and that the other son, Thomas B. Saddington, was sued by a tenant in 1876 for assault and battery. Both sons were unfortunate enough to lose a daughter in infancy, but Thomas B. Junior is reported to be cruising with friends in their 30 foot yacht in 1894, and one of Thomas B.'s other daughters, May, is hosting a meeting of the Eccentric Social Club in 1896.

Also in 1896, John F. Saddington and his wife set sail for a trip to Europe, during which they intended to visit the Paris Exposition, the Rhine, Baden Baden, Vienna and Holland. The families also show up regularly in the newspaper, attending numerous family weddings.

It was therefore possible for me to draw up a rough family tree for this Saddington family, with a fair understanding of their social status and religious leanings, using only the information in the newspaper. If anyone knows any more about this family, please let me know.

Information from the 1880 census of the US, found on the Family Search website, in which the family are transcribed as 'Laddington', shows that the late Thomas Saddington was born in England, and that Lucinda's parents came from Scotland, which indicates that the family were relatively recent immigrants to the United States.

Friday, 18 May 2007

Northampton Registration District Marriages

Courtesy of Jenny Reeve and her Northampton Registration District Marriage Challenge, I now have copy certificates for 11 Saddington marriages in Northampton.

These are as follows:

29 October 1839 - William Saddington, son of John Saddington, married Elizabeth Whitmore, daughter of John Whitmore, at All Saints Church, Northampton

5 July 1840 - William Saddington, son of William Saddington, married Ann Haddon, daughter of James Haddon, at St Sepulchre, Northampton

5 February 1850 - James Saddington, son of William Saddington, married Jane Parsons, daughter of Thomas Parsons, at St Sepulchre, Northampton

17 April 1853 - Thomas Gibson, son of Thomas Gibson, married Elizabeth Saddington, daughter of William Saddington, at All Saints, Northampton

15 May 1859 - William Saddington, son of William Saddington, married Sarah Kightley, daughter of William Kightley, at St Edmund, Northampton

9 March 1862 - John Saddington, son of James Brown (sic), married Jane Soden, daughter of Joseph Soden, at St Katherine, Northampton

4 October 1868 - Nathaniel Coleman, son of William Coleman, married Mary Ann Saddington, daughter of Robert Saddington, at St Sepulchre, Northampton

19 October 1871 - James Saddington, son of William Saddington, married Susan Harris, daughter of William Harris, at St Sepulchre, Northampton

16 December 1886 - Richard Wilson, son of Richard Wilson, married Emily Jane Saddington, daughter of James Saddington, at St Edmund, Northampton

14 December 1890 - James Brown Saddington, son of John Saddington dec'd, married Elizabeth Ellen Johnstone, daughter of Charles Johnstone dec'd, at St Edmund, Northampton

1 December 1895 - Thomas Gudgeon Haddon, son of John Haddon dec'd, married Susan Saddington, daughter of William Harris dec'd, at St Michael, Northampton


I need to do more research into these marriages, but my initial theories are that the 1850 James and 1853 Elizabeth are siblings, that 1862 John and 1890 James Brown are father and son, and that 1871 Susan is the same person as 1895 Susan.

If anyone has an interest in any of these marriages, please do not hesitate to get in touch.

Wednesday, 16 May 2007

When Mabel and David got married




I thought that I would begin this blog with a snippet from my own branch of the Saddington family.

The photo shows the wedding of Mabel Gertrude Saddington and David Brown, held on 3 June 1909 at the Presbyterian Church, Newland Street, Yale Road, Silvertown, Essex.

Mabel was the 10th (and youngest) child and 5th daughter of John Jonathan Saddington and Jane Hewlett. She was 26 at the time of her marriage, and her husband, David Brown, son of Alexander Kinnear Brown, was 32 years old.

The guests shown in the photograph are as follows:

Top row (left to right): Mrs Sophia Ferguson (sister of Simeon Cundy), Simeon Cundy (bride's brother-in-law), Mrs Elizabeth Ann Cundy (bride's eldest sister), John Jonathan Saddington (bride's father), William James Saddington (bride's brother), Mr and Mrs Alexander Kinnear Brown (groom's parents);

Middle row (left to right): Mabel Saddington (bride's niece), Elizabeth Clara Cundy (bride's niece), Mabel Gertrude Saddington (bride), David Brown (groom), Mabel Brown (groom's sister), Clara Elizabeth Whittaker (bride's niece);

Bottom row (left to right): Grace Jane Whittaker (bride's niece), Maggie Napier (groom's niece), Jenny Louisa Cundy (bride's niece).

The witnesses to the wedding were William James Saddington (my great grandfather) and Elizabeth Clara Cundy (known in the family as 'Lily').

The groom was a marine engineer living at 86 Oriental Road, Silvertown, and his father was a joiner. The bride was living at 2 Connaught Road, Silvertown, which was actually The Railway Hotel, a public house run by her brother, William James, and her father was a blacksmith.

Strangely enough, this was not the first Brown - Saddington wedding. Five years previously, on 7 July 1904, Alexander Brown, son of Alexander Kinnear Brown, had married Grace Maud Saddington, daughter of John Jonathan Saddington and Jane Hewlett at the Presbyterian Church on Newland Street, Yale Road, Silvertown. Unfortunately, I do not have a photo of that wedding.