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In St Mary's Church, Lewisham, in 1824 and 1825 respectively, Thomas Standen m Elizabeth Brown, and Joseph Foster (b 1805) m Mary Ann Copper.

In 1849, Joseph's son, William Godfrey, married Thomas' daughter, Sarah Maria (my maternal gt grandparents).

In the 1851 census, Mary Ann and William Foster (transcribed as Souter), children of Joseph (b 1817) and Amy Foster (nephew of the Joseph b 1805), were staying with uncle and aunt Thomas and Mary Brown.

I have been following Thomas Brown's line back to try and find a connection with Elizabeth Brown who married Thomas Standen. No luck so far, but Mary Brown's maiden name was Godfrey. Could that be who William Godfrey was named after? Am I clutching at straws? Does anyone have a time machine I could borrow for 5 minutes?

Mary Elizabeth Godfrey
England Marriages, 1538–1973

Name: Thomas Brown
Spouse's Name: Mary Elizabeth Godfrey
Event Date: 29 May 1826
Event Place: Saint Alphage,Greenwich,Kent,England

Just to be sure I'm understanding your post correctly -

you're saying that Joseph Foster 1805 had a brother (name?).
The brother had a son Joseph 1817.
Joseph 1817 had children Mary Ann and William.


For our reference, as well as location and ages:


Mary Ann Souter
in the 1851 England Census
Name: Mary Ann Souter
[Mary Ann Foster]
Age: 4
Estimated Birth Year: abt 1847
Relation: Niece
Gender: Female
Where born: Bexley, Kent, England
Civil Parish: Bexley
Ecclesiastical parish: Canterbury
Phillimore Ecclesiastical Parish Maps:
View related Ecclesiastical Parish
County/Island: Kent
Country: England
Registration district: Dartford
Sub-registration district: Bexley
ED, institution, or vessel: 1c
Neighbors:
Household schedule number: 36
Piece: 1607
Folio: 60
Page Number: 9
Household Members:
Name Age
Thomas Brown 46 - Bexley
Mary Brown 44 - Bexley
Mary A Brown 23 - daughter, Bexley
Richard Brown 21 - son, Bexley
Mary Ann Souter 4 - niece, Bexley
William Souter 3 - nephew, Bexley
James Mardonald 24 - lodger, Scotland

Thank you, I had found this and am trying to follow back to find a connection with Elizabeth. Its driving me mad. Incidentally, her mother appears to be named Appulinar - has anyone heard of that name before?

We don't know what you know, Jan, and therefore have to track back through records which you may already have.

We post records to share with other helpers to save duplication of research, and help speed up the process.

Joseph 1805's brother, John 1792 (married Diana or Dinah), had son Joseph Forster 1817, who married Amy Carr, also 1817. Amy died in 1850, so their 2 children, Mary Ann 1845 and William 1847 were living with their uncle and aunt, Thomas and Mary Elizabeth Brown nee Godfrey.

I have found a great deal of information back from Thomas Brown and Mary Elizabeth Godfrey, but still no connection to Elizabeth who married Thomas Standen.

Are you sure Mary Brown's name was Mary Elizabeth Godfrey?

She appears to be Mary Ann at Richard's baptism .
Same address as in 1851 - Half-way Street.


Richard Brown
in the Bexley, Kent, England, Church of England Births and Baptisms, 1813-1925
Name: Richard Brown
[Ric. Brown]
Baptism Date: 8 Nov 1829
Baptism Place: Bexley, Kent, England
Chapelry: St Mary the Virgin
Parish as it Appears: Bexley
Phillimore Ecclesiastical Parish Map:
View this parish
Father: Thomas Brown
Mother: Mary Ann Brown

Another child for the same couple - same address as at Richard's baptism and as in 1851. Half-way Street, Bexley

Maria Brown
in the Bexley, Kent, England, Church of England Births and Baptisms, 1813-1925
Name: Maria Brown
[Mary Brown]
Baptism Date: 19 Aug 1836
Baptism Place: Bexley, Kent, England
Chapelry: St Mary the Virgin
Parish as it Appears: Bexley
Father: Thomas Brown
Mother: Mary Ann Brown


Of course, this child might be Mary A Brown born 1828 (as in 1851 census) , but not baptised until 1836.



Mary Brown
in the 1841 England Census
Name: Mary Brown
Age: 13
Estimated Birth Year: abt 1828
Gender: Female
Where born: Kent, England
Civil Parish: Bexley
Hundred: Ruxley
County/Island: Kent
Country: England
Street address: Halfway Street
Registration district: Dartford
Sub-registration district: Bexley
Neighbors:
Piece: 480
Book: 3
Folio: 51
Page Number: 9
Household Members:
Name Age
Thos Brown 35
Mary Brown 13
Richd Brown 12

Appelline Brown
England and Wales Non-Conformist Record Indexes (RG4-8), 1588-1977

Name: Appelline Brown
Event Type: Birth
Birth Date: 10 Dec 1676
Birthplace: Broughton & Gainsborough, Lincolnshire
Father's Name: Francis Brown
Mother's Name: Appelline Brown
Affiliate Publication Number: RG6_1318

Is swearing allowed on this forum? How could I have missed that :( That's the end of the Godfreys, and I did so like Appulinar.

:-(

Yet another child for Half-way Street:


William Brown
in the Bexley, Kent, England, Church of England Births and Baptisms, 1813-1925
Name: William Brown
[Guglielmus Brown]
Baptism Date: 6 May 1832
Baptism Place: Bexley, Kent, England
Chapelry: St Mary the Virgin
Parish as it Appears: Bexley
Phillimore Ecclesiastical Parish Map:
View this parish
Father: Thomas Brown
Mother: Mary Brown

I had found Mary,but not William.

Following hints for Richard, I found a marriage record of a Richard Brown, father Thomas, to Ann Eliza Evans. Looking at the record itself, her name is clearly written by the registrar as Evans, she has signed as Heavens, and a witness was also Heavens.

I suppose it's just possible that there might still be a Thomas Brown / Elizabeth Brown connection - though of course it's a very common name, and probably impossible to prove.

William Foster still with them in 1871:


Thomas Brown
in the 1871 England Census
Name: Thomas Brown
Age: 66
Estimated Birth Year: abt 1805
Relation: Head
Spouse's Name: Mary Brown
Gender: Male
Where born: Bexley, Kent, England
Civil Parish: Bexley
Ecclesiastical parish: Lamorbey
County/Island: Kent
Country: England
Registration district: Dartford
Sub-registration district: Bexley
ED, institution, or vessel: 3
Household schedule number: 66
Piece: 879
Folio: 49
Page Number: 15
Household Members:
Name Age
Thomas Brown 66
Mary Brown 62
William Forster 28
Thomas Pocock 21 - lodger

I should have said that I have been unable to find any reference to Elizabeth Brown apart from her marriage to Thomas Standen, and a christening record of their daughter, Sarah Maria, 31 Aug 1828 • Plumstead, Kent. On that Thomas is shown as Post Boy, with address of Shooters Hill. Similarly, no other record of Thomas.

Sarah Maria Standen
England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975

Name: Sarah Maria Standen
Gender: Female
Christening Date: 31 Aug 1828
Christening Date (Original): 31 AUG 1828
Christening Place: Plumstead, Kent, England
Father's Name: Thoms Standen
Mother's Name: Elizabeth Standen

Sarah Maria Standen
England Marriages, 1538–1973

Name: William Lake
Spouse's Name: Sarah Maria Standen
Event Date: 25 Aug 1861
Event Place: Bidborough, Kent, England

Deaths Jun 1869 (>99%)
Lake Sarah Maria 41 Tunbridge 2a 300

Deaths Mar 1838 (>99%)
STANDEN Thomas Maidstone 5 278

Deaths Sep 1846 (>99%)
Standen Elizabeth Maidstone

My gt grandmother Sarah Maria Standen married William Godfrey Forster in 1849 in Bexley, Kent.

I have found innumerable Thomas Standens in the records, some with wife Elizabeth, but not knowing where or when he was born I have been unable to decide which if any are "mine". He was not shown as Deceased on the 1849 marriage certificate.

Thanks for all your efforts, I think I'll just have to accept that this is a jigsaw puzzle with too many pieces missing.

Jan