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Can anyone help with further pieces of a jigsaw to resolve the identity of Alice Marson wife of Henry Marson on the 1911 census? Henry was born in 1871 in Thurgarton, Notts. his first wife Mary Ann Foster died in 1905. The 1911 census has a mistranscribed age for Henry as 33 instead of 38, which is still slightly out for his birthyear, but place of birth is correct. Alice is shown as 29 with birthplace Hoveringham, Notts. They indicate they have been married for 5 years. However I can find no trace of a marriage. They also appear on the 1939 Reg with a DOB for Henry of 27 Feb 1872, which appears to a year out. Alice has a DOB 1 Jul 1882. A son William H is also listed DOB 11 May 1918, his birth regn has MMN Jones. I can find no birth regn for Olive Marson who appears on the 1911 census with an inferred birth yr 1908. I already have an Alice Jones on my tree born in Hoveringham, but her birth year is 1886 and she is Henry's neice, her mother being one of his older sisters. There is a birth regn for an Alice Maud Jones in Southwell RD 1881, which is the right RD for Hoveringham, but I can't find any other trace of her aside from the birth regn. If Alice was Henry's neice, that would explain the lack of a marriage, as this wouldn't have been legal. Their declared ages/DOB's might be an attempt to narrow the age gap. Or was Alice, Alice Maud Jones coincidentally born at Hoveringham, but in 1881?

Births Jun 1918 (>99%)
Marson William H Jones Worksop 7b 91

is this mabel from MABEL
Last name MARSON
Birth year 1903
Birth quarter 2
Registration month -
Mother's maiden name Foster
District Southwell
County Nottinghamshire
Country England
Volume 7B
Page 4731911

HENRY
Last name MARSON
Marriage quarter 4
Marriage year 1891
Registration month -
HENRY MARSON married one of these people

Mary Ann Foster
District Basford
District number -

EDWARD
Last name MARSON
Birth year 1896
Birth quarter 1
Registration month -
Mother's maiden name - ------------
District Southwell

OLIVE E
Last name MARSON
Birth year 1910
Birth quarter 3
Registration month -
Mother's maiden name -
District Nottingham

for ref

1911
Name: Henry Marson
Age in 1911: 33
Estimated birth year: abt 1878
Relation to Head: Head
Gender: Male
Birth Place: Thurgarton, Nottinghamshire, England
Civil Parish: Edwinstowe Clipstone
Search Photos: Search for 'Edwinstowe Clipstone' in the UK City, Town and Village Photos collection
County/Island: Nottinghamshire
Country: England
Street address: Clipstone Edwinstowe
Marital status: Married
Occupation: Sheperd On Farm
Registration district: Southwell
Registration District Number: 431
Sub-registration district: Kneesall
ED, institution, or vessel: 03
Piece: 20700
Household Members:
Name Age
Henry Marson 33
Alice Marson 29
Edward Marson 15
Mable Marson 7
Olive Marson 3

Maddie, yes, that's Mabel. Edward also relates as son of Henry and Mary Ann (GRO index has MMN Foster), but I don't think the regn you have for Olive is related as it's too late and is the wrong RD. There are some other children for Henry and Mary Ann, but they were not living with their parents in 1911.

This looks like the same Olive as the one posted by Maddie - strangely no RD given on GRO site.:

MARSON, OLIVE ELIZABETH mms SCATTERGOOD
GRO Reference: 1910 S Quarter in Volume 07B Page 347

But anyway, mms shows she's not the correct child.

Her parents married in Nottingham in 1899.

A copy of William’s birth cert would provide the answer

A birth cert for William won't necessarily provide the answer, it should just give the mother as Alice Jones, which won't shed any further light on whether she is Alice Jones niece of Henry, or a different Alice Jones. Of course getting a copy cert is not on at the moment anyway.

You say that the mother of Alice the niece was one of Henry's sisters - therefore mms Marson.

So Alice Maud is not the niece:

JONES, ALICE MAUDE mms MITCHELL
GRO Reference: 1881 S Quarter in SOUTHWELL Volume 07B Page 392

EDIT:
Having re-read you post - of course you know that anyway!

But her birth cert would tell you exactly where she was born.

Agreed, but she could in theory be Henry's second "partner", rather than Alice Jones born 1886. However, I have been unable to trace anything else for this Alice Maud aside from her birth regn. I also haven't been able to trace a Jones/Mitchell marriage or baptism in the area to ID her parents.

Agreed a birth cert for Alice Maud woukd help, but can't be sourced at the moment due to covid19. I'm just hoping that someone might come up with a snippet that would resolve matters ahead of being able to get a copy cert.

No, I don't see an Jones/Mitchell marriage either.

The birth cert would tell you her father's name if known, which might help trace her in censuses.

True, but who knows when the current situation will allow requests for copy certs to be made? I realise I may be faced with no option but to wait until then, but I live in hopes that someone out there will spot something I didn't.

William's birth cert should have his mother’s FULL name

However, sometimes one has to accept that some info simply can’t be found

on that 1911 census

Henry's wife Alice (who seems to have been the one who completed the census) says she has only been married 5 years and has only had 1 child

So Alice is presumably Henry's 2nd partner

lancashireAnn, that's right, in my opening post I refer to Henry's first wife who died in 1905, only the youngest child on the 1911 census was born to Alice. As I have indicated I can find no trace of a marriage between Henry and Alice, which could be explained by the fact that it would not have been legal if she was his niece. (Although I do have a case on another branch of my tree where an uncle and niece did marry) I'm thinking that if she was his neice, she may have originally been enlisted to help Henry out when he was left with motherless children, but that one thing may have led to another.