Help finding a marriage

[Kit]

Sarah Bridges is on the 1841 census with her parents:

Class: HO107; Piece 691; Folio: 9; Page: 9 Civil Parish: Bethnal Green; County: Middlesex

Her father has died by 1851: Class: HO107; Piece: 1545; Folio: 532; Page: 24.

In 1861 she is married but still living with her mother, whereabouts of her husband is unknown.

Class: RG9; Piece: 281; Folio: 173; Page: 48

In 1871 Sarah is a widow, still living with her mother - Class: RG10; Piece: 579; Folio: 53; Page: 21

According to freeBMD Sarah Watts marries Charles Bower in 4Q 1875 in Poplar.

I can't find a marriage between Sarah and a Mr Watts, nor can I find her marriage to Charles Bower on ancestry's London records. (I'm not sure where Poplar is).

Can SKS find the marriage for me?

[Janet]

I found a Poplar in Middlesex, Kit.
http://maps.familysearch.org/#search
Once you search Poplar, then click on the link for 'Poplar, Middlesex' and when that opens up go to the Options tab and do a Radius place search. You'll see Bethnal Green is about 2.5 miles from Poplar.

[Merry]

I've not spotted the first marriage yet, but here are Chas and Sarah in 1881:

http://search.ancestry.co.uk/iexec?htx=view&r=5538&dbid=7572&iid=LNDRG11_488_491-0410&fn=Sarah&ln=Bower&st=d&ssrc=&pid=15433738

Most likely the secnd marriage was either in a reg office or in a church not included in the LMA records.

[Merry]

There are lots of reasons the first marriage may not be showing up (the most likely being it is just hiding from us!!)

Other possibilities might be (I have come across all these before):

Sarah squeezed in two marriages between 1851 and 1861.

John Bridges wasn't her father and she reverted to her birth name for the first marriage.

She never formally married Mr Watts.

101 other things......

[Kit]

Thanks Janet. I didn't know familysearch had that facility.

Merry I don't like 101 other things particularly as you could be right. :(

I was going to say you were wrong about the father but I haven't got a baptism for her either. I do have the baptism and birth cert for her brother, my direct line, but the rest of the family are quite annoying. lol

[kiterunner]

Do you know Sarah sr's maiden name, Kit? Then we can find out when John Bridges and Sarah sr got married and see if it is likely that Sarah jr was born before then?

[Kit]

No I don't Kate. I only have Joseph's short birth cert, it doesn't have her maiden name. I should get the full one, I'd not thought about it before. It would have her maiden name and his occupation wouldn't it?

The children they have are:
Richard b abt 1827 Middlesex (on 1841 census)
Sarah b 1829-1831 (depending on the census or burial record) Middlesex, except on 1901 but born London depending on the census or burial record
Frederick b 1834 Middlesex (on 1841 and 1851)
Francis b 1837 Middlesex/City of London
Elizabeth b 1840 Middlesex
Joseph b 1843 Whitechapel, London

I have parish register copies for Francis, Elizabeth and Joseph.

I also have notes that there was a second Richard born or baptised in 1843 but annoyingly no source details and I have no knowledge of Joseph being a twin.

[Merry]

Joseph's is the only birth reg for a Bridges in Whitechapel district anytime in 1843.

[Merry]

There are no Richard Bridges registrations anywhere for 1843 but there is a Richard with parents John and Sarah baptised at Godalming (Surrey) which is presumably a different family. Might be the one you saw though?

[kiterunner]

Yes, you should get Joseph's full birth certificate to see Sarah sr's maiden name. There is a public tree on ancestry giving her maiden name as Williams and with another spouse with surname Brown, but I couldn't find anything to back this up when I had a quick look earlier. The birth certificate would be much better than that!

[Kit]

Thanks Merry, I did check for a twin but forgot to post and went to bed.

I have no idea why I have the second Richard on my tree. I will put things I'm unsure of in my tree but I put the sources and make myself notes as to what I have done.

I did wonder if Sarah Sr remarried as I can't find a death. I'll have a look for that tree and see if it looks reliable.

[Kit]

Kate there is a problem with that tree on ancestry. It has my Joseph's date and place of birth but his wife is wrong and he never went to New Zealand.