Who is Mally Knight?

[ElizabethHerts]

I'm trying to sort out my Hyde family.

I have the will of Abel Hyde of Tintwisle, Stayley, Cheshire, which was written in 1788 and proved in 1792.

He mentions two grandaughters. One I have worked out but I don't know how the other one fits in. She is Mally Knight.

Known children for Abel and Sarah Hyde or Hide:
Abel
Mary
John
Sarah
David given as eldest son
Joseph named
Jenny married Giles Shaw
Lucy She married Daniel Rhodes. Her daughter Mary Rhodes is the other granddaughter named.
Ann married Thomas Shaw. He is named as one of the executors

Those in bold are mentioned in the will.

He names his three daughters; Mary BUCKLEY, Jenny SHAW and Ann SHAW

OH is descended from Mary Buckley. I don't think Mally Knight is anything to do with her.

Either Sarah Hyde had a child called Mally Knight, or there is another daughter who married a Mr Knight. There is a possible marriage between John Wrigley and Sarah Hyde at Mottram-in-Longdendale.

I'm trying to sort all these out as there is another will for an Abel Hyde and I have to try to decide who he is too!

[Phoenix]

Are the bequests in any order, or as they occur to the testator?

Gut feeling is that it would be Sarah's child, she is not mentioned. Have you marriages for the other girls? Do you find their families after their father's death?

(I realise that I am teaching my grandmother to suck eggs here!)

[ElizabethHerts]

Thanks for looking, Phoenix.

I have all the girls accounted for except Sarah.

Mary married John Buckley and in fact died in 1789, after her father Abel Hyde had written his will but before he died and his will was proved.

The other girls seemed to have married quite young and with the surname Hide/Hyde, so Mally Knight doesn't seem to have belonged to them.

[ElizabethHerts]

Are the bequests in any order, or as they occur to the testator?

Abel Hyde mentioned his wife Sarah first, then his two sons, David and Joseph.

Then he mentions his two granddaughters, Mary Rhodes and Mally Knight, and then his three (then) surviving daughters in order of age.

[kiterunner]

Is it possible that Mally was an adult granddaughter who had married a Mr Knight?

[ElizabethHerts]

I suppose she might be, Kate. I'll look at all the grandchildren again.

[Phoenix]

It looks as if grandchildren are mentioned if their parents have died. Since Mally is a variant of Mary, I'd be even more convinced that she was Sarah's child (rather than Lucy remarrying and dying)

[ElizabethHerts]

I agree with you, Phoenix. So if Sarah did marry John Wrigley I need to look for possible children and Sarah's death, apart from a marriage to Mr Knight.

Mally and Mary seem to be interchangeable in these parts. Not helpful!

[Olde Crone]

Not only is Mally a variant of Mary, it is a very geographically-specific variant of Mary and it is almost exclusively found in Darwen, Lancs, with a sideways spread through Darwen born people who move away.

The one-time Vicar of Darwen refused to baptise local girls as MALLY because it was not a Christian name and in his opinion, it was a terrible corruption of the holy name Mary. So very often they were baptised MARY, then ever after referred to as MALLY.

OC

[ElizabethHerts]

Here is the marriage allegation for Sarah Hyde and John Wrigley:

http://search.findmypast.co.uk/record?id=gbprs%2fchs%2f4018116%2f00240&parentid=gbprs%2fm%2f737011245%2f3

They were both minors and Abel Hyde gave his permission for the marriage.

First name(s) SARAH
Last name HYDE
Birth year 1737
Marriage year 1757
Marriage date 23 Oct 1757
Parish Mottram
Spouse's first name JOHN
Spouse's last name WRIGLEY
Bride's age 20
Groom's age 20
Place MOTTRAM
County Cheshire
Country England
Record set Cheshire Marriage licence bonds and allegations 1606-1905
Category Birth, Marriage, Death & Parish Records
Subcategory Marriages & divorces
Collections from Great Britain

[ElizabethHerts]

I need to look at this one:

Name: John Knight
Event Type: Marriage
Event Date: 24 Dec 1780
Event Place: , Mottram-in-Longdendale, Cheshire, England
Gender: Male
Spouse's Name: Mary Wrigley
GS Film number: 2107082
Digital Folder Number: 004019065
Image Number: 00501

[ElizabethHerts]

The marriage is on FMP, but no clues really:

http://search.findmypast.co.uk/record?id=gbprs%2fchs%2f4019065%2f00501&parentid=gbprs%2fm%2f770227219%2f2

[ElizabethHerts]

There is the will of James Wrigley on FMP which mentions:

"my Grand Neice Mary the wife of John Knight of Denton in the County of Lancaster Yeoman"

http://search.findmypast.co.uk/record?id=gbprs%2fchs%2f4012108%2f00949&parentid=gbprs%2fchs%2f748076920

First name(s) James
Last name Wrigley
Occupation Gentleman
Residence Godley
Probate year 1785
Will Yes
Codicil No
Inventory No
Administration No
Notes Will Supra
County Cheshire
Country England
Record set Cheshire Wills and Probate
Category Birth, Marriage, Death & Parish Records
Subcategory Wills & probate
Collections from Great Britain

[ElizabethHerts]

This is Sarah Wrigley's burial:

First name(s) SARAH
Last name WRIGLEY
Gender Female
Age -
Birth year -
Death year -
Burial year 1783
Burial date 20 Aug 1783
Place MOTTRAM-IN-LONGDENDALE
Residence Mottram-in-Longdendale
Spouse's first name(s) Jno.
Spouse's last name Wrigley
Spouse's residence , Mottram-in-Longdendale
County Cheshire
Country England
Reference item 5
Record group Part 1 - 1
Record set Cheshire Diocese of Chester parish burials 1538-1911

It says she is wife of John Wrigley.

[HarrysMum]

As OC said, Mally often morphs into Mary.


Mally seems to be common around the Lakes District.

[ElizabethHerts]

I think Mally was quite common in Lancashire. I have a Mally in my tree and have seen quite a few in the PRs.

I think this Mally was also known as Mary.