Mmm do I follow this line or not?

[Margaret in Burton]

I've just discovered that my grandmothers 1st cousin on her father side George Barks married Edith Ann Smithson.

Edith Ann Smithson's 1st cousin was George Arthur Smithson who married Harriet Briggs Beckett.

Harriet was my grandmothers 1st cousin once removed, but on a female side of the family.

Harriet's mother and my grandmothers grandmother were sisters. Ann and Mary Pratt.

So, I am related to the Smithson's through two lines, do I research them backwards or not? I have researched them far enough to link the two Smithson families but they of course are not blood related to me.

I'm just wondering if they married in a 3rd time. :eek::eek::eek:

[Merry]

I'm just wondering if they married in a 3rd time. :eek::eek::eek:

Only one way to find out!!

[kiterunner]

I think I would look to see if anyone else is researching that family first (on GR, ancestry etc) and have a quick nose at their tree!

[Merry]

OK, only two or three ways to find out!! :rolleyes:

[Margaret in Burton]

pmsl

I'll have a look at other trees

Knowing me I'll do it, curiousity will get the better of me.

[Margaret in Burton]

Someone on GR has some of the names. There are a few public trees on Ancestry with them on too but very basic. They don't have my lot on at all as they don't seem to have researched marriages for everyone.

Think I've done more this afternoon.

[Margaret in Burton]

I'm going to have to research this Smithson family. It looks like they came from Long Bennington in Lincs, which is where my Hallam family come from who also marry into the Barks family.

I think I need a lie down or a stiff drink.

[Nell]

Margaret

I've done research into families where I've found there's more than one instance of marrying in.

My gt grandfather Thomas had two brothers who married two sisters, so I did a short tree for them (parents & siblings).

My gt gt aunt Emily married John, a widower, whose son Frank married Emily's niece Alice.

Husband has a gt x 3 grandfather John, who when widowed, married a lady called Letitia (so her married name was Letitia Ledger, which has a nice ring to it) and Letitia's niece Emily married John's son William.

Ex also has a complicated lot of 4 sisters, 2 of whom marry one set of brothers and the other 2 sister marry another set of brothers. Then one of the sisters, when widowed, married the widower of one of the other set of sisters. They are connected because one of the brothers who married in is possibly ex's gt x 4 uncle! It's more complicated than I've made out as I have stepsons with the wrong surname and all sorts and I'm still disentangling them - in the offchance they will lead me to an elusive gt x 3 grandfather of ex...

[Margaret in Burton]

I'm used to this scenario Nell, My mother and two her of cousins married into my dad's family. Mum and dad obviously and dad's two sister married mums cousins who were brothers.

Also, I have done a study into the village of Shimpling in Suffolk and all of them seem to marry each other from time to time.

[Kit]

I think I need a lie down or a stiff drink.

Wrong order. A stiff drink, then a lie down. ;)

OH and I both have rellies who married someone with an uncommon name. I researched another generations back and the inlaws were brothers. I'm sure OH and I have a blood connection somewhere but so far we have 2 sets of common inlaws. So it might be worth going back a little to see what you find.

[Margaret in Burton]

I'm going to do it Toni. I'm not buying any certs for them but a quick look at the census and they are easy to find, never seemed to have moved from Balderton in Notts. That's where my grandmother was born as well so I have more ancestry there than I realised.

The bit that interests me is that they marry into two, at that time, totally unrelated lines of my family. They linked again some years later. I suppose in such a small place everyone knew each other. It may be news to me but I bet my grandmother knew all about it.

Pity she died in 1980.