Find Ancestors

Top tip - using the Genes Reunited community

Welcome to the Genes Reunited community boards!

  • The Genes Reunited community is made up of millions of people with similar interests. Discover your family history and make life long friends along the way.
  • You will find a close knit but welcoming group of keen genealogists all prepared to offer advice and help to new members.
  • And it's not all serious business. The boards are often a place to relax and be entertained by all kinds of subjects.
  • The Genes community will go out of their way to help you, so don’t be shy about asking for help.

Quick Search

Single word search

Icons

  • New posts
  • No new posts
  • Thread closed
  • Stickied, new posts
  • Stickied, no new posts

Can a child be baptised twice?

Page 0 + 1 of 2

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. »
ProfilePosted byOptionsPost Date

Nickydownsouth

Nickydownsouth Report 10 Jul 2010 10:27

LaGooner


Well I hope someone is watching over you then, with 2 baptisms in to 2 different denominations you should certainly have a guardian angel!!


Tootyfruity ..... yes I have some of those......why couldn`t they show some imagination and call them all some obscure name.......Lol............so much easier to trace!!


Nicky

TootyFruity

TootyFruity Report 10 Jul 2010 09:37

It could be two children

I have three brother Thomas, Richard and Henry who all named their children Thomas, Richard and Henry who all named their children Thomas, Richard and Henry. I have two Thomas's married to Mary's. Two Richard's married to Ann and Henry's who married Betty's.

So two cousins who married wives with the same forename could have baptised children at the same church within a year

Cynthia

Cynthia Report 10 Jul 2010 09:10

Mind you Nicky, I suppose many of them were desperate, especially if they were ag labs and moved around a lot trying to find work. Look at how many children some of them had to feed!! lol

Nickydownsouth

Nickydownsouth Report 9 Jul 2010 22:52

They were a cheeky lot our Ancestors,...... wern`t they!


Getting baptised in 2 different Parishes incase you needed Poor relief /Settlement from the other Parish,

I suppose this was the equivalent of our modern day "Milking the System"


Thanks all of you for your input, I didn`t expect so many replies, hopefully this will help others who read this and have similar problems in their tree.......


Nicky

Peter

Peter Report 8 Jul 2010 21:43

Hi there,

In the days before any modern 'benefit system', I have heard that babies were sometimes baptised in more than one parish so that the parents could claim settlement within that parish. This was done (although rarely), so that if the family fell on hard times they could make their way to the specific parish and claim parish relief from the local parish council and authorities.

Of course, if they were able too, they could possibly go around the other parishes and claim off them also, I presume.

On another note, my aunt was given an informal blessing in a church by a priest when she was born, before an actual baptism. This was done in a C of E church before she was christened in a R C Church. Apparently this was quite common although it was an informal affair in that there was no register for this kind of blessing. It was apparently very common in Victorian times, although the tradition was obviously going on until the 1950s when my aunt was born. There is a name for this, but I can't think of it now! If I remember I'll post it on here!

Renes

Renes Report 8 Jul 2010 18:56

In my grandfathers case - there were no deaths - the first entry is correct - the second is erroneous - In Dorset parish registers there are many entries stating this child is being admitted to this parish having been previously baptised - presumably for the Poor Rate

Irene in Spain - amazing two Irenes on one thread !

Cynthia

Cynthia Report 8 Jul 2010 14:01

Hi Nicky, theoretically, mgnv is quite correct in the fact that a person cannot be baptised twice - within the C. of E. in any case. However, I am sure I saw a thread similar to this many moons ago, re families who moved home to follow work prospects and, to obtain Parish Relief, had their children [re] baptised wherever they found employment as it was part of the condition of being eligible for that Relief.

Sure doesn't help things does it?? :)) Cx

Nickydownsouth

Nickydownsouth Report 8 Jul 2010 13:27

Yes Sylvia....I have some of those too........2 children born one after the other with the same name, but this time i don`t think that is the case,

Though i do have others in that same family line where sorting them all out has been a Nightmare...


Nicky

Irene

Irene Report 8 Jul 2010 09:32

I agree with Sylvia I have quite a few ancestors who named a child then that child died and the next child was given the same name (which is often a name passed down the family) and I have found it quite confusings at times. Good luck with your research. Irene

SylviaInCanada

SylviaInCanada Report 8 Jul 2010 00:35

one possibility is that in earlier days it is not two baptisms for the same child .


........ but baptisms of TWO children


of course those baptisms would have to be mroe than 9 motnths apart ........ but it was relatively common practice to name another child after a sibling who had died.


I have one case in my father's ancestral line where the same name was used 3 times, before a child lived!


It was very difficult sorting that one out!!



sylvia

Potty

Potty Report 7 Jul 2010 14:34

Unless my mother lied to me, I was baptised twice. I was born in London during the V2 bombings and there was a real chance that the hospital would be attacked, so one of the nurses "baptised" all the babies as soon as they were born. My mother had told me this, so I was very surprised when on a school visit to our local church to find my baptism in the register. Probably the vicar didn't think the original baptism was enough!

Nickydownsouth

Nickydownsouth Report 7 Jul 2010 13:11

Thanks Dee and Irene for your input...

I`m suprised i havn`t come across this before, as by the look of it ,there could have been an awful lot of children recorded twice....


Nicky

Renes

Renes Report 7 Jul 2010 11:35

MGNV

this is an extract from Bincombe Dorset baptism records
15-10-1869; James; son of; William & Ann; DIFFEY; Bincombe; Labourer;
<<<<<<<<<14-11-1869; John Robert; son of; William & Jane; PALMER; Bincombe; Labourer;
19-11-1869; Elenor Louisa; daughter of; Alfred & Harriet; DOWELL;
Bincombe; Labourer;
13-3-1870; Alice Susan; daughter of; William & Harriet; MEECH;
Bincombe; Labourer;
18-4-1870; Esther; daughter of; Charles & Charlotte; HOUSE; Bincombe; Labourer;
17-7-1870; Henry James; son of; James & Rebecca; COOPER; Weymouth; ;
19-9-1870; Tom; son of; Edward & Margaret; HAINES; Bincombe; Blacksmith;
23-10-1870; Emma; daughter of; William & Caroline; HUDD; Bincombe;
RailwayCo Policeman;
<<<<<<<<<<<<23-10-1870; John Robert; son of; William & Jane; PALMER; Bincombe; Labourer;
23-10-1870; Amelia; daughter of; James & Jane; SIMS; Bincombe; Labourer;


As you can see my grandfather John Roberr Palmer has " two baptisms" - the original record as been scrutinized by an opcdorset researcher - who put it down to "over zealous vicar"

Irene

Sorry clicked twice -

Renes

Renes Report 7 Jul 2010 11:33

MGNV

this is an extract from Bincombe Dorset baptism records
15-10-1869; James; son of; William & Ann; DIFFEY; Bincombe; Labourer;
<<<<<<<<<14-11-1869; John Robert; son of; William & Jane; PALMER; Bincombe; Labourer;
19-11-1869; Elenor Louisa; daughter of; Alfred & Harriet; DOWELL;
Bincombe; Labourer;
13-3-1870; Alice Susan; daughter of; William & Harriet; MEECH;
Bincombe; Labourer;
18-4-1870; Esther; daughter of; Charles & Charlotte; HOUSE; Bincombe; Labourer;
17-7-1870; Henry James; son of; James & Rebecca; COOPER; Weymouth; ;
19-9-1870; Tom; son of; Edward & Margaret; HAINES; Bincombe; Blacksmith;
23-10-1870; Emma; daughter of; William & Caroline; HUDD; Bincombe;
RailwayCo Policeman;
<<<<<<<<<<<<23-10-1870; John Robert; son of; William & Jane; PALMER; Bincombe; Labourer;
23-10-1870; Amelia; daughter of; James & Jane; SIMS; Bincombe; Labourer;


As you can see my grandfather John Roberr Palmer has " two baptisms" - the original record as been scrutinized by an opcdorset researcher - who put it down to "over zealous vicar"

Irene

♥Deetortrainingnewfys♥

♥Deetortrainingnewfys♥ Report 7 Jul 2010 11:27

I have come across this with my ancestors in Norfolk. I believe it is known as a private baptism (as said before, if baby is not expected to live) and then a public baptism when it is received by the church. At least that is how the Norfolk records offices explained it to me.
Dee

Nickydownsouth

Nickydownsouth Report 7 Jul 2010 11:20

Victoria...Yes that is the marriage, I know that one is submitted, but i have it confirmed from the Parish registers...


Nicky

Nickydownsouth

Nickydownsouth Report 7 Jul 2010 11:17

MGNV...

Thanks for pointing that out,....... so they definetly can`t be baptised twice, but there is a chance that the child be later presented in Church, and both entries would be in their respective parish registers...


Thank you, I think that definetly clarifys both entries are the same person.


Nicky

mgnv

mgnv Report 7 Jul 2010 02:07

No, a child can't be baptized twice.

A private emergency baptism by the priest would be recorded in the parish register - often there would be a "P" recorded in the margin. The child would later be presented in the church.

A lay person can perform an emergency baptism - sometimes there is doubt about whether they did it right. The book of common prayer has a special conditional baptism to cover this, so it's not a baptism if the first was OK, but it is a baptism if the lay person stuffed things up. This would normally be done in a church, but could be private too, like the priest eventually made it thru the blizzard or whatever. Incidently, the need for a conditional form for baptism clearly indicates a kid can't be baptized twice.

Vicci

Vicci Report 7 Jul 2010 00:25

So according to this it does look like they did come from Cambridge and the Norfolk bapstim is this family.

Robert Peacock Pedigree
Male Family

Event(s):
Birth:
About 1782 Of, Cambridge, Cambridge, England
Christening:
Death:
Burial:

Marriages:
Spouse: Mary Spink Family
Marriage:
09 NOV 1807 Cambridge,St Edward, , Cambridge, England

Messages:
Record submitted by a member of the LDS Church. The record often shows the name of the individual and his or her relationship to a descendant, shown as the heir, family representative, or relative. The original records are not indexed, and you may have to look at the film frame-by-frame to find the information you want. A family group record for this couple may be in the Family Group Record Collection; Archive Section. (See the Family History Library Catalog for the film number.) These records are alphabetical by name of the father or husband.

Source Information:
Film Number: 458107

RobG

RobG Report 6 Jul 2010 23:13

Often, if a home baptism is done (for reasons previously described), it would be noted in the parish records as a "Private" baptism.