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I am trying to trace an Elizabeth Peacock who gave birth to and baptised my great grandfather in Knighton, Wales in 1876. She called her son Walter Harry STEAD Edwards,father not named on baptismal record. She disappeared but Walter ended up living with a James Edwards presumably his father in the 1881 census. It was rumoured that Elizabeth was a travelling actress! I am hoping that someone may recognise the unusual middle name ie. Stead as being a family name which might give a clue as to where she came from. Any help much appreciated.

why can't I see this birth in the index at freebmd ? :-)

can you give us a little more info so we can see him in the 1881 census ? where ?

Hi Chrissiex
1881 with father James Edwards And Emma, Knighton Radnorshire.

unable to find either Elizabeth or Walter - sorry

ah, surname Peacock, not Edwards

Births Jun 1876
Peacock Walter Harry S P Knighton 11b 16_

the "P" should be "E" ?


still don't know where to find him in 1881

c'mon now ... Harry Edwards ! not Walter Peacock in the census

1881

Name: James Edwards
Age: 54
Estimated Birth Year: abt 1827
Relation: Head
Spouse's Name: Emma Edwards
Father's Name: John Jones
Gender: Male
Where born: Whitton, Radnorshire, Wales
Occupation: Stone Raiser

Civil parish: Knighton
County/Island: Radnorshire

James Edwards 54
Emma Edwards 38
Harry Edwards 5
John Jones 68
John Jones 43
Herbert Jones 6
George Jones 13
William Jones 10
A.E. Preece 1

Name: Harry Edwards
Age: 5
Estimated Birth Year: abt 1876
Relation: Son
Father's Name: James Edwards
Mother's Name: Emma Edwards
Gender: Male
Where born: Knighton, Radnorshire, Wales

???

parents: John Jones
spouse: Emma Edwards
child: Harry Edwards


name: James Edwards
age: 54
gender: Male
birth year: 1827
birthplace: Wales
relationship to head of household: Head
marital condition: Married
profession/occupation: Stone Raiser
address: Russell Lane
census place: Knighton, Radnorshire, Wales
record type: Household
family history library film: 1342315
the national archives reference: RG11
piece/folio: 5472 / 19
page number: 32

Thanks Chrissiex
This is him but it is the mother that I am trying to trace. she baptised him (Parish records) then he appears as above.

I wouldn't assume James was his father at all.

the household in 1871 in Knighton

James Edwards 43
Emma Edwards 29
Charles Jones 8 stepson
Alice Jones 10 niece
George Jones 3 son


the three Jones boys in 1881 are 'nephews'


the most common explanation for a surname as a second or third given name of a child born to unmarried parents, where the father does not register the child as his, is that it was the father's surname

we understand this John ... but you have a wealth of information that we do not have and if we do not have the same information we are handicapped from the start in searching

it would be helpful to tell us anything else you know as well !

James Edwards and Emma were married by 1871, it would be very unusual for the father of a child who was not married to the mother to take the child into the home with his existing wife

Thank you
This has given me something to think about.

I have not had any brainstorm about Elizabeth Peacock I am afraid ... and it is late and my brain is not storming well so will be happy to have another look tomorrow :-)

one thing I'm wondering is whether you are positive that the Harry Edwards in 1881 is your Walter Harry Stead Edwards Peacock

do you know any more about James Edwards and Emma ? when they married ... whether they were married ... what her name was ...

is this your Walter Harry's marriage ?

Marriages Mar 1900
Edwards Walter Harry Knighton 11b 169
Monnington Kate Knighton 11b 169

did he name James Edwards as his father ?

if he did that is not conclusive ... a child of unmarried parents commonly named a father who was really a stepfather, a maternal grandfather, a combination of father and stepfather, a completely made-up name ...

Just kicking some ideas around here - I don't have any answers, I'm afraid - perhaps he is the son of another Mr Edwards, maybe related to James, perhaps he is the son of a Mr Stead. If Elizabeth Peacock was, indeed, a travelling actress, she may have become pregnant anywhere....

Sometimes children were given their mother's maiden name as a middle name, so I searched on Peacocks marrying Steads and found a few...I have to go out soon but when I get back, I'll try and trace these couples in the census and see if they had daughters named Elizabeth (unfortunately a very common name then) of about the right age. Do you have any sightings of Elizabeth in the census? Any idea where she might have come from? Of course if Peacock happened to be a stage name....

Best wishes
Kim in Hull

Before I go - do you have your greatgrandfather's actual birth certificate? Is the baptism record from familysearch.org or from the actual register, as often although the information on familysearch is correct as far as it goes, any additional information provided by the vicar (such as "reputed father Fred Bloggs") may not be included.

BWs
Kim

only Stead/Peacock I can find

parents: Francis Peacock,? Anna Stead
spouse: John Schoen


groom's name: John Schoen
bride's name: Elizabeth Peacock
marriage date: 12 May 1875
groom's father's name: Peter Schoen
groom's mother's name: Catharine T..De
bride's father's name: Francis Peacock
bride's mother's name: Anna Stead
indexing project (batch) number: I00659-7
system origin: Wisconsin-EASy
source film number: 1292037

The BMD index on FMP has several Peacocks and Steads on the same page (not possible to state in most cases whether a Peacock married a Stead). I quite fancy this one from the Yorks collection on a well-known website beginning with A:
Francis Peacock (a minor) of Ilkley & Annie Stead of Gomersall 5 July 1844 at Birstall, Yorks

Just trying to find out if they had an Elizabeth...although it's going to be difficult to pin the lady down without further corroborative evidence... :-(

I can't find an Elizabeth born to the couple who married in Birstall. I tried searching the census for Elizabeth Peacocks born between 1848-1860 but there were just too many of them. Drat :-(

This is all very good food for thought, thank you.
Some 'infil info!
I have a birth cert date 11th April 1876, registered 1st May, name Walter Harry Stead Peacock. no name for father. Mother Elizabeth Peacock, residence Knighton.
Copy of original baptism record, 14th July 1878, Name Walter Harry Edwards, mother Elizabeth Peacock, no father named.
1881 census Harry aged 5 with James Edwards and family.
1891 census called Henry and living in Abergaveny with Jones 'half brothers'? listed as adopted brother!
Marriage cert, 28th March 1900 Called Walter Harry Edwards, father named as James Edwards
1901 census married to Kate Monnington.
Thanks for your help
John :-)

so, ahem, she did not name her child Hary Walter Stead Edwards ! start as you mean to go on and give us exact info :-)

can you just explain this little leftover bit then,

Births Jun 1876
Peacock Walter Harry S P Knighton 11b 16_

since he seems to have another initial, the P ... was he Harry Walter Stead Peacock Peacock ? I'm not laughing, it has been known to happen

but okay then he was baptised Walter Harry Edwards with mother Elizabeth Peacock ... definitely appears to connect then ... baptised 2 years after birth ...


so in 1881 in the Edwards household there are

James Edwards 54
Emma Edwards 38
Harry Edwards 5
John Jones 68 father ... we assume of Emma ?
John Jones 43 brother ... ditto
Herbert Jones 6 nephews ... i.e. sons of John
George Jones 13
William Jones 10
A.E. Preece 1

and in 1891

Charles Jones 27
George Jones 23 cousin (son of John in 1881? )
William Jones 20 ditto
Herbert Jones 16 ditto
Henry Edwards 15 adopted brother of Charles
Alice Jones 29 cousin

in 1871 Charles is the child that Emma brought to the marriage ... Alice, well, who knows, daughter of another Jones sibling I guess

James Edwards 43
Emma Edwards 29
Charles Jones 8 stepson
Alice Jones 10 niece
George Jones 3 son

George being the slight problem, he is a son of James Edwards in 1871 but a cousin ( not half-brother ) or Charles in 1891

so this all does seem to be pretty firm that Walter Harry wasn't related to Emma (presumably Jones) Edwards, anyway

but the fact that he took James Edwards's surname doesn't -necessarily- mean anything more than that he was adopted ( informally as was done at the time )

interesting though that his mother would have had him baptised when he was two ......... you know, this could have been the 'adoption'