LONDON-L Archives

Archiver > LONDON > 2006-11 > 1164564569


From: "John Henley" <>
Subject: Re: [LON] Question re. marriage certificate
Date: Sun, 26 Nov 2006 18:10:21 -0000
References: <008f01c710ec$0fa05300$0302a8c0@anyjw1i7u9h1z9>


Hello Jill,

----- Original Message ----- From: "Jill Hyams" <>
> At the LMA today, I was looking at marriage registers for St Stephen,
> Manciple Street, Southwark, and came across several marriages that had the
> word 'free' written alongside in the margin.
> > The marriages were in the 1860s. Does anyone know the significance of
the
> word 'free' in this instance? Did it mean that the couple weren't charged
> for the ceremony?> > Jill> Staines, Middlesex

It was not unknown for clergy, particularly in poorer areas (and Manciple
Street in the Borough in the 1860s was certainly such) to offer free
marriages from time to time to encourage those "living in sin" to regularize
their position.
I suspect that this is to what the "Free" annotation might refer, but have
no way of knowing for cerytain, not having come across the annotation
before. The occupations column might yield a clue, but remember that in the
19th.century and later the Rank, profession or occupation" column described
what a man was qualified to do, his usual trade or suchlike, and does not
necessarily mean that he was actuall in paid employment or working as such
at the time.
HTH
Cheers

John Henley
(still catching up on masses of emails )
using Archive CDs - see
http://www.archivecdbooks.org
and researching (and not finding much time for - but always very glad to
hear of any)
HENLEY, PARKER, PRENTICE, SECKER, RAPER, DURDEN
[IN London/Middx./Essex/Suffolk]
ROLFE, (O)RAFFERTY, EVANS, PARSONS, SYMONDS [IN Berks/Hants/Wilts]
HILL [IN Staffs/Cambs/Berks]
Cheers

John Henley
(still catching up on masses of emails )
using Archive CDs - see
http://www.archivecdbooks.org
and researching (and not finding much time for - but always very glad to
hear of any)
HENLEY, PARKER, PRENTICE, SECKER, RAPER, DURDEN
[IN London/Middx./Essex/Suffolk]
ROLFE, (O)RAFFERTY, EVANS, PARSONS, SYMONDS [IN Berks/Hants/Wilts]
HILL [IN Staffs/Cambs/Berks]


This thread: