Genealogy Chat

I have a record of a marriage of a Joseph Charles Kirkham in Milton Stoke on Trent in 1895 to an Alice Cleeton. According to the 1901 census Alice was born in 1878 in Tunstall. Can any body give me any ideas as to why I cannot find Alice in 1881 0r 1891. Open to suggestions please.

Was Cleeton her maiden name, or had she been married before? The usual reason you can't find someone on a census is that they aren't recorded in the way you expect - so you could look for Cleaton, etc. OR they aren't where you expect to find them. nell

Her name was Cleeton when she married and she was a spinster.

Oh and which Tunstall? Tunstall, Staffordshire [City/Town/Village] Tunstall, Norfolk [City/Town/Village] Tunstall, Kent [Town] Tunstall, Suffolk [Town] Tunstall, Stoke-on-Trent [Town] Tunstall, East Riding of Yorkshire [Town] Tunstall, Lancashire [Town] Tunstall, North Yorkshire [Town] nell

What do you mean by a 'record of a marriage'? Is it a marriage certificate or something else? If not a marriage certificate, perhaps you can't tell whether or not she was a widow when she married him? (If she was a widow, she could be under her original - unknown - surname on the previous censuses) Oh, just noticed her age when she married him - well, perhaps not! She could have been 'mistranscribed' on the censuses, so you might have to search and search to find her. Perhaps she was known by a different surname, or even a nickname or middle name, and that is what is on the censuses. Or she was one of those people who gave a different version of her birthplace and / or birth date every time! So don't give up - keep searching and maybe you will find her eventually! Also, if the 'record' isn't a marriage cert, why not get the cert and see if it offers any more clues. Good luck, Kate.

From 1901: Alice Kirkham abt 1878 Tunstall, Staffordshire, England Wife Milton Staffordshire nell

Could this be her birth: Clayton, Alice Record Type: Births Quarter: September Year: 1877 District: Wolstanton County: Staffordshire Volume: 6b Page: 140 Tunstall comes under Wolstanton registration district. Perhaps Clayton in a Staffs accent sounds like Cleeton (or vice versa!) nell

Not sure this helps. Looked for Alice Clayton in 1881 and found no Alice born in Tunstall, but there is Name Relation Marital Status Gender Age Birthplace Occupation Disability Augustus CLAYTON Head M Male 29 Stoke On Trent Station Master (Rly) Sarah H. CLAYTON Wife M Female 28 Blyth Marsh Stoke, Stafford, England Station Masters Wife Alice A. CLAYTON Daur Female 5 Shelton, Stafford, England Source Information: Dwelling Railway Station Census Place Stone, Stafford Family History Library Film 1341645 RG11 Piece / Folio 2692 / 14 Page 40 Now there's not Shelton in Staffordshire according to Streetmap co uk, but there is a Snebdon just south of Tunstall. You'd need to see the original image to get a better idea. If you had the marriage cert you could check Alice's father's name and occupation with this family or other possibles. nell

I found the record of the marriage in the web - staffordshire bmd and past experience tells me that you can usually tell if they have been married beforebecause they are on the list twice. Looks like I am going to have to order the cert to get her father's name - thankyou all for your help - much appreciated