Genealogy Chat

I found a record of one of what could be my family in 1784 it says Rennoldson John was holder of Bond of Indemnity for Hannah Marshall's Bastard Child 15th Oct (C.W.A) What does this Mean? Was he holding some Insurance for this child? or was this child something to do with him? any Ideas

Hi Barbara Its a kind of maintainance paid by someone named to be responsible to the parish for the child(to do with the poor laws). If you google it you'll find lots of info. Ann x

I have found it in one of my books...hang on while i type it out!!

this is taken from http://www.berksfhs.org.uk/journal/Mar2000/Mar2000BastardyInBerkshire.htm An Act of Parliament Of 1733 first required mothers needing sup­port from the parish to declare the father's name. The overseers would then attempt to obtain maintenance from him by way of a bond of indemnity, and on pain of arrest. For instance in 1761 Jane Dean of Bray, who had been working in Middlesex, blamed George Saunders, 'late Post Boy to Mr Parker at the Swan Inn at Egham' for her pregnancy. A warrant was duly issued for his arrest, even though this meant bringing him from his new place of employment in Piccadilly, London. We see the stages which might ensue in the case of labourer John Lucas of Stanmore, Beedon, who had fathered the six week old child of Mary Aldridge of Chieveley in 1764. The Chieveley parish records include both the warrant to apprehend John, issued on 28 June, and the bond to indemnify the parish, which he made two days later (he could only afford a shilling a week). Even after the parish overseers were superseded by Poor Law Unions and Boards of Guardians, this practice continued. For instance, in November 1843 the Abingdon Board of Guardians applied for a bastardy order on William Pead of Abingdon, father of the child of Arm Moore of Culham. From 1844, the mother herself was entitled to apply to the court of Petty Sessions for maintenance from the father whether she was in receipt of poor relief or not. Anna

Bond of Indemnity could mean one of two things - either he himself was the father of the bastard child,(often called a Bastardy Bond) or that he was providing financial indemnity for the father - this was what we would loosely think of as a Bail Bond today, an assurance that someone would turn up in court to answer a charge, in this case, that of being the father of a bastard child.Shoyuld the putative father not turn up, then the Bond was forfeited and used as a Bastardy Bond. In those days everyone (that is, the Ratepayers of a Parish) was anxious that the cost of a bastard child should fall on either the parents, or if neither were of any appreciable means, her father would often stand a Bastardy Bond or admit financial responsibility for the child, rather than see his daughter go to prison. But it usually meant that the father was either of considerable means or thought likely to disappear. He therefore was required by the Overseer of the Poor to deposit a substantial sum of money against the cost of bringing up the child and providing him with an apprenticeship. All this had very little to do with the mother - she was merely required to name the father and if she did not, then she would be sent to prison. Any money raised by a Bastardy Bond would be administered either by the Overseer, or if the child was in a Workhouse, then by the Trustees of that Workhouse (usually the Overseer, LOL) Incidentally, in my family at least, it was thought rather admirable to have caught a man able to provide a Bastardy Bond - the child's future was thus secure and he/she could possibly expect to move a rung up the employment ladder as the result of an apprenticeship. Two of my Kinsfolk, girls aged 5 and 7, are apprenticed as the result of Bastardy Bonds, to a Tailor (poor little mites). Marjorie

Thankyou all for your replies. I will have to dig deeper and find out if it is one of my rellies. If it is mine he was all ready married and had young children. Regards Barbara.

I see others beat me to it!! So I have added a bit of info, just for interest. Until 1744 an illegitimate child (IC) became the responsibility of the parish where it was born.Some parish officials would go to exreme lengths to avoid an IC been born within their boundarys,even transporting women in labour to a neighbouring parish. Ann x

if he was the holder of the bond, that would seem to mean that he was the overseer or foster-parent or maybe apprentice-master, not the father but the man taking on the raisng of the child at the father's expense

Thank you all for replying and your expertise in the matter. Regards Barbara.