Oh, this is so confusing!!

[SuzJones]

Hello,

This is going to be a vague and long winded question, but I'm hoping that somebody can help me - I've now been researching my family history for 3 days, so I'm still at the "deeply confused" stage

I am unsure about what to do next on my dad's fathers side of the family.

Here is what I know:

Grandad was John Edward Jones born in Liverpool in Jan 1922

His parents were:

FATHER: Thomas E Jones (b. Liverpool, 1883)

Thomas was the son of William Jones born in London in 1845/1846 and Jane (don't know her maiden name) born in Cheshire in 1850/1851

MOTHER: Margaret Mullin.

A Margaret Mullin married Thomas E Jones in December 1913 and they went on to have all the right children, so I think I have the right "couple" but I can't figure out which Margaret Mullin she is!

I have tried to match up birth records and census details, but I just don't know which one she is...I have got it down to 2 possibilities - one of them seems to fit slightly better in terms of dates, but the other option makes sense as the mother and father of my second Margaret Mullin have the same names as the oldest Son and Daughter born to Margaret and Thomas (ie: My grandads oldest brother and sister)

So...my question is how do I figure this out? I was going to order a bith certificate for the two potential Margaret Mullins, but then I realised that this wouldn't help at all. I am wondering if I am doing this all backwards Is there a particular document that I can order which will make it all make sense?

I hope this makes sense!

Any points in the right direction would be most appreciated, as I can imagine myself spending the next year researching a strange family that have nothing to do with me

Thanks!

Suzanne

 

[lizanne]

Hi Suzanne,
Do you have the marriage certificate for Margaret Mullins and Thomas E Jones ?
This should give you her age and her fathers name and occupation which should help you to narrow down her birth . Then you should be able to order the correct birth certificate.

 

[joyceawood17]

Hi Lizanne, you do have to be careful about using the age, no proof of age was required to get married and there have been quite a few cases where one or the other would give the wrong age, just to get married, my greatgrand mother is a good example

 

[SuzJones]

Thanks for your help! I'll order the marriage certificate so that I can confirm the fathers name and occupation - hopefully that will match up with one of the two options that seem to fit in!

The two margaret Mullin's that I've come up with would put her in her early 20's when she got married, so there shouldn't be any issue with her lying about her age - but I'll be a bit cautious about this from now on.

Suzanne