My Grandfather, GEORGE WILLIAM MEEK of East Dean married MARY ANN JORDAN at ALL SAINTS CHURCH,BISHOPSWOOD in 1885. Mary's father was CHARLES JORDAN and I am trying to find a lead towards his family ancestry. I have studied the Lydbrook Jordan's but can get no real connection there. Mary Ann Jordan was born in the Parish of Cinderford and was 21 when she married. I have checked records in a 20 mile radius of East Dean but without success. Can anyone help?
Is All Saints Church near to East Dean or Cinderford or should a make a closer study of Herefordshire records?

1881
Charles Jordan abt 1839 Lydbrook, Gloucestershire, England Head Church St, Westbury On Severn - East Dean, Gloucestershire, England
Eliza Jordan abt 1844 Wednesbury, Staffordshire, England Wife Church St, Westbury On Severn - East Dean, Gloucestershire, England
Eliza Jordan abt 1873 Halmorend, Staffordshire, England Daughter Church St, Westbury On Severn - East Dean, Gloucestershire, England
Mary A. Jordan abt 1869 Cinderford, Gloucestershire, England Daughter Church St, Westbury On Severn - East Dean, Gloucestershire, England
Rachel Jordan abt 1880 Cinderford, Gloucestershire, England Daughter Church St, Westbury On Severn - East Dean, Gloucestershire, England
Samuel Jordan abt 1864 Cinderford, Gloucestershire, England Son Church St, Westbury On Severn - East Dean, Gloucestershire, England

This was fun to find !

1871
Charles Jorden abt 1841 Lydbrook, Gloucestershire, England Head Biddulph Staffordshire
Eliza Jorden abt 1844 Wendlebury, Staffordshire, England Wife Biddulph Staffordshire
Mary A Jorden abt 1869 Cinderton, Gloucestershire, England Daughter Biddulph Staffordshire
Samuel Jorden abt 1864 Cinderton, Gloucestershire, England Son Biddulph Staffordshire

1861
Charls Jordan abt 1838 East Dean, Gloucestershire, England Son East Dean Gloucestershire
Eliza Jordan abt 1852 East Dean, Gloucestershire, England Daughter East Dean Gloucestershire
Enos Jordan abt 1850 East Dean, Gloucestershire, England Son East Dean Gloucestershire
James Jordan abt 1840 East Dean, Gloucestershire, England Son East Dean Gloucestershire
Jane Jordan abt 1836 East Dean, Gloucestershire, England Daughter East Dean Gloucestershire
Rachel Jordan abt 1846 East Dean, Gloucestershire, England Daughter East Dean Gloucestershire
River Jordan Senr abt 1809 East Dean, Gloucestershire, England Head East Dean Gloucestershire

In 1851 East Dean
JORDAN River 41 Coal Miner Lydbrook
Jane 41 Lydbrook
River 16 Coal Miner Lydbrook
James 15 Lydbrook
Charles 13 Coal Miner Lydbrook
James 11 Coal Miner Lydbrook
Fanny 7 Lydbrook
Rachel 5 Lydbrook
Enoch 1 Lydbrook

1891
Jordan, Charles abt 1838 East Dean, Gloucestershire, England Head East Dean Gloucestershire
Jordan, Dorothy abt 1885 East Dean, Gloucestershire, England Daughter East Dean Gloucestershire
Jordan, Eliza abt 1844 Saxony (Kingdom State), Wednesbury Wife East Dean Gloucestershire
Jordan, Eliza abt 1873 Halmerend, Stafford Daughter East Dean Gloucestershire
Jordan, Rachel abt 1881 Cinderford, Gols Daughter East Dean Gloucestershire

Meek, George W abt 1862 Ruardean, Gols Head East Dean Gloucestershire
Meek, Leonel J abt 1890 East Dean, Gloucestershire, England Son East Dean Gloucestershire
Meek, Maury A abt 1864 East Dean, Gloucestershire, England Wife East Dean Gloucestershire
Meek, William G abt 1889 Ruardean, Gols Son East Dean Gloucestershire

1891
Meek, George W abt 1862 Ruardean, Gols Head East Dean Gloucestershire
Meek, Leonel J abt 1890 East Dean, Gloucestershire, England Son East Dean Gloucestershire
Meek, Maury A abt 1864 East Dean, Gloucestershire, England Wife East Dean Gloucestershire
Meek, William G abt 1889 Ruardean, Gols Son East Dean Gloucestershire

1881
William Davis abt 1859 Walford, Hereford, England Brother in Law Ruardean, Gloucestershire, England
Amelia Meek abt 1863 Ruardean, Gloucestershire, England Daughter Ruardean, Gloucestershire, England
Eliza Meek abt 1841 Walford, Hereford, England Wife Ruardean, Gloucestershire, England
Eliza A. Meek abt 1875 Ruardean, Gloucestershire, England Daughter Ruardean, Gloucestershire, England
George Meek abt 1840 Ruardean, Gloucestershire, England Head Ruardean, Gloucestershire, England
George Meek abt 1861 Ruardean, Gloucestershire, England Son Ruardean, Gloucestershire, England
Jane Meek abt 1877 Walford, Hereford, England Daughter Ruardean, Gloucestershire, England

1871
Elizabeth Meek abt 1841 East Dean, Gloucestershire, England Wife East Dean Gloucestershire
Elizabeth Meek abt 1870 East Dean, Gloucestershire, England Daughter East Dean Gloucestershire
George Meek abt 1831 East Dean, Gloucestershire, England Head East Dean Gloucestershire
George Meek abt 1860 East Dean, Gloucestershire, England Son East Dean Gloucestershire
Lucy Meek abt 1869 East Dean, Gloucestershire, England Daughter East Dean Gloucestershire
Timothy Meek abt 1863 East Dean, Gloucestershire, England Son East Dean Gloucestershire
Tom Meek abt 1867 East Dean, Gloucestershire, England Son East Dean Gloucestershire

1861
Willia Davis abt 1857 Walford, Herefordshire, England Lodger Ruardean Gloucestershire
Eliza Meek abt 1840 Walford, Herefordshire, England Wife Ruardean Gloucestershire
George Meek abt 1838 Ruardean, Gloucestershire, England Head Ruardean Gloucestershire
George Willm Meek abt 1861 Ruardean, Gloucestershire, England Son Ruardean Gloucestershire

1851 ? East Dean
MEEK Moses 50 coq Ruardean
Sarah 48 Ruardean
James 22 Coal Miner East Dean
Mary Ann 20 East Dean
Elizabeth 14 East Dean
George 12 Coal Miner East Dean
John 1 East Dean
William 4m East Dean

» Mary Ann Jordan
» was born in the Parish of Cinderford and was 21 when she married.

IGI submission says :- ( take care, but it does tie to the census info
)
Mary Anne Jordan
----------------------------------------------------
Event(s):
Birth: About NOV 1868 Cinderford, Gloucester, England
--------------------------------------------
Parents:
Father: Charles Weaver Jordan
Mother: Eliza Whitehouse
------------------------------------------------------
Messages:
Record submitted after 1991 by a member of the LDS Church.
No additional information is available. Ancestral File may list the same family and the submitter.

Of course this gives you the challenge with her "declared" age in 1885.
I would not be too worried , it suggests that maybe they married without parental blessing. Bishopswood Church has cropped up before with "unusual" christenings and marriages - perhaps the Clery there was a little more liberal than Lydbrook.. difficult to call :-)

Future Eliza Whithouse ?

1861
Elizabeth Whitehouse abt 1812 Wednesbury, Staffordshire, England Wife Wednesbury Staffordshire
Elizabeth Whitehouse abt 1842 Wednesbury, Staffordshire, England Daughter Wednesbury Staffordshire
Isaac Whitehouse abt 1805 Wednesbury, Staffordshire, England Head Wednesbury Staffordshire
Jane Whitehouse abt 1849 Wednesbury, Staffordshire, England Daughter Wednesbury Staffordshire
Mary Whitehouse abt 1838 Wednesbury, Staffordshire, England Daughter Wednesbury Staffordshire
Sarah Whitehouse abt 1847 Wednesbury, Staffordshire, England Daughter Wednesbury Staffordshire
William Whitehouse abt 1840 Wednesbury, Staffordshire, England Son Wednesbury Staffordshire

Thanks very much for the speed and quantity of your replies.
Actually you have raised a point I hadn't considered in my research. All my research on MARY ANN JORDAN had been based on the fact that the age 21 given on her marriage certificate was her true age. I see now that this was possibly false to avoid having to get Parental permission to marry and that her true age was 17.The certificate gives their addresses only as 'Bishopswood'. This could explain their wedding at All Saints Church rather than a possibly local one. Also, interestingly, the two witnesses were JOHN WHITEHOUSE & ELIZABETH MARY BENNETT. Could Mary's mother be ELIZA WHITEHOUSE. (needs checking).
In the 1881 census there was a CHARLES JORDAN living at 286,Chuch Street,East Dean,with a wife, ELIZA, son SAMUEL, and 3 daughters, MARY, ELIZA,& RACHEL. I have discounted MARY before as her age was given as 12yrs. but I shall now have to do some research based on Mary being born around 1868.

I suspect we agree on the 1881 census entry !

» This was fun to find !
»
» 1871
» Charles Jorden abt 1841 Lydbrook, Gloucestershire, England Head Biddulph
» Staffordshire
» Eliza Jorden abt 1844 Wendlebury, Staffordshire, England Wife Biddulph
» Staffordshire
» Mary A Jorden abt 1869 Cinderton, Gloucestershire, England Daughter
» Biddulph Staffordshire
» Samuel Jorden abt 1864 Cinderton, Gloucestershire, England Son Biddulph
» Staffordshire
I agree, this was 'fun' to find.
This is almost certainly the 1771 census I was looking for. The census was very hard ro read, but its almost certain that 'Jorden' should read 'Jordan',
and as I cannot find Cinderton in my gazeteer,Cinderford could be the true place of birth. With those changes everything fits into place, together with the age of Mary Ann Jordan(2) at that time.

I have found some very unusual forenames during my searches, my favourites being 'Barzella' and 'Meshetarbel'
Dennis

I think it illustrates clearly an enumerator who understandably knew little of Gloucestershire , probably being confronted with a Forest Accent and do his best to record what he heard, plus a transcriber who did ther best with a blurred image !

Year 1808
Month Oct
Day 23
Parents Surname JORDAN
Child Forename(s) River
Father's Forename(s) Phillip
Mother's Forename(s) Elizabeth
Mother's Surname
Place of Residence
Occupation
Officiating Minister
Event type Baptism
Memoranda
Notes
Register Reference P138 in 1/4
Page No 22
Parish/Chapel English Bicknor

This is Charles Marriage:
Entry Number 37
Year 1861
Month Sep
Day 26
Groom Surname JORDAN
Groom Forename(s) Charles Weaver
Groom Age at Marriage 23
Groom condition Bachelor
Groom Rank or Profession Collier
Groom Residence Lydbrook
Groom Father's Surname JORDAN
Groom Father's Forename(s) River
Groom Father's Rank or Profession Collier
Bride Surname PARKER
Bride Forename(s) Eliza
Bride Age at Marriage 20
Bride Condition Spinster
Bride Rank or Profession
Bride Residence Lydbrook
Bride Father's Surname WHITEHOUSE
Bride Father's Forename(s) Samuel
Bride Father's Rank or Profession Worker in Ironworks
Licence or Banns Banns
Date of banns
Signature or Mark he mark she sign
Witness 1 River Jordan
Witness 2 Elizabeth Jordan
Other witnesses
Officiating Minister Temple Hamilton Chase
Event type Marriage
Memoranda
Transcriber's Notes
Register Reference P208 IN 1/5
Page No 19
Parish/Chapel Lydbrook

From FreeBMD:
Marriages Mar 1847
Parker Mary Wolverhampton 17 314
WHITEHOUSE Samuel Wolverhampton 17 314

Cheers
Mike

1861
Samuel Whitehawr abt 1822 Wednesbury, Staffordshire, England Head West Dean Gloucestershire
Mary Whitehawr abt 1826 West Bromwich, Staffordshire, England Wife West Dean Gloucestershire
Eliza Whitehawr abt 1845 West Bromwich, Staffordshire, England Daughter West Dean Gloucestershire
Emma Whitehawr abt 1850 Lydbrock, Gloucestershire, England Daughter West Dean Gloucestershire
John Whitehawr abt 1853 Lydbrock, Gloucestershire, England Son West Dean Gloucestershire
Samuel Whitehawr abt 1857 Lydbrock, Gloucestershire, England Son West Dean Gloucestershire
Thomas Whitehawr abt 1855 Lydbrock, Gloucestershire, England Son West Dean Gloucestershire
Hannah Parker abt 1807 Wednesbury, Staffordshire, England Boarder West Dean Gloucestershire

1851
Samuel Jones abt 1822 Wednesbury, Staffordshire, England Head Ruardean Gloucestershire
Mary Jones abt 1825 West Bromwich, Staffordshire, England Wife Ruardean Gloucestershire
Eliza Jones abt 1845 West Bromwich, Staffordshire, England Daughter Ruardean Gloucestershire
Emma Jones abt 1844 Lydbrook, Gloucestershire, England Daughter Ruardean Gloucestershire
Hannah M Jones abt 1848 Lydbrook, Gloucestershire, England Daughter Ruardean Gloucestershire

Year 1830
Month May
Day 16

Groom Surname JORDAN
Groom Forename(s) River
Groom Age at Marriage
Groom condition [not stated]
Groom Rank or Profession
Groom Residence Hundred of St. Braivils
Groom Father's Surname
Groom Father's Forename(s)
Groom Father's Rank or Profession

Bride Surname WEAVER
Bride Forename(s) Jane
Bride Age at Marriage
Bride Condition [not stated]
Bride Rank or Profession
Bride Residence Hundred of St. Bravils
Bride Father's Surname
Bride Father's Forename(s)
Bride Father's Rank or Profession

Licence or Banns Banns
Date of banns
Signature or Mark He marks; she signs
Witness 1 Rich[ar]d Lowe
Witness 2 Mark of Sarah Malson
Other witnesses
Officiating Minister Edmund Probyn Rector
Event type Marriage
Memoranda with consent of friends
Transcriber's Notes
Register Reference P1 IN 1/9
Page No 50
Parish/Chapel Abenhall

1841
River Jordan 30 Coal Miner and Publican
Jane 30
Elizabeth 10
Mary 8
River 6
Jane 5
Charles 3
James 2
Harriet 3
Richard 1

Year 1837
Month Oct
Day 29

Parents Surname JORDAN
Child Forename(s) Charles Weaver
Father's Forename(s) River
Mother's Forename(s) Jane
Mother's Surname
Place of Residence Lydbrook
Occupation Collier
Officiating Minister H. Berkin
Event type Baptism
Memoranda
Notes
Register Reference P109 IN 1/1
Page No 175
Parish/Chapel Drybrook

Hi Dennis

I have a George William Meek born 1861 in my Family Tree, I only have him as a “connected” person, not related. My main interest is the Marfell family but I do follow the parents & siblings of spouses, so the “connection” I have is as follows :

George William Meek born 1861 was the son of George Meek 1841 & Eliza Davies 1838. George Meek 1841 was the illegitimate son of Amelia Meek 1821/1863, before her 26.8.1843 marriage to Richard Goode.

In 1851 George is with his step father
1851 Census Ruardean Hfd.
Richard Good 33 Ruardean
Amelia 30 East Dean
Ann 7 Ruardean
Susannah 3 Ruardean
Richard 10 months Ruardean
George Meek step son 10 East Dean

1861 Census East Dean
George Meek 23 CM Ruardean
Eliza 21 Walford
George William 2 mths Ruardean
William Davis 4 lodger Walford

1881 Census
Dwelling:
Census Place: Ruardean, Gloucester, England
Source: FHL Film 1341623 PRO Ref RG11 Piece 2586 Folio 73 Page 29
Marr Age Sex Birthplace
George MEEK M 41 M Ruardean, Gloucester, England
Rel: Head
Occ: Coal Miner
Eliza MEEK M 40 F Walford, Hereford, England
Rel: Wife
George MEEK U 20 M Ruardean, Gloucester, England
Rel: Son
Occ: Coal Miner
Amelia MEEK U 18 F Ruardean, Gloucester, England
Rel: Daur
Eliza A. MEEK U 6 F Ruardean, Gloucester, England
Rel: Daur
Occ: Scholar
Jane MEEK U 4 F Walford, Hereford, England
Rel: Daur
Occ: Scholar
William DAVIS U 22 M Walford, Hereford, England
Rel: Brother Law
Occ: Coal Miner

Amelia Meek 1821 was the daughter of Joseph Meek 1771 & Hannah Baldwin and I have many connections from her siblings.

My main connection however is that one of the 7 children of Amelia Meek 1821 & Richard Goode was Amelia Goode 1852 who married George Reed, they had 7 children including Gertrude Helen Reed born 18.8.1880 who married William Ernest Marfell born Drybrook 29.4.1878.

Jim Ashton

opps !