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They apparently were first cousins who married in around 1844, might have been scandalous at the time, as they had one child, Caleb 1845-1912, who is my great-great grandfather. Edith's family tree is extensive, but I'm unable to find anything official about William. Both were born in Whitecroft, Forest of Dean. Would appreciate any leads!

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Baptism in Forest of Dean Records

at Lydney: 6 June 1858

Caleb KEAR

Father's Name: ENOCH (occupation: Collier)

Mother's Surname: Edith

Residence: Breams Eve

Event: Baptism

Memoranda: about 12 years old

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GRO INDEX

KEAR, Caleb - Mother's maiden Surname - just a dash, so no surname

GRO Reference: 1845, June Quarter in WESTBURY ON SEVERN UNION, Volume 11 Page 470

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Yes I am aware of this, so it's assumed the last name is the same.

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You are distantly related to my husband as you share 4x great grandparents, Enoch and Mary (Baldwin) Kear.

From the research I have done I thought that Edith was unmarried when she had Caleb as I have never found any marriage record for her and on both 1851 and 1861 she is living with her parents and listed as unmarried. I think the Enoch referred to on his baptism record (1858) is an error and refers to his grandfather.

I have found no record of a William John Kear but he is unlikely to be a first cousin as Enoch Kear was the only surviving son of Enoch Kear (Snr) and Hannah Hakwins, their only other son William died as a baby, the rest of their children being girls who married into various other forest families.

I am happy to share further information with you if you wish to contact me directly.

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Hello Helen, thank you for your reply. I would be happy to discuss and share information with you about the Kears.

I am aware that there are some Phillips descendants from Enoch & Mary Kear! My descendants are: Enoch & Mary Kear > Edith Kear > Caleb & Mary Ann Kear > Richard and Elizabeth Kear > Annie Kear & James Smith - the latter were my grandparents.

Yes it does seem to be quite a puzzle about where the information about William John Kear came from. I have it from a long time ago passed down to me from distant Kear relatives in Yorkshire, and it is also in a family tree by David Richards which has been discussed years ago in this thread: https://forest-of-dean.net/fodmembers/index.php?mode=thread&id=5835#p7553. While the conclusion may be that he could have been the father and never married Edith, I can find no trace of him either. An Ancestry tree I found when I had access to that software had him listed with a death date of May 9, 1888, but I can find no record of that in the GRO.

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Sorry for the delay in my response.

There are a number of trees on Ancestry that show a William John Kear as the father of Caleb some of which have his date of death as 9 May 1888 but none of these trees have any source evidence.

I have found a John Kear who was died on 9 May and was buried 13 May 1888 Hedon, Yorkshire who was originally from Cheltenham. It is likely that people may have confused him with the mysterious William John Kear.

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Thank you Helen. Yes I've verified this in the GRO and although he would have been born in 1814 this is likely the same person - though I cannot find any proof of a marriage for Edith.

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I don’t think this John Kear can be right as he married in Sheffield, Yorkshire in 1840 and had 6 children so it would be unlikely he would be in the Forest of Dean area and marry Edith before Caleb’s birth in 1843.

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Thanks very much Helen for confirming this information. It actually is consistent with information that I received back in the 80's, that the father is unknown. Caleb was baptised years later and the name listed as his father is actually his grandfather Enoch.

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Helen, I've made my email contactable should you wish to contact me, click the envelope beside my user ID. Thanks.

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On the census returns, Edith says she is unmarried and living with his family.

?

At Bream around the same time - although baptism was later is this

14 May 1863

William John KEAR (born July 11th 1857)

parents: William John (occupation: Tailor) and mother Esther

Officating Minster: Cornelius Witherby Perpetual Courage

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I don't think this is the same family. The mother's name listed is Esther. Through all of the research I have done on this family, I am not aware of a second sibling to Caleb. And having one sibling so much younger would be rare unless Edith remarried, which she did not.

I am looking more for the information about William John Kear as I have hit a wall with any parents for him.

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Thanks, I suppose Caleb could have been baptized 12 years later. Edith lived with her father Enoch who is listed incorrectly here as Caleb's father.

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Actually it was her brother Enoch who is listed as Caleb's father on the baptism record. Her father died the year before.

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