Matthew Carr & Ann Padley

Introduction
I previously posted about my search for my Carr and Padley ancestors on my mother's mother's mother's mother's side of my family! My great-great-grandmother was Margaret Ann Carr, the eldest daughter of Matthew and Ann Carr. Through looking at the census I had managed to find that Ann's maiden name was Padley (her mother was living with the family in the 1881 census). This enabled me to search the Padley family back a couple more generations. I had also research Matthew Carr's family back another generation as I had only found in earlier censuses one Matthew Carr of the right age and born in the right place. However, in order to confirm these relationships (discussed in this post in further detail) I still needed to find the marriage certificate of Matthew Carr and Ann Padley. This week I received the following:


The marriage of Matthew Carr and Ann Padley

• On 11th February 1871, at the Register Office in Sunderland

• Matthew Carr, 20 years, bachelor, coal miner, 41 Queen Street Ryhope Colliery, father - Joseph Carr, coal miner

• Ann Padley, 18 years, spinster, 58 Queen Street Ryhope Colliery, father - Joseph Padley, coal miner

• The witnesses were James Carr and Ann Cope?

This is certainly the right certificate and confirms the relationships that I had previously believed. One interesting facet of this marriage is that it was registered in a register office, suggesting that the couple may have married in a non-conformist church such as a Methodist church.

Whilst researching this family I have come across a cousin who is also researching this family. They are descended from Sarah Carr, the eighth child of Matthew Carr and Ann Padley; I am descended from Margaret Ann Carr, the first child of the same couple. In an earlier post I mentioned that in the 1891 census when only a few days old she was called Isabella, but when she came to be christened she was named Sarah. Looking at their website, I have found out a few more details about the Carr and Padley families:

• Sarah Carr married Alexander George Bouas on 1st Jan 1909 and had 5 children. She died on 21 Nov 1951 in Gosforth.

• Ann Padley was baptised on 1st Jan 1854 in West Rainton, Durham and died around 1928.

• The marriage of Ann Padley's parents may have occurred in the September quarter of 1849 in Houghton-le-Spring, with the names Joseph Paddy and Ann Youn - the index was handwritten, the names should read Joseph Padley and Ann Young.

• The mother of Matthew Carr was Margaret McCartney - I had not previously known her maiden name. The reference for this was the GRO indexVol.25, p.150, Dec 1839.
  Whitehaven district, Cumberland. I shall get the certificate to find out the names of Matthew Carr's parents, Margaret McCartney and Joseph Carr.