Parents of Elizabeth and Charles Bray

[Merry]

Your link re Emily Jickling doesn't work for me.

[Merry]

It would seem the Barrow's were living in Taunton when they died (Charles Barrow died 1835. There's a PCC will for him). Some of their children were born in India by the look of it.

[Merry]

and here is their marriage (image FMP):

St Leonard's, Deal, Kent

Charles James Barrow otp bachelor and Sarah Bray otp spinster
married by licence 22 Mar 1800 both signed
Witnesses Jonathan Bray (sig looks like the one for his own marriage licence in 1803) and E Foreman (signed).

[Merry]

Here are the burial dates for Jonathan and Sarah's parents:

Jonathan Bray Burial 2 Sep 1788 Stoke

Ann Bray Burial 20 Feb 1792 Stoke

On the image Ann's entry says 'from Coventry' but there are no commects for Jonathan.

[Merry]

FMP has a list of monumental inscriptions for St Michael's in Stoke, Coventry. Unfortunately to see what they say you would have to download this pdf for £6.50:

https://midland-ancestors.shop/Warwi...106D?limit=100

These people are on it, and plenty of others who might be relations:

(all surname Bray)

Ann 1792
Two Helen's 1830 and 1838 which is interesting
Jonathan 1788 and 1835
Mary 1835

Those are just the ones I recognised, so may have missed some people! There are 27 people named Bray included.

[tpb]

I think some pieces are falling into place. Here is what I think we now know.

1. The JB baptised at Stoke St. Michael in 1781 seems to have been the son of an earlier Jonathan Bray and Elizabeth Cartwright. He married Diana Clues there on 3 Feb 1811, was buried there on 18 Jan 1838 (aged 57). They had 3 children: William, Ann and Elizabeth
see https://www.ancestrylibrary.com/fami...=successSource

2. 'My' JB was baptised in the same church on 26 Jul 1777, the son of an earlier JB and Ann (?) Lee. I don't have an FMP subscription, so have not been able to look her Will, but it sounds right, especially with the corroboration of the sister in Bath.

(I am also not sure if we should discount the JB whose estate was being administered in 1813, and whose widow, Ann, died at around the same time)

3. I am quite pleased to think that the marriage in 1815 of Jonathan Bray to Elizabeth Harvey in Allesley now seems to be another JB altogether.

[Merry]

(I am also not sure if we should discount the JB whose estate was being administered in 1813, and whose widow, Ann, died at around the same time)

No don't discount it, i'm pretty sure this is the administration of the JB who was buried in 1788!! It is mentioned in the will of Ann in 1792 (think that was the date). I don't know why it took so long!

If you pm me your email address I can send you the images of Ann's 1792 will and the administration docs for her husband's estate.

[tpb]

Originally Posted by Merry

That just made my head hurt!

Thank you for the images of the administrative forms and Ann's Will. I now have no doubt that she and JB the butcher were the parents of JB the father of Charles and Elizabeth. My father's note about the sister of JB who married Colonel Barrow seems to provide additional independent corroboration.

I was slightly surprised to see that Ann signed her Will with an 'X', but the administrative paper with a rather clumsy signature, although her children were clearly quite well educated.

Tracking down the Jee family will not be easy. There were at least 4 men named Samuel Jee who were married at Holy Trinity, Coventry, in the 18th century. There was another who married Ann Bray at St. Michaels on 17 Dec 1767. But I also found a reference dated in 1793 to a Samuel Jee, Staymaker whose wife was apparently named Ann Kerby. see
https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Worcester-180

There was another Samuel Jee who was a churchwarden at St. Michael's in 1746. He is more likely to be linked to Ann Jee's brother - maybe their father, or an uncle.

I am beginning also to accept that in 1803 the younger JB could have listed his occupation as a farmer when he married that other Elizabeth Bray. You have more experience matching signatures than I do, but I agree that the match is reasonably good. Of course that means that this Elizabeth Bray was my MMMMM, and to go back further into my mitochondrial ancestry I will have to try to tackle the rest of the Bray clan.

The link supplied by Kiterunner mentions JB, his friend Abraham Herbert and all those other Bray cousins. I will see if any of those provide a starting point for further research.

[Merry]

I think this Samuel is the brother of Ann Bray nee Jee and he is mentioned in her will:

Samuel Jee Burial 8 Jun 1802 Stoke

Administration was granted to his widow, Ann, in April 1806. Samuel died 2 Jun 1802 and he was a staymaker.

Samuel and his sister Ann Bray nee Jee were the children of another Samuel Jee who signed his will 28 Feb 1767. Probate was granted 29 Apr 1768 to dau "Ann Bray otherwise Jee the wife of Jonathan Bray". I've not found his burial or read the will yet.

[Merry]

There was another who married Ann Bray at St. Michaels on 17 Dec 1767. But I also found a reference dated in 1793 to a Samuel Jee, Staymaker whose wife was apparently named Ann Kerby.

Perhaps the staymaker married twice, firstly to Ann Bray 17 Dec 1767 Saint Michael,Coventry and secondly 27 Feb 1792 to Ann Kirby at the same church. You need to discover whether the second marriage was for a widower a widower and find a death for the first Ann.

The first marriage has a marriage allegation mentioning his occ as staymaker.