I thought I would try this message board as Hastings appears to the root of the surname Bumstead, in order to solve a genealogy enquiry that has remained unanswered for 90 years!

My Gt,Gt,Gt Grandmother was Elizabeth Bumstead - daughter of James & Mary Bumstead, who resided at 5 Creek, All Saints Hastings in the 1861 Census.

Elizabeth had a son. The boy grew up believing his name Frederick Francis Farrington after the man he believed to be his biological father.

After getting married and having children of his own, Farrington discovered that his Mother had been been married before, and that he was a product of that Union.

Elizabeth Bumstead married William Alfred Lee age 29 (Batchelor) Profession noted as "Dyer" , Son of John Thomas Lee Commercial Traveller (deceased) - date of marriage 24 Aug 1873 at Parish of St Mary Magdalen Hastings.

The address given at marriage for both individuals was 14 Alfred Street. The wedding was witnessed by a Henry Martin and Charlotte Lee.

Elizabeth lied about her age on her first wedding certificate, claiming she was 20, when she was probably only 16 or 17. This leads us to believe that either her father James was away fishing at the time of the wedding, and couldnt give consent, or the wedding took place without the knowledge of the Bumstead family.

Elizabeth lied at her second wedding in Shadwell London on 7 Sep 1880, stating condition as Spinster although she had previously been married. Although she was more truthful stating her age as 25.

My Gt,Gt Grandfather had to make a sworn declaration in London 17 September 1916 to state that he had not acted fraudently by getting married and producing children under an illegal name, and he had only found out 6 weeks previously that his identity was in question.

The statement reads " attached are certified true copies of the original entries held at the General Records Office Somerset House."

So far all attempts to locate this William Alfred Lee have proved fruitless. With the surname LEE being so common it is nearly impossible to find him without more personal information.

Also, I would love to know when the actual birth took place for my Gt,Gt Grandfather, as he never did find out when he was really born or if he ever had an original birth certificate.

Any information on any of the individuals mentioned would be more than welcome.

Many thanks

Hello

You don't say when (roughly)your grandfather (assume Farrington Frederick Francis) was born or an area can you advise please

Hi. I hope that this info may help.Frederick Francis Lee Birth Sept 1877 Bethnal Green 1c 285 this could be him as in the 1881,91 and 1901 he is said to have been born in Chiswick. If this is the same family he had a sister Augusta who died 1891 and a brother Alfred. If I can help further please let me know.

I am sorry, Frederick Francis Farrington himself never knew about his true paternal lineage until he had already registered births of several children and got married under the wrong name. He never had a birth certificate, Elizabeth was either unwilling or unable to give him the specifics as he had to check the records at Somerset House himself 90 years ago. But could only find the records of his mother's marriages.

I have obtained some more information since my original post, hopefully this may shed some more light:


Possible locations are:

Hastings
Pancras
Islington
Shadwell
Chiswick
possibly anywhere else in London,
Lancashire or Yorkshire.

We believe he was born between 1870 - 7 Sept 1880.

Sept 1880 was when Elizabeth married Frederick Francis Farrington Snr (b 1853 in Chiswick,) the boy William Alfred Lee became then became known as Frederick Francis Farrinton.

I have now found Elizabeth Bumstead on the 1871 Census, in reformatory for fallen women in Euston Road Pancras, when in truth she was 15 years of age, but claimed to be 17. This has raised the possibility of previous pregnancies before marriage, most likely a Lizzie Bumstead recorded in Jul-Aug-Sep 1872 in Islington.

The Enumerators book for 1881 shows the family living at 47 Richard St, St George In The East, with the head and ages and genders amended, but quoting the correct birth locations ie Chiswick and Hastings and occupations occupations of "Carman" for both Father and Son, but the son's age is given as 11 or 17 depending how you read the handwriting, indicating that is possible he may have been born as early as 1870, which could explain why Elizabeth was in the reformatory.

I believe that she returned to Hastings purely to get married to William Alfred Lee in 1873.

The address given on the marriage certificate for both Elizabeth & William, was 14 Alfred Street. This address does not appear for any Bumstead family members for any recorded censuses, however it appears that an number of different "lodgers" appear. I reckon there is a good possibility that Elizabeth was already pregnant with Frederick Francis Farrington (aka William Alfred Lee) and was not permitted to stay at her father's address before the wedding.

However, I don't believe they actually lived there for any period before or after the wedding, as the wedding certificate quotes William Alfred Lee's occupation as "Dyer". I cannot find any Wool or Cotton mills in the Sussex area at all. Using the Find My Past occupation searches, there are some Dyers in London, but loads in Yorkshire and Lancashire, which is totally unhelpful.

The 1891 Census has Elizabeth, her second husband, my FFF and two other children Alfred & Augusta living at 12 Scales Road Tottenham Middlesex. My FFF is passed off as a 12 year old scholar rather than a Carman, which I believe is an attempt to pass him off to outsiders as the "biological" child of 2nd marriage.

Hi Marion,

thanks for the tip of Frederick Francis Lee, this is a strong possibility, as Elizabeth may well have been using the surname Lee in 1877, although we know she reverted to calling herself "Bumstead spinster" on her 2nd marriage certificate.

The FFF that married Elizabeth was from Chiswick. My FFF had a row with his brother over a china teapot, which ended up in a libel case going to court over one brother calling the other illegitimate. Ultimately, the Judge threw the case out of court. We dont know if this brother was Alfred, or another child not flagged up on any of the Census.

Any more information you have on this batch of Farrington's would be very welcome!

Thanks

Wendy

Hi there,
I have Bumsteads going back many generations in Suffolk, England and they finally settled in Ipswich Suffolk where Gorge Bumstead married Sophia Brown.

Does this ring any bells, let me know and I can always let you see my public tree, if you key in George Bumstead it will take you back a fair way!
Maggie Andersen

an elizabeth bumstead was born to harriet mary ann ball in 1869, if this any help at all, found on www.ballfamilyrecords.co.uk
rob