ARC TBC - Christian to Catherine, Luckaes or Luckas?

[jimstallard]

Hi All,
I'm looking for proof that Catherine "Kitty" Trowbridge of Sixpenny Handley, early 1800's was the same person as Christian Luckaes. Or indeed proof that she wasn't!
My big handicap is that I'm doing all this research online from the USA - I do realise I just have to get to The Dorset History Center and get down and dirty with the archives as so much is left untranscribed, but I'm hoping there maybe someone who has already researched the Trowbridges and the Lucases in and around Sixpenny Handley, or who has an insight of which is my best route for solving this riddle.

My main sticking points are the names - Christian to Catherine (which has been documented for other women), and then on the marriage certificate Luckas is crossed out and Luckaes written in - I'm reticent to "assume" that Luckaes is really Luckass/Luckas/Lucass/Lucas. (Although there is a Thomas LUCKAS as witness.)

So, Hannah Trowbridge (b. 14th March, 1823), was my great great grandmother, and I have definitively linked myself to her, and then her to Catherine, wife of John Trowbridge from Dorset OPC/FamilySearch christening records, and census records for Hannah through the years:
John Trowbridge and CATHERINE (aka "Kitty") (all at Sixpenny Handley):
Frederic/Frederick, chr. 15 Jul 1821; bur. 21 October 1821.
HANNAH, chr. 14 Mar 1823; [d/o John, & Catherine, TROWBRIDGE, labourer of Handley]
Betsy, chr. 29 Jan 1826;
George 1829; (no records)
John, chr. 6 Nov 1831; bur. 2 Oct 1832)

As far as I can determine there is only one John Trowbridge/Trobige, in Sixpenny Handley, Dorset, throughout the early 1800s, so...

1821, Feb 22nd - John Trowbridge (b. Pentridge [c.mid/late 1790s]) marries CHRISTIAN Luckaes (or Luckas) (it's spelt "Luckaes" on the record of the marriage - Luckas is crossed out then Luckaes written in - as both John Trowbridge and Christian Luckaes signed the certificate with their "mark" I'm sure it wasn't them that pointed out the spelling error!!) at Sixpenny Handley, Dorset. (Rector: Phil Rideout of Farnham; Witnesses: Marther[sic] Dibben, Thomas Luckas) (Rideout actually spells the grooms surname as Trowbridge and Trobridge on the same certificate!)
I'm wondering if Rideout was hearing "Lu-kays" as opposed to Lucas - there were a lot of Lucas/Luckas/Lucasses in the area so he shouldn't have had a problem with spelling Luckas... Does this signify Christian was from a different area (Cornwall have Luckeys, and the Dutch and Germans have Luckaes...???)

Given the christening records, did Christian change her name (or become to be know as) Catherine (aka Kitty)?

Her last son, John dies after 11 months, and then within the year:

1834, June 10th - Anne Frampton, widower, marries John Trowbridge, widow, Sixpenny Handley.

Possible that Christian/Catherine/Kitty dies in child birth, or complications arising from that later??
(FindMyPast has records of a couple of stays at Salisbury Infirmary for a Kitty Trowbridge 19th March 1831 and 25th June 1831 (trouble with Johns pregnancy?) but how to find out if this is "my" Kitty?, like where she was from, I don't know, unless the online transcription is incomplete and there's more detail on the actual record [?]) John dies after 11 months.

1841 Census: John Trobige, Anne Trobige, HANNAH, Betsy & George are at Deanlane, Sixpenny Handley with two of Anne Frampton's kids Josiah Frampton 15 & Frederick Frampton 14.

1851 Cenus: John Trowbridge, with Anne, and George, still Deanlane, Sixpenny Handley
(1851 Hannah Trowbridge is witness to a wedding, and 1851 Census has Hannah in Pentridge, she's a cook at the Woodyates Inn (unmarried, 28), owned by (Tom) John Hayter - Hayters father, also John, was an employer of John Trowbridge and his father).

I have no divorce/death/burial details for either a Christian or Catherine Trowbridge, but OPC doesn't not have later records available.

There is a recorded death for Katherine Lucas, 7 May 1834, age 35, Parish of Sixpenny Handley, but if this is "my" Christian/Catherine why use her maiden name? (And if it is her, John and Anne sure get married real quick after her death!)

Just to confuse things further, on 27th December 1792 Christian Lucas was baptised at Donhead St Mary, Wiltshire (just a short walk across the border!) father Thomas mother Elizabeth. I cannot find a brother Thomas for her but there was a Thomas Lucas baptised also in Donhead St Mary 23rd September 1798 but his parents were George and Hannah - interestingly the names of two of John and Christian's children, so possible family connection?? But I can't find any definitive links.

(More on HANNAH Trowbridge:
1851 Census: Hannah is in Pentridge (it's only a walk away, where her father John was born. She's a servant (cook at the Woodyates Inn, Pentridge) of Tom John Hayter and wife Elizabeth. (Some link to John Trowbridge? or John's father with Hayter Snr. at Woodyates Manor? John Trowbridge senior was a foreman for him.)
1854 she was in Durley Hampshire marrying James May.
1855 she gives birth to Mary Jane May... my mother's great grandmother).

As I can't just pop down to the local archive and check through their records all my info has been gathered via online sources - I had a years membership to Ancestry, and right now I have a special €1 month sub to Find My Past (which is why I'm re-energized to try again!). They have records Ancestry didn't, but also missing most of what I'd found on Ancestry/Family Search/Dorest OPC/Free BMD/CEN/REG and other) - one of the Dorset OPC "Parish Clerks" did kindly do a "preliminary" search of the actual archive at Dorchester, although I think this was limited to a computer search at The Dorset History Centre on the names "Christian Luckaes" and "Catherine Trowbridge" rather than a physical search, unfortunately without more being revealed).

Thanks for any help.
(Apologies for mixed American and English spelling!)

Jim Stallard
mtDNA lineage: Barnes; Warner; May; Trowbridge; Luckaes?...

[peterd]

My main sticking points are the names - Christian to Catherine (which has been documented for other women), and then on the marriage certificate Luckas is crossed out and Luckaes written in - I'm reticent to "assume" that Luckaes is really Luckass/Luckas/Lucass/Lucas. (Although there is a Thomas LUCKAS as witness.)

well you can assume the family name is luckas as thomas signs his name and christian cannot write so who wrote it spelt it wrong

[BC Wench]

Is this still a Brickwall, or have you solved it?

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