Genealogy Chat

My understanding of these is that they were the Victorian equivalent of the CSA - chasing errant fathers for financial support. I have an illegitimate birth from 1843 in Hampshire - would the bond help me find details about where the child lived etc? If so how do I go about finding it? Also would the bond have been made in Hampshire or Wiltshire (where the father lived)? Thank you all! Sarah

Can't really answer your question, but just wanted to say that there is no guanantee that there was a bastardy bond issued. Some mothers just wouldn't name the father. Kath. x

Suprisingly, the father is named on the birth certificate! Especially as he was married to someone else!!! S.

As I understood I thought that bond was made by the Parish who would have to support the child. They have been indexed by my local family history society in my local archive centre however none of my illegitimate children that are in my tree are in there. Pippa

As far as I know Bastardy bonds are kept by the Parish, but here is some info I found, Bastardy Examination - mother examined before a magistrate, or by midwife whilst in labour (early 18th century) to determine the name of the child's father. Bastardy Warrant - Constable ordered to find the man named by the mother and bring him before magistrate to organise recognizance - OR - to find the putative father who has absconded, escaped from custody, hasn't paid up, etc. Bastardy Recognizance - like a bail bond - the father is to appear at next Quarter Sessions and case continued until child born. Bastardy Summons - tells a Constable to bring a man to court. Bastardy Order - made out after the child was born - gives details of who is to pay what. An example of Bastardy orders can be seen at: Lincolnshire Lent Assizes. Bastardy Certificate - overseers of parish to which the child is chargeable certify that the man has paid up - OR - certifies that an Order has been made out - in both cases the father is released from the recognizance. Bastardy Bond - entered into by a bondsmen and sureties to say that they will indemnify the parish to which the child is chargeable from all costs (mainly found before 1800). Notice of Application for Bastardy Order (used after 1834) sent to the putative father (Quarter Sessions only).

Wow! That's pretty good going! So... Parish records are the next step then? S.

I think so! although I have come across some just googling the web, which list names etc, unfortunately I didnt add them to my faves! will be doing that from now!

I've always come across these documents in the Poor Law Records for that particular parish. I'm afraid my family had quite a few! Also in some overseer accounts they have details of money paid and any defaulters! I must admit that these documents don't go much past the 1840s as the system was changing in the parishes with the slow introduction of the Poor Law Amendment Act of 1834 which made it more likely that the woman and child would just go into the workhouse. The LDS libraries have good collections of many parish Poor Law records/overseer accounts and I use them a lot as they give a very good picture of life in the villages if your people were poor. The bastardy documents will probably only give the parish of the woman and the parish of the man. Jan

Yes, I was thinking that. Poor girls, eh? And what about all the incest cases?

Some Bastardy Bonds for certain counties can be found on the A2A website. Sam x

Having recently given birth I can assure you that anyone who tried to ask me anything got little more than a mouthful of explitives, including my husband! Ok, forgive the naivity of the question: Where would I find Poor Law records - presumably at the County records office? I see a trip to Winchester coming up.... Sarah

Bump for Lorraine X

Sarah Sorry to rain on your parade, but you say that the father is named on the Birth Certificate. This is extremely unusual for an illegitimate child and meant that either the father registered the birth himself and declared himself to be the father, or he accompanied the mother to the Registrar and asked that his name be put on the cert as father. In which case, he obviously was proud to be the father of this child and I doubt very much indeed if any formal Bastardy or Affiliation Order was taken out in the Courts. Much more likely that an arrangement was made privately through a Solicitor, or even on a handshake agreement with the mother. Your chances of finding any such private agreement are just about nil, I would have thought - still, I am a pessimist! Olde Crone

I too have a father named on a birth cert for a illigitimate child he never turned up at the church for the wedding but they also lied about the mothers name and gave the aunts, as she brought the child up instead of her sister and as she was married I suppose it made more sense, I am suprised if he did not want to get married that he did not mind his name being on the birth cert must go now BB6 to watch KINGA IS BACK

Nudge for Kaz Elly