Mike It is not a generalisation. It certainly happened more in 19th with the increased mobility but my family records and that of others for whom I have researched show it in earlier periods. Military families are one example with militia groups moving around the country. Not all baptisms are shown in the parish records (unfortunately) as many have been either lost, never recorded from the church record or made it to other records eg Bishops Transcripts for Church of England. I have one ancestor who had 24 children from 2 marriages and the youngest 4 from 1st marriage were eventually baptised with some of their half siblings from the 2nd marriage when the family moved out of London and back to the father's ancestral village. This is just one example.
Carol > From: mike...@iafrica.com > To: LegacyUserGroup@LegacyUsers.com > Subject: Re: [LegacyUG] Baptism and Christening > Date: Tue, 20 Dec 2011 10:14:59 +0200 > > On 2011/12/20 09:39, cr brassfield wrote: > > > I wish to pick up from message below 'it was a reasonable assumption that > > the > > birth date was a month or so earlier'(than baptism). Not necessarily. > > Families > > often liked to have children baptised at the church where their family may > > have > > worshipped for generations so if they had moved away and couldn't afford to > > keep > > returning after each birth then their children would all be baptised at the > > same > > time when they were able to make the journey. Before civil registration in > > 1837 > > this can sometimes prove a problem about a child's age if there is no other > > documentation available. It is, therefore, important to show both birth and > > baptism dates if you have them. > > Another generalisation! Families, particularly rural, English families, had > children baptised where it was convenient, and often, within a day or two of > the > birth. What you're referring to tended to happen from the middle of the > nineteenth century when there was far more mobility amongst the working > classes, > and it became a custom for the mother to return to her parents parish for the > birth of the first child. > > Look at the PRs! > > -- > Regards, > Mike Fry > Johannesburg > > > Legacy User Group guidelines: > http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/Etiquette.asp > Archived messages after Nov. 21 2009: > http://www.mail-archive.com/legacyusergroup@legacyusers.com/ > Archived messages from old mail server - before Nov. 21 2009: > http://www.mail-archive.com/legacyusergroup@legacyfamilytree.com/ > Online technical support: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/Help.asp > Follow Legacy on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/LegacyFamilyTree) and on > our blog (http://news.LegacyFamilyTree.com). > To unsubscribe: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/LegacyLists.asp > > Legacy User Group guidelines: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/Etiquette.asp Archived messages after Nov. 21 2009: http://www.mail-archive.com/legacyusergroup@legacyusers.com/ Archived messages from old mail server - before Nov. 21 2009: http://www.mail-archive.com/legacyusergroup@legacyfamilytree.com/ Online technical support: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/Help.asp Follow Legacy on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/LegacyFamilyTree) and on our blog (http://news.LegacyFamilyTree.com). To unsubscribe: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/LegacyLists.asp