Finding the Ind Ancestors of an Baldock Brewer

Baldock

Brewing

Miriam was having difficulty in finding the parents of James Ind - the earliest "known" brewer in the history of the Ind Coope Brewery group. Prior to his marriage the surname Ind was effectively unknown in Hertfordshire and none of the contemporary records (which included a newspaper report of his death) gave any indication as to his likely date of birth. I therefore decided to closely consider the evidence available in the marriage register - which supported his social status - and included a witness, Robert Ind, that could well be his brother. Records in HALS and in early newspapers support the link between Robert and James, and provides an age at death for Robert.

Help Desk

With this information family search came up with brothers James (baptised 1754) and Robert (baptised 1756), the children of Robert Ind and his wife Ann Ralph who married in Huntingdonshire in 1749. I also found another James Ind, a farmer in Fenstanton, Huntingdonshire, who might represent an earlier generation. As the Fenstanton farm included a maltings it is possible that the brewing history of the Ind family can be pushed back two further generations - but this will need more research in Huntingdonshire records to establish. For details of this wide-ranging research, which brings together information from many different sources, see IND, Baldock, 18th century.

Did your American Ancestor come from Hertfordshire?

Help Desk

When many Americans research their family tree they often get to a point where they almost certainly came from England (and may even have details of the ship that brought them). Frequently there is no clear indication as to where in England they may have come from. Mara has such a problem with her 18th century Elborn ancestors but, as I demonstrated in an earlier query  ELBORN, Hertfordshire area, 19th Century, the name is very much linked to the counties of Buckinghamshire. Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire. In my reply I gave her some general advice (which you may find useful if you have a similar problem) and referred her to the advice page My Ancestors Emigrated from Hertfordshire. I also gave some specific advice on the Hertfordshire Militia Lists for tracing men in the second half of the 18th century.

When things get difficult - Which Joseph is which??

Diane has hit a brick wall. Joseph Norris married Mary Wheeler and had a number of children  baptised in Berkhamsted St Peter. The problem is that there were two baptisms for Joseph, and a detailed analysis is unable to reliably identify which Joseph married Mary. My answer NORRIS, Berkhamsted & Northchurch, 18th century contains information which could be relevant to anyone with a similar problem in the 18th century - when there is no census returns to help, but where militia lists can be useful. The case is a classic  Right Name, Wrong Body" , and all I can suggest is what I do when I hit a serious brick wall in my own research.