Hello from the Jamboree and greetings to all my gentle readers.
This brief glance into this great event will be expanded tomorrow and Sunday. Lots of special people are here and there are products to test and buy galore.
And of course there is me. I spoke on American Church Records today. And I wish you could’ve seen the jaws drop when I told about the marriage permission records–if a couple did not have enough assets to meet the legal requirement for a permit, they could not marry. So they went home to collect together more stuff–dowry and gifts and money and property from their relatives and friends. Some couples might have to apply for permission to marry three or four times! Each time they applied, you get more information about them and their families.
For Australia, with a British background, there is Sarah Smith who was not permitted to marry her Tommy Webb–by whom she had already had several children. They were not permitted to marry, because they could not support 7 Family members! So they lived together anyway, and had more kids. [When I get home I’ll give you the citation for this wonderful example.] So stay tuned.
The Church, in many places, was the legal guardian for marriage and the government supported by law this arrangement. Your favorite genealogist, Arlene Eakle http://arleneeakle.com