Mary Ann Hall's Marriage to "Tho" French Most Likely Incorrect

For years it has been recorded in Hall family records that Thomas Hall's sister, Mary Ann Hall, married a "Tho" French. I searched for the marriage record and found it. A Mary Ann Hall and a Tho French were married 28 May 1826 in Newton Longville, Buckingham, England.[1] I looked at a map of England and noticed that Buckinghamshire is a fair distance away from Liverpool. I found it unlikely that a twenty-year-old girl would have married a man as far away as Buckinghamshire, especially when it is much more common for a couple to marry in the wife's parish. Therefore, I decided to disprove that this marriage record was pertinent to our Mary Ann Hall (1806).

The first step I took, which proved successful, was to search specifically for another Mary Ann Hall, but this time I searched for her in Buckinghamshire. I found her! She was christened 15 Jul 1804 in Newton Longville, Buckingham, England. Her father was listed as Rob. Hall and her mother as Eliz.[2] It is understandable that someone may have assumed this was the same Mary Ann since the parent's names are the same. But, all the evidence together, including the distance between the two locations, makes a very good case that our Mary Ann Hall was not married to Tho French. Therefore, we are back at square one in our search for Mary Ann.


[1] 28 May 1826 marriage for Mary Ann Hall and Tho French, Newton Longville, Buckingham, England. Familysearch.org, accessed 12 Sep 2013.  Film number 599898.

[2] 15 Jul 1804 christening for Mary Anne Hall, Newton Longville, Buckingham, England, Familysearch.org, accessed 12 Sep 2013. Film number 599898.