Family:Jeremiah Puddephatt and Elizabeth Hall (1)

Between 1803 and 1812 there were two couples called Jeremiah and Elizabeth Puddephatt living in the Caddington area - the couple the subject of this page (Jeremiah Puddephatt and Elizabeth Hall) and Jeremiah Puddephatt and Elizabeth Smith who had married in 1793 at Kensworth. Between them, the two couples appear to have had 12 children over nearly 30 years:

ch. 31 Aug 1794, Caddington: Sarah Puddephatt

ch. 8 May 1796, Caddington: John Smith Puddephatt

ch. 9 Dec 1798, Caddington: Jeremiah Puddephatt

ch. 1 Feb 1801, Studham: Samuel Puddephat

ch. 3 Jul 1803, Caddington: Jeremiah Puddephatt

ch. 4 Nov 1804, Studham: Elizabeth Puddephat

ch. 17 May 1807, Caddington: William Puddephatt

ch. 8 May 1808, Caddington: John Puddephatt

ch. 10 Feb 1811, Caddington: Sophia Puddephatt

ch. 24 Apr 1814, Caddington: Susannah Puddephat

ch. 15 Jun 1817, Caddington: William Puddephat

ch. 19 Oct 1823, Caddington: Elizabeth Puddephatt

The Jeremiah Puddephatt married to Elizabeth Smith died in 1812, so we can be sure that Susannah in 1814, William in 1817 and Elizabeth in 1823 belong to the Elizabeth Hall couple. As Jeremiah Puddephatt and Elizabeth Hall did not marry until 1803, we presume Sarah in 1794, John Smith in 1796, Jeremiah in 1798 and Samuel in 1801 belong to Jeremiah Puddephatt and Elizabeth Smith. The Jeremiah married to Elizabeth Smith also left a will, written the month before he died, which refers to his five children Sarah, John, Jeremiah, Samuel and William.

As we know the Sophia baptised in 1811 lived to adulthood and married, we presume that she must belong to Jeremiah Puddephatt and Elizabeth Hall, as if she belonged to the other couple she would have been named in the other Jeremiah's will. Sophia also has the Elizabeth baptised in 1823 living with her in the 1841 census.

John Smith Puddephatt 1796 appears as an adult in the censuses of 1841, 1851 and 1861. This suggests he must be the John named in the other Jeremiah's will, and therefore the John baptised in 1808 must belong to Jeremiah Puddephatt and Elizabeth Hall. Similarly, the Jeremiah baptised in 1798 seems to appear in the 1851 census, which means the Jeremiah baptised in 1803 must belong to Jeremiah Puddephatt and Elizabeth Hall.

This still leaves the Elizabeth baptised in 1804 to disentangle. Whichever couple Elizabeth belonged to, she appears to have died young, being buried on 21 Jan 1807 at Caddington aged two.

1. ↑ Marriage register, in Church of England. Caddington Parish Registers. (Bedford: Bedfordshire Record Office).

   No. 350
   Jeremiah Puddephatt of this Parish and Elizabeth Hall of the Parish of Kensworth in Hertfordshire were Married in this Church by Banns this thirty first Day of January in the Year One Thousand eight Hundred and three by me John Horseman, Curate of Luton
   This Marriage was solemnized between Us {Jeremiah Puddephatt / The mark X of Elizabeth Hall
   In the Presence of {John Puddephatt / Francis Smart

   Francis Smart witnessed most marriages in Caddington around this time, suggesting he was a church warden or similar.