Person:Elizabeth Saunders (52)

Elizabeth Saunders' origins have yet to be established. One possibility is that she was the daughter of William Saunders and Elizabeth Ireland baptised at Luton on 13th September 1724, but this has yet to be proven.

Elizabeth's first confirmed sighting is on 8th November 1745 when she married John Marshall at Luton. They settled at Chiltern Green, a hamlet in the south-east of Luton parish close to the county boundary with Hertfordshire. They appear to have had six children baptised at Luton between 1747 and 1760. Neither John nor Elizabeth has been traced after the baptism of their youngest child in 1760.

1.   Church of England. Parish registers of St Mary, Luton, 1603-1944. (Bedford: Bedfordshire and Luton Archives and Record Service).

   Baptiz[ed] Anno 1724
   Sept[ember] 13: Eliz[abeth] Saunders daugh[ter] of William & Eliz[abeth]

   This baptism appears most likely in terms of being at a plausible time and in the same parish in which the adult Elizabeth married and had her children. There is no sign of the Elizabeth baptised in 1724 having died young in Luton. However, no direct evidence linking the adult Elizabeth who married John Marshall to the child has yet been found.