A Theory Regarding the Ancestry of William Rudge of London and Portsea, England

The following is a tentative theory regarding 1. William Rudge's ancestry. It stems from the discovery of records pertaining to a heretofore unknown son of William and his wife Hannah, Edward Rudge, and in particular a christening record that connects William Rudge to Smethwick, Staffordshire, England.

The Smethwick christening record for Edward fits within the time frame that William and Hannah were having children. The Smethwick christening record for what I allege refers to William his father is also age appropriate for our William. There is also a broad similarity in the pattern of how children were named by Samuel and later his alleged first son William on this account.

There is evidence this Smethwick christening record for Edward in fact refers to William and Hannah's son Edward who married Caroline Blindell. In a record of his second marriage to Adele Bethaire, he is identified as having been born in the parish of Smethwick, Stafford on 1 Jan 1807, precisely as stated in the Smethwick christening record.

We must now establish that the christening record of William Rudge noted below is indeed our William Rudge. If Samuel or Elizabeth had a will or estate papers that referred to him, the connection could be directly established. Determining when our William Rudge was born would also be helpful.

Finally, there is one piece of evidence that might dispute that this William is indeed ours. There is a second christening record that refers to the birth of a Sarah Rudge, daughter of William and Hannah that takes place on 12 Apr 1795 in Sedgley, Staffordshire, England. This is a different locality and takes place 5 years before our William and Hannah were married. While it is estimated nearly 10% of all marriages in England at this time took place after the birth of the first child, I note that our Hannah is described as a minor in her marriage reacord, which makes it quite unlikely that she could have had a daughter in 1795.

First Generation

1. Samuel1 RUDGE.. He apparently married Elizabeth - ca. 1775. [We need to be very cautious - I've determined that the LDS records only refer to christenings in Smethwick; marriages and burials that took place in Smethwick are not included.]

They appear to be the couple referred to in the following record of marriage, which is the only one referring to the marriage of a Samuel Rudge and Elizabeth during the period 1765-1785:

MARRIAGE RECORD: Samuel RUDGE married Elizabeth CARR on 18 Dec 1775 at St. Martin, Birmingham, England.. (Marriage records of St. Martin, Birmingham, England, LDS Batch no. M010722, Sheet 00, Source no. 0919765-0919767, Printout 6900689)

Samuel RUDGE and Elizabeth CARR had the following children: 

	2	i.	Ann2 RUDGE
	3	ii.	William2 RUDGE
	4	iii.	Elizabeth2 RUDGE
	5	iv.	Samuel2 RUDGE
	6	v.	Sarah2 RUDGE
	7	vi.	John2 RUDGE
	8	vii.	Phoebe2 RUDGE

Second Generation

2. Ann2 RUDGE (Samuel1). She was born ca. 1776 in Smethwick, Staffordshire, England.

BAPTISM RECORD: "30 Jun 1776 Ann daughter of Samuel & Elizabeth Rhudge" (Baptism Records for Smethwick, Staffordshire, England; LDS Batch no. C061732, Sheet 00, Source no. 0421591, Printout 1037057).

3. William2 RUDGE (Samuel1). He was born ca. 1778 in Smethwick, Staffordshire, England.

BAPTISM RECORD: "6 Jan 1778 William son of Samuel & Elizabeth Rhudge" (Baptism Records for Smethwick, Staffordshire, England; LDS Batch no. C061732, Sheet 00, Source no. 0421591, Printout 1037057).

4. Elizabeth2 RUDGE (Samuel1). She was born ca. 1780 in Smethwick, Staffordshire, England.

BAPTISM RECORD: "30 Jan 1780 Elizabeth daughter of Samuel & Elizabeth Rhudge" (Baptism Records for Smethwick, Staffordshire, England; LDS Batch no. C061732, Sheet 00, Source no. 0421591, Printout 1037057).

5. Samuel2 RUDGE (Samuel1). He was born ca. 1783 in Smethwick, Staffordshire, England.

BAPTISM RECORD: "25 May 1783 Samuel son of Samuel & Elizabeth Rudge" (Baptism Records for Smethwick, Staffordshire, England; LDS Batch no. C061732, Sheet 00, Source no. 0421591, Printout 1037057).

6. Elizabeth2 RUDGE (Samuel1). She was born ca. 1788 in Smethwick, Staffordshire, England.

BAPTISM RECORD: "1 Jun 1788 Elizabeth daughter of Samuel & Elizabeth Rhudge" (Baptism Records for Smethwick, Staffordshire, England; LDS Batch no. C061732, Sheet 00, Source no. 0421591, Printout 1037057).

7. John2 RUDGE (Samuel1). He was born ca. 1795 in Smethwick, Staffordshire, England.

BAPTISM RECORD: "6 Jan 1795 John son of Samuel & Elizabeth Rhudge" (Baptism Records for Smethwick, Staffordshire, England; LDS Batch no. C061732, Sheet 00, Source no. 0421591, Printout 1037057).

8. Phoebe2 RUDGE (Samuel1). She was born ca. 1799 in Smethwick, Staffordshire, England.

This appears to be a reference to another child of Samuel and Elizabeth Rudge, as it occurs in the same location as their other christenings and there are no other couples surnamed Rudge in Smethwick having children at this time.

BAPTISM RECORD: "7 Jul 1799 Phoebe Rudge" (Baptism Records for Smethwick, Staffordshire, England; LDS Batch no. C061732, Sheet 00, Source no. 0421591, Printout 1037057).

If you recognize any of the names here and would like to contact me, here's my email address: david.rudge@wmich.edu.

Links to branches of the Rudge family associated with: Evesham , Gloucester, Cirencester, North Carolina, and Brazil.

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Last updated on 11 Jan 2008