The death of Josiah Platts

The above is the certified copy of Josiah Platt's entry into the Death Registry. Here is my best translation:

Application No. COL 864309
Registration District: Belper
1850 Death in the Subdistrict of Worksworth in the County of Derby

No. 222
When and where died: Thirtieth April 1850, Lea (town)
Name and Surname: Josiah Platts
Sex: Male
Age: 53 years
Occupation: Bookkeeper
Cause of Death: Dropsy, 4 months, Not Certified
Signature, description and residence of informant: Samuel Platts [son], in attendance, Lea
When Registered: Fourth May 1850
Signature of Registrar: Marcellus Peal, Registrar

Some notes and comments on Josiah's Death:

1) Dropsy was our ancestor's term for Edema (swelling), which was usually caused by kidneys or heart disease (especially congestive heart failure).
2) Not Certified means that the death was not attended by a physician or other official who would have treated or verified the disease. The local constable would inquire into these deaths if deemed suspicious.
3) Samuel was very much in demand to witness family events. He was about 16 when he attended and reported his father's death. He also attended and reported his mother's death and he was the witness to John & Sarah Platt's wedding.

Two out of Three Ain't Bad

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Woo Hoo! In my last blog, I said I was looking for John Platt's birthcertificate, his parent's marriage certificate and his mother's maiden name. Well, I got two out of three within several days of posting, and am absolutely thrilled.

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The above is John Platt's birth certificate, and as an added bonus, it lists his mother's maiden name as Stocks! I ordered it from the General Register Office (GRO) online, and received it within a week! I tested ordering this online vs. the traditional mail in a request, and the latter took over a month. The link for the GRO is http://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content/certificates/ You can also Google "GRO Ordering" and it pops right up.

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Transcription of the birth certificate with the printed form in regular type, input information in bold, and handwritten info in italic:

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Banner across top:

on left: Certified Copy of an Entry of Birth

on right: Given at the General Register Office, Application Number COL030859

Top Box:

Registration District Belper

1838 Birth in the Sub-district of Wirksworth in the Country of Derby

Middle Box:

No. 273

When and Where Born: Eighth of December 1838 at Holloway

Name: John

Sex: Male

Name and Surname of Father: Josiah Platts

Name, Surname and maiden surname of Mother: Martha Platts formerly Stocks

Occupation of father: Book Keeper

Signature, description and residence of informant: X The mark of Martha Platts, mother, Holloway

When Registered: Twenty second of December 1838

Signature of Registrar: Marcellus Peale, Registrar

Name entered after registration: [lined through]

Below middle box:

Certified to be a true copy of an entry in the certified copy of a Register of Births in the District above mentioned. Given at the General Register Office, under the Seal of the said Office, the 16th day of March 2007.

Again, I will not be transcribing the small print at the bottom of the form.

Who's Who -- Josiah and Martha Platt's Family

As per the previous marriage certificate in the previous post, John Platts' father was Josiah Platts. Looking at on-line British records (starting 1837), I was able to locate most of the family.
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Josiah Platts married Martha (maiden name unknown) and had the following children:
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William Platts (b. abt 1825)
Anne Platts (b. abt. 1828)
Joseph Platts (b. abt 1829)
James Platts (b. abt 1831)
Samuel Platts (b. abt 1833)
Henry Platts (b. abt 1835)
John Platts (b. abt 1837)
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All children appear to be born in Holloway, Ashford, Derbyshire, England.
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I am still looking for John Platt's birth certificate, Josiah & Martha's marriage certificate and Martha's maiden name.

The Marriage of John Platts and Sarah Redfern

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As promised, this is the marriage certification for John Platts and Sarah Redfern. A big thank you to my sister Gina, Thomas Arakawa and the Krause Center for Innovation for help with the scan (my scanners are not working).

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Although I am posting the scans and pictures better, the above is still hard to read. My transcription is below, the regular type is printed on the certificate and the italic is for the items that were handwritten in.
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Top left: CERTIFIED COPY OF AN ENTRY OF MARRIAGE

Top Right:

Given at the GENERAL REGISTER OFFICE

Application Number PAS1129995

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Across top, inside box:

1867. Marriage Solemnized at the Parish Church in the Parish of Matlock in the County of Derby.

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First box: No. 284

Second box: Wh. married June 12th

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Remaining boxes, lines for groom:

Name and Surname: John Platts

Age: 28

Condition: Widower

Rank or Profession: Framesmith

Residence at time of Marriage: Ashover Lea

Father's Name and Surname: Josiah Platts (deceased)

Rank or Profession of Father: Accountant

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Remaining boxes, lines for bride:

Name and Surname: Sarah Redfern

Age: 20

Condition: Spinster*

Rank or Profession: Worker in Factory

Residence at time of Marriage: Matlock Riber

Father's Name and Surname: Henry Redfern

Rank or Profession of Father: Farmer

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Line along bottom of boxes: Married in the Parish Church according to the Rites and Ceremonies of the Established Church after Banns by me, Charles Jones, Curate of Matlock

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Bottom of box:

This marriage was solemnized by us, John Platts, Sarah Redfern, in the Presence of us, Samuel Platts, Selina Hutchinson

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Bottom of Form, below box:

Certified to be a true copy of an entry in the certified copy of a register of Marriages in the Registration District of Bakewell, Given at the General Register Office, under the seal of such office , the 19th day of January 2007.

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[The rest is legal small print that does not pertain to the Platts/Redfern marriage and I am not going to transcribe]

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*Spinster refers to a woman who has never married; it did not get it's "old maid" connotation until around the 1920s, long after this marriage!

Who's Who -- John & Sarah Platt's Family

John Platts (b. abt 1837) married Sarah Redfern (b. abt 1847) in Derbyshire, England in 1867. I have ordered a marriage certificate which I hope to post soon. They had the following children:

Samuel Platts (b. abt. 1868, Holloway, Ashover, Derbyshire, England)
Anne E. Platts (b. abt. 1869, Holloway, Ashover, Derbyshire, England)
William Platts (b. abt. 1871, Holloway, Ashover, Derbyshire, England)
Albert John Platts (b. 16 June 1873, Wellington, Guelph, Ontario, Canada)
Thomas Platts (b. 23 Mar 1875, Wellington, Guelph, Ontario, Canada)
Mary Ellen Platts (b. 9 Dec 1876, Wellington, Guelph, Ontario, Canada)
Clara Platts (b. 10 Jul 1878, Wellington, Guelph, Ontario, Canada)
Alfred Platts (b. 29 Sep 1879, Wellington, Guelph, Ontario, Canada)

When looking at a family group from the 1800's, I am always amazed at how many kids they had, and so soon apart. However, it can be a big help too! In looking at the above, the family's move from England to Canada is very narrowed down to around 1872!

Holloway, Ashover, Derbyshire

Derbyshire is a County north of London. This county holds about 100 years (at least) of Platts history. It is a beautiful area, with many farms and rural areas. However, it was also swept up in the Industrial Revolution, with mining and the manufacturing of hosiery being major markets in this area.

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From 1841 to 1880, the Platts lived in the following cities: Holloway, Lea, (including Lea Bridges, a part of Lea) and Ashover. All of these cities were very close to one another and were located in the Belper District of Derbyshire. Other cities in Derbyshire that are Platts-related are Criche (where censuses state Martha Stocks Platts was from) and Matlock (where Sarah Redfern Platts came from, according to censuses).

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I'll be posting the census information for the Platts in the next few blogs, from 1841 through to 1930. This should lead us from Derbyshire back to the States. Along the way, I'll point out how the Platts were both influenced by and reflect the periods that they live in.

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For more information on the history of Derbyshire, visit http://www.visitderbyshire.co.uk/default.ihtml

Albert Platt's Birth Registry

Margaret Platts married Charles Scheel (see previous posts), and in one of the quirks of genealogy, I am able to trace her line (the Platts side) back to 1841. Because it is so rare to be able to trace back four generations at a shot, I will be taking the opportunity to do so.
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I will be starting with this post on her father's birth, then moving back via family who's who until her great-grandfather in 1841 in England. I will then move forward with the Census and Directory informaiton that I have until 1930 (last US Census released), ending with Margaret & Charles' family on that census.
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Albert's Birth Registry is on the center bottom, left side. Translation:

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Header:

Page #216

SCHEDULE 'A' - BIRTHS

Registration District of Wellington

Division of Guelph

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Birth Registry:

No. 119 (stamped 024120)

When Born: 16th June 1873

Name: Albert John Platts

Sex: M

Name and Surname of Father: John Platts

Name and Surname of Mother: Sarah Redfern

Rank or Profession of Father: Machinist

Signature of Informant: Sarah Platts

When Registered: 24 July 1873

Name of Accoucher: Dr. McGuire

Signature of Registrar: Geo. Harry?

[No comments written]

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Footer of Page:

I hereby certify the foregoing to be true and correct entries of all Births returned to me for the (1/2) year ending July 15, 1873

Given under my hand, this 28th day of July, AD 1873

John Harvey, Division Registrar of Guelph