Gay O'Neill (gayoneill @t bigpond.com), of Western Australia says: I am looking for help to find George Lines links. I have traced his son John Lines backwards from Australia. He arrived in South Australia in 1858 with his wife Maria Nash. He always told the family that he was from Middlesex so in tracing him I purchased his marriage certertificate that stated he was married in Shenley, Hertfordshire. His death certificate here in Australia stated he was born in Wheathampstead and his father's name was George. I then looked up the IGI and found the family in Wheathampstead. George Lines his father married Ann Dickerson in 1819. On the IGI it has George as being named Sines instead of Lines. So that was a challenge. I have also looked at the Parish records for Harpenden and for Wheathampstead finding the siblings of John. They were:

William 1819 Harpenden
George 1821 Harpenden
Edmund 1824 Harpenden
Sarah 1826 Harpenden
Samuel 1829 Wheathampstead
John (my ancestor) 1832 Wheathampstead
Eliza Harriet 1835 Wheathampstead

George was living in Batford Mills Harpenden Road. 1829-1832 approx. They then show up on the Parish Records as living in Troly Bottom in 1835. George Lines was listed as a Blacksmith.

Could George could be the son of James Lines and Elizabeth baptised November 1804 at St Albans. George marries Ann Dickerson in 1819 in Wheathampstead so this does not make him very old.... I am wondering if males did marry at 15-16 yrs old?

It is very important to check the original registers (in your case obtainable on microfilm at your nearest LDS Family History Centre) as these often contain additional information. While George (baptised 1804) was probably a baby he may not have been. For instance some people were slow at getting their children baptised and then had several, of varying ages, done at once. Sometimes examining the register will clarify this.

I'm not sure what the minimum age of marriage at the time you are interested in but if you were under 21 you needed the consent of your parents which meant a marriage licence. This should be recorded in the register - which therefore needs checking, and there may also be a record of the marriage license at HALS. If there was no licence, and no evidence that George Lines was a baby when he was baptised, I would be very wary of assuming that he was the son of James and Elizabeth Lines of St Albans especially as he did not call one of his sons James. Lines is a very common surname so errors can easily happen unless you check everything carefully - and don't just depend on indexes and brief tips on the internet. I suggest you read my web pages The Inheritance of Single Christian Names, and Right Name, Wrong Body. You may also find The Limits of Familysearch useful.

I would also like to find members of the family in the 1851 census and I wonder if the 19 year old John Lines who was living in St Albans was my ancestor?

The household you mention is in Bell Yard, St Peters, St Albans and consists of a 63 year old widow, Sophia Dixon, her widowed daughter Elizabeth Lines (so presumably born Elizabeth Dixon), two grandchildren John (19) and Eliza (13) who are presumably Elizabeth's children, and an unmarried daughter Mary Dixon (35). All but Sophia were born in St Albans. Bearing in mind how common the name is (for instance familysearch shows that 4 different John Lines were baptised in St Albans between June 1819 and July 1821) duplicates of approximately the same age are likely and there is no reason to believe this one is yours.

However your John was married in Shenley and his father was a backsmith. The 1851 Six Counties Post Office Court and Trade Directory (available from  ArchiveCDBooks) lists a George Lines as a Blacksmith at South Mims, Middlesex. As Shenley, Herts, is close by this could well be the family you want - and if you look at the microfilm for the 1851 census for South Mimms you may not only find your John - but also his father - together with his age and place of birth.

May 2002

Gay O'Neill (gayoneill @t bigpond.com), of Western Australia wrote that she was coming to England in May and provided some more information including the following: The Bedfordshire Census for 1851 shows George Lines, Head, Blacksmith, Married, 56, born Wheathampstead Herts, living Luton census address. Also in the house was Ann Lines, wife, married, 50, Bonnet Sewer, born Kimpton, Herts (this confirms my research on the Dickerson Family and three sisters one being Ann born 1801 in Kimpton all marrying in Wheathampstead.), Eliza Lines, Daughter, unmarried, 17, bonnet sewer, born Wheathampstead, Mahaliel Attwood, granddaughter, 6, at home, born Wheathampstead.

The name Mahaliel is unusual, and the name Mahala is more common with possible spelling variations Mahalia, Mahalah and Mahalath being recorded. I gather it is scriptural in origins but my source does not give a biblical reference. I suspect it is a name which hints at a nonconformist (probably Baptist) background.

The information about George Lines in Luton in 1851 suggested a search of the 1881 census which shows that there were a significant number of blacksmiths with the surname Lines which can be associated with Wheathampstead or adjacent villages - and occupations tended to run in families.  There would have been a limit on the number of blacksmiths who could find work in a village such as Wheathampstead so it would be quite natural for the "excess" sons to move out to nearby towns and villages - and it may be that all the following are related.

June 2002

Gay O'Neill (gayoneill @t bigpond.com) visited Hertfordshire, and found George Lines and his blacksmith shop in the 1841 Tithe Appointment and 1841 census returns for Wheathampstead.

If you can add to the information given above tell me.