Sarah Ann (Wootton) Sells (1849 - 1919)

Born 21 Jan 1849 in Two Waters, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, England, United Kingdom

Ancestors

Wife of George Sells — married 14 Feb 1869 in St John's, Boxmoor, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, England, United Kingdom

Descendants

Died Dec 1919 at age 70 in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, England, United Kingdom

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Biography

Sarah Ann Wootton was born on 21 Jan 1849 in Two Waters, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, England, United Kingdom. She was the daughter of James Wootton and Emma Wootton.^[1]

It would appear that Sarah was an illegitimate child, as her mother Emma had been married to Thomas Axtell for 6 years. The marriage had been childless until that point, but 4 half sisters followed:

• Charlotte Axtell (1850–1906)
• Maria Elizabeth Axtell (1852–1889)
• Louisa Axtell (1859–1945)
• Harriet Axtell (1861–1938)

Sarah (20) married George Sells (21) (born on 24 Jul 1847 in Hemel Hempstead) on 14 Feb 1869 in St John's, Boxmoor, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, England, United Kingdom.^[2] A copy of the marriage certificate can be viewed here. Sarah's father is named as James Wootton, Labourer. The witnesses were Thomas and Sarah Ann Latchford.

The couple had 7 children;

• Elizabeth Sophia Sells 1869–1956
• Emma Sells 1871–1899
• George Emanuel Sells 1875–
• Annie Jane Sells 1879–
• Arthur Sells 1884–
• Harold Sells 1885–1885
• Horace Sells 1887–

Sarah's death (age 71) was registered in Dec quarter 1919 at Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, England, United Kingdom.^[3]

Research notes

Sarah Ann, born in 1849, had James Wooton listed as her father on her birth and marriage certificates. Her mother, Emma, married Thomas Axtell in 1842.

Sarah Ann's birth in 1849 suggests an illegitimate relationship between her mother and James Wooton, and raises questions about it possibly beng an incestuous or abusive situation.

Emma, being the informant to the birth registration, may have kept Sarah Ann's true parentage from Thomas. The 1951 and 1961 census entries use the surname Axtell. Her true father was revealed or found out by her, as she used the name Wooton on her marriage certificate and signed it as such.

Emma and Thomas had four more daughters, Charlotte, Maria, Louisa and Harriet.

Thomas vanished about the time Emma became pregnant with Harriet, as indicated by his absence from census records. Perhaps he discovered or was told the truth about Sarah Ann? He appears to have never returned to his family.

The Cestui que Vie Act 1666, stating a person could be declared dead after seven years without contact, might explain Thomas' disappearance and Emma's subsequent remarriage. Harriet Axtell, born in April 1861, likely arrived after Thomas had deserted Emma, leaving about 6 and a half years without communication.

Probably due to this law, Emma remarried in 1866 and was labeled on the marrage certificate as "widowed."

Thomas was not dead. Records show him as an inmate in two different Lancashire workhouses in 1871 and 1891, listed as "married" and then as a "widower."

Sources

1. ↑ Birth Registration: "England & Wales Birth Index"
   FreeBMD Entry Information (accessed 30 October 2023)
   Wooton, Sarah Ann.
   GRO Reference: 1849 Jan-Feb-Mar in Hemel Hempd Volume VI Page 584.
2. ↑ Marriage: "FreeReg UK Parish Register database"
   Hertfordshire; Boxmoor; St John the Evangelist; Parish Register; File line number: 119
   FreeReg Transcription (accessed 29 October 2023)
   Sarah Ann Wootton (full age) marriage to George Sells (full age) on 14 Feb 1869 in Boxmoor, Hertfordshire, England.
3. ↑ Death Registration: "England & Wales General Register Office"
   GRO Online Indexes - Death (accessed 30 October 2023)
   Sells, Sarah (Age at death: 71).
   GRO Reference: 1919 Oct-Nov-Dec in Hemel Hempstead Volume 03A Page 825.