edit existing person in tree

denisemascaro

My several times GreatGrandmother's name is Mary Ann Carling Ellery however in the tree it shows as Mary Ann Carling Boxhall (G9R3-62X). Her mother is Harriet Boxhall.

As her surname is incorrect it then gives her parents and further back but they are all wrong.

How do I change her surname, I do not know why it is wrong. This is on the tree that shows up via an email link to the person.

thank you

Denise Mascaro (Australia)

Chas Howell

@denisemascaro, also in FS Family Tree make sure Mary Ann Carling Ellery and Mary Ann Carling Boxwell are indeed the same person and not two separate individuals. Also verify that Mary Ann Carling did not marry an Ellery and a Boxwell. You may need to do more that just change a Surname. There had to be a reason someone used the other surname. You may have to remove an incorrect relationship etc. Just be careful!

Paul W

Having reviewed the details attached to Harriet Boxhall, perhaps I have misinterpreted the situation. She is described as a 33 year old spinster in the 1846 marriage record. True, she could have been cohabiting with William Boxhall, but adopted his name. But a witness at the marriage was Mary Ann Boxhall, suggesting perhaps a sister, so a Boxhall (not Chandler) maiden name.

My time is quite limited at the moment, or I would look further into the confusing identities here. The Sources section for Harriet Boxhall 9DXB-KH8 shows a 1815 Harriet Thorn baptism, with an 1836 marriage to William Boxhall. But there are also sources included for an 1813 Harriet Chandler baptism - and even one for an 1813 Harriet Lemon HALL baptism at Isles of Scilly - where did that come from?!

Your original question: "How do I change her surname?" is easy to answer in itself, but the situation is far from that simple as Chas Howell suggests.

denisemascaro

Hi Paul

Thank you so much, I am going to have a major rethink and more research. I had no idea Ellery was a step parent. I based my data on the marriage certificate between John Edwards and Mary Ann Carling Ellery which gave her father as George Ellery.

The line down is easy, I have documented it all. John and Mary had Susanna Martha Edwards who married Harkness. Their daughter Agnes Harkness, who married Terence McMahon, was my paternal Grandmother.

Now I will have a major redo about the line back from Mary Ann Carling (mystery). I will see what documentation I can get from the Tasmanian archives.

Thank you again

Denise Mascaro (nee McMahon)

PABulfinch

An ID is not provided for us to check on FamilySearch.org. Please check FamilySearch.org to make sure that the name is correct on FamilySearch.org. Thank you. If the correction needs to be done on FamilySearch.org, please follow these directions:

1. On the tree click "Mary Ann Carling Ellery"
2. A pop-up will show. Click "Person" or "Mary Ann Carling Ellery"
3. Under "Vitals" click "Edit" next to her name.
4. Make the change.
5. Put in the explanation as to why it is correct
6. Click "Save."

The Knowledge Article in FamilySearch's Help Center is "Correct a person's vital information." Here is the link Correct a person's vital information in Family Tree • FamilySearch. Hope you find this helpful. PaulaAnn

Paul W

@denisemascaro

The first part of the puzzle appears as if it might be quite straightforward. Mary Ann Carling Boxhall was born 26 June 1845 and her father seems to have disappeared (possibly died) soon after, as on 31 July 1845 it a John Patter / Patten ("Inmate") who is the informant at the birth registration.

On 20 February 1846 her mother, Harriet Chandler married George Ellery (using her married name Boxhall). Thereafter, Mary Ann Carling Boxhall appears to go by her stepfather's name - Ellery.

The more confusing part of this family branch is that Harriet Chandler (later Boxhall) has been placed on the tree as Harriet Boxhall and as the daughter of Charles Thorne. Harriet was born in 1809 and she is shown under "parents" Charles Thorne and Maria Dallen , who married in 1813. One of Charles' sources is for the 1815 christening of daughter Harriet Thorne, so it appears that the more pressing issue is to remove Harriet Chandler (shown as Boxhall) from the couple shown as her parents and find a correct set of parents for her.

Getting back to Mary Ann Carling (her given names), I could be wrong but I see her as simply having a name change - from Boxhall to Ellery - upon her mother's second marriage. There is also the possibility that Harriet Chandler never actually married William Boxhall, so you will need to look for a marriage record for the couple, and possibly a death record (for 1845 or 1846) for William Boxhall.

However, the very first thing I would do is to change the name of Harriet Boxhall (9DXB-KH8) to Chandler, her maiden name.

Record of the birth registration of Mary Ann Carling Boxhall (note her given names were added later):