The genealogical researcher

It is not always easy to be a genealogical researcher.Luckili in Belgium we have a lot of kopies, microfilms and lists that simplify your research a little. Notwithstanding all facilities that are offered to the genealogical researcher at the State Archives - with copies of parochial and civilian records up till 1890-1900 freely accessible - researching ones ancestors is not that simple.

One problem to be tackled is administrative errors. Even before the era of computers they occurred. And we have found some examples of such errors. There is the case of Hendrik (Henry) and his marriages (this must sound familiar to the British). Indeed marriages - plural - because what did we find during our research?

Hendrik married Maria Elisabeth Budo (aka Anna Elisabeth ) on 3 Brumaire in the year 11 of the French Republic or, recalculated to our timereckoning 25th of October 1802. We have found both the civilian official record and the church record of the marriage and even the marriage announcement dated 03-10-1802. In the same announcement list Hendrik appears again (one line below the previous)but with following information 'marié 9 pluviose an 12 à joanne Herckens', meaning married on 9 Pluviose of the year 12 of the French Republic (or 29-01-1804). The official record states Hendrik married Jeanne Herckens.

On 26-02-1803 we find the birth certificate of one 'Anna Catharine' daughter of Hendrik and Anna Elisabeth Budo. No problem at this stage. We had not yet found a death certificate of Maria Elisabeth, those were very unstable years - Napoleon was here - so it was very well possible that Maria Elisabeth had died and that Hendrik had remarried within the year considering he had a little baby in the house.

On the 8 of july 1805 one Godfroid Kempeneers was born as the son of Hendrik and ... Elisabeth Budo. This does not fit. Did Hendrik have something on the side? Did he go back to his first wife? What happened to Jeanne Herckens?

The answer is an administrative error: the marriage announcement and the official marriage record state the wrong groom Hendrik to be wed to Jeanne Herckens in stead of Benedictus or Benoit as it later on appears from the birth certificates of the children of Benedict and his wife Jeanne Herckens. Nobody apparently noticed the error although the mayor states that the record was read before the attendants. It was read in French and since non of the wedding party understood French, let alone speak it, and since they did not dare contradict the mayor of the city being poor people. The error was ours to find.