He was from St Ives, she was from Chatteris, and when she fell pregnant by him out of wedlock the Chatteris Overseers of the Poor were none too pleased. Thrown in Ely gaol for fathering an illegitimate child, Richard promised to marry her if he was freed and given 3 sovereigns (£3). The wedding happened at Chatteris after a licence was obtained in Doddington, the neighbouring parish (more on that in a moment), and Sarah (not Richard) received the money. However, the St Ives Overseers objected – ‘procurement!’ they cried, and it came to court, because the couple, still paupers, had settled in St Ives and were now ‘chargeable’ there. Witnesses testified that Richard was willing to say anything for money, and had already received 2 sovereigns in St Ives to buy furniture. The jurors agreed that the Chatteris overseers had ‘procured’ the bride for him. Chatteris appealed, and the decision was overturned – no law had been broken, the judge said. Did they live happily ever after? Not really – she lost another child aged 3, and by 1851 was widowed and living alone back in Chatteris. And going off to Doddington for the licence? Well, maybe it meant the wedding could be a ‘quickie’, avoiding the need for posting up banns in Chatteris and alerting the St Ives overseers to the upcoming nuptials! Either way, their story might have been lost, illegitimacy was a common enough occurrence, but for the sensationalising press stories of conspiracy and ‘intermarriage’ between two parishes.
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