Wiltshire Burials Index Vol 11 1820 Parish Sedgehill
It Is suggested by Alan Merryweather that Joshua married again to Sara
Hardin in 1809 AM216, this is possible but proves problems to the
parents shown to Joshua AM215Shown as Joshua MERIWETHER
Nimrod Index gives the Banns as 25 May 1800 (Wylye Wiltshire) but no Mar
until 27 March 1809
Alan Merryweather puts this Joshua as son of a different person whose
first wife died 9 Aug 1795 just 9 months between the death and the banns
for Sarah Harding?
See information on Sara Hardin!

I notice on your website some confusion about Joshuah Merryweather of
Sedgehill. Here is some information I put together on him and Sarah his
wife (my x-times grandmother!) which may well add to the confusion. He
was a widower who had a son of the same name and you seem to be mixing
them up.
THE HARDINGS came from Wylye, where Sarah, daughter of George and Mary
Harding was baptised on May 9th 1771 a member of a large family which
included her sister Elizabeth (baptised 13 February 1782). Her father is
not recorded as being baptised in Wylye but he was buried there on
February 10 1802, aged 56. Her mother, Mary, died in 1783?, as a result
of "the innoculation", according to the parish register. George Harding
remarried twice, to Parthenna and then Joan, and is mentioned in the
registers as one of the poor of Wylye who received 6d from the church
collections in the 1790s.
Sarah had a number of children before she got married: John, baptised at
Wylye 9th May 1791 and buried there 4th February 1832, aged 41; James,
aged ½ a day, baptised at Wylye 27 December 1797; and Aby, or Ebbie,
baptised at Wylye on 13th September 1801. It is not clear if Ebbie was a
boy or a girl--especially as girl had been given the name "Ebenezar
Merryweather" in Sedgehill in a previous generation.
In May and June 1800 the banns had been read at Wylye for the marriage of
Sarah to Joshua Merryweather, of Sedgehill; although the wedding did not
take place for another 9 years it seems likely that Sarah moved to
Sedgehill and lived with Joshua.
Joshua Merryweather was a widower whose wife Martha had died in 1795;
seven of their children were baptised in Semley. Although he is described
as a labourer in the registers, there were Merryweathers in the area who
were well-off farmers and landowners, living at Venn's Farm and Mere
Park. It is not clear if he was related but he could write, he appears as
a witness at the wedding of the churchwarden Stephen Parsons and
occasionally he appears in parish records as doing repairs to the church?
so his background may have been less impoverished than Sarah's.
On Mar 27 1809 Andrew, James and Joshua, the sons of Sarah Hurdon (it
could be Harden or Hardon--the entry is rather faint) were baptised at
Sedgehill and on the same day Sarah Harden was finally married to Joshua
Merryweather. He signed his name, she made her mark. Later in the year
the register was transcribed for the bishop's records: "March 27th 1809
Andrew, Jas and Joshuah the sons of Joshuah and Sarah Merryweather was
baptised" and "March 27th 1809 Joshuah Merryweather was married to Sarah
Hardon, both of this parish." Joshua Merryweather was buried at Sedgehill
on June 28th 1820, aged 73, so he must have been about 62 when he was
married; Sarah Merryweather died at Sedgehill on December 24th 1839, aged
72 on her death certificate, which means she would have been about 42
when she married and have been born in about 1767. (The age of death may
well be wrong; if she was born in the year she was baptised--1771--she
was 38 when she married and 68 when she died, which would fit more
comfortably with the dates of birth of her older children.)
They appear to have had two children after getting married: Charlotte was
baptised at Sedgehill on Aug 31 1817 (when Sarah would have been 46 from
her baptismal register or 50 from her death certificate) and Anne's
baptism was not identifiably registered until Jan 3, 1825, five years
after her father's death: "Anne, daughter of Joshua and Sarah
Merryweather, labourer. The above girl was born in. . . . .and at that
time privately baptised by the Revd J Hodgson." Anne's burial was on May
23 1830, aged 18, so she must have been born around 1812, when Sarah was
either about 41, (or 45).
The transcript suggests that all three boys were sons of Joshua and
Sarah, but this seems unlikely. Only one of the boys kept the name
Merryweather after Joshua died; he was also Joshua and was buried at
Sedgehill on Oct 25th 1831 aged 23, meaning he was born around 1808. What
happened to James is unknown but Andrew kept the name Harden.
His marriage certificate in the Sedgehill register is as follows:
"Andrew Harding of this Parish Bachelor and Edith Tanswell of this Parish
Spinster were married in this Church by banns with Consent of all parties
concerned this twentyfifth day of October in the Year One thousand eight
hundred and twenty six
By me Charles Henry Grove rector
This Marriage was solemnised between us (Andrew Harden
(+ Edith Tanswell her mark
In the Presence of (+ Robert Tanswell his mark
(Ebbie Harden Stephen Parsons
No 24."
According to later census entries, Andrew was born in Sedgehill. He was
buried at Sedgehill on Jan 31 1883, aged 80, so he must have been born in
about 1803. Ebbie Harding, the witness at his wedding, was buried at
Sedgehill on February 11 1830, aged 28, so he was born around 1802 and
could have been the brother (or sister)of Andrew. Both of them sign their
names quite fluently, which suggests a certain level of education.
(Sedgehill had a school run in the vestry at this time by the parish
clerk).
Sarah Harden may have lived with her son in later years: on her death
certificate she is described as a "labourer", the witness is Edith
Harding and the cause of death dropsy. One thing we can be sure of is
that she had a life that wasn't easy.
Source=Richard Maidment

Shown as Anna MERIWETHER
Simon Fuller shows Anna's Christening as 25 Jan 1825, birth 3 Jan 1825
this would put Anna birth 5 years after her father death.
Alan Merryweather puts this Anne a daughter of Joshua AM371 from a second
marriage to Sarah Harding.
There is a error here and will need looking in to!