Re: Adoption and relative links
Posted: 19 Jul 2020 19:33
Hi Paula,
The first thing to be aware of is that in England and Wales the concept of adoption was not enshrined in law until 1926. Prior to that date adoption was always an informal arrangement and there was never a legal change of name. It was just a case of a family taking in a child on a more or less permanent basis. So although the child was often known by the name of the 'adopting' family this was not always the case. (The older the child at the time of 'adoption', the less likely they were to change their name.)
In your example I think I would probably not enter any adoption fact into FH at all. Hetty obviously knew she was not a Green but a Hackett. The relationship with the Green family can be made clear in other ways. I suggest creating an individual Note for Hetty (added via the Notes tab of her Property Box) where you can record the facts you have just outlined here, including her relationship with her 'adoptive' sister. Think of this note as a biographical note.
Presumably she is listed with the Green family in censuses (with the Green surname?) so you can add a note against her census facts saying why she appears under that name, and referring to her biographical Note. Similalry add a note to her marriage fact explaining why she was married under the name Green again referring to the biographical note.
The Green family will not show up in diagrams and will not be referred to as relatives in reports, but there will be references to them in the notes which can appear in reports.
The first thing to be aware of is that in England and Wales the concept of adoption was not enshrined in law until 1926. Prior to that date adoption was always an informal arrangement and there was never a legal change of name. It was just a case of a family taking in a child on a more or less permanent basis. So although the child was often known by the name of the 'adopting' family this was not always the case. (The older the child at the time of 'adoption', the less likely they were to change their name.)
In your example I think I would probably not enter any adoption fact into FH at all. Hetty obviously knew she was not a Green but a Hackett. The relationship with the Green family can be made clear in other ways. I suggest creating an individual Note for Hetty (added via the Notes tab of her Property Box) where you can record the facts you have just outlined here, including her relationship with her 'adoptive' sister. Think of this note as a biographical note.
Presumably she is listed with the Green family in censuses (with the Green surname?) so you can add a note against her census facts saying why she appears under that name, and referring to her biographical Note. Similalry add a note to her marriage fact explaining why she was married under the name Green again referring to the biographical note.
The Green family will not show up in diagrams and will not be referred to as relatives in reports, but there will be references to them in the notes which can appear in reports.