There seem to have been two or three families named Hedges in Whitchurch at the turn of the 18th to 19th century but which two sisters, Mary born approx.1811 and Elizabeth (1813) belong to is at present unsure. Their own family had probably already moved to Aylesbury before Mary met George Barnes who she married on Christmas Day 1834 (probably his only free day!) and they may well have been related to other Hedges families there too. Perhaps the girls' parents were Thomas and Catherine, but the parish records only seem to be available in Aylesbury and are not on the IGI or, as far as is known, available elsewhere online.
		These memorial stones are in the floor just in front of the pulpit in Whitchurch. As can be seen the inscription is badly damaged but the surname, Hedges, can be made out on both as well as the wife's name, Elizabeth which is really clear. Her husband's name appears to be a first name and an initial but is otherwise illegible. As he died in 1792, (on the first day of one of the longer months) it is just possible that they could be Mary and Elizabeth's grandparents. No other Hedges were found in the graveyard.
The village of Whitchurch is still small, lying mainly along the road to Aylesbury, and is full of very old houses cheek by jowl with the new. The further picture on the right illustrates a variety of ages and styles The pub was here a couple of centuries before Mary Hedges was born and a short lane beyond leads to the church so it would have been a familiar 'landmark' to her parents.

Family of Thomas and Catherine Hedges of Whitchurch

1. Jane Hedges chr. 13 Jan 1805 Whitchurch; not found in 1841 or 1851
2. Mary Hedges chr. 24 Mar 1811 Whitchurch, m. George Barnes 25 Dec 1834 in St Mary's, Aylesbury, Bucks; d. 1882
3. Elizabeth Hedges chr. 31 Oct 1813 Whitchurch; single; d. Jun Q 1865 in Aylesbury

---

Strictly speaking the  following families are unproven as related to the Mary Hedges who married George Barnes, but they were ancestors of the Elizabeth Hedges who married James Barnes, descendant of George Barnes and Mary Hedges, in 1899.

Family of Thomas and Peggy Hedges of Whitchurch
(Peggy is usually a diminutive for Margaret but could be the 'proper' name here)

1. James Hedges  chr. 29 Jun 1808 Whitchurch; m. (2) Ann Harris 1847 in Aylesbury; d. 12 Oct 1883 (?12 children from 2 marriages)

The birthplace of Mary and Elizabeth as Whitchurch is recorded on all censuses in which they appear; Mary was said to be aged 73 at her death so could have been born in 1809. Jane presumably died young. The history of Mary and Elizabeth, children of the first marriage above is continued on the Barnes family page.

Thomas of the first marriage listed here is not the same person as the Thomas of the second, but another Elizabeth Hedges who married into the Barnes family has been traced back to Thomas and Peggy, with the same provisos as for the first couple, i.e. the link to James is only based on reports from a so-called 'member' to the IGI. The only secure information is that directly linked to Mary, Elizabeth and James through the censuses and some certificates; it's their parentage which is not reliable. Actual ages should also be taken as approximate - even census information is not always correct and all of them appear younger there than the above suggests. (Possibly they - or the person giving the details to the enumerator  - were not too sure of their ages themselves.)

 

Family of James Hedges of Whitchurch and (1) Eliza

James Hedges was born around 1805-1811 in Whitchurch. It is not known when he married Eliza but she is listed with him on the 1841 census on Oxford Rd, Aylesbury where he continued to live for the next 30 years. At that time they had three children, Mary (1836), Jane (1836) and John (1842). The only child of Eliza's to be listed again was John aged 9, and then only in 1851. There is a death of an Eliza Hedges recorded in June 1843 which could be James' wife. 

Family of James Hedges of Whitchurch and (2) Ann Harris

This marriage is where the more secure ancestry of Elizabeth begins. In 1847 James is recorded marrying Ann Harris, b. Aylesbury abt. 1815, in the Dec Q 1847. In 1841 Ann was living with Susanna, a pauper aged 65, presumably her mother, and with a son Henry aged one. In 1851 Henry J. Harris now 11 is listed as a son of James, adoption in those days being an informal affair. The children of James and Ann, all born in Wotton, Aylesbury, were:

1. Eliza Hedges b. 1848/9

2. James William Hedges (senr) b. Dec Q 1850

3. Amelia Hedges b. Jun Q 1852

4. Catherine Hedges b.abt.1854

5. Thomas Hedges b. Dec Q 1856

James was recorded as an agricultural labourer in every census until 1871 when he and son James were listed as 'higglers'. Before 1881 he had  moved with all his family from Oxford Rd to  (Wotton?) to Castle St. His wife Ann probably died about 1872 and by 1881 he was keeping poultry as a dealer -Aylesbury was famous for its duck breeding - and his daughter Eliza was keeping house for him, but not for long as he died on 12 Oct 1883 aged 75.  

Family of James William Hedges senr. of Aylesbury and Elizabeth Clark
(sources for precise birth dates at present 'unknown' - if anyone else finds them please let me know!)

1. Elizabeth Hedges b.10 Jun 1875, m. James Barnes Sep Q 1899 in Aylesbury, dau. Constance b.1900 Aylesbury

2. James Henry Hedges b.19 Oct 1877

3. Henry Hedges b.16 Jan 1880

4. James William Hedges (junr) b.1880

5. Thomas Hedges b.16 Nov 1883

6. George Richard Hedges b.19 Aug 1887

7. Albert Charles Hedges b.10 Sep 1889

Another possible child of this family was Edmund Hedges b.16 Feb 1892 but d. Sep Q 1892 so of course he does not appear on any census and only a birth certificate would confirm this.

James William senr had already taken up duck breeding by 1881 when he had two children, and then he moved back into Castle St (no.40) until 1901 when he was living in George Cottage, Dinton, a couple of miles SW of Aylesbury, still in the poultry business. His wife had died and he had remarried to an Elizabeth who is given as aged 28 in the census, only just 3 years older than his daughter Elizabeth. His first wife Elizabeth was born in Weston Turville, Bucks and the second was born in Nine Elms in London.

In 1901 James (#4) and Thomas (#5) were both lodging with Elizabeth and her husband James Barnes in Aylesbury. James was a bootmaker's assistant and Thomas was following his father as a 'poultryman'. In 1911 James junr was serving as a storekeeper at Stone, Bucks; Thomas has not yet been found.

The Barnes Family of Aylesbury