Mary BAXTER, 1682

Name
Mary /BAXTER/
Family with parents
father
16551704
Birth: 13 January 1655 34 Tatenhill, Staffordshire
Death: 27 July 1704Tatenhill, Staffordshire
mother
Marriage Marriageabout 1680
2 years
herself
1682
Birth: 5 February 1682 27 Tatenhill, Staffordshire
twin sister
1682
Birth: 5 February 1682 27 Tatenhill, Staffordshire
7 years
younger brother
16891689
Birth: 10 February 1689 34 Tatenhill, Staffordshire
Death: 12 March 1689Tatenhill, Staffordshire
-2 years
younger sister
1686
Birth: 14 November 1686 31 Tatenhill, Staffordshire
-2 years
younger brother
1684
Birth: 17 August 1684 29 Tatenhill, Staffordshire
Family with William TURNER
husband
16791706
Birth: 2 March 1679 21 Barton under Needwood, Staffordshire
Death: 29 December 1706Tatenhill, Staffordshire
herself
1682
Birth: 5 February 1682 27 Tatenhill, Staffordshire
Marriage Marriage11 June 1706Hanbury, Staffordshire
4 months
son
17061737
Birth: 6 October 1706 27 24 Tatenhill, Staffordshire
Death: 20 August 1737Burton Upon Trent, Staffordshire
Shared note

Baptised 5 Feb 1682 at Tatenhill, parents Thomas and Margery Baxter.
Had twin sister Elizabeth.

Married 11 Jun 1706 at Hanbury to William Turner.
findmypast PR Hanbury, Staffs

Perhaps she didnt marry again, and died 16 Jul 1765 at Hanbury "wife of William of Newborough" - Newborough 3.4M SW Hanbury

WRONG: Married 2 May 1707 at Tatenhill to Laurence Bayly.
findmypast PR Tatenhill, Staffs p9/72
BT 421603/1 #44/270
The BT shows that the name was Mary Parker, so not Mary Turner. The PR is unclear and has been interpreted incorrectly.

WRONG: Married 26 Apr 1716 to John Ward.
Died 1766 at Lichfield, buried 25 Jun 1766 at Burton St Modwen.

WRONG: The life of Mary Baxter is full of mystery, and some of the facts included above are open to interpretation.
She was born in 1682 and baptised 5 Feb 1682 at Tatenhill, Staffs.
When aged 24, on 11 Jun 1706 she married for the first time at Hanbury, Staffs (5 miles from Tatenhill) to William Turner senior.
They had their only child "our" William Turner born 6 Oct 1706 at Tatenhill.
Her husband William Turner senior died 2 months later on 29 Dec 1706 at Tatenhill.

Widow Mary Turner nee Baxter (aged 25) then married Laurence Beale (Bayly) on 2 May 1707 at Tatenhill.
Some doubt over his origins, there are various Beale/Bailey families around the Burton area, including Blackfordby, but no suitable Laurence except for Laurence Bayly born at Milldale, Derbyshire and baptised 1 Oct 1675 at Alstonefield, Staffs, about 25 miles north from Tatenhill.
Not sure whether Laurence was already in Blackfordby when he married Mary Turner nee Baxter, but after the wedding the family settle at Blackfordby, where Laurence dies 17 March 1712. No children.

Mary returns to the Tatenhill area (Tatenhill is 11 miles from Blackfordby), and four years later is living in Ridware (8m W of Tatenhill), when she marries again (aged 34) on 21 Jan 1716 to John Ward of Burton upon Trent. The wedding certificate says "John Ward of Burton upon Trent and Mary Bealy of Ridware".
Where is Ridware? About 8m SW of Hanbury and 8m W of Tatenhill.
The first question is: "Why Hanbury, if both bride and groom are from somewhere else?".
Interesting that Mary already married at Hanbury to her first husband, William Turner.
Then they go to live in Burton, which helps place "our" William Turner in the right place, as he is from there according to his wedding certificate in 1728.

John Ward and Mary Ward nee Baxter (and ex-Turner and ex-Beale/Baily) start having kids.
children with John Ward:

Johan Ward b 21 Oct 1716 at Burton, parents Johan and Maria (mother Mary is now 34 years old).
Elizabetha Ward b 25 Jun 1718 at Burton, parents Johannis and Maria
Gulielmus Ward b 14 Oct 1719 at Burton, parents Johannis and Maria.
Maria Ward b 11 Apr 1721 at Burton, d 1 Oct 1721, parents Johannis and Maria.
Georgius Ward b 28 Jan 1723 at Burton, parents Johannis and Maria.
Baily Ward b 2 Sep 1724 at Burton, parents Johannis and Maria.
Thomas Ward b 18 Jun 1726 at Burton, parents Johannis and Maria.
Maria Ward b 11 Oct 1727 at Burton, d 23 Nov 1727, parents Johannis and Maria. In 1727 mother Mary would be 45.

Now some things here are striking, such as the son called "Baily Ward b1724". A very unusual first name, perhaps in honour of her previous surname Beale/Baily???
A second son called William/Gulielmus b1719. Now our William Turner, a child from 2 marriages ago, would have been 13 when this Gulielmus was born. Perhaps he was already working and not living with mother Mary.

This set-up would allow our William Turner to keep his surname, while his mother has moved on from Turner to Beale/Baily to Ward.
So perhaps he was just called William Turner throughout, and perhaps to assert his manhood stepfather John Ward also wanted a son called William?

A further point of discussion could be the fact that wife Mary had a lot of children from age 34-45.

her third husband, John Ward, died 25 Apr 1732 at Burton, "paterfamilias et coriarius (head of family and tanner, leather worker, currier)"

Mary Ward nee Baxter, died in June 1766 at Lichfield (14 m SW of Burton), and was buried at Burton 25 Jun 1766: Perhaps she was living with one of the children after her 3rd husband died.