The Bower & Collier Family History
Research by Colin Bower
Brecht One-Name Study
Search for John Christopher Brecht & Susannah Pardom
One of the earliest entries for Brecht in London was the marriage of John Christopher Brecht in 1795. In 2021 I revisited the entry that I completed in June 2018 and gave it a slight edit:
My cousin turned up the following entry:
St Mary's Church, Whitechapel
Marriage 25.5.1795
Between John Christopher Brecht and Susannah Pardom, Widow
We have still not established who John was,whether he was related to my ancestor Heinrich Brecht and what happened to him. Browsing Ancestry I found a child by this marriage:
St Nicholas Cole Abbey, City of London (a Wren church)
Christening 3.4.1796 Maria Brecht born 13.3.1796
Daughter of John Christopher & Susannah Brecht
Godfrey Pardom
As Susannah was a Widow, I searched for her previous marriage and found 2 other children perhaps with Susannah's first husband, Godfrey:
St Botolph, Bishopsgate
Christening Mary Pardom 5.10.1783
Daughter of Godfrey & Susannah Pardom
(a Mary Pardom married Henry Bateman 19.12.1802 at St Mary's, Whitechapel)
St Mary's Church, Whitechapel
Christening 18.3.1787 Susannah Pardom
Daughter of Godfrey & Susannah Pardom, Alie Street
(a Susanna Pardom married Christopher Thomas 22.10.1806 at St Botolph, Bishopsgate)
Sugar Bakers
The reference to Alie Street is interesting as I have a set of fiche from the Anglo-German FHS which has the introduction:
"The church of St George, Little Alie Street, Goodman's Fields, in East London was built in 1762 and opened in 1763 to serve the increasing German Lutheran population of East London. The sugar industry was mainly based in East London and was largely owned by Germans. Most of the workers came from North Germany and were Lutherans. The church's foundation was largely due to the efforts of a local sugar refiner called Mr Beckmann, whose sugar baker' workers formed much of the original congregation... "
Those with an interest in sugar refiners & bakers may care to search the following web-site:
www.mawer.clara.net
Information from Germany
1. Jurgen Christoph Brecht
The sugar refiners/bakers database includes a Jurgen Christolph Brecht who claimed to have had a sugar-refining business in London.
I contacted a correspondent in Germany who was the source of the entry for Jurgen in the database.
He told me that Jurgen may possibly have been a sugar refiner between 1784-1822 and that Jurgen was buried in Germany on 1 April 1822 (age 70 and 18 days).
The registration of his death included a note that he had been a sugar refiner in London.
2. Heinrich Fridrich Ludwig Brecht
Also in the information from Germany was the christening of a Heinrich Fridrich Ludwig Brecht on 7 July 1784; Jurgen Christoph Brecht was the uncle and godfather of Heinrich and it was noted that Jurgen was said to have been in London when the christening took place.
It is possible that Heinrich Fridrich Ludwig Brecht was one and the same as my ancestor Heinrich (Henry) Frederick Ludewig Brecht born 1783/4.
Extraordinary Developments
1. June 2018
Baptisms in the name of Brhgt
While I was online, I looked again at the baptism of Maria Brecht, daughter of John Christopher & Susannah Brecht, in 1796.
I turned on a page (electronically) and found an extraordinary entry:
St Nicholas, Cole Abbey, City of London
Hannah & Harriet Brecht (transcribed as Brhgt)
presumably twin sisters to Maria
born 25.11.1797 bp 17.12.1797
(parents Christopher & Susanna Brhgt)
As the christenings are at the same church at about the same time, I am taking it that John Christopher and Christopher are the same (with Susanna as the mother).
Despite the new revelations I have yet to find out what happened to John Christopher Brecht (and Susannah and children) after the baptisms!
2. New Information 2021
Pardom is a rare name in London.
I have found 3 new entries:
St John the Evangelist, Smith Square
Godfried Pardom (suggesting that he is German)
married 26.12.1777
Susannah Phillips
St Matthews, Bethnal Green
Jane Pardom
married 5.8.1800
William Goodrich
St Leonards, Shoreditch
Elizabeth Pardom
married 11.8.1806
Jacob Bartram
These 2 may not be Susannah's children. There are many name variants too.
3. Further Find October 2022
In typing up some Parish Records, I found another possible potential entry for John Christopher Brecht:
St Nicholas, Cole Abbey, City of London
Charlotte Bright born 12 Feb 1802 bp 28.2.1802
(Parents Christopher & Susanna Bright)
It is possible that the name was Bright. It is very similar to the entry in 1797:
St Nicholas, Cole Abbey, City of London
Hannah & Harriet Brecht (transcribed as Brhgt)
presumably twin sisters to Maria
born 25.11.1797 bp 17.12.1797
(parents Christopher & Susanna Brhgt)
It is also possible that both are Brecht entries:
St Nicholas Cole Abbey, City of London (a Wren church)
Christening 3.4.1796 Maria Brecht born 13.3.1796
Daughter of John Christopher & Susannah Brecht
Conclusions
1. We have a possible chronology:
John Christopher Brecht & Susannah Pardom
1. Mary Pardom (bp 5.10.1783) and Susannah Pardom (bp 18.3.1787) - parents Godfrey & Susannah Pardom
2. A Jurgen Christoph Brecht (possibly a sugar-refiner in London) was the Uncle and Godfather of Heinrich Fridrich Ludwig Brecht bp 7.7.1784 in Germany
3. John Christopher Brecht married Susannah Pardom, Widow 25.5.1795
4. Daughter Maria bp 3.4.1796
5. Daughters Hannah & Harriet Brecht (spelt Brhgt)
presumably twin sisters to Maria
born 25.11.1797 bp 17.12.1797
6. Daughter Charlotte Brecht (spelt Bright) bp 28.2.1802
Mary Pardom bp 5.10.1783
Susannah Pardom bp 18.3.1787
Maria Brecht bp 3.4.1796
Hannah & Harriet Brecht (spelt Brhgt) bp 17.12.1797
Charlotte Brecht (spelt Bright) bp 28.2.1802
3. Other than the posible marriages for Mary Pardom in 1802 and Susanna Pardom in 1806, no further Pardom records have been found.
4. Did the family move from London to Germany?
5. I did find a potential direct link between John Christopher Brecht and either Jurgen Christoph Brecht or Heinrich (Henry) Frederick Ludewig Brecht.
Things we wish we knew
It would be really useful to find out what happened to the family (John Christopher & Susannah, Maria Brecht and Mary & Susannah Pardom).
Colin Bower
30 October 2022
