Fanny d'Egville's marriage lines from Saint Anne's Church, Soho, reveal that she wed Stephens Ferté Mikel on 7 February 1799. The date fell on a thursday that year and it was likely to have been cold. The United Kingdom, like much of Western Europe, was grasped by a severe winter. In Scotland there were heavy snowfalls and frosts - transport was disrupted.
The only people that we can know celebrated the wedding with the couple were Fanny's father, Peter, and her brother James. At first I thought that most of the entry, including the signatures of the bride and groom, were all in the same hand as they are so similar. But there are slight differences - and Fanny's hand seems unsteady where she scratched 'F.' Below them are the autographs of Peter and James.
Neith Peter nor James have included the family name Hervé (Anglicised as Harvey). This is in contrast to the wedding lines of Fanny's niece, Adèle Sophie Bizet d’Egville, in 1835 where one of the witnesses signed with only the name Hervé.
The last performance by Fanny that ABD can cite was at Covent Garden on 2 May 1800. It is quite possible she continued in the theatre, there is now deeper access to playbills than was possible when ABD was compiled (the final pair of volumes appeared in 1993) and her timeline can probably be established with greater confidence.
Fanny may appear in both the 1841 and 1851 censuses. In 1841 a 50 years old Francis Mikel, teacher of dancing, lives at Haverstock Cottage, Saint Pancras. Dwelling with her are: Ellen Lennox, 9 years of age; Isabella Lennox, 6 years of age; Mary Ann Hogg, 50 years of age; and Mary Ann Allbury, 20 years of age. The latter two women are described as F S, female servants. I suppose of one hires woman who share the same name one needn't worry who arrives when one calls out.
In 1851, the still 50 years old Fanny Mikel is a teacher of dancing and head of the household at 32, Lee Road, in Lee, Lewisham. Ellen and Isabel are now 19 and 16 years old, joined by the 14 years old Fanny Lennox. The domestic needs are satisfied by the 55 years old Jane Cole. Almost as an after thought, the 7 years old Henry Davis is listed as Fanny Mikel's nephew.
Ellen, Isabel and Fanny Lennox appear to be Fanny's granddaughters. Their place of birth is listed as Hampstead. The never quite reliable FamilySearch.org has a baptism record for Ellen Georgina Lennox. She was baptised down by the River Fleet at the Old Church, Saint Pancras on 5 June 1832. Her parents are recorded as Frederick Lennox and Frances Josephine Horne.
From these slight facts alone it cannot be concluded that Fanny Mikel is Fanny d'Egville but the coincidence is compelling. While a woman aged 50 in 1841 would have been too young to marry in 1799 there is no particular reason to believe Fanny was telling the truth to the census enumerator.
A swift search of FamilySearch.org provides corroborating evidence from the Old Church at Saint Pancras. On 26 July 1802 Frances Josephina Mikel was baptised, although her birthdate is recorded as 16 May 1800. Her father is listed as Mark Stephens Mikel and her mother is Frances Ferte. What kind of dance could Fanny have performed on 2 May 1800?
1. P.H. Highfill et al. (1982) A Biographical Dictionary of Actors, Southern Illinois University Press ISBN 0-8093-0919-X
