Uncoupling a parent from a child

[Hgben]

Hi, I have added a child, Thomas to parents Samuel and Ann. However further research shows Thomas is illegitimate child of Ann (no father listed in baptism) and predates her marriage to Samuel. I now need to unhook Thomas from Samuel leaving him just linked to mother Ann but with an Unknown father. I can't seem to find a way to do this. Help appreciated.

[Deb]

I recommend dragging Thomas directly from the "Children" area of the family view to the Clipboard sidebar on the right or onto the word "Clipboard" in the Sidebar listing on the left. Afterward, add the new unnamed father to Ann by clicking the "+" above her name and selecting Add New Spouse. After adding the unnamed father, click on Family View and he should appear next to Ann.

The next step would be to change the order of "spouses" by clicking on Ann's red person menu button (red "v" icon) and selecting Spouses & Children > Edit Spouses. Then, drag the unnamed spouse so he appears above the named spouse within that window. Afterwad, click Close.

Finally, go to the family view of Ann and the unnamed father of Thomas and drag Thomas from the Clipboard sidebar on the right into the Children area of that family view.

Note: if Ann and the unnamed father were not married, you can note that by clicking on their marriage button (which usually shows the marriage date and place) and select "Unmarried" from the Marriage menu.

Additional information about this process can be found in the manual by searching for "move child clipboard" and "edit spouses," respectively. To access the manual, open your family file and choose Help -> Contents.

I hope you find this information helpful

[Hgben]

Thank you Deb - your instructions are so easy to follow

[Senelstune]

Thank you Deb for this ... I have just undone a complex family where the female was married firstly to Husband A and had 2 children, then out of wedlock had 2 more children with different partners B and. C - and then another child with an unknown partner D and finally, remarried another man E with no offspring. Originally, I had all the children with the first husband A as the father - because he brought them all up with his name. Quite an unravelling procedure but, following your instructions, I have got it right now - and learned a bit too, particularly about using the Clipboard. Thanks again - and to the Reuniontalk Forum.