Knobstick weddings

One of the bibles of genealogists is "The Dictionary of Genealogy" by
Terrick V H Fitzhugh, first published in 1985 and in subsequent editions
since. This splendid book carries a great many definitions of the
principal sources and terms we use in A-Z format and is one of those
wonderful works which you can dip into on every page and find
something fascinating and new.

Only tonight I spotted something I hadn't noticed before.....

"KNOBSTICK WEDDING: The wedding of a pregnant single woman to
the putative father-to-be, under pressure from the parish vestry. The
churchwardens attended to see that the ceremony was performed, and
the name is derived from their staves of office."

chappycheeky...

Could this be the origin of the term "Getting her up the stick?"

I wonder - has anyone ever come across a knobstick wedding actually
described as such in a parish register? Afraid I haven't, more's the pity!

The very next entry in The Dictionary of Genealogy is also interesting.....

"KNOCKNOBBLER. A parishioner given the responsibility for driving
dogs out of church, if they were a nuisance. Also called a dog-whipper."

Well, don't say I never tell you anything.....

Roy Stockdill
Newbies' Guide to Genealogy & Family History:

"There is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about,
and that is not being talked about."
OSCAR WILDE