A plot marker with the initials J. D. opened up the story of several Davieses buried here at Christ Church, quite possibly in this very plot. But who was here first? James Davies – our J. D. – was born in Todmorden in 1798. He was a younger brother of Peter Davies at 37.9 and …
More continuity here for those with an interest in the Freemason’s and later Weaver’s Arms on Blind Lane – maybe you remember William and Martha Jane Sutcliffe under the school’s story? Well this is how they got there (or at least how Martha Jane got there). We have go back a bit though. Let’s start …
We’ve told the story of quite a few of Eli’s children so far, so it’s worth reading about John and William, and James, to learn more about his life. With that being said, pinning Eli down has turned out to be harder than we thought, and required some going back and editing of those other …
An embarrassingly short story, made up of just the facts. Not every story CAN be told! Joseph Sutcliffe was born in 1788, and his future wife Mary was born in 1792. The first child of theirs that we know of, Samuel, was born around 1818, probably in Rochdale, although no baptism record exists for him. …
A short story for these two sisters (maybe half sisters) because we simply can’t figure it out; the Hamiltons are a mystery. Thomas Hamilton was probably born in Leake, North Yorkshire, not far from Northallerton. We’re saying probably because we think we have him on the 1851 Census but after that can’t be certain anymore. …
Mourn not my friends, twas God’s decree, That I should leave this world of strife, From earthly danger shall I flee, To share with him eternal Life, Sudden fate so soon to sever, The tender thread of nature’s ties, From Parents, Friends, I’m hid forever, Yet we shall meet beyond the skies. But millions of …
These Crossleys would have had us well and truly stumped without the help of Bluetit1802’s Ancestry tree, which has long been a gentle prod in the right direction for us when we’ve gotten stuck. It’s fair to say that for every mystery we’ve solved without help, there have been ten or more that we wouldn’t …
Three generations, a “curse” – and a question about who chooses who goes where. Betty Hirst has appeared in some of our stories before – her daughter Ann became Ann Livsey, we learned about her husband John Lord’s career via the story of her mother in law Martha, and probably there are countless other Lords …
Read more “37.2 and 40.11 – Betty, John, Priscilla, John and Annie Lord”
This post isn’t a story so much as it’s an example of how we can try to use available records to identify mysterious burials, like plot markers – and how as more research gets carried out, previous assumptions need to be revisited and revised. A colleague of mine [researcher Sarah] asked me if I knew …
A father, a son, and a daughter in law – and a telling gap in the engraving that raises a question…where’s Sarah? Abram, or Abraham, Stansfield was born in Todmorden in 1811 to parents whose names we can’t be certain of. There are only 14 Abraham Stansfields on a census return in 1841, and thanks …
Read more “41.7 and 33.20 – Charles, Abram, Betty and Sarah Stansfield”