Seeking your great grandmother??

"Oh Mary Mary quite contrary....


Well, Jimmy yesterdays research was a salutary lesson in the pitfalls to be found in assumptions. I have joined this wonderful group on the Internet who all help each other out researching family history in the Darwen area. So with many thanks to Charlotte, Anne and Glenn the following mystery has a 'suitable' explanation :- note it is not absolutely proven and when the relevant church records have been chased up may be incorrect. But it is nice to at least have a theory before diving into the parish records.


I was looking for Ada's mother (your great grandmother) we have seen from the census returns that Fielding (or Fielden) Clapham was married to a Mary, born about 1832 at Pickup Bank.
Using Lanc. BMD we find there are two marriages



1853 Feilden Clapham + Mary Townsend St Mary's Blackburn CE12/17/104

and 1856 Fielden Clapham + Mary Leach St Mary's Blackburn CE12/20/90.


On the 1851 census there was a Mary Townsend born 1836 at Pickup Bank daughter of John Townsend + Alice (HO107,2261,9,16 Darwen 1a) and I was trying to convince myself that a Mary Leach born 1836 also at Pickup Bank daughter of Thomas Leach and Nanny might also be a contender (HO107,2261,7,11 Darwen 1a).



With such an unusual forename as Fielding it was highly likely to be the same person (hehe assumption here.... I just can't help myself) so looking for the demise of the first wife again on Lanc. BMD



Death 1854 Mary Clapham age 18 Darwen Blackburn D/13/44.

This tied in very nicely with Mary Townsend born 1836. Poor wife number 1 Mary.


Now we were left with Mary Leach. Going back to the census in 1871 a William Yates FATHER IN LAW was living with Fielding and Mary. Here began my manic search for MARY YATES. First I searched high and low for a marriage between a Yates and a Leach thinking Mary Yates could have married a Leach before she married Fielding. Then I convinced myself that perhaps the Leach had been a mistake. I WAS going to find Mary Yates in the 1841 census as a child in the Pickup Bank area.


Now I had not been able to find Thomas Clapham and his family in the Pickup Bank area, I had even searched for his neighbours from the 1851 census in the 1841 census. Now I could not find a Mary Yates in Pickup Bank. In fact I could not find PICKUP BANK I was convinced it had disappeared. In fact I was making an elementary mistake. I was searching for it in the Blackburn Parish when all the time in the 1841 census it was hiding in the Whalley Parish. And I was sending off SOS's saying I could not find any of the people that others were so kindly finding and I was sat Poe faced before my unhelpful computer getting more and more frustrated. Grrrrrrrrrr.....


Anyways I sheepishly acknowledged my own shortcomings and eventually found all the people I had thought vanished forever. Particular thanks to Charlotte for finding the family of Thomas Clapham.


Mary Yates aged 19 born Pickup Bank had been located in 1851. Living at Oswaldtwisle with a William Yates age 41. Details below :-
*note it was a particularly difficult very faint to read page

************************************************

1851

HO107,2260,242,11

Blackburn Oswaldtwisle 2h


John Yates 51 Stone Dresser born Yate Bank

Nancy 50 born Eccles Hill

Peggy Lee 18 sister? born Pickup Bank

William Yates widow 41 handloom weaver born O?

Mary Yates 19 power loom weaver born Pickup Bank

Anne ? 14 power loom weaver born Oswaldtwisle

Jane ? 12 loom tenter born Oswaldtwisle


But Mary Yates on the 1841 census was still proving to be elusive. Where was she? In desperation I gave up seeking a Mary or a William, I thought lets look at John. So in went John Yates born 1800 in Lancashire and guess who popped up MARY LEACH !!!!!!!! that will teach me (no it won't).

*********************************************
1841

HO107,509,27,10

Blackburn Oswaldtwistle 10

Jackson Height.


William Yates 35 silk weaver

Alice 30 calico weaver

Ann 4

Jane 2

Betty 4m

(single line)

John Leach 12

Mary Leach 9

(single line)

John Yates 40 quarryman

Nancy 40

*******************************************
From this information then using familysearch site.


marriage William Yates + Alice Leach 6 Dec 1835

St Mary's Blackburn

Batch No. M007086


and submitted entries with no church details

John Leach 28 Jul 1828 Pickup mother Alice Leach

film no. 0453802

Mary Leach 2 Dec 1832 Pickup mother Alice Leach

film no. 0453803

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So in conclusion Jimmy it looks like your Great grandmother was Mary Leach and your Great great grandmother Alice Leach.



(Big exhaled breathe)