Eber Leigh
I had done some searching in the churchyard of St John the Baptist in Heaton Mersey, where I`d learned from Peter, the family had worshipped and found reference from a gravestone that Eber`s parents were Joseph and Sarah.
Headstone St John the Baptist Heaton Mersey
Our Dear Mother Sarah wife of Joseph Leigh died March 8th 1911 age 67 also Nellie their daughter died 6th August 1906 age 41 years also Father Joseph Leigh and Husband of Sarah died February 10th 1915 age 72 years also George son of Eber and Clara and Grandson of the above died 20th April 1925 age 18 months also Sarah Edna Leigh daughter of the above died September 24 1952 age 77 Her last wish
I soon found what appeared to be Eber`s birth in the G.R.O. index`s March quarter of 1879 and went to Stockport Register Office for the certificate. The Registrar at Stockport soon came back with the certificate, but when I looked there was a problem. This couldn`t be right!!
Birth Certificate Details :- Registration District Stockport District of Heaton Norris in the County Of Lancaster Twenty Second March 1879 75 Long Row Heaton Mersey Heaton Norris Eber a girl!!!! father Joseph Leigh Bleachers Singer mother Sarah Leigh formerly Rothwell. Registered Tenth Mary 1879
The problem being the certificate was for a girl. Everything else was as I`d expected it to be.
I went back to searching the G.R.O. index`s again and a few weeks later I found another entry. This time in the June quarter of 1884 for Eber Edmund Leigh.
A few days later I managed to get the certificate from Stockport.
Birth Certificate Details :- Registration District Stockport Sub District of Heaton Norris in the County of Lancaster Eighteenth April 1884 74 Didsbury Road Heaton Mersey Heaton Norris U.S.D. Eber Edmund boy father Joseph Leigh a Bleacher Singer mother Sarah Leigh formerly Rothwell. Registered Nineteenth May 1884
So the first find was correct after all. I later found in the parish register that Eber Leigh a girl had been buried 19th April 1880
I still wonder where Joseph and Sarah had come across the name Eber; the only mention of it I could find in 1998 was of a Saxon King. Lately I`ve heard Eber was the Ancestor of the Hebrews and the name signifies “the region beyond”
Back to the Leigh family history, Eber was the youngest of eight known children to Joseph and Sarah nee Rothwell. Joseph and Sarah were married at St Thomas, Heaton Norris in 1863.
Joseph was born in Styal, though his birth certificate gives his birthplace as Stockport Etchells, which roughly covers the Gatley area going into Cheadle. I believe his earliest memories must have been of Styal and the mill. He was born in 1842 to James & Hannah Leigh nee Burgess and had been moved to Heaton Norris before 1851. He lived the rest of his life around the area of Didsbury Rd quite close to the St Johns the Baptist Church after Sarah died in 1911 moved to St Johns Place, overlooking the graveyard.
James, possibly Hannah and most of the children were working in Quarry Bank Mill in Styal during the 1840s, but Joseph would have been just a little too young.
Robert his brother born 1838 was working here from 1846. The mill was said to have been one of the better run mills of he time, looking after the health and education of the children. But there were obviously lapses such has having Robert Leigh working here when he was just 8 years old; though the factories act said he had to be 13 and as to the health of the workers. You can make your own mind up about the following note I found in the Q/B/M Records. Transcription from Doctors Notes
Oct 13 Margaret Bedding, to take the medicine according to the directions. If the pain in the chest is not better on Sunday, to have 6 leeches applied to the most painful part and if it still continues, to apply a blister. To take no meals and to drink freely of weak tea or barley sugar water or toast and water.
Register of Worker Act 1836
Robert Leigh No 876 age at least 13 (at least handwritten) 13th November 1848.
Robert was in fact aged 10, I have evidence that he was working in the Mill previously as he had attended Oak School. Oak school was set up by Quarry Bank Mill, originally to educate the apprentices then later for the children who worked in the mill, and he is mentioned in the rent book of 1846 as having earned a wage of 1/6 for working in the mule room, this aged 8.
The following is an extraction of the school register a copy of the school register which mentions Robert Leigh is part of the exhibition on the Quarry Bank Mill Tour.
I hereby certify that the under mentioned children in the Factory of Robert Greg situated at Styal. Have attended the school kept by me in Styal for the number of hours and at the time on each day specified in the columns opposite to their names, during the Week ending of Saturday…………..and that the cause of absence stated are true to the best of my belief.
Hannah Burgess
(Total of 17 children in class) (a = absent)
Mon Tue Wed Thur Fri
Robert Leigh a cause
20/11/1847 9-12 unknown 9-12 9-12 9-12
27/11/1847 9-12 a a a a
The next page that has Roberts name is 29th January 1948.
Source. Q.B.M. Records. Manchester Central Library.
The following note was attached to The Age Certificate Book.
Gatley Oct 5 1848
This is to certify that Robert Lee was born Aug 26 1835 Witness by my hand Thomas Lee.
{I think this was Thomas Leigh, Roberts Uncle who was born 1806 and died 1873 in the Knutsford Workhouse.
This is a blatant lie, told to help get the youngster work in the mill.
Proof of his age, is the baptism entry.
Gatley Congregational Church. Robert son of James & Hannah Lee of Stockport Etchells born 26th August 1838 baptised 20th February 1839
Robert died in 1853 aged just 15 the cause of death is given as Tuberculosis
Phthisis Pulmonatis 3 months certified.
Roberts occupation on the death certificate is given has “Weavers Tenter”. This seems to have involved keeping the warp and weft threads taught on the weaving frame.
James Leigh married Hannah Burgess at St Bartholomew’s in Wilmslow in 1823, in 1841 James is said to be a Watchman, earlier at the baptism of his children he is referred to has a Weaver.
The whole family seems to be working in the mill in the 1840s when they are living at 4 Shaw Cottages; these cottages were specifically built for the mills workers families.
Rent Book for 4 Shaw cottages, Quarry Bank Mill. December 1845
James Leigh born 17 2 1801
Hannah
Elizabeth 20 2 1822
Jane 30 9 1830
James 27 3 1833
John 7 2 1835
Robert 26 8 1837
Joseph 15 7 1840
William n 9 9 1844
And this from the wage book December 1846
James Leigh 12/-
Jane Leigh spinning room 5/-
James Leighspinner room 4/-
John Leigh mule room 4/-
Robert Leigh mule room 1/6
December 1847
Jane 5/-spinning room
James 3/- spinning room
John 3/- mule room
Rob 1/8 mule room
The dates of birth, for that is what they are supposed to be, aren`t true, some of the ages of the younger ones have been exaggerated, presumably to get them to work sooner, most of the dates are incorrect, including James senior. I`ve come across this quite a lot during researching working class families. It seems they didn`t celebrate birthdays. If asked they’d have a good guess otherwise they didn`t give it a thought. It was all work and no play at this time. These were in the days when I`ve found several couples taking advantage of a day off work to get married on Christmas Day.
These were hard times, practically the whole family working long days in the mill. This just after the period when the apprenticeship scheme had been abolished, children as of seven and eight years were practically treated has slaves, tied into an apprenticeship. I have seen in the records evidence of Leigh/Lea/Lee working has apprentices but havn`t been able to connect them into our tree, but they are probably cousins of direct ancestors, Ringway is mentioned as their home place and this isn`t very far from where the Leigh`s are living at this time.
Hannah Leigh nee Burgess dies in March 1847. The reason for death on her certificate says Asthma “Dropsy”, on the Burial Register “Decline” She is buried in the churchyard of the Gatley United Reform Church. The Church moved in the 1970s and the graveyard has been laid to lawn, so there are no grave stones evident. The Burial Book entry gave the following information.
Hannah Leigh age 43 of Styal bur April 2 1847 Grave 7/3 reason given for death Decline.
Also in this grave are Jane Leigh 88 Gatley June 24 1853 0ld age (Mother in Law), Ellen Leigh 67 Cheadle May 9 1881(daughter in Law wife of Thomas) and Thomas Leigh, (I think this is James & Jane’s son born circa 1806) buried March 6th 1873
I wondered if anyone had recorded the inscriptions on the stones before they were laid flat and turfed over and decided to visit the new church, which isn`t really all that far from the original. I spoke to the secretary and although he was sympathetic couldn`t help, no one had thought it necessary at the time. He was however still interested in my search though and asked who I was looking for. I told him, Leigh and the information I had from the baptism and burial books.
He said you know, “I`m sure someone was looking for these people a couple of years ago hang about, I`ll see if I can find his letter.” And off he went; he must have a better filing system than me, because after a few minutes he was back with a note. It was from Robert Leigh of Cheadle Hulme and was asking the same question of the gravestones and the people I had asked. It was obvious he was related to them. I thanked the chap and gave him a small donation for the church. I wrote a letter to Robert Leigh, explaining who I was and what I was about and how I`d got his name and address. A couple of days after I dropped the note through Roberts letterbox I got a phone call of Jim Leigh from the L.D.S. Library in Wythenshaw. We’d remarked about his surname and how I was researching two different families of Leigh and said we’d get together sometime to compare notes. When he rang however this was the last thing on my mind and I thought he had a carpet that needed fitting or cleaning.
His first words were “You dropped a note through my son’s door the other day and it seems your wife and I are cousins”. It turned out James direct ancestor was William born to James & Hannah nee Burgess in 1845 in Styal. I see Jim fairly regularly at the library and we exchange bits and pieces of information. We get confused sometimes because on our side we have two lines of Leigh and one of Burgess and on his side, he has one line of Leigh and two of Burgess. He sings in the Poynton Choir I think it is, I get regular invites but havn`t attended any of the events yet. I think the nearest thing we have on our side to a singer is three industrial sewing machines. Someone could prove me wrong.
James Leigh born 1798 probably met his second wife, Mary Brown in the Mill. She was a Liverpool girl, there were a few Liverpudlians working in the mill. I think the Workhouses used to unload the residents this way.
James Leigh and Mary Brown were married in February 1850 in Bowden. We can only wonder what took them there. By 1851 they are in Heaton Norris and have begun working on a new family.
1851 census Long Row Grundy Hill, Heaton Norris Folio540
James Leigh hd mar 50 Field Laborer Gatley
Mary Leigh wife mar 36 Liverpool
Jane Leigh dau unm 20 cotton carder Poundswick
James Leigh son unm 17cotton weaver Gatley
John Leigh son unm 15 cotton weaver Gatley
Robert Leigh son unm cotton weaver Heald Green
Joseph Leigh son 9 scholar Heald Green
William Leigh son 4 scholar Styal
Ellen Leigh dau 4 months Heaton Mersey
James spends the rest of his life in Heaton Norris and died here in 1878
Burial Book, St John the Baptist, Heaton Mersey.
St John the Baptist, 6th July 1878 Heaton Mersey James Leigh Heaton Mersey age 78
Mary by 1891 is living with daughter Ellen and her husband Thomas Beswick and they have moved to Birkenhead.
James parents were James Leigh born 1768 in Cheadle and Jane nee Pownall or Parnell, has it has recently become. They were married in Bowden 1787. They had six children that I`ve been able to find. James was the fifth born, Isaac the eldest. James died in the 1830s and Jane was living in Stone Pale Cottage by the 1841 census, she probably lived here till the day she died in 1853. It was in the cellar of one of these eight cottages that The Gatley Congregational Church held their first meeting.
1841 census Northern Etchells. Stone Pale Cottage
Jane Leigh 75 cotton weaver born in this county yes
Isaac Leigh 50 cotton weaver yes
1851 census Stone Pale Cottage, Northern Etchells
Jane Leigh hd widow 85 Retired? Ashton upon Mersey
Isaac Leigh son unm 62 Ag Lab Stockport Etchells
Thomas Leigh son mar 45 Ag Lab Northern Etchells
Elizabeth Leigh dau in law 42 cotton weaver gingham Hale
The next family takes us off at a slight tangent.
In 2005 a Diane Toms contacted Phil Ferns, a Leigh Cousin who`s ancestor was John Leigh born 1836 to James and Hannah Leigh nee Burgess, this was the family who were working in Quarry Bank Mill.
Diane Toms had a ancestor James Leigh born 1858 who`s father was Thomas, they were from the same area Gatley/Cheadle so it seemed likely that they might connect into the family. Thomas Leigh born about 1806 had married an Elizabeth, I`ve still not found the marriage but they are together in 1841 and 1851. The other Thomas who was the son of James Leigh and Hannah Burgess had died aged 12, so who was this Thomas. There was an online debate, within the Leigh cousins, Robert Leigh, Phil Fern, Ann Harris and anyone else who wanted to chip in, like me. We could only conclude that one of James`s sisters Sarah or Ann had an illegitimate son called Thomas, there was no evidence for this, no baptism or birth, but it would explain it. I`d had to do something like this earlier with this family. I had never found the birth or baptism for Thomas born 1806 to James and Jane because there were nine years of records missing from the registers, 5 pages had been torn out, unfortunately Thomas`s birth would have been right in the middle of the missing pages in the register, I later assumed he was one of the entries that had been torn out. I tied him into the family when he was buried in the family grave and I later found him in the census with his mother.
So it was assumed Ann born 1790 or Sarah Leigh born in 1793 to James Leigh and Jane, nee Pownall had an illegitimate son Thomas, to John Worthington. Thomas married Ellen Butterworth and they had a son James who married Margaret Beatty in 1876 before emigrating to Australia. They had 10 children, the 8th born was Athol Valentine Sydney Beattie Butterworth Leigh. was born 15 Feb 1889 in Adelaide, South Australia
This was the man who waged a one man war, during the first world war on the war. He married Ellen Sophia Gregory, who died in 1912 when their son Aubrey was just 8 weeks old.
His extraordinary war record goes to 159 pages, giving mainly accounts of his absence and charges for absences. When he wasn`t absent, he was in the jail or in the pox hospital. The first page has him joining The Australian Veterinary Corps on 3rd December 1814, with the slightly changed name of Athol Richard Leigh. I suppose with a really long name you might forgot some of the bits and pieces in the middle. Soon after he is being discharged from the 2nd Expeditionary Force for Insubordination after at least three charges of absent without leave and leaving ship.. On 15 April 1915 he is formally discharged after being returned to Australia from Egypt with the comment, Services No Longer Required.
So that would look like the end of his war….not quite. In October 1815 there is a lady Emily Booth enquiring about his whereabouts, wanting to know where the State Childrens Department can contact him. The army give a forwarding address. By July 1915 he is again in the Australian army, and quickly rewriting the war. He was charged with drunkardness, leaving a military parade, absence without leave dozens of times, neglecting to obey orders, attempting to escape while in lawful custody, disobedience of standing orders and the charges go on and on. On at least one occasion however he got 4 days remission off a 28 day sentence, “For Good Behavior” I think they probably had a special medal struck for this.
Towards the end of the war, he changes his next of kin, which had been his son Aubrey, to Nellie Leigh, relationship, wife who had a postal address at Kings Cross in London. You might find this hard to believe but Athol survived the war. He died in Australia 1925. I`d just about finished the story of Athol Leigh when I received an email from Phil Fern, he was responding to a query or fact I was checking. He told me, that Athol probably isn`t related to our LEIGHs after all. Phil had found Thomas Lee in the 1841 census with father John Worthington who has a wife Louisa. Though since this I`ve checked my records and when Thomas Leigh married, he used the surname Leigh but said his father was John Worthington and the Ellen Butterworth he married is buried in the same grave in the Gatley Congregational Church as Jane Leigh nee Pownall and Hannah Leigh nee Burgess and Thomas Leigh son of Jane born 1806. This convinces me that Thomas who married Ellen Butterworth must be connected to the family. Another possibility is that Louisa is family, elsewhere in this story I`ve told of how there are 9 years of records missing out of the Gatley Reform Church Registers, pages have been torn out, they roughly cover the years 1802- 1811. Louisa`s birth would fall into this period so she could easily be a sister for James Leigh born 1797.
I`ve only found one child born to Athol in wedlock there must be others with the State Childrens Board, looking for him at one time. His son Aubrey, seems to have had a similar outlook on life as his father. He made love not war, and had 17 children to Daisy Neale, the last born in 1959 in Adelaide.
Getting back to family history. Stone Pale where Jane nee Pownall is in the 1841 and 1851 census gets another mention in this extract from “The Chronicles of Cheadle" by Fletcher Moss
The distress among the weavers caused most of the Gatleyites to join the Luddite riots in 1818. They drilled in the Carrs and marched to Stockport one night to take the arms from the soldiers; then they marched back again without attempting to take them. The next summer a troop of Oxford Blues formed square in front of the "Horse and Farrier" Inn, and a list of men were wanted; for it appeared one Pownall had betrayed them. The men disappeared as quickly as possible. One who earned the name of Fox warned others, and with "Sydem" got to the Carrs in safety. Ryle hid himself among the hay, Bailey hid in the hencote, Isaac Legh got up the chimney in Stone Pale and lived to reappear at Peterloo; none of the above-named were taken. Bradshaw was sent to Botany Bay, where he was afterwards made constable, and fourteen years after returned to Gatley and invented the coating of healds with shellac.
The mention of Pownall, has the betrayer is interesting, Isaac`s mother was a Pownall and we have to wonder if this was a relative giving the rarity of the surname in the area.
It does seem like this was Isaac Leigh son of James and Jane. The Peterloo mentioned above, you`ll probably know was the scene of a massacre at St Peters Fields, Manchester. It was during this time when the mills were taking away the jobs of the weavers and spinners, who previously had worked at home. The working men were demanding changes to their lives.
Previously in 1817 the Blanketer`s had marched from Manchester to London. The leaders had been imprisoned on vagrancy charges on the way, only one man reached London.
The same year Jeremiah Brandreth took two hundred Derbyshire men to Nottingham in a move to stage a general insurrection. The whole thing was unsuccessful. The ring leaders were executed, after being charged with treason.
So the authorities were more than ready for the meeting at St Peters Fields for which estimates say there were at least 60,000 people. The local Magistrate of the day, didn`t like the way the meeting was going and early in the afternoon, read the riot act, then sent in the troops, 11 people were killed and about 400 injured, women and children were amongst them. The ringleaders had been arrested and got various terms in jail. A detailed account of the massacre can be found here.
http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/peterloo.html
It`s hard to try and understand Isaac who went through his life without marrying. Was he easily led? He was involved with the Luddites if reports are true. Lived with his mother in 1841 & 1851, but after she died in 1853, he next appears in the Knutsford Workhouse in 1861 and probably remains here until his death in 1867. While his brother Thomas has stayed in the family home on his own, his wife apparently having died in the 1850s.
Death certificate Registration District of Macclesfield sub district of Knutsford in the County of Chester.
9th October 1867 Union Workhouse Knutsford Inferior Isaac Leigh male 79 years farm laborer Natural Decay certified Eliza Walker present at the death Union Workhouse Knutsford Inferior 22nd October 1867 Thomas Booth registrar.
James Leigh born 1768 in Cheadle and was the seventh of nine children
to Thomas Leigh & Ann Birch. They were married in Cheadle in 1759.
Thomas Leigh born 1738 in Cheadle was one of four know children born to Thomas Leigh & Alice Leigh, yes another Leigh/Leigh marriage. Their first two were twins, they were baptised the same day and the entry in the registers, mentions the fact that they were twins. This isn`t always the case, sometimes the incumbent would put down just the very minimal of information, The name of the child and the father plus the baptism date, however we were luck in this case.
Joseph & Mary Twins, baptised 22nd June 1733 at St Marys Cheadle to Thomas & Alice Leigh
. Thomas & Alice were married at St Marys Cheadle in 1731, so it would seem there was plenty of time to have had two births, before this baptism and its quite common to find late baptism`s. In the register of St John the Baptist in Heaton Norris, there was a family of seven Leigh’s (no relation as far as I know) baptised the same afternoon. I believe there was a charge for any church ceremony and some people would try and avoid it anyway they could. The family who had the job lot done properly came to a deal with the minister, buy one get one free, or whatever the term was in the 1800s.
Thomas Leigh & Alice Leigh is has far as we go with the tree, it`s possible we could go back another 100 years or so, it will just take some time for the registers at this time are very hard to read, paper must have been at a premium, the verger would cram as much information has he could on a page, mixing up burials, baptism`s and marriages.
It would be nice to get back a couple of generations to see if we can connect with this John Leigh who got away with murder.
This next Story I found on the internet. The whole thing can be read at
http://www.earlymodernweb.org.uk/waleslaw/franciswood.htm
If we go back to Eber Edmund Leigh born 1883 to Joseph & Sarah in Heaton Norris. He married Clara Ellen Nicholson at Christ Church in Denton in 1905. There is bit of a mystery as to what fetched Clara Ellen to the area. She was born in Thornaby Stockon, 1883 to George Nicholson and Elizabeth Bruce. This family had me beat for a while. From the marriage certificate of Eber and Clara, I knew that her father was George Nicholson an engine driver and from Peter I knew that she had come from somewhere near Middlesbrough. At the time I was looking for her family I didn`t know when Clara was born. The 1881 census had been indexed and so it was fairly easy to find families in it. I`d used it a lot in research, especially in the first year. I couldn`t find Clara, but did find a George Nicholson who was an engine driver and lived in Etherley, which was nearer Spennymoor than Middlesbrough, but people moved about so that wasn`t surprising. Unfortunately Clara isn`t in the family, not surprising because according to the marriage certificate she wouldn`t be born until 1882 or 1883. I got really interested in this family. I couldn`t really nail down George, it`s quite a common name up there so soon hit a brick wall with about a dozen possible baptism`s or births. His wife Mercy though was easy to find, her maiden name was Savage, she was born in Stourbridge, Worcestershire. Her father worked in the steel industry down there, he must have had a better offer of a job so he moved lock stock and barrel up to the North East, several brothers followed. I`d got the family back to the 1790s without too much trouble until this side too hit the proverbial brick wall. I was at a standstill until the later census were indexed, which would mean, they could be searched by surname. On 2nd January 2002 the 1901 census became available and shortly afterwards Ancestry.com had the 1891 census indexed, when I searched for our family, I found I had a choice of two. There were two George Nicholson born in Durham who were Engine Drivers and wouldn`t you know it, I`d got the wrong one the first time. Back to the drawing board and a few months later I had a birth certificate for Clara Ellen Nicholson.
No 338 14th May 1883, 34 Leonard Street, Thornaby, South Stockton U.S.D. Clara Ellen, a girl, George Nicholson, Elizabeth Nicholson formerly Bruce, Locomotive Fireman, E Nicholson mother 34 Leonard St, Thornaby 21st June 1883, Registrar George Sanderson.
George had married Elizabeth in 1878 at St James in Stockton. By the 1901 census Elizabeth had died, I later found her death in 1894. George remarried in 1900 to Harriet Green who was twenty years younger than George, she was born in Darlington.
In 1901 Clara Ellen is working in service, as a Housemaid in Ripley, Yorkshire. What fetched her to Denton?
George Born 1853 in North Ferriby to William and Jane Nicholson nee Kellington who were married in 1853. William is variously described has a Railway Plate Layer, a Railway Inspector and later a Permanent Way Inspector.
William was born in North Ferriby in 1832 to Joseph Nicholson and Lois Shaw who were married in Rowley near Hull in 1812. Joseph was a Market Gardener. Lois looks to have been illegitimate; her baptism mentions just the mother Alice.
Joseph was born in 1788 to John Nicholson and Mary Watson in North Ferriby. They were married in 1782 again in North Ferriby.
Within a couple of months of finding Clara Ellen Nicholsons family in the census. I`d got back to the 1700s with them. I then made contact with Chris Watson, who turned out to be a fifth cousin of Pauline`s. We exchanged information; he verified what I already had and gave me the rest of the family from his research back to approximately 1600. I have checked what I could of the Nicholson family on the I.G.I. but havn`t yet got around to verifying the information in the Parish Registers.
With what Chris Watson had given me. The family looked like this.
John Nicholson born 1762 at Hessle near Hull to Joseph & Mary nee Parrott, they were married in Hessle in1754.
Joseph Nicholson born about 1731 to Christopher Nicholson and Ann.
When Christopher died in 1767 he was described has a Husbandman. A Farmer who probably rented land to work.
Christopher Nicholson born in 1676 to Christopher Nicholson and Ann Robinson, who were married in Kirk Ella in 1671. Though Christopher died quite young aged 44, Ann lived to be 90 according to her burial record.
Christopher Nicholson was born 1652 to John Nicholson and Jane Stapleton. Jane was born in 1611, we can assume that John was a similar age or even a little older.
This takes us to the end of the Nicholson line.
Elizabeth Bruce who married George Henry Nicholson in 1878 led an eventful life. She was born 1853 in Bishopton to Ellen Bruce a single woman. Ellen had at least six children the youngest we know of born 1862. She later in 1875 married widower Samuel Gowland.
Elizabeth herself had an illegitimate child.
25 May 1873 Mary Jane BRUCE illegitimate daughter of Elizabeth BRUCE single woman of Bishopton.
25 May 1873
In 1871 Elizabeth is working as a servant for Robert Hall a Grocer and Tea Dealer who lived in Darlington.
Ellen Bruce was born 1825 in Bishopton to William Bruce and Ann Glenton, they were married 1817 in Bishopton. William a Blacksmith had died before the 1841 census, when Ann is an Agricultural Labourer, in the 1851 census she is a Pauper, people given the title would be living of the parish poor rate. At this time Ellen is a Farm Labourer
This for now is where we leave this story, more to follow