Confused with Blackburn Census for James Nuttall and Mary Pollard!!

[snuttall]

Thanks all well now I'm more confused than ever!

I am confident Mary was a Pollard as her son William then names one of his sons Pollard Nuttall which is a very strange name to give without a family connection!

I agreee!

1861 census
Class: RG 9; Piece: 3111; Folio: 12; Page: 17
Holker House, Hoddlesden, Over Darwen, Lancashire

Nuttall, James  Head  M  27  Coal Miner  b Haslingden
Nuttall, Mary  Wife  F  27  b Accrington

That census return does look more likely than the other with the unmarried James - and is at least closer to Blackburn explaining the geographically random marriage (although at their marriage Mary is stated to be 2 years younger than James).

However I have always been convinced that James belonged to that family on the 1861 census - with Alice his mother, John his (deceased in 1861) father, and his brother Lawrence who dies shortly after 1861. Does this mean he can't have belonged to that family and I have an entirely wrong line? 

[warncoort]

This only goes to show that in this caper the need to check everything twice before checking it again is paramount,and I think other Chatters will agree.
Recently I had to remove around 30 people from my tree because I had not checked some information fully,latched on to an Essex farmer instead of an Essex Tailor,a family member has his thimble!!
Best to stop and take a fresh look.

[CaroleW]

Does this mean he can't have belonged to that family and I have an entirely wrong line? 

According to the transcription of the 1858 marriage given earlier - his father was John occ labourer.

You need to look James up on the 1851 census to check

[snuttall]

So here's what I know:

Born: 1834 (marriage transcription, 1871/81/91 censuses)
Father: John Nuttall (source: marriage transcription; 1858 at St Mary the Virgin Blackburn on Lan-OPC)
Spouse: Mary Pollard, 1858 at St Mary the Virgin Blackburn (source: lack of other matching marriages, and fact that grandson is given the name Pollard Nuttall)

Here's the family I thought he belonged to:
Father: John Nuttall, farmer of Windy Harbour, Haslingden (deceased between 1841-1851).
Mother: Alice Nuttall née Nuttall
Children: Caleb (1830), James (1834), Edmund (1840), Lawrence (1842)

This was as:
a) Father's name matches
b) Age matches
c) Place of birth matches
d) Occupation matches - James in that family is a coal miner in 1851. Coal mining is not as dominant an occupation here as in other areas - mill work is far more usual.
e) Lack of other suitable matching alternatives

This is what has thrown the spanner in the works:

1861 Census
Holker House, Hoddlesden, Over Darwen, Lancashire
Nuttall, James  Head  M  27  Coal Miner  b Haslingden
Nuttall, Mary  Wife  F  27  b Accrington

1861 Census
Windy Harbour, Haslingden
Nuttall, Alice  Head  Wid.   57   Farmer of 16 Acres  b Haslingden
Nuttall, James  Son  Unm.  25  Collier  b Haslingden
Nuttall, Lawrence  Son  Unm.  19  Collier  b Haslingden

Either his marriage in 1858 or the family I have linked him with has to be wrong. But I feel that both are quite convincing. Which would your instinct tell you was the wrong one?

[KGarrad]

IMHO the family you had him linked to!

[CaroleW]

Father: John Nuttall, farmer of Windy Harbour, Haslingden (deceased between 1841-1851).

1858 marriage cert shows his fathers occupation as labourer

Occupation matches - James in that family is a coal miner in 1851.

1858 transcription says he is a carter.  The full marriage cert is available online and all details from the transcription are confirmed as correct.  His address on the cert is Cleaver St