William & Mary LEMAN Liff & Benvie, Angus

[Famtreebuilder]

I thought I might open this one up to fresh eyes as I'm struggling with it!

I came across the following 1901 Census return:

66 Taylors Lane, Liff & Benvie, St Peter, Angus
William LEMAN, Head, aged 59, born Dundee, General Labourer
Mary LEMAN, Wife, aged 42, born Calderbank
John CAMPBELL, Boarder, aged 7, born Newport, Fifeshire
Elizabeth CAMPBELL, Boarder, aged 5, born Newport, Fifeshire

I have been trying to find William LEMAN on prior census returns but with no success.  I guess his name may have been spelt wrongly/given wrongly in 1901 but I've tried a lot of variations and still can't find him.  I've also looked for a death for him to no avail.  I checked the 1895 and 1905 valuation rolls for Liff and Benvie too and found a William LEISHMAN but not LEMAN. 

Additionally I've looked for a marriage between William and Mary as that is the record I really want to find but no joy.  Mary is my main interest here as I think she may be a very elusive ancestor of mine that has been a long-time mystery - a Mary KELLY born in the village of Faskine, Lanarkshire in 1858.  I know where she was up to 1879 and I have a possible census return for her in 1881 (although there is another Mary that could match too) but from there she is a mystery. 

Faskine is very close to Calderbank and there is a Mary Kelly born Calderbank of the right age working in Liff and Benvie on the 1891 census that I speculatively think may be my Mary so finding a Mary born in Calderbank of the right age on the 1901 census seems like a good lead but I can't find anything more about this William and Mary to either prove or disprove my theory!  I've also looked for the death of a Mary LEMAN but can't find that either.

Any help from fresh eyes gratefully received!  Thanks.

[Kay99]

William's age on the census image has been crossed though and is very difficult to read.  Scotlands People transcribes it as 39.

This ties in with a William Leman b 1863 Dundee in the 1871 census with mother Agnes   and the birth on Anc of  William Anderson Lemon on 1 Dec 1862 at Dundee,Angus with parents James Lemon  and Agnes Souter

Kay

This William is still living with his mother in 1891 in Dundee https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KSND-4K7

[Famtreebuilder]

Hi Kay,

Thanks a lot for that - I did wonder if his age might be wrong with him being so much older than his wife Mary.  I think the Scotlands People interpretation is probably more accurate but it throws up yet more questions!  I thought you had the right William with William Anderson LEMON born 1862.  He's listed as a labourer on the 1891 census like the William I'm looking for is in 1901 and he seems the most likely candidate but I've now found the death record of the William LEMON born to James LEMON and Agnes SOUTER and it states he was single    He died in Dundee in 1936.

So back to the drawing board again probably but I have a nagging doubt.  The problem is if the William with Mary in 1901 isn't William Anderson LEMON then where was he in 1901?  I can't find another census entry that would match him so I'm still not wholly convinced that it wasn't him.  The only other explanation I can think of is (since I can't find a marriage) that he and Mary lived together for a time and stated they were married but never did marry and, therefore, the person registering his death put down he was single.  Still it's speculative like most things with this mystery!

Thanks again for trying and I appreciate any help 

[Famtreebuilder]

It seems I was barking up the wrong tree with this one all along - I've managed to find the death for the Mary KELLY born Calderbank who was on the 1891 census living in Liff and Benvie and she's not my Mary KELLY    She's also not the woman who was on the 1901 census as Mary LEMON either.

in 1891 the Mary KELLY I thought might be the right one was living with a Betsy REILLY and a Mary Ann REILLY at 5 Lyons Close and I've now found Mary Ann and Mary KELLY still living at 5 Lyons Close in 1901 although their ages are completely wrong.  I've also found a death for Mary - she died single in 1913, her address is given as 5 Lyons Close still and the death was registered by Mary Ann REILLY so that's pretty conclusive.  Her parents names were John KELLY and Jane FITZPATRICK and I've found a birth to match her in Old Monkland on 3 Feb 1855 so she's definitely not my Mary.

Definitely back to the drawing board in that I only know where Mary was up until 1879 again....