Author Topic: Searching for John Worsley b. 1782 in Manchester  (Read 918 times)

Offline loganofdc

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Searching for John Worsley b. 1782 in Manchester
« on: Wednesday 11 January 17 17:21 GMT (UK) »
For many years, my family here in the U.S. has been trying to trace our ancestry back in England. In short, we can follow our line back to a John Worsley supposedly born on Feb. 21st 1782 in or around Manchester, but that's as far as we can go. John died in Illinois on Feb. 23, 1847. According to a letter in our possession from one of John's great granddaughters, he was related to the Platt Hall Worsleys and was disinherited after marrying a barmaid, but we can't substantiate that or even determine his parentage. We do have a copy of a marriage certificate for John Worsley to Sarah Hallam dated 15-Feb-1803 documented in the "Register of Marriages in the Cathedral and Parish Church of Manchester" (Number: 347, Page 529). I don't know if Sarah was a barmaid, but we've traced her family back quite a ways and they seem to have been tradespeople, not landed gentry. 

They immigrated to America around 1812-1816 and must have never looked back. They ended up having 6 sons and 6 daughters, some born in England near Bury and in Manchester, the rest in Rhode Island and Massachusetts in the United States.

We know that after moving to America he opened a textile mill, supposedly operating the first power mill in the United States. I've learned that some Worsleys of his era and afterwards operated a number of textile mills in or near Haslingden. I can't imagine this is a coincidence, but rather that John must have been exposed to the textile business while growing up with his extended family.

On FamilyTree.org, I found a public tree that lists a John Worsley born to a Thomas Worsley in 1775 in Rising Bridge, Haslingden who was the older brother possible twins Nicholas Worsley (b. 1777) and Alice (b. 1777). Obviously that's not 1782 but it appears that this Nicholas and his sons or their sons operated the five or so textile mills near Haslingden.

I've also come across the record of a christening for a John Worsley with a birth date of Dec 21, 1783, to a Ralph Worsley and Juday(sp?) Taylor on Jan 18th, 1784 at Unitarian Church-NC Machester, Lancashire. But I can’t find this Ralph and “Juday,” either, though Ralph does seem to be a common family name and the Taylors seem to have been a prominent family.

If anyone can assist me, I'd greatly appreciate it. My dad has been at this for decades, and I'd really like to solve the puzzle for him.

Best,

Logan Worsley

Offline rosie99

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Re: Searching for John Worsley b. 1782 in Manchester
« Reply #1 on: Wednesday 11 January 17 18:04 GMT (UK) »
Hi

Welcome to rootschat


They immigrated to America around 1812-1816 and must have never looked back. They ended up having 6 sons and 6 daughters, some born in England near Bury and in Manchester, the rest in Rhode Island and Massachusetts in the United States.


Could you please give the names and dates of the children born in England

Rosie

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Offline Jomot

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Re: Searching for John Worsley b. 1782 in Manchester
« Reply #2 on: Wednesday 11 January 17 19:31 GMT (UK) »
The baptism records for John & the other children born to Ralph & Juday indicate that her maiden name was Taylor.  She is also sometimes referred to as Judith.

Unfortunately I cant find a marriage for them either  :(

Oops - You already mentioned she was called Taylor... must read more carefully in future  ::)
MORGAN: Glamorgan, Durham, Ohio. DAVIS/DAVIES/DAVID: Glamorgan, Ohio.  GIBSON: Leicestershire, Durham, North Yorkshire.  RAIN/RAINE: Cumberland.  TAYLOR: North Yorks. BOURDAS: North Yorks. JEFFREYS: Worcestershire & Northumberland. FORBES: Berwickshire, CHEESMOND: Durham/Northumberland. WINTER: Durham/Northumberland. SNOWBALL: Durham.

Offline crisane

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Re: Searching for John Worsley b. 1782 in Manchester
« Reply #3 on: Wednesday 11 January 17 20:15 GMT (UK) »
Lancashire OPC

Marriage - 10 March 1783 St Mary the Virgin, Prestwich, Lancashire
 Ralph Worsley - Oldham in this Parish
 Juday Taylor - Oldham in this Parish
 Witnesses - Tomas Hyde and Thos. Lees
Married by Banns by Jas. Brennand
LDS Film 2113205


Offline loganofdc

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Re: Searching for John Worsley b. 1782 in Manchester
« Reply #4 on: Wednesday 11 January 17 20:18 GMT (UK) »
Thank you for the responses and welcome! See below, but I now have reason to believe John Worsley was a James Worsley, and James's parents were Joseph Worsley and Mary.  There's a date of Feb. 9, 1733 attached to Joseph and Mary but unsure if its a marriage or birthdate. To your question, Rosie, these were the children born in the UK:

John Hallam Worsley, b. 8 Nov 1803 in Manchester
Sarah Hallam Worsley b. 4 Nov 1805 in Bury
Eliza Worsley b. 7 Feb 1808 in Bury, Huntingdonshire.
William Hallam Worsley 10 June 1810 in Middleton
Henry Worsley 16 July 1812 in Middleton
Mary Ann Worsley b. 29 June 1814 in Middleton
George Hallam Worsley b. 18 Aug 1816 in Middleton

The other five born in the U.S.:

Emma Worsley: b. 25 Feb 1820 in Pawtucket, R.I.
Abbie Worsley: b. 5 Dec 1821 in Pawtucket, R.I.
Napolean Bonaparte Worsley: b. 25 Aug 1825
Maria E. Worsley: b. 8 July 1825 in Attleboro, MA
Samuel Lord: b. 10 Aug 1827 in Attleboro, MA

And no, I wasn't just trying to see if you were paying attention with Napolean Bonaparte, that's really what they named him. Maybe by the time they got to him, they'd just run out of names. I don't know how Sarah Hallam did it! For what its worth, I'm a descendant of George, who would be Great Great [Edit: Great] Grandfather.

I just got a little more info via an email my father received from another relative:

One of my grandmother's cousins wrote to a library in Manchester (John and Sarah were married in Manchester Cathedral, Feb. 15, 1803) and got a little more information.  Apparently John's father was James Worsley, and James's parents were Joseph Worsley and his wife Mary.  There's a date of Feb. 9, 1733 attached to the grandparents, but it's not specified whether that's a wedding date, or a birthdate for one of them. 

All we know about Sarah Hallam is that she was born in Bury, England in 1785.  There's a rumor she was a "barmaid", and we have a photo that somebody thought was her, but I don't know if either of those things is true.


"John Worsley “was a shuttle maker by trade, and therefore part of the beginning of the Industrial Revolution in England. When he emigrated to the U.S. in 1817, he settled in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, and there put in the shuttles used in the first power looms in the U.S. His reason for emigrating was apparently working conditions. The family then moved to Attleborough, Massachusetts, where five of the children were born. He and Sarah had six sons and six daughters, all of whom survived to adulthood. The sons were all machinists. In 1836 he went to Illinois with at least one son, George Hallam Worsley, who worked for him for several years.”

This makes far more sense than him moving to America and opening a factory!

Offline crisane

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Re: Searching for John Worsley b. 1782 in Manchester
« Reply #5 on: Wednesday 11 January 17 20:50 GMT (UK) »
There is a baptism of a William Worsley Middleton parish, without a middle name of Hallam 19 Aug 1810 father John, mother Sarah and gives his father's occupation as Picker maker, residence Tonge