RE: William Herdman 1826

[RNS]

I am looking for any information on William Herdman. He was a witness to a crime in 1826, however he has proved elusive and that is all the information I have on him other than he lived in Wall at the time of the crime and he was a labourer. The local Herdman expert has no record of him in her family genealogy, and there is no one of that family with a different forename that could have been recorded instead of William - I wondered if that was a middle name. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[RNS]

Hello, I am now looking for information relating to a William Herdman buried in St Mungo Simonburn 2 October 1838 aged 27. Is there a Simonburn Parish line of Herdmans out there?

[RNS]

I have a further three potential William Herdmans that I need to eliminate. Any information greatly received:

Name    William Herdman
Gender    Male
Burial Date    15 Jul 1839
Burial Place    Haltwhistle, Northumberland, England

Name     William Herdman
Event Type    Death
Registration Quarter    Oct-Nov-Dec
Registration Year    1838
Registration District    Hexham
County    Northumberland

Name    William Herdman
Event Type    Death
Registration Quarter    Apr-May-Jun
Registration Year    1873
Registration District    Bellingham
County    Northumberland
Event Place    Bellingham, Northumberland, England
Age (available after 1866)    85
Birth Year (Estimated)    1788

[amondg]

Using the new GRO index for deaths the 1838 death registered at Hexham that William was age 27
this would match the age of the one buried St Mungo

[amondg]

The 1839 death/burial at Haltwhistle was age 68

[RNS]

Thank you Amondg. I think the 1838 burial is the man I am looking for, though he would have been 15/16 in 1826. Too young to be a labourer in those times?

[2zpool]

Males would have been laborers from about the age of 12 or even younger back then.

Janis

[RNS]

Thanks 2zpool, of course you are correct. It is startling when you read about mine disasters back then how many boys were among the casualties. The WH I am looking for worked as a labourer in the local paper mill and one newspaper described him as an imbecile! If he had a 'defect' that may explain his death at 27, though that is mere speculation at the moment.

[2zpool]

You would have to get the death certificate to find out the cause of death.  Imbecile had a different meaning than what it is today.  Even in to the 20th century there were folks in asylums that were merely deaf.  He may have had a job that suited his abilities. 

Many of the younger boys worked for the company rather than a hewer in the mine...like took care of the ponies, or operated the bellows however some of the jobs took place underground.

Janis