RootsChat.Com

England (Counties as in 1851-1901) => England => Cumberland => Topic started by: TheodoreDBragir on Wednesday 09 August 17 22:56 BST (UK)

Title: Henry Bell
Post by: TheodoreDBragir on Wednesday 09 August 17 22:56 BST (UK)
I am looking for Henry Bell from Cockermouth, alive in 1864.
Title: Re: Henry Bell
Post by: davidft on Wednesday 09 August 17 23:17 BST (UK)
Do you know anymore about him that you can share as Henry Bell is a common name and there are several candidates
Title: Re: Henry Bell
Post by: Ruskie on Wednesday 09 August 17 23:26 BST (UK)
Further to David's reply ....

How do you know he is still alive in 1864?
Do you have him in the 1861 census? If so can you supply details?
When and where was Henry born?
Are you now looking for Henry in the 1871 census?

Providing as much information as you can will help us to help you.
Title: Re: Henry Bell
Post by: Ayashi on Thursday 10 August 17 00:24 BST (UK)
Just to keep everyone informed I've been working on this in the chat room.

The daughter was Esther BELL 1845, wife of Robert SHORTRIDGE. She appears on census with a place of birth of Parsonby or Plumbland, with one anomalous record on the 1881 where place of birth is Lancashire.

Henry is mentioned on the marriage certificate, but I was told it said he was deceased.

I cannot find any Esther BELLs for those details with a father called Henry. If it weren't for that one mention of Henry, I would trace her back to the family of Andrew BELL and Margaret CARTY, who, incidentally, were living two doors away from the SHORTRIDGE family in 1841 and Margaret was born in Lancashire. However, some sideways thinking seems to be required in order to prove that the father was Andrew and not Henry.
Title: Re: Henry Bell
Post by: Ruskie on Thursday 10 August 17 00:35 BST (UK)
Thanks Ayashi.  :)

Without delving into the details of this particular family, keep in mind that Bell is often a Scottish or Northumbrian surname, so it might be worth looking a bit further afield.  :)
Title: Re: Henry Bell
Post by: dcbnwh on Thursday 10 August 17 09:42 BST (UK)
There are reports in the Carlisle Journal of a Henry and Richard Bell, both surgeons, in Cockermouth in 1855, 1863 and 65.

Also a Henry Bell was named as a coroner in Cockermouth in 1860 and 1870.

They seem to be brothers, age 45 and 39, in Main Street in 1851.

Any connection?

David
Title: Re: Henry Bell
Post by: Ayashi on Thursday 10 August 17 10:53 BST (UK)
If memory serves, the marriage cert said he was a labourer.  :)
Title: Re: Henry Bell
Post by: Geoff-E on Thursday 10 August 17 14:38 BST (UK)
Andrew BELL died in 1860.

Perhaps the name Henry was simply transcribed wrongly from the original document.

I have a GRO copy which has the wrong surname - ELDRED instead of ELDING - so these things could happen sometime between the event happening in a church and its entry in the GRO register.  :-\

Title: Re: Henry Bell
Post by: trish1120 on Thursday 10 August 17 15:30 BST (UK)
Seems to be only one Esther Bell Birth c 1845 +/- 5 years;

Birth Reg GRO Index;
BELL, ESTHER, Mothers mn CARTY ****
GRO Reference: 1844  J Quarter in COCKERMOUTH  Volume 25  Page 95
Title: Re: Henry Bell
Post by: Ayashi on Thursday 10 August 17 20:23 BST (UK)
That was my theory, Geoff. On balance of evidence it seems more likely that the name was incorrect for whatever reason than that it was correct and everything else is missing. It's not impossible of course, something else complicated could have happened such as being registered illegitimate under mother's name and coming up with Henry later, but everything else seems to match pretty well. I did briefly look sideways, such as wondering if a witness might have been one of her family members, but didn't get far with it. The only real evidence I could think of might be a will for Andrew, or a witness to a sibling's marriage or informant on a death cert (such as Andrew or Margaret's) naming Esther SHORTRIDGE or Robert SHORTRIDGE. Unfortunately independently one would have to spend money to find out, but I did advise checking out any trees that belonged to descendants of Andrew and Margaret to see if any of them have marriage/death certs/more info.

Trish- that's the only one I could find too. The marriage of Andrew BELL to Margaret CARTY was 25 Oct 1830, Torpenhow (where the first two census children of the family were born).
Title: Re: Henry Bell
Post by: dcbnwh on Friday 11 August 17 10:40 BST (UK)
There is a death notice in the Carlisle Patriot on 4th February 1860, which reads:
"At Parsonby, on 27th ult., Mr. Andrew Bell, labourer, age 59."

He and Margaret are in Parsonby in 1851 and Margaret a widow there in 1861.

David