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And you just solved a mystery for me.

Lydia Howe, born in 1860, was not christened until 1863 at the same time as her younger (possibly half) brother Charles Howe. If Thomas Howe and Lydia did not get married until 1861, then either Lydia was born out of wedlock and is Thomas Howes daughter, or she was Thomas Ridley's daughter and initially raised by Thomas Howe.

https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:V511-KDP
1871 census - Lydia Howe the daughter is not with the family even though she was 10 years old. Did she go and live with her biological father?

Edited to add - Glencare's details - Lydia was "Adopted" - Is this a euphemism for adopting a biological bastard daughter??

Is there a link to Thomas Ridley's will?

SOUTH RONALDSAY OPR and 1821 census records available from this website - http://www.southronaldsay.net/1821/

And hello Rootschat - I am back again - Long time no see or hear. For those of you who dont know me, I joined up here at Rootschat, way back around 2005 and have been popping in and out over the last few years whenever I have a genealogical puzzle to work out, because you people are just SO GOOD at working out my puzzles 

OK This time I have Walworth (or Wallwork), Howe and Ridley families that are all distantly connected by marriage to my family, which is why I am doing this. These families are living in Newcastle-on-Tyne in Northumberland.  I am going to post the links to the census details on Family Search - I hope that is acceptable.

In the 1841 census Lydia Wallwork (Later called Walworth) was living in Newcastle with her family and was aged 7 - no problems there.  https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M7WF-1FY

In 1851, Lydia was 17 years old and working alongside her mother Jane and her sister Mary Jane as servants in the home of a man named Thomas Ridley - in Newcastle. Her father Charles Walworth (he was a Mariner) was visiting on that same day. Thomas was listed as a Glass manufacturer. He was also widowed with one son named John.
https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:SGXW-1S8


In 1861, Lydia married Thomas Howe (possibly from Kilrea in Northern Ireland) and gave birth to a daughter Blanche Ridley Howe in 1864. When Blanche grew up, she moved to Australia but that is not relevant to this story.

In the 1861 census Thomas Ridley was still listed as a widower. His married son John was still living with him as was his servant Jane Walworth and her Mariner husband Charles. I dont know who John was married to at this point. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M7FT-JJ7


It is the 1871 census where things start getting confusing. Thomas Ridley is still a widower and is now described as both an Alderman (on the city Council maybe?) and a Glass Bottle Manufacturer. His married son John still lives with him as does his servant Jane Walworth and her mariner husband Charles.  But there are now 2 new names. A new servant named Jane Carins (or Cairns - they seem to be interchangeable) and a 10 year old girl named Lidia Ridley. Is she John's daughter? I don't know.  If you go back to the 1841 census for the Wallwork family, there is a man named Thomas Carins living with them, and also what looks like his 4 year old son Matthew Carins. If Jane Walworks maiden name was Carins, then Jane Carins (the new servant) could be a niece. Who were her parents?
https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:V5BX-72G

In the 1881 census Thomas Ridley is now listed as a Magistrate, an Alderman and a Glass  Manufacturer. Lydia (Is she his grand daughter?) is now his ward. John has gone - possibly died. The Walworks have also gone. Have they died or just moved out? https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q271-14GC

I also eventually found Thomas Ridley back in the 1841 census through his son John. There is a second son named Henry. This was the only census in which I found Thomas to be listed as married. If his mother in law was living with him, her surname was Magdny - I'm sure that spelling is wrong!! And there is also another young lady named Margaret Magdny working as a servant in this household. Occupations are not listed, nor are relationships so we dont know for sure how they are connected. Who was Thomas Ridley married to?
https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M7WF-YP3

And the reason I am asking all this - is because Blanche Ridley Howe was given the middle name of Ridley as was her brother Thomas Ridley Howe. But their parents were Lydia Walworth (Walwork) from Newcastle, and Thomas Howe from Northern Ireland. No obvious Ridley connection.

Would children have been given the names of people who were benefactors but not biologically related? After all Thomas Ridely employed Lydia's mother (Jane) as a servant for many many years.

If anyone can find a legal (Marriage) or biological connection between these two families, I would love to hear about it and see the details.

There is also a family tree for the Walworth (Walwork) & Carins family posted under the Family tree section of Family search. I don't know accurate it is. You do have to register but otherwise it is free. https://familysearch.org/tree/pedigree/MQSW-XKZ/portrait

If anyone can help answer some of my queries, I would be very happy.

Thank you.

Burrow Digger

I wouldn't have bothered to post on this topic but I was asked to. So . . . 
alanmack

I think we were ALL asked to comment....

While I am of English ancestry with one line unknown since my mother was adopted and her fathers name was NOT written down on her original birth certificate - anyone just looking at me can tell that I am white and British. I have even been told that my accent is pretty close to Devonshire despite my never having been there!!

So far my family tree is rather boring. I am of Anglo-Saxon (English) and Celtic (Scottish and Cornish) ancestry. I do have one line from Orkney so if a DNA test could tell me for sure if I have Viking ancestry, that would be nice to know. But right now I just cannot afford it. This would be one of those things I would do if I ever won the lottery!!!