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Meant his marriage in 1815  not 1715. 

Why so many inconsistencies?  He swore under oath at the marriage that he was 27 yrs old.  That would seem more accurate than a census taker. 

On the marriage certificate  james lists his age as 27 (1815) and wife Jane is 17.  The 1851 census says his birth was 1798, but actually that is Jane's birth year. 

Math would have him born around 1788. I have a lot of info on his children, but no one has been able to find his parents or if any siblings.

Thank you so much for the added info on James Spence's family.  My great great grandmother was the second wife (Mary Ann).  Her mother was English by the last name of Fordham and moved with an uncle to the states.  Unfortunately she died leaving Mary Ann and a younger sister to a rather inept father (Charles DeLasere) who took them back to England to live with the Fordham family and there she met James Spence (now a widower) and they had 4 more children. 
One other item of interest was that of Gyrn Castle in Wales.  I noticed the first wife died there and my great grandfather has a painting of the place where the family spent time in his boyhood.  However, it appears James Spence lost his fortune a time or two.  We have never been able to find paperwork on the ownership of the Spence family there, however brief, although a Mr. Bates (a recent owner) gave my parents a tour and said there was a pool table there with the name of Spence. 

I have located my great great grandfather James Spence out of Liverpool.  He was born in  1816 and the eldest of a very large family.  However, it is believed that his father was possibly Italian and married to an English woman and took on the name Spence.  I was also told he was a sea captain that ran routes to Jamaica from Liverpool.  I am at a dead end and would love some suggestions.