Grace Darling tree Parents

[crisane]

I hate to burst the bubble but having gone on to ancestry and looked for an Agnes Darling born +/- 1853 this record appeared.
1861 Scotland census
Forfar Tampike Road Weet
Kirriemuir, Angus
Margaret Darling 33 born Coldingham
Agnes Kerr 71 born Coldingham
Agnes Darling 8 born Coldingham Berwickshire
Jane Simmer 21

Unfortunately no original image for Scotland on ancestry but i think there is enough evidence to rule out this family. Bah!

[crisane]

A couple of thoughts.
it could be that the informant on the birth cert of Grace Darling gave the wrong information and just gave Margaret's married name instead of her maiden name.
I wonder if getting one of the other children's birth cert would help to decide this.

Oh and Margaret and Agnes Darling with Agnes Kerr are still living in the same place in 1871!

[crisane]

I have been following William and Margaret through all the censuses.
Margaret's place of birth
1861, 1871, 1901  Ford Northumberland
1881 Leatham Hill
1891 Newcastle on Tyne
1911 It says Letham Hill, and above it Ayrshire resident.

William's place of birth
1861 Hathpool Northumberland
1871, 1881, 1901 Kirk Newton
1891 Newcastle on Tyne
1911 Haspool Durham

So why would Margaret say Ford Northumberland if she was born in Scotland.
And they had 7 children of which there is only one still living.

[ABrute]

How odd is all of this I have looked for "Letham Hill" on the internet and found lots of links to "Inverkeithing, Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland, with the alternative name of..."Letham Hill Wood". This is East Scotland, North of Edinburgh, not Ayrshire which is Western Scotland, all news to me mind.

However desperate trawling of the internet I found this site:

http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1319335

Which surprisingly has a location near "Ford" in "Northumberland".

I think you're right "Crisanne" and I have to try another Birth certificate for another child instead of stealing your support. Let me get a Birth Certificate.

Thanks for your inspiring guidance "Crisanne",  Alan

[crisane]

Hello Alan
yes I did the same as you and went looking for le(a)tham/Hill in Scotland and discovered it was in Fife not Ayrshire.  I wonder if the boundaries have changed since then?
I have just been on google maps and it tells me that Letham Fife is approx 100 miles from Ford Northumberland - for what it is worth.

No, on looking at the birth places in the censuses I think it is more likely to be Northumberland as Margaret's place of birth.  And then again why say Ayreshire resident.

You aren't stealing my support Alan, it is freely given. Not that it has brought any answers.
Let us know what the certificate says when you get it.

[Matilda1]

Letham Hill is a place in Etal township, Ford parish, NBL - see the list of farms (and other placenames) which is supplied as a PDF on the NBL County Council website.

I have seen Letham Hill given as an abode in church registers in Ford parish and poss other nearby parishes.

There also seem to have been other farms/places with Letham in their name, such as High Letham, in the parish of Berwick upon Tweed.

Hethpool is in Kirknewton parish - see http://www.genuki.bpears.org.uk/NBL/Kirknewton/index.html

www.genuki.org.uk is a good place to start if you are looking for places.

You can also have a look on the maps (and other goodies) on http://communities.northumberland.gov.uk

Matilda

[Chris Darling Hesketh]

I am a direct descendant of the above mentioned William and Margaret Darling from Leatham Hill just over the hill from Ford in Northumberland. I have done a lot of research and am thrilled to find your interaction. As far as I can see Margaret was born on 6th May 1827 to William Darling and his wife Grace Hogg daughter of William Hogg, hind of Letham Hill. She was baptised on the 10th May 1827 at Crookham Presbyterian Church.

I have a lot more information about the family if you are interested.