Hi Eddy
I have the 1851 for Torver and the blacksmith then was a John Wilson - he was the "Blacksmith & Beerkeeper" no less! There are no William and John Nicholsons of the right age in the area.
Problem you have is the way the counties were in those days - Cumberland, Westmorland and Lancashire all joined in that area. I have a couple of families from this part of the world and they clearly had no idea what county they were from, the town is the only consistent thing. So does your relative mean they were from Cumbria (in which case it could be any of the 3 counties) or Cumberland (in which case you are probably in the wrong area).
I agree with Andrea I'm afraid - Nicholson is a really common name up here so with just the name and the area you will struggle, even if you are sure of the father's name. You may find a few likely people but you need to be sure they are your relatives. Free BMD lists 18 William Nicholsons born in Cumberland between 1840 and 1846, 6 in Westmorland and 23 in Lancashire. So there are at least 47 William Nicholsons in the area that you could find! The IGI lists about 18 Williams from the same area who have a John as a father.
How do you know that William is in your family tree and that his father was John? Do you have details of his children or his wife? If you are just going on the sayso of an elderly relative they are not always accurate (my grandfather told me one of my ancestors was hung and another was related to a famous border revier - sadly none of it was true!).
Post up everything that you know and I'm sure there are plenty of people who are on here that can help.
Sue
