Hi kwicknit
I've answered most of the PM questions that you sent me, but here is a summary:
All of the info I gave is from parish records or the Monumental Inscriptions. I cannot put up the full images here because of copyright.
1. From James's death cert and the MI - James and Margaret (both born circa 1776 ish) - appear to have had 4 living children - Elisabeth , William, Jessie/Janet and Jane. They also had children who died in infancy. Don't worry too much about the ages given - they're not usually accurate.
2. The parish records in Liverpool have the 2 Elizabeths as being the daughters of Copeland and Jessie Anderson with Copeland as a police constable/police man.
3. The 2 baptism records that I looked at from Balmaghie have James as tenant of Lochenbreck Wells, which would mean he rented the property on a lease. it doesn't say that he was a tenant farmer. I don't know if Lochenbreck Wells was a farmstead or just a house. Sometimes you might find properties/land advertised for rental in the local newspapers of the time. Copies of these would be in the local archives/libraries in Dumfries and Kirkcudbright. It might be worth contacting them at:
http://www.dumgal.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=2300http://archives.dumgal.gov.uk/DServe/DServe.exe?dsqApp=Archive&dsqCmd=Index.tclhttp://www.dumgal.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=3787Castle Douglas Library also has a local studies section. They were very helpful when I visited:
http://www.dumgal.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=3776Gadget