James Whitehead early 1700s - Can i get any further back?

[GingerVicky]

Hi there,
I am researching my Whitehead family who I believe may be from Cheshire. So far I have a James Whitehead who was born 1764 Stockport and married Ellen Roper. He was son of James Whitehead and Margaret. That James I believe was born 1731 Stockport to James and Elizabeth. I found a marriage for James Whitehead and Elizabeth Daniel for 1729 Wilmslow Cheshire which seems to fit. I am trying to find a birth for this James but am getting lost in a sea of James Whitehead's. Unfortunatly there seems to be a lot around. I found 4 possibilities but they are all about an hour away.
Is there any way I can find out when he was born and to who so I can get further back or am I just asking too much for that era with a fairly common name like Whitehead.
Any advice would be much appreciated.
Thanks
Vicky

[Birtle]

Hello Vicky
Have you looked at any wills, not just for Whiteheads but for families they married into? Sometimes you can find an incredible amount of info that will help cement - or upset! - a family tree, like married names of dtrs and sisters, cousins (though beware, that term can be used interchangeably with nieces/nephews etc), locations of individuals, names of properties etc etc. It might involve looking in turn into those relatives' wills etc in the hunt for clues (don't even necessarily ignore 'kinsmen' or apparently unrelated trustees/execs). There will be dead ends and wrong turns, but believe me it's worth the effort.
If you haven't already come across it, there's a comprehensive index of Cheshire wills on the CRO website -
http://archivedatabases.cheshire.gov.uk/RecordOfficeWillEPayments/search.aspx
It doesn't do vague or approximate searches on surnames: eg searching on surname Daniel will not also find Danyel, but searching Dan on the other hand will find both Daniel as well as Danyel and also surnames containing the syllable dan anywhere within.
You can order copies of wills from CRO, but a sub to FindMyPast might be a cost effective option as it includes access to images of the wills as well as Cheshire parish records. The wills index on FindMyPast has shortcomings, but used in conjunction with the CRO index it's possible to refine your searches to something reasonably manageable.
Happy hunting
Birtle

[shirl100]

On familysearch there is also a baptism in Wilmslow (from parish registers) of a James Whitehead 21 April 1734, parents James and Elizabeth so if your James was born Stockport this looks like a different family.

https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F7HT-Z9Q

Shirl

[elzabels]

When looking at Church records you need to look at the prime source, the Parish registers.

I have looked on line and think the 1764 BAPTISM is Bishops Transcripts ( BT's) as the writing on the page looks regimented as if it has been copied. If this is the case then it is only the basic information, you may find on the original a trade which will assist in searching for your family.

[rolnora]

Cheshire Parish Registers for St Mary only show that James was the son of James and Margaret of Stockport.
There are more possible baptisms for children to James and Margaret at St Mary,
Fanny 1762,Betty 1766 and Margaret 1770 none give anything more than parents names and residence.

Vicky,
Could you please come back and tell us how you have linked these family's together ?
Do you for instance have the marriage of James and Margaret? I can't see one in Cheshire.
If I have the correct record then the Marriage Bonds for Cheshire show James was a Dyer and Ellen Roper was a widow when they married in 1785 the oath declared in Wigan. Is that correct?
If you have any more info it might help us to help you a little bit more

[GingerVicky]

Hi there, Thanks for all your help. I admit there is a little guess work as I'm not sure how else to work it all out.
What I know for sure is that my ancestor James Whitehead was born in 1764 and was married to Ellen, also born around 1764. I know their rough birth dates from their burials in St pancras, London. I have looked for marriages around London but have not found any suitable. From James' will I know that he was a stone mason and had two brothers John and William who were also in the business.
I am not entirely that James and Ellen Roper are the ones but have been going on that. I then connected James to his parents James and Margaret as it was the same area and birth date as the marriage. They also had a son William which would tie in with him having a brother William. I think William was born around 1770 according to his burial in London. But I haven't found the brother John yet so not a perfect match.
If anyone has any better suggestions I would much appreciate your help. I feel like its a bit of guesswork as its difficult to know where James and Ellen came from.
Thanks
Vicky

[rolnora]

Hello Vicky,
I think I would forget James and Margaret for now and concentrate on James and Ellen as you seem to be sure that they are your ancestors.
James and Ellen must have had children, one of them your ancestor. Have you thoroughly researched him/her and any other children born to them?
Do you know where said children were born or baptised, married and died?
Any one of these could give you valuable clues that will enable you to go back a step with more confidence.
 

[GingerVicky]

I know that James and Ellen (also known as Ellenor) had several sons - one being Thomas (my ancestor) - all born in St Marylebone. They all seemed to then stay in that area. I have traced most of them I think. But James and Ellen's origins still remains a mystery.

[elzabels]

Vicky, Can you give us the last census reference you have for this family or enough information that we can find them on the census.....I presume this will be 1841.

Stone mason s were in demand and as such your ancestor could have been a journeyman

Answered my own question

http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=731806.18