I have been researching our Finlay/Edgar ancestors from Bangor/Lower Balloo in County Down. After being stuck for many years I discovered extra clues were actually in their children's names which provided many new leads. It made me wonder whether this is common and others have found the same.
In summary, Miss Ellen Finlay was a grocer in Main Street Bangor in 1852 and Robert Edgar was a baker at 13 Main Street Bangor. They married soon after and their children were named Archibald William Finlay Edgar, Samuel Edgar, James Finlay Edgar, Robert McCutcheon Edgar, William Richey Edgar and John Moore Edgar. The revelation came when I looked at who the children may have been named after. Turns out they all lived in Balloo or Balloo Lower, Bangor at that same time apart from the obvious ones named after grandfathers. James Finlay and Robert McCutcheon in Balloo Lower, while William Ritchie and John Moore lived near Balloo Rd and Gibsons Lane according to the 1863 valuation. That helped narrow down which James Finlay was Ellen's father and then a whole line of Finlays could be found from there. I'm still trying to determine whether they were just neighbours, friends, fellow merchants from Main St or whether they may have been related through the Finlay side of the family. We will be visiting Bangor from Australia soon and look forward to visiting the area and hopefully finding some more clues.