Illegitimate Birth

[julies198]

I have bought that and the mother is Mary Dixon nee. Armstrong and father Robert Dixon who is the sister of Ann and Catherine. I can't find a marriage between Ann Armstrong and Thomas Mitchelson nor Mary Armstrong and Robert Dixon both would have married in Cumberland or County Durham (maybe Scotland but unlikely) between 1864 and 1871. I have checked everywhere 

[bbart]

On this post:
https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=881174.msg7537037#msg7537037  you say that William Armstrong died in 1940. Is that just a typing error?

Also, just to make sure I am looking at the right William, was his wife Esther Byers, and a couple of his kids are Peter Hope Armstrong, and Jemima?

Edit: striking through above question as it is another William Armstrong born Cannonbie of the same birth year living in Cumberland.....*sigh*.

[julies198]

Yes, we know he was born in Canonbie and was illegitimate. He at some point took on the name Dixon either given by his mother/family or by choice but I think his family have him the name as he didn’t appear to know he was born just Armstrong. So he died William Armstrong Dixon who had been a former grocer.

There are so many William Armstrong’s & Catherine Armstrong’s it’s like finding a needle in a haystack 

[Jo6100]

I have bought that and the mother is Mary Dixon nee. Armstrong and father Robert Dixon who is the sister of Ann and Catherine. I can't find a marriage between Ann Armstrong and Thomas Mitchelson nor Mary Armstrong and Robert Dixon both would have married in Cumberland or County Durham (maybe Scotland but unlikely) between 1864 and 1871. I have checked everywhere 

There is a marriage in Weardale between Hannah Armstrong and Thomas Mitchelson in September 1883 10a363
 My great grandparents married after three of their children were born so unless you know Ann or Thomas was dead ( sorry if I missed that) it’s worth broadening your time span

Jo

[julies198]

Thanks Jo, I’ll do that. I’m just assuming because she calls herself on the census by her ‘married’ name but it’s possible she was not legally married but used the name.

[Jo6100]

My great grandparents stated on the 1911 census they’d been married 10 years but they didn’t actually marry till 1912! He was single and she was widowed so no reason not to marry- who knows why they didn’t!

[Neale1961]

Re: Ann Armstrong and marriage to Thomas Mitchelson

If the Hannah Armstrong marriage in Weardale is not correct, then they may not have married. In the 1911 census she records nothing against number of years married.
Another possibility is that being close to the Scottish border, there was an irregular or toll-bar marriage where no record was kept.

________________

Re: Joseph Dixon 1869 – son of Mary Armstrong and Robert Dixon.

Again I can’t find a marriage for Mary to Robert Dixon. There are several marriages between a Mary Armstrong and a Dixon in the right area and time frame, but none are to a ROBERT Dixon.

I cannot find young Joseph in the 1871 census. I cannot find Mary Armstrong and Robert Dixon living together in any census. In fact, she is very difficult to find in the census. Have you had any luck?
Does the birth certificate give Robert Dixon’s occupation? Was he a sailor?

If  Mary did marry, it possibly was not for long. – There were two sons born 1869 and 1872 and then she seems to be a widow.

These are the few census records I found relating to them ------

In 1901 – Joseph Dixon and his mother Mary are in South Shields
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XSC5-SQR

In 1891 South Shields - Joseph Dixon and his younger brother Robert James Dixon (born 1872) are with their mother Mary in the house of her brother John Armstrong.
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:WKST-XW2

In 1881 Harton Durham, both Joseph Dixon and Robert Dixon (junior) are with their uncle John Armstrong and their grandmother Mary Armstrong. No sign of either parent.
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q271-2L7H


Note:- John Armstrong must be about the youngest in that family of William Armstrong and Mary Graham – he was born in 1856 Brampton.

[bbart]

Just a couple of things, to help eliminate some of the Armstrongs and Dixons:

Regarding the Hannah Armstrong/Robert Dixon marriage in Weardale:
The transcription at FindMyPast shows Hannah's father as Robert Armstrong, and place of marriage as Wolsingham.

Regarding William Ridley Dixon....Although I think we have already dismissed him as a possibility, I am just adding a bit to it.  It looks like he married the Catherine Dixon, daughter of William and Ann Armstrong, in Shaddongate.   A couple of snips are attached.  This Catherine did have a sister Ann, but there was a death notice for Ann several months before the birth of William.  This Catherine can be tracked via news articles and censuses, and she never remarried, and as mentioned by Gan Yam, she lived to a good age of 91.

Regarding John Armstrong, brother to Catherine and son of Mary:
Somewhere I mentioned in this thread that he was living with George Andrew and Catherine Watson in a census.  He was with them, single, 1901 through 1921 censuses.  One identifies him as brother in law to George (the crane driver mast maker).  In the 1901 Catherine does put birth place as Lanercost. (20 years later, her birth is listed as "Kind Waters, Cumberland" There is a King Water on the map in Brampton.... ) 

You already have the middle section of their marriage certificate;  I don't know if there would be anything more helpful you would see on Catherine and George's full marriage certificate, other than a possible occupation for her father?

[Neale1961]

Bbart, your last post is a bit odd. Do you think you might have some facts confused?