The marriage to Alice is a great find Heywood and whilst its NOT Michaels mother, it does tell us Peter was a widower, age 50, and gives us a work-back DOB of 1824 and if we are happy with his date of death as 1896 then he was 72.
Simon and Catherine as his parents are another good find too.
So, to close the loop I'm still searching for Michaels mother and his birth, dont get any easier do it and I've still not started on the Doughertys!!
Thanks for that info shanreagh, workhouse gives everyone a false impression I think.
Peters grandson, James Ward, was in a sanitarium in England for the 1921 census, which implies, well, I dont know what but in fact he contracted TB in WW1 and was in there convalescing.
Thanks for the link to Belfast workhouses Kiltaglassan, it made interesting reading.