X00391 John Taylor born 1852 after 1871

John Taylor is the second son, and fifth child of John Taylor and Jane Whittle. He was born 14 December 1852. Aside from his birth and baptism records, I have also found him in the 1861 and 1871 censuses.

Both of his parents died in early 1861 and so at the time of the 1861 census, he was living with his grandparents, John and Ellen Whittle. At the time of the 1871 census he is living with his brother and sister-in-law, James Taylor and Alice Ann Rothwell. His profession in the 1871 census is listed as a cotton spinner.

But after the 1871 census, it gets a little difficult to find him due to his very common name. In the 1861 and 1871 censuses he was living with other family members so it is easy to positively identify him, but in the censuses beyond I haven't been able to link him to any other family member.

Ancestry hints suggest a marriage between him and a Martha Ann Bulcock, so I decided to have look into that. I did manage to find the marriage record:

Most of the other ancestry hints are based on this marriage record being the correct one.

The name and age in the marriage record match with this John Taylor. The profession is a cotton porter, loom weaver, which is different than being a cotton spinner, but he could have changed profession. The address doesn't create any links to anything that I can tell. The father's name of John Taylor matches, but the profession does not match any previous profession for John Taylor

Given that John's father died when he was about eight, there is the possibility that he wasn't aware of what his profession actually was and gave the wrong information. But there's not enough definite information to conclude that this marriage record is the right one.

X00376 James H.R. Rothwell after 1856 Continued

Continuing the search to findmore information about James Hacking Ratcliffe Rothwell after 1856 (X00376), I did receive the death certificate that I had requested in a previous post.

Recapping: James H.R. Rothwell was born 6 February 1856 in Haslingden, Lancashire. He married Margaret Airey in Blackburn on 26 July 1856. I have found him in the 1871 census, but nothing beyond that date.

As mentioned earlier, I did request a death certificate from the GRO for a James Rothwell who died in 1894, aged 60 in Blackburn:

The name isn't exactly correct; nor is the year of birth or profession, which is what had me a little doubtful. Although one possible clue is that the informant is a daughter named Ellen Sharples, and the James Rothwell in my tree did have a daughter named Ellen. So I had a look for a marriage record between an Ellen Rothwell and someone with the last name Sharples.

I came across this marriage record between an Ellen Rothwell and a Samuel Sharples in 1883. Ellen ROthwell is a daughter of a James Rothwell, so it looks to be the same family as in the death record:

I had a look for a birth record for the Ellen Rothwell in the record and managed to find this baptism record:

The address of York Street in the baptism record matches the address in the marriage record, so the Ellen Rothwell in this baptism record is the same as the one in the marriage record and the same as the informant in the death certificate. But the parents are James Rothwell and a Mary, so it doesn't look like it is the correct James Rothwell. And so the search continues.

X00374: Alice Hacking EOL (Continued)

In previous blogposts I have talked about Alice Hacking and X00374 and finding her birth information, including her parents.

From the known documents I had determined that she was likely born between 1805 and 1809, outside of Blackburn, likely Clitheroe or Ribchester.

I had identified five possibilities for baptism records for Alice Hacking in the previous blogpost. Since then I have expanded the information further to look at where the families were living at the time:

Possibility	Name	Birth	Baptism	Location	Residence	Father	Mother
1	Alice Hacking	22 Dec 1806	22 Feb 1807	Blackburn	Lower Darwin	James Hacking	Jane Hacking
2	Alice Hacking	30 Nov 1809	19 Jan 1810	Blackburn	Blackburn		Betty Hacking
3	Alice Hacking	Unknown	31 Jul 1808	Blackburn	Lower Darwin	Lawrence Hacking	Betty Hacking
4	Alice Hacking	5 Apr 1806	27 Apr 1806	Altham	Clayton	James Hacking	Ann Hacking
5	Alice Hacking	19 Oct 1805	10 Nov 1805	Mitton	Aighton	James Hacking	Mary Hacking

This gives a better indication of which baptism record might the correct one. Lower Darwen is South of Blackburn, whereas Clitheroe and Ribchester are North East of Blackburn. Altham and Clayton are East of Blackburn.But Mitton and Aighton are located between Clitheroe and Ribchester, so they seem to be the most likely.

Doing some further research, I also found a death record for the fourth option in 1827, so that was clearly not the correct match

So, it is looking like possibiity 5 is the most likely one.

I'll need to do some more digging to see if I can find any other clues about this family

Next steps

• Look for a marriage record for James Hacking and Mary
• Look for James Hacking and Mary in the 1841 census
• Look for other records

Profile: Charles Taylor (1856-1939)

🧭 Ancestor Profile: Charles Taylor (1856–1939)

Born in the heart of industrial Lancashire, Charles Taylor’s life journey spanned the Victorian era, two world wars, and the evolution of Britain’s maritime strength. His story is one of service, movement, and resilience—woven through census records, certificates, and naval assignments.

🧒 Early Life in Blackburn

Charles Taylor was born on 13 August 1856 in Blackburn, Lancashire, England^[1]. He was baptized just two weeks later on 27 August at the local Church of England parish^[2]. His parents, John Taylor (circa 1820–1861)^{[14][15][16][17]} and Jane Whittle (1823–1861)^{[3][18][19][20]}, both passed away when Charles was still a child, leaving him to navigate early life in a rapidly changing industrial town.

By 1861, Charles was living at 49 Forrest Street in Blackburn and attending school^[3]. A decade later, he had moved to Accrington, still a scholar, residing at 29 Canary Street^[4].

⚓ A Life at Sea

Charles’s maritime career began in earnest with his marriage to Eliza Aylward on 28 August 1877 in Portsea, Hampshire^[5]—a naval hub that likely influenced his path. In his marriage record he was recorded aboard H.M.S. Excellent, working as a seaman^[5].

Over the next decades, Charles rose through the ranks:

• 1881: Leading Seaman aboard H.M.S. Boadicea^[6]
• 1891: Seaman and Coast Guard in Tynemouth, Northumberland^[7]
• 1901: Chief Boatman, Coast Guard in Cromer, Norfolk^[8]
• 1911: Chief Officer, Coast Guard in Barton Under Humber, Lincolnshire^[9]
• 1921: Retired Coast Guard Officer in Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire^[10]

His postings reflect the strategic coastal locations vital to Britain’s naval defense, and his steady advancement suggests a respected career.

🏡 Family and Residences

Charles and Eliza had at least two children:

• Elizabeth J. Taylor (born circa 1879)^[7][24]
• Frederick Charles Taylor (born circa 1886)^[9]

The family moved frequently, following Charles’s assignments:

• Tynemouth (1891)^[7]
• Cromer (1901)^[8]
• North Somercotes (1907)^[12]
• Barton Under Humber (1911)^[9]
• Cleethorpes (1921–1939)^[10][11]

Eliza passed away on 3 August 1907 in Louth, Lincolnshire and was buried in North Somercotes Cemetery^[12][13].

🕊 Final Years

Charles spent his final years in Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire, residing at Twining Place. He died on 3 January 1939 of bronchio pneumonia^[11], closing a chapter that had begun in the smoky mills of Blackburn and ended on the quiet coast of Lincolnshire.

📚 Source Citations

1. Birth certificate, 13 Aug 1856 – GRO, Blackburn
2. Baptism record – Blackburn Church of England
3. 1861 England census – Blackburn
4. 1871 England census – Accrington
5. Marriage certificate – Portsea, Hampshire
6. 1881 England census – Royal Navy
7. 1891 England census – Tynemouth
8. 1901 England census – Cromer
9. 1911 England census – Barton Under Humber
10. 1921 England census – Cleethorpes
11. Death certificate – 3 Jan 1939, Cleethorpes
12. Death certificate – Eliza Taylor, 3 Aug 1907
13. North Somercotes Cemetery record
14. Baptism record – John Taylor
15. 1851 England census – Blackburn
16. Death certificate – John Taylor, 1861
17. Deceased Online – John Taylor
18. Baptism record – Jane Whittle
19. Birth certificate – Jane Whittle
20. 1841 England census – Blackburn
21. Birth certificate – Eliza Aylward
22. 1861 England census – Portsea Island
23. 1871 England census – Portsea Island
24. 1881 England census – Portsea Island