X00393 What happened to Robert Westwell (b. 1868) after 1891 - Solved!

Tracing the Military Life of Robert Westwell (born 1868)

Every so often, a familiar name in my family tree resurfaces with just enough mystery to pull me back in. One such figure is Robert Westwell, born in 1868 [X00393]. I had written previously about finding him listed as a soldier in the 1891 census, but after that, the trail went cold. With no obvious civilian records to follow, I turned my attention to military sources in hopes of discovering what became of him.

My first promising lead was a medal index entry for an “R. Westwell”, awarded the King’s South Africa Medal for service in the Second Boer War, dated 1 October 1902. This soldier served with the East Lancashire Regiment under regimental number 9502. It was an intriguing match, but the medal card alone did not provide enough detail to confirm whether this was my Robert.

The breakthrough came when I searched deeper into the military collections on Find My Past. There, I found a full service record for a Robert Westwell, also of the East Lancashire Regiment, and crucially bearing the same regimental number, 9502. The question now was whether I could confidently link this soldier to the Robert Westwell from my family.

Several clues aligned neatly including the age shown throughout the military papers, which matched the birth year of 1868. As well his occupation given in 1886 was a warehouseman, the same occupation that Robert Westwell held in the 1881 census.

But the decisive evidence came from the names he listed as his next of kin. His original contacts were:

• Ellen Hill, married sister, living on Riley Street, Blackburn
• Elizabeth Jane, sister
• Martha, sister

These names correspond perfectly with what I already knew about the siblings of my Robert Westwell. With that, I felt confident that the soldier in the records and the man in my family tree were indeed the same person.

As his military career progressed, the next-of-kin information changed. Later entries list a wife named Ellen and a daughter named Rhoda May, both living at 16 Abbott Street in Blackburn. The marriage date is given as 21 May 1894.

Armed with this information, locating the marriage record was straightforward. The certificate confirmed and to further verify the connection, the father is listed as Robert Westwell, and one of the witnesses is listed as Martha Westwell.

From there, the remaining pieces of his life fell into place with much more ease. What began as a missing chapter in the 1890s has now expanded into a fuller picture of a man who served abroad, maintained close ties to his sisters, married, and raised a family back home in Blackburn.

It is always satisfying when a long-standing mystery resolves itself through a combination of persistence, pattern recognition, and a bit of luck. Robert’s story is another reminder of how military records can illuminate the lives of ancestors who might otherwise slip through the cracks of the historical record.

X00317 Ernest Ashton after 1916 - Solved!

I have posted in the past about X00317 and trying to find out what happened to Ernest Ashton after 1916. The Ashton Family bible lists his date of death as 23 January 1953, but I had not been able to find anything definite to cooberate the date in the Fmily Bible.

I had found him in the 1931 census and in the Toronto City directories for 1952, but not 1953, which was consistent with him dying in 1953.

Recently, the Ontario Death record for 1953 were released and I was able to find his death record

The death record gives a date of death of 24 January 1953, one day different from the family bible, but otherwise everything else matches.

An interesting thing that I had not known about is that his spouse is listed as Ruth Foot, so he evidently remarried. I managed to find their marriage record and it appears that they married in 1938.

And another thing that the death record give me was the burial place of Park Lawn Cemetery and I was able to find a corresponding entry at Find a Grave.

So, with that, I am now considering this X-File to be solved.

X00392 Eleanor Westwell after 1882 - solved!

In an earlier post, I shared that I had been able to follow Eleanor Westwell’s trail only up to 1882, when she appeared as a witness at the marriage of Lawrence Ashton and Mary Ann Westwell. After that, she seemed to vanish from the records, and I wasn’t sure what became of her.

Some time ago, I came across a possible lead: an 1883 marriage entry for an Eleanor Westwell. I ordered the certificate, hoping it might finally shed light on her fate. When it arrived, the details aligned so neatly that it became clear I had indeed found the same Eleanor.

The marriage took place on 25 December 1883 between Edwin Hill and Eleanor Westwell. Several key pieces of information confirmed her identity:

• Eleanor is recorded as 18 years old, matching a birth year of 1865.
• Her occupation is listed as cotton weaver, consistent with earlier records for “my” Eleanor.
• Most importantly, her father is named as Robert Westwell, a cotton spinner - a perfect match.

With these points lining up, I’m confident this marriage record belongs to the Eleanor I had been tracing.

Once this connection was made, the rest of her story came together more easily. Eleanor and her husband Edwin appear in later census records, continuing to live in Blackburn, Lancashire, where she spent her entire life. The couple had at least one child, John Robert Hill, born around 1886.

Eleanor Westwell Hill died on 25 December 1937 at the age of 72, her cause of death recorded as myocardial degeneration.

It’s satisfying to finally follow Eleanor’s life beyond that 1882 marriage entry and to restore her place in the family’s story.

X00390 Charles Taylor after 1861 - Solved!

Continuing my search for Charles Taylor and his death information (X00390), I was hoping that I would encounter the same luck that I had in tracking down his wife, Eliza Aylward.

First, I did manage to find Charles Taylor in the 1921 census

It's definitely the right one, because the birth information and location (Blackburn) matches, plus his profession is listed as a retired Coast Guard officer. At the time of the 1921 census, he's living in Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire, England.

The only other census-like record for England after 1921 is the 1939 register, so I had a look for him there. I was not able to find a Charles Taylor that matched, suggesting that he probably died before 1939

So, it would seem that he likely died somewhere between 1921 and 1939, which is a pretty wide range; his name is fairly common and he moved around a lot, so this seemed like an impossible task.

But then I thought, if he was retired in 1921, perhaps he stopped moving around and settled in Cleethorpes. So I looked for death records for a Charles Taylor between 1921 and 1939 in Cleethorpes. And sure enough I was able to find a record for a death in 1939:

Not only does the name and age match, but the profession listed is retired Chief Officer, Coast Guard. As well, the informant is F.C. Taylor, a name that matches one of his known sons.

So, I am happy to conclude that I have found the correct death record and death information for Charles Taylor.

X00384 William Charles Taylor after 1881 - Solved!

William Charles Taylor is my second great grand uncle and is the third child and first son of James Taylor and Alice Ann Rothwell. He was born 15 September 1870 in Blackburn, Lancashire, England. I had found him in census records with the family up until the 1881 census, but then it was difficult to find him in records after that.

Ancestry had some in some census records with a wife named Eliza, but there were a number of marriages between a William Taylor and an Elizabeth. I did take a chance and requested the Marriage record that seemed to be the most likely candidate:

The name and age matches with the William Charles Taylor in my tree, but the biggest confirmation was the fact that his father is named James Taylor and his profession was a blacksmith's striker, which completely matches, so this is definitely the right person. And with that I"m able to confirm a whole lot of other records and put together the details for William Charles Taylor

There is, however another interesting mystery. I found William Charles Taylor in the 1891 census living with a William and Elizabeth Brown:

The relationship with the head of the household is nephew, so it would seem that either William Brown or his wife Elizabeth are relatives. I have not yet been able to figure out the connection.

X00372 Henry Rothwell End of Line - Solved!

Henry Rothwell is my 4x Great Grandather, and I have talked about him in previous blogposts. Now that I've sorted out a number of other details about him, it's time to sort out his birth information and to try to get to the next generation.

Birth information for Henry Rothwell appears in in the 1841 to 1871 census records as well as his death and burial records. Unfortunately, his marriage record gives no birth information. Below is analysis of the records:

Doc No	Desc	Year	Age Given	Birth Year	Birth Place
D01529	1841 Census	1841	30	ca 1811	Lancashire
D01628	1851 Census	1851	39	ca 1812	Haslingden, Lancashire
D01602	1861 Census	1861	49	ca 1812	Haslingden, Lancashire
D02674	1871 Census	1871	59	ca 1812	Haslingden, Lancashire
D02737	Death Certificate	1875	64	ca 1811
D02679	Burial Record	1875	64	ca 1811

The records would suggest a birth year of about 1811 or 1812 in Haslingden, Lancashire.

I did look for baptism records around that time and I did find a baptism record for a Henry Rothwell, son of Richard and Mary Rothwell, born 1 Aug 1811 in Haslingden and baptised 20 October 1811.

Not only was this the only matching record that I could find for a Henry Rothwell born in that place in those years, but the names of the parents also match first names of Henry's children, so I am confident that I have found the right baptism record. Based on the above information I am concluding that Henry Rothwell was born 1 August 1811 in Haslingden to Richard and Mary Rothwell.

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Sources:
[D01529] 1841 census of England, Blackburn, Lancashire, folio 4, page 1, 24; digital images(accessed 9 Feb 2025); citing PRO HO 107/502/14.

[D01602] 1861 census of England, Blackburn, Lancashire, folio 100, page 27; digital images(accessed 15 Feb 2025); citing PRO RG 9/3100.

[D01628] 1851 census of England, Haslingden, Lancashire, folio 244, page 14; digital images(accessed 15 Feb 2025); citing PRO HO 107/2250.

[D02674] 1871 census of England, Blackburn, Lancashire, folio 75, page 25; digital images, Ancestry.ca, Ancestry.ca (accessed 15 Feb 2025); citing PRO RG 10/4178.

[D02679] Deceased Online, "Deceased Online," database, Deceased Online (DeceasedOnline.com : accessed 25 May 2025), 844.

[D02737] England and Wales, death certificate for Henry Rothwell, died 25 July 1875; citing 083/419/47, Q3 quarter 1875, Fylde registration district, Poulton le Fylde sub-district; General Register Office, Southport. Rec. Date: 20 Apr 2025.

[D09319] (Blackburn, Lancashire, England), Lancashire, England, Church of England, Baptisms, Marriages and Burials, 1538-1812, "Baptism Record - Henry Rothwell," PR 3016/1/9; digital images, ancestry.ca, ancestry.ca (accessed 3 Sep 2025).

X00381 John Taylor End-of-Line - Solved!

John Taylor is my 4x Great Grandfather and I'm looking to find his birth information and get to the the generation before. But with a very common name like John Taylor it can be very difficult.

Through the various records I have found about him, he was born around 1821 in Heywood, Lancashire, England. He died in 1861, before the 1861 census, and I have not been able to find him in the 1841 census, so the only census record that I have found him in is the 1851 census. Here's what I have found:

• 1851 Census - Age 29, suggesting a birth year of about 1822. Birthplace: Heywood, Lancashire.
• Marriage Record (1842) - No age given, but father's name give as James Taylor, a brick setter.
• Death Record (1861) - Age 40, suggesting a birth year of about 1821. No location given.

So, the evidence suggests a birth year of about 1821 in Heywood, Lancashire, with a father of James Taylor, a brick setter.

But I did some more research and managed to find a burial record which gives both parent's names:

And so we now know that his parents are named James and Rachel. I next managed to find a baptism record of a John Taylor, son of a James and Rachel Taylor in Heywood, Lancashire dated 25 March 1820

So it looks like I have found his baptism record. It doesn't give a date of birth, but the year and location coincides with what I am looking for.

On to the next challenge - to find more out about James Taylor and Rachel (X00387)!

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Sources:
[D00866] England and Wales, marriage certificate for James Taylor and Alice Ann Rothwell, married jun 28 1864; citing 8e/452/216, J quarter 1864, Blackburn registration district, Blackburn sub-district; General Register Office, Southport.

[D01629] 1851 census of England, Blackburn, Lancashire, folio 93, page 28; digital images(accessed 21 Feb 2025); citing PRO HO 107/2259.

[D06569] Deceased Online, "Deceased Online," database, Deceased Online ( accessed 28 Aug 2025), 295.

[D06573] England and Wales, death certificate for John Taylor, died 20 March 1861; citing 08e/245/445, Q1 quarter 1861, Blackburn registration district, Blackburn sub-district; General Register Office, Southport.

X00382 James-Betty-Charlotte Taylor Connection - Solved!

James Taylor (1845-1893) is my third great grandfather. He died on 17 April 1893 in Blackburn, Lancashire England. A hint came up in Ancestry referring me to a burial record through deceased online.

In the record, there is a James Taylor buried in Blackburn Cemetery 20 April 1893, so that definitely fits the time period for a death of 17 April 1893.

But now we have an interesting research question - who are the other three people who are buried in the same location? There's a Charlotte Taylor who died 1904, a Betty Taylor who died 1901 and another James Taylor who died in 1899. None of these names or dates match the Taylors in my tree.

So, I decided to get the full burial records for each of them. The first thing that I found was that the James Taylor was not my thrid great grandfather:

This James Taylor was age one when he died and was the sone of James and Betty Taylor. James Taylor is certainly not an uncommon name, but it looks as if there were two James Taylors who died around the same time in Blackburn.

When I look at the burial records and ages for the individuals on this burial record, here is what we have:

• Charlotte Taylor - ca. 1881 - 1904, saughter of James and Betty Taylor
• Betty Taylor - ca. 1852 - 1901. rel. of James Taylor
• James Taylor - ca. 1855 - 1899, husband of Betty
• James Taylor - ca. 1892 - 1893, son of James and Betty Taylor

So, there we have the full details for the four of them. James and Betty are the parents and two of their children are Charlotte and James. None of these names or dates match with my tree. I did have a look to see if I could find more about this family. According to the marriage record, James Taylor's father is named John (same as my ancestor) but it looks like a different familyl completely. So at this point, I am concluding that there is no clear connection to my familiy and this one.

X00383 The Mystery of Betsy Taylor - Solved!

A Tangent in the Taylor-Whittle Tree: The Mystery of Betsy Taylor

Genealogy often leads you down unexpected paths. While deep in the weeds of tracing the Rothwell family, I recently found myself taking a detour — one that pulled me back into the tangled branches of the Taylor-Whittle line. I hadn’t planned on shifting my focus, but sometimes a name, a hunch, or a missing piece of the puzzle can spark a new direction in the research.

This time, the name was Betsy Taylor.

While reviewing several public family trees on Ancestry, I noticed that quite a few researchers had included a daughter named Betsy Taylor, reportedly born in 1858, as a member of the Taylor-Whittle family. What stood out immediately was how little information followed her name—no marriage, no death, no census entries. Just her birth year and a deafening silence after that. It piqued my curiosity. Who was this mysterious Betsy? And did she actually belong in this family?

As I combed through census records and other documents tied to the Taylor-Whittles, one thing became increasingly clear: Betsy never appeared with the family in any records beyond her supposed birth. If she truly was their daughter, her absence in later documents suggested she may have died young—likely before the 1861 census.

The only source cited across those Ancestry trees was a GRO (General Register Office) birth index entry—nothing more. So I headed straight for the GRO indexes myself to see if I could locate the original record. Sure enough, there it was: a Betsy Taylor, born in 1858 in Blackburn, with a mother’s maiden name listed as Whittle. On the surface, it looked like a perfect match. Right place, right time, and the right surname connection. Encouraged, I ordered the birth certificate, hoping it would either confirm her place in the Taylor-Whittle tree or finally put the speculation to rest.

When the certificate arrived, the mystery began to unravel. The parents were listed as Francis Taylor and Nancy Taylor, formerly Whittle. So yes — Betsy was the daughter of a Taylor and a Whittle, just not our Taylor and Whittle. She belonged to an entirely different family.

Interestingly, this discovery hinted at a broader pattern: there may have been more than one Taylor-Whittle union occurring in Blackburn around the same period. That alone is worth investigating further. However, with Taylor being one of the most common surnames in the region, it may be more of a coincidence than two brothers from one family marrying two sisters from another.

In the end, the mystery of Betsy Taylor served as a reminder of how easy it is for names to blur, families to overlap, and assumptions to take root in family trees. But it also underscored the importance of digging deeper, ordering the records, and following the threads with care. Even a small detour can shed light on the broader landscape—and sometimes lead to entirely new stories waiting to be told.

X00375 Henry Rothwell 1838-1840 - Solved!

I've gone back to look at X00375 and the birth and death information for Henry Rothwell 1838-1840 again. I still have not been able to find a birth record from the GRO for a Henry Rothwell that has a maiden name for the mother of Hacking.

But instead, I had another look at the father's professions in the baptism, death and burial records:

• Baptism (1838) Father's profession: Ostler
• Death (1840) Father's profession: Ostler
• Burial (1840) Father's profession: Not given

The fact that the baptism and death records both list the father as being an ostler is good evidence that the two are related. The question is, is the father (also named Henry Rothwell) the one in my family.

I had a look at some other records to see if the profession is the same. In later years, Henry Rothwell, the father's profession is given as a carter most often. Both ostlers and carters work with horses, so that is a good indication. But in the baptism records for both Mary Rothwell (1836) and James H.R. Rothwell (1835), Henry's profession is listed as being an ostler

And with that, I'm willing to conclude that Henry Rothwell (1838-1840) is connected to my Rothwell family.

X00370 & X00371 Nancy Rothwell Birth info - Solved!

Nancy Rothwell appears in the 1841 census living with the rest of the Rothwell family, aged 13 (implying a birth year of about 1828). Unfortunately, she doesn't appear in any later census records with the family that I could find.

This information created a few questions as described in previous posts:

• X00370 - Birth information for Nancy Rothwell
• X00371 - When did Henry Rothwell and Alice Hacking get married?

I have found a marriage record for Henry and Alice in 1833

A marriage in 1833 implies that Nancy was likely born before the marriage. And sure enough I found an interesting baptism record:

It's a baptism record for a Nancy Rothwell, baptised 21 May 1841 and the parents are Henry and Alice Rothwell. And Henry is listed as a carter which matches. The actual date of birth however is given as 2 April 1828, which would match. So, it's a definite possibility that Nancy was born 2 April 1828 out of wedlock, but was baptised later in life (at age 13) when the parents were married.

So this fits. I did however, find a baptism record dated 11 Oct 1829 for a Nanny Hacking, born to an Alice Hacking, with no father listed:

This could be an original baptism record, but the date and location don't match and there's not enough other information to tell for sure.

I did also look into the possibility that Alice Hacking as married previously and found a marriage record between an Alice Strong and a James Hacking on 28 November 1828.

But this seems unlikely. For one thing, Alice is listed as a spinster in the 1833 marriage record, and the name Hacking appears as a middle name for one of her children. Also, the marriage would have taken place after Nancy was born, according to her later baptism. So, it would seem that this is more of a coincidence than anything else. I have also found James and Alice Hacking in later census records.

After considering the evidence and timing, it would appear that the 1841 baptism record for Nancy Rothwell and the 1833 marriage record for Henry Rothwell and Alice Hacking are the correct records.

X00373 Alice Rothwell Date of Death

Similarly to my research on the death date for Henry Rothwell, I had a similar issue for finding the death date of his wife, Alice. She appeared in the 1881 census, but I could not find her in any later census records, so presumably she died between 1881 and 1891. I had found a death certificate that looked to fit:

The location of Blackburn and the address of Alker street are consistent with my Alice Rothwell. The year of birth is a little off (about 1810 vs about 1807) but still close. She is listed as the husband of a Henry Rothwell, although as established previously, there were more than one Henry and Alice Rothwell couples living in the area at the time.

I managed to find her in a burial record for Blackburn Cemetary:

Then I checked the other names in the same plot. This is the same burial location as the Henry Rothwell that I have recently determined is the correct one, which would also suggest that this Alice Rothwell is also the right one.

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Sources:
[D01347] 1881 census of England, Blackburn, Lancashire, folio 24, page 41; digital images, Ancestry.ca, Ancestry.ca (accessed 15 Feb 2025); citing PRO RG 11/4189.

[D02680] Deceased Online, "Deceased Online," database, Deceased Online (Deceasedonline.com : accessed 25 May 2025), 1492.

[D02683] England and Wales, death certificate for Alice Rothwell, died 4 November 1889; citing 08e/292/476, Q4 quarter 1889, Blackburn registration district, Blackburn Southern sub-district; General Register Office, Southport.

X00188 Solved! Part 4

I've posted about X00188 previously. In Part 2 of the post, I mentioned how there were additional names listed in the burial record for Henry Rothwell. In Part 3 I had a look at the Mary Slate name to see how she could be related to the family. In this part, I look at the Martha Bass name to see if she is related to the family.

I first went and found the original burial record:

Which gives a burial date of 24 June 1885 and an age at of six months. It lists her as the daughter of John and Mary Alice Bass.

So the next step was to find a marriage record for John Bass and Mary Alice to see if there is any more evidence there. Sure enough, I was able to find a marriage record between a John Bass and a Mary Alice Rawcliffe Rothwell in 1882:

The name of Rothwell, does suggest that I'm on to the right marriage, although there is no information given for the father. The birth year of about 1862 would likely be too late to be a child of Henry and Alice Rothwell. So I had a look at some of Henry and Alice's children

Sure enough, I managed to find a marriage between Martha Rothwell and Samuel Rawcliffe in 1864:

This marriage record lists a Henry Rothwell as a father and a James Rothwell as a witness. As well, the birth year of Martha Rothwell matches the birth year of a known daughter of Henry Rothwell named Martha. So I'm willing to conclude that the Martha Bass in the burial record is connected to the Henry Rothwell from my family. With the evidence here and of the Mary Slater connection, I am also willing to conclude that the Henry Rothwell who died in Blackpool is the correct one.

One interesting thing to note is that the Rawcliffe-Rothwell marriage took place after Mary Alice was born, which might explain why her surname was Rothwell and not Rawcliffe and that the father is not listed on her marriage certificate. More to investigate on that later.

X00188 Solved! Part 3

For the next step, I first looked at the burial record for Mary Slater to see if there was any connection there. I first found the burial record:

Mary Slater died in 1903 at an age of 63. She was married to a George Slater and was living in a workhouse at the time of her death. That would suggest a birth year of about 1840. She could have been Henry Rothwell's daughter, Mary who was born about 1836, but not exactly, so I did some further investigation.

First thing that I found was her death certificate:

Unfortunately, the death certificate doesn't give much in the way of information that I didn't already have. It confirms that her husband's name was George and she died at age 63 in a workhouse. Additional information found was that she died of senile decay and that husband was deceased and was a cotton weaver. No maiden name however, or any definite proof to link her to Henry Rothwell. So, the next step was to find a marriage record between George Slater and Mary. I managed to find this one:

The marriage is between a George Slater and a Mary Rothwell on 13 December 1854. Her father is listed as Henry Rothwell, a carter, which is a good sign. Her age is give as 19, which would coincide with a birth year of about 1835, which also fits. One of the witnesses was James H.R. Rothwell, which also fits. So, the marriage record definitely fits with it being Mary Rothwell, daughter of Henry Rothwell.

Next step - to investigate the record for Martha Bass.

X00188 Solved! Part 2

Continuing on the story of X00188, I had a look at the burial record for Henry Rothwell, who died in 1875. I had a look to see who else was buried in the same plot. There were four names

It lists four individuals, including Henry and Alice Rothwell. There is also a Mary Slater, who was buried in 1903 and a Martha Bass who died in 1885. Neither of those names are familiar to me, but I had a look at Alice Rothwell's burial record:

And from that I found the death record:

Unfortunately, neither the burial record, nor the death record gave any clear indication, other than that she was married to a Henry Rothwell. Next step...to see if I can find out more about Mary Slater or Martha Bass.

X00188 Solved! Part 1

I've been researching quite a bit lately about the Rothwell family, making new discoveries and finding new mysteries. But it was X00188 that started it all off - finding death information for Henry Rothwell. And I have solved the mystery.

Henry Rothwell is my four times great-grandfather and was born about 1812 in Haslingden, Lancashire, England. His wife was named Alice. I found the family in the 1871 census, but Henry does not appear in the 1881 census, which implies that he likely died between 1871 and 1881.

I checked the death records and there were a few possibilities for a Henry Rothwell of the right age in the area (more on that soon), but the most likely one was a Henry Rothwell who died in Blackpool, rather than Blackburn.

This Henry Rothwell died 25th July 1875 in Blackpool at an age of 64 years, so the age matches. The occupation of general labourer also matches, but that is a very common occupation, so not entirely conclusive. The location of Blackpool doesn't match, but it appears that the death occurred in a hotel, so he could have been travelling.

Another consideration is a Henry Rothwell who died in Haslingden at age 70 in January, 1882.

The age matches, and Henry Rothwell was born in Haslingden so, it's not oout of the question, but not as likely as Blackburn. Unfortunately, the year of death is 1882, which then doesn't explain why he doesn't appear on the 1881 census.

Another Henry Rothwell who died in Haslingden, died in 1875. But the year of birth would be about 1810.

But I had a look further at the first Henry Rothwell, who died in Blackpool. I found a burial record for a Henry Rothwell buried in Blackburn on 28 July 1875, age 64. This would match the death date of the Henry Rothwell who died in Blackpool, but buried in Blackburn. As well, his wife's name is given as Alice, so this is very promising.

More on this to follow!

X00369: Investigating Ellen Rothwell - Solved!

A few weeks ago, I posted about Ellen Rothwell's birth and death. I have since received the birth and death information from the GRO.

Here's the birth record:

and here's the death record:

The birth record gives a maiden name for the mother of Hacking, so that matches. The death record mentions that she was a daughter of Henry Rothwell, and the informant is Alice Rothwell. Both have ties back to my Henry Rothwell and Alice Hacking. Based on when I'm seeing in these records, I'm convinced that these are the correct birth and death records for Ellen Rothwell and that she is died to my Rothwell family.

X00057 Peter Brown and Annie Paton Kerr Missing Child - Solved!

The 1911 census for Peter Brown and Annie Paton Kerr, mentions that the couple had twelve children, but only nine were alive at the time of the 1911 census.

Through thorough research, I identified eleven of their children from previous census records:

• Maria Kerr Brown, b. 1875
• Peter Brown, b. 1876, d. 1884
• William K. Brown, b. 1879
• James Brown, b. 1881
• John Young Brown, b. 1883
• Jane Menzies Brown, b. 1885
• Peter Brown, b. 1887
• Annie Kerr Brown, b. 1889, d. 1909
• Elizabeth Brown, b. 1894
• Thomas Kerr Brown, b. 1896
• Alexander Brown, b. 1889

From this list, we can see that both the first Peter Brown and Annie Kerr Brown had passed away prior to the 1911 census. This leaves a gap—there must have been one more child, born and died between census years, never appearing in any of the census records.

To fill in this missing piece, I turned to other genealogical resources. While searching through Ancestry, I stumbled upon references to a Jennie Kerr Brown. This led me to Scotland’s People, where I discovered a birth record for Jeannie Kerr Brown, born 16 April 1878, and a death record dated 28 March 1880. As suspected, Jeannie Kerr Brown was born and passed away between the census years, thus explaining why she wasn’t recorded in the census records.

This discovery, while fulfilling in terms of completing the family tree, also brought a poignant reminder of the challenges and sorrows faced by our ancestors. The short life of Jeannie Kerr Brown, and the losses endured by Peter and Annie Brown, are now acknowledged and remembered, adding depth and context to the Brown family history.

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Sources:
[D00338] 1911 census of Scotland, Larbert, Stirlingshire, Scotland, enumeration district (ED) 2, page 8, schedule no. 57; digital images, ScotlandsPeople.

X00278 Other Doritty Surname Records - Solved!

The other day I went through a number of other Doritty records that I had found to see if they were connected to my Doritty family or if I could rule them out.

The first that I found was a marriage record for a Lewis Dorrity in 1840:

I don't have anyone named Lewis in my tree, so I had a look at later census records for a Lewis Dorrity (or variant spelling). I only found an individual in 1871, widower, who had an age that would have matched, but who was African in background. So, it would appear to not be a connection and I haven't found anything else to link the record to the rest of the Doritty family.

Next, I found this record in Ontario Marriage Notices:

The name uses a different spelling, of course, and there is no connection to the names or locations, so I'm going to rule out this one as a connection as well.

Next there were these two findings:

Francis Early Doritty is the son of Frederick Doritty and Laura Lamondie. While there is a Frederick Doritty in my tree, there is no connection to a James Doritty. And with the variant spellings, and different location, I'm prepared to say that this is not a connection to my family - or if it is, it is a distant connection.