Armstrong | Betty was born around 1767 and died in 1841 as a member of the Lightfoot family. With a very narrow timespan in which she could have been born, it is still not clear who her parents could be. Also mysterious is a Thomas Armstrong who is commemorated on Betty’s gravestone. Who is he? |
Banks | Sarah was born in Cockermouth in 1818, the daughter of Joseph and Mary, and was baptised in 1825. We suspect there is a connection to the Banks family who were settled in Cockermouth for several generations, but there is no conclusive evidence to prove the link. |
Barnes | Rowland Barnes died in Little Bampton in 1689. Another Barnes line is related to Elizabeth who became the wife of Benjamin Sanderson in 1760. |
Barwise | Thomas lived in Wigton parish in the mid seventeenth century, actually residing in Oulton. His granddaughter was another Lightfoot bride. The number of Barwise relations we have found is quite extensive. |
Benson | Elizabeth became the wife of William Gaitskell in 1745 in Waberthwaite. She is thought to have had eleven children. |
Bigland | Mary married Thomas France in 1689. After many years, we are no closer to proving Mary’s ancestry. |
Brockbank | Another long-standing problem has been the ancestry of Catherine, who married in Dearham in 1750. It is possible that the name may have been recorded as Brocklebank. |
Brown | Janes married into the Lightfoot family in 1673 and lived at Wedholme Hill near Wigton. |
Chadwick | Betty was born in 1787 in Bootle, the daughter of Joseph. As well as her family, several unrelated Chadwick families have been found. |
Dixon | John was a shoemaker who lived near St Bees in the mid 1700s. With so many Dixon families in the area, this problem may never be resolved. |
Donald | Catherine Donald married Samuel Swainson in St Bees in 1734. Nothing of her ancestry is known. |
Evening | An unusual surname which is very rare today. Elizabeth married in Caldbeck in 1735. Unfortunately, two Elizabeths marry in that area of Cumberland, yet only one baptism has been discovered. |
Fell | John married in Scaleby in 1788, after which he and his family lived in Bolton and Caldbeck. Much is known of later generations, but John’s parentage remains uncertain. |
Gaitskell | Joseph married in Waberthwaite in 1715, but his ancestry and death have yet to be found. |
Gibson | Christian married in Cockermouth in 1727, but does not seem to have been born there. A vast number of Gibsons lived in Cumberland and many of those families are on our database. |
Gillespie | George married Mary Holliday in Arthuret in 1726/27. Descendants of this couple lived in Gilcrux and Maryport. It seems probable that the family came from Scotland. |
Grave | James married Jane Harrington in 1698. Subsequent generations lived in the Whitehaven/St Bees area. |
Haisten | Jane married Robert Allinson in 1790. The line traces back to Thomas, who died in Dearham in 1760. Thomas left a will which was of enormous help in tracing part of this family. This is another name with a multitude of forms. |
Harrington | Jane married into the Grave family in 1698 in St Bees. |
Harrison | Thomas married Mary Martindale in 1693 in Bromfield. This line continues through several generations before ending with Nancy who married in Aspatria in 1798. Another Harrison is Sarah who is believed to have been born in 1792 in Cumberland and lived in Cockermouth until her death, as Sarah France, in 1838. |
Hartley | Little conclusive evidence has been found about this family, but they are known to have married into the Swainson family in the mid 1600s. Few parish registers exist for such early times in the area in which they lived and wills have revealed little. |
Hayton | Joseph died in Bromfield around 1719. Joseph left a will which confirmed a few relations, but also listed some who have yet to be found. |
Holliday | Mary was the wife of George Gillespie. The couple married in 1726/27 in Arthuret. |
Hunter | Elizabeth married John Walker in Lamplugh in 1755. She was widowed when quite young but received some assistance from members of the Walker family. |
Ismay | The link to Ismay is a little tenuous, but it is possible that this family has a connection with the Bouch/Boucher family of Bromfield. |
Jackson | Jane married Robert Walker in 1706 in Lamplugh. |
Jessop | Andrew, originally from Ireland, was married twice, his second marriage being in 1810 . His granddaughter, Mary Ellen, was born in Whitehaven in 1846. |
Langton | George married in Cockermouth in 1639. Although his daughter married into the France family and remained in Cockermouth, other members of the Langton family moved to Whitehaven. They seem to be a family who prospered in that area. |
Martindale | William lived in Blencogo in the mid 17th Century. Only his name is known at this stage, and the name of one daughter. |
Parker | Ann married in Kirkbampton in 1670. She is another ancestor who is simply a name on a family tree with nothing more known. |
Pattinson | The Pattinsons have been found in Aspatria in the 18th Century. Many of the people of that name in that parish were related and have been traced into more modern times. |
Piele | Margaret married James France in 1683. Another name with a variety of spelling, Margaret’s birth has yet to be confirmed. |
Purdy | According to a Trinity House Petition, William was born in Kirkcudbright in 1782. He married in Whitehaven in 1800. It is not certain if or how he was related to other Purdy families in that place. |
Railton | William Railton was a farmer in Scaleby. His birth, around 1728, continues to be elusive. |
Robinson | Mary was born about 1755 and married Richard France in 1778. Mary appears in several documents as a married woman, but nothing is known of her background, although many Robinson wills have been read looking for connections. |
Sanderson | Richard died in Caldbeck in 1758. Several generations lived in this beautiful area before some of the family moved to Gilcrux. Also of interest are the Sandersons who settled in Maryport. |
Simpson | Frances married in Cockermouth in 1639 and is one of the earliest people on our Cumbrian tree. |
Singleton | Born around 1765, Eleanor married in St Bees. Whether she was born in that place or came from another town or county is as yet unknown. |
Smith | Thomas married in St Bees in 1764. Two of his children married into the Swainson family. Certainly not an easy name to trace, a chance find pointed towards another county for his birth. |
Taylor | Ann became the wife of John Swainson in 1759. There is only one likely baptism in the area in which she lived, but, clearly, that is not enough evidence to prove it is correct. |
Thomlinson | The Thomlinson family lived at Blencogo Hall in the parish of Bromfield. Although they are not direct ancestors, they were related to our family and are of particular interest. |
Tordiff | Isaac has remained a mystery for many years. He married Mary Boucher in 1768 in Bromfield, but neither his baptism nor burial have been found. We are interested in any Tordiff families from Cumberland. |
Twentyman | Mary lived in Thursby after her marriage in 1718. Sadly, nothing found so far has provided any help in finding her parents. |
Walker | John married Elizabeth Hunter in 1755 in Lamplugh. The Walker family have connections to Lamplugh Hall. |
Williamson | Jane, born in 1722, married into the Lightfoot family. Jane had been on our tree for many years before her father’s will was found, confirming her birth. |
Wilson | Katherine was born in 1694 in Waberthwaite. Her father has been found, but little more is known. |
