Find Ancestors

... just spent a day in Barrow and Cleator Moor. Visited Ship Street and the place where the Brick Huts/Cottages stood (where Christina was born). Even managed to get an old map that shows the town during the time our ancestors were there.

Also, have a better idea why Cleator Moor comes into play. Iron ore mines were the main employers - and so William, as a miner, would have found work.

Continues to fascinate!

Hope all is well, Stew

The Kerr's were from Scotland and William/Christina's children seemed to move between England/Ireland/Scotland regularly - as most of the male children worked in shipbuilding I think that would explain it.

William/Christina lived in Old Monkland, where they had a number of children between 1854 and 1863, then they moved to Cleator where 2 children were born in 1868 & 1870. Your Christina was their first child born in the Furness area, in 1872, followed by Elizabeth in 1874. Elizabeth also married in Ireland, but eventually returned to Barrow.

The 1881 census had them living in the Brick Huts - which were erected to house the influx of workers into Barrow. They were not a good place to live, there were outbreaks of Smallpox, no sanitation and extreme over-crowding.

I'll try to find Christina's first marriage certificate, but think it may be on my memory stick which is in my desk at work so it will be sometime next week before I can get it.

... on the 1911 Census, Michael Kerr is shown as "boarder", aged 29 and born in Ireland. Don't have more on him though.

Thanks for the details on Christina/Christiana. I've ordered a copy of the bith cert.

Stewart, if you click on my name and send a PM I'll be able to grant you access to
my tree so you can check out my notes on the family.

Hi my long lost relative, Christina's brother Andrew was my great grandfather.

I'm afraid I never found William on the 1881/91 census - although the family were on 1881 in Barrow, he was absent. When I checked out his death I looked at the burial records and got an address then checked the ERs, but he was only recorded on the year of his death - was not at the same address on previous ERs.

Never bought Christina's birth certificate, but this is her birth:

Births Sep 1872 (>99%)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

KERR Christiana Ulverston 8e 751

Cross checked to Cumbriabmd, mmn was recorded as McKanna and she was born in Dalton. They were catholic so I wasn't able to check for a christening - the records haven't been released to the records office.

I'm guessing Michael Kerr on the 1911 census is related somehow, but I don't have him in my tree

Flip (long lost distant relative!)

- they married 12th March 1900 at St. Lawrences in Greenock.

- 1911 Cenus , at 3 John Street, Greenock with
Christina McLennon (16)
Alex McLennon (18)
Elizabeth Cassidy (8)
James Cassidy (6)
Catherine Cassidy (4)
Michael Kerr (29)
Elizabeth Kerr (14)
Helen Kerr (11)

Christina Kerr McLennan (and its various spellings!) Cassidy is my great great grandmother.

Do you have a birth cert for this Christina?

More than happy to share what I'm unearthed.

Stewart

Hello Stuart

This has taken a long time for your response! Welcome to the boards, see this is your first post.

Your find is very interesting and checks out, guess her first husband Alexander McClelland must have died as that certainly looks like my Christina on the 1901 census - although I don't appear to have access to 1911 on Ancestry.

Do you know when and where they were married please?

How are you connected to Christina? My line is from Andrew's (her brother) son, but if you are interested we could compare trees - I've had quite a bit of help from a descendant of her sister Elizabeth - who also married in Ireland.

atb, Flip

Here's where Christina ended up:
1900, marries Michael Cassidy in Greenock
1901 Census, with Michael in Greenock (plus kids from first marriage)
1911 Census, with Michael in Greenock
1940, dies in Greenock

I have records for all of the above. Birth Cert still missing though.

Still looking for those missing William Kerr years!

OK, got the record but still can't get any further. The record checks out, her father was William Kerr, mother Christina. His father Alexander McLellan, mother also Christina. But no location/occupation for either set of parents.

Both of them were living 7 McQuillan Street (Falls district, Belfast) at time of marriage. The witnesses were Daniel McAuley and Catherine O'hara, and they married at St Paul's RC Church Falls Road, by dispensation for marriage and dispensation for banns (whatever that means?).

Then can't find anything for them - so any help greatly appreciated!!!

€€€€€€€€

Oh dear....how sad am I

I took Maries instructions to the letter 'Alt Gr' and Alt Ctr!


€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€

€ I learn something new every day - thanks!

On my notepad it works by holding down the ctrl and alt keys at the same time and pressing the 4 (the € symbol is on that key on my notepad).

But my emoticons won't work! :-)

Edit - oh they work as well once the message is posted!

Mine has that MC but cant get that to work.....idiot instructions please :-D

€ - If your keyboard has a € symbol on the number 4 above E & R then press the "Alt Gr" button to the right of the spacebar together with the 4 and you get €

(If it doesn't have the symbol then I'm wittering on about nowt, and you'll already know that!)

Thanks Gins,

I'll probably be back once I get the certificate. Didn't know you could get the symbol from word, thanks again.

Its 10 Euros for the full certifcate which is what you need and a further 2 Euros for a search of five years either side of the birth/marriage

You have to go in Word and then Symbols for the Euro symbol!

Thanks Gins,

Think I may need to order the certificate, it costs E(uro)5 for a transcript and only E10 for the certificate from Irelands GRO - is that the cheapest place to order the details please?

Didn't realise this notebook computer doesn't even have the Euro symbol until now.

The Irish marriage certificates that I have all have witnesses but I dont have them with me to check the dates as they are at work

Spent most of the day trying to find Christina & Alexander M'clellan (and all sorts of variations on their names) but have had no luck. I think they may have had a child Alexander born in 1893 (parents Alexander & Christina).

Does anyone know if a marriage certificate gives witness details please?

Thanks MarieC - that gets rid of the Canada idea, thought it was a long shot.

Using rootsireland's advanced search, I can narrow that 1891 marriage down to Alexander McLellan. It keeps returning a match even when I put her father & mother's names in the search, so it could very well be her. (doesn't return a match if I put any false details in, so maybe the advanced search works)

I'll order the details, but am having difficulty in finding either of them on the 1901/1911 census either in Ireland or England - thought if I could find them it could save yet more money on certificates.

Well, this at least rules out Mrs George as Christina:

Border Crossings: From Canada to U.S., 1895-1956

Name: James Kerr
Arrival Date: 29 Oct 1929
Port of Arrival: Niagara Falls, New York, United States
Arrival Contact: Wife Emily Kerr
Departure Contact: Friend Mrs. Isabel George
Age: 25
Birth Date: 9 Feb 1904
Birth Place: Dalton
Birth Country: England
Gender: Male
Race/Nationality: English
Record has photo?: No
Record Type: Cards