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Hi , I'm restarting after several years off (had given up ! )
Looking for a Henry Mercer and his son William (B1837/8) . There are links with Salford and possibly Prescot where William was possibly born ?
I have William's marriage and death cert's but cannot find birth or mother's name ?
thanks in anticipation, Dave

Can you post details from the marriage cert ?

You say that William was possibly born in Prescot.


This is from the Lancashire Online Parish Clerks Project ...........

http://www.lan-opc.org.uk/


Baptisms: 2 Sep 1838 St Mary the Virgin, Prescot, Lancashire, England
William Mercer - Son of Henry Mercer & Elizabeth
Abode: Prescot
Occupation: Labourer
Baptised by: Wm. Coombs
Register: Baptisms 1835 - 1842, Page 144, Entry 1150
Source: LDS Film 1657584




Do you think this is possible??



Have you found William and/or together in any Census?? Especially to get Henry's occupation.





sylvia

To help us to help you, please tell us what you KNOW.

Henry's occupation should be recorded on William's marriage cert

Hi and thank you all for interest shown :-)
I think i have previously found the Henry and Eliz. in Prescot but doubt it is them (tho not discarded yet)
On the marriage cert , Henry was said to be a mechanic. There is no sign of Henry where i find William on the census, (if it is the correct William ? ) I have found William with a Margret as head of house in 1851 or 1861 census but no Henry, also no sign of a marriage between a Henry and Margret?
Maybe this is why i gave up 10 years ago ?
thanks again, Dave

England & Wales Marriages, 1538-1940
about William Mercer Name: William Mercer
Gender: Male
Birth Date: abt 1842
Age: 21
Father's Name: Henry Mercer
Spouse's Name: Ellen Venables
Spouse's Age: 21
Spouse's Father's Name: William Venables
Marriage Date: 28 Sep 1863
Marriage Place: Liverpool, Lancashire, England


Any relation....Williams marriage perhaps

Where and when did William die. Do you know where and when Henry died

Dave,

We CAN help you but you really ned to give us ALL the info from that marriage cert and from the death cert please.

Plus any other details you may have.

Thanks,

Dea x

Just for our reference ...

David has opened his tree and it appears that William Mercer (born. c1837) married Sarah Marshall ( born c1846 in Scotland))


Marriages Sep 1864 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
( married 8.8.1864 - Eccles Parish Church)

BOARDMAN Richard Barton 8c 537
***Marshall Sarah = Barton 8c 537
***Mercer William - Barton 8c 537
Taylor Elizabeth Barton 8c 537



William's parents are down as being Henry and Margaret - no dates.
Sarah's father - Thomas Marshall ( b1811 - Ireland)

There is this marriage but only a maybe


Marriage: 8 Feb 1829 St Wilfrid, Farnworth near Prescot, Lancashire, England
Henry Mercer - (X), Labourer of this parish
Margaret Byron - (X), Spinster of this parish
Witness: Peter Seddon; James Southern
Married by Banns by: Wm Thompson - minister


Am intrigued to know where the mother's name of Margaret comes from though !

Although Dave tells us he has William's death cert, there is no date of death on his tree.

We'll all give up if you don't post some proven FACTS

You can't expect us to look for people without some concrete info from you.

We ask questions for a reason - not just for the fun of it. Please answer them

It was left to Mike* to give the marriage details, which you should have provided

How did you work back to William? is he your direct line?

What was William's occupation?

1871


Name: William Mercer
Age: 34
Estimated Birth Year: abt 1837
Relation: Head
Spouse's Name: Sarah Mercer
Gender: Male
Where born: Prescot, Lancashire, England
Civil parish: Salford
Ecclesiastical parish: St Bartholomew
Town: Salford
County/Island: Lancashire
Country: England
Registration district: Salford
Sub-registration district: Regent Road
ED, institution, or vessel: 38
Household schedule number: 100
Piece: 4025
Folio: 162
Page Number: 19
Household Members:
Name Age
William Mercer 34 Occ: Iron Turner
Sarah Mercer 26
William Mercer 6
Thomas Mercer 5
David Mercer 3
Samuel Mercer 1

Sarah was a widow by 1881


1881
Sarah Mercer
Age: 36
Gender: Female
Birth Year: 1845
Birthplace: Scotland
Relationship to Head of Household: Head
Marital Condition: Widow
Profession/Occupation: Dyer
Address: 119 Granville St
Census Place: Salford, Lancashire, England

Head Sarah Mercer F 36 Scotland
Son Thomas Mercer M 15 Salford, Lancashire, England
Son David Mercer M 13 Salford, Lancashire, England
Son Samuel Mercer M 11 Salford, Lancashire, England
Daughter Margaret A Mercer F 8 Salford, Lancashire, England
Daughter Agnes Mercer F 3 Salford, Lancashire, England

Suspect this may be William

Deaths Mar 1881 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mercer William - 43 -Salford 8d 118

Can someone with access look to see who William is living with in 1841 please.

1841
Name: William Mercer
Gender: Male
Age: 4
Birthplace: Lancashire
Record Type: Household
Registration District: Salford Union
Sub-district: Greengate
Civil Parish: Manchester
County: Lancashire

1841

MERCER, Margret F 30 1811 Lancashire VIEW
MERCER, Thomas M 15 1826 Lancashire VIEW
MERCER, John M 10 1831 Lancashire VIEW
MERCER, Henry M 8 1833 Lancashire VIEW
MERCER, Catharine F 6 1835 Lancashire VIEW
MERCER, William M 4 1837 Lancashire VIEW

Piece: 585
Book/Folio: 4/12
Page: 19
Registration District: Salford Union
Civil Parish: Manchester
Municipal Borough: Salford
Address: Barn Street, Manchester, Salford
County: Lancashire

Thanks Lynski

Is this him in 1851 ?
Does son in law mean stepson I wonder?

Maybe Margaret married / re-married

Name: William Mercer
Age: 14
Gender: M
Birthplace: Prescot, Lancaster
Relationship to Head of Household: Son/Law

Assuming that the William Mercer b 1837 Prescott with wife Sarah born Scotland c 1843 who appears in the 1871 census is the right one, then these would be the births of the children from Lancashire OPC:

Baptisms: 9 Jun 1867 St Bartholomew, Salford, Lancashire, England
Thomas Robert Mercer - Child of William Mercer & Sarah
Abode: 22 Woden St.
Occupation: Mechanic
Baptised by: J. S. Lawson

Baptisms: 12 Apr 1868 St Bartholomew, Salford, Lancashire, England
David Mercer - Child of William Mercer & Sarah
Abode: Woden St.
Occupation: Mechanic
Baptised by: J. S. Lawson

Baptisms: 29 Dec 1872 St Bartholomew, Salford, Lancashire, England
Margaret Ann Mercer - Child of William Mercer & Sarah
Abode: Franklin St.
Occupation: Engineer
Baptised by: W. Elton

Baptisms: 29 Dec 1872 St Bartholomew, Salford, Lancashire, England
Samuel Mercer - Child of William Mercer & Sarah
Abode: Franklin St.
Occupation: Engineer
Baptised by: W. Elton

In 1891, Thomas Robert Mercer born Salford 1867 is with Frederick and Elizabeth Gregory. He is listed as nephew. Elizabeth Gregory was born Elizabeth Bellis:
Marriages Sep 1876
Bellis Elizabeth Salford 8d59
GREGORY Frederick Salford 8d59

Elizabeth was the daughter of Robert Bellis b 1809 St Helens and Margaret Mercer nee Byron born 1802 Prescot, although she was born quite some time before they married and so it seems questionable if Margaret actually was Elizabeth's birth mother. There is a marriage of a Robert Bellis in Prescot in 1842 but at his marriage to Margaret, he is listed as a bachelor, so Elizabeth is a bit of a puzzle.. At any rate, if Elizabeth was seen as his aunt, then one presumes that Henry Mercer and Margaret Byron would have been parents of his father, William Mercer b 1837 Prescot.

One possible birth for Henry Mercer might be this one:
Name: Henry Mercer
Gender: Male
Baptism/Christening Date: 25 Nov 1810
Baptism/Christening Place: St. Helens, Prescot, Lancashire, England
Mother: Elizabeth Mercer
(Family Search)

It appears this way in Lancashire OPC:
Baptisms: 25 Nov 1810 St Mary the Virgin, Prescot, Lancashire, England
Henry Mercer - illegitimate son of Elizabeth Mercer
Born: 28 Oct 1810
Abode: Whiston

There is a 1797 birth of a Henry Mercer in Prescot but he dies in infancy, and I don't see any other Henry Mercer births in Prescot around that time.

I know this is somewhat circumstantial evidence re William's parentage, as I don't see the birth of a William to a Henry and Margaret Mercer. The only birth around that time in Lancashire OPC is this one:
Baptisms: 2 Sep 1838 St Mary the Virgin, Prescot, Lancashire, England
William Mercer - Son of Henry Mercer & Elizabeth
Abode: Prescot
Occupation: Labourer
Baptised by: Wm. Coombs
I wonder if it is possible that the 'Elizabeth' is a mistake?

From Lancashire OPC:
Baptisms: 18 Nov 1801 St Mary the Virgin, Prescot, Lancashire, England
Margaret Byron - Daur. of William Byron & Elizth.
Born: 1 Nov
Abode: Prescot
Occupation: Watchmr.

Marriage: 8 Feb 1829 St Wilfrid, Farnworth near Prescot, Lancashire, England
Henry Mercer - (X), Labourer of this parish
Margaret Byron - (X), Spinster of this parish
Witness: Peter Seddon; James Southern
Married by Banns by: Wm Thompson - minister

Marriage: 19 Feb 1855 St John the Evangelist, Farnworth with Kearsley, Lancashire, England
Robert Bellis - (X), 40 Mechanic Bachelor of Farnworth
Margaret Mercer - (X), 50 Widow of Farnworth
Groom's Father: Robert Bellis, Potter
Bride's Father: William Byron, Watchmaker
Witness: William Stones; Margaret Stones, (X)
Married by Banns by: Richd. Thistlethwaite

There is a possible death for Henry Mercer in 1845;
Deaths Dec 1845
MERCER Henry Prescot 20579

As Sarah was a widower by 1881, possibly this is William's death:
Deaths Mar 1881
Mercer William 43 Salford 8d 118

It all seems to fit with the 1841 census names?

1851 census -

BALLIS, Robert Head M 45 1806 Engine Mechanic
Prescot, Lancaster VIEW
BALLIS, Margret Wife F 48 1803 Prescot, Lancaster VIEW
MERCER, Thomas Son/law M 25 1826 Ditto Ditto Engine Mecchanic? Prescot, Lancaster VIEW
MERCER, Henry M 17 1834 Errand Boy Prescot, Lancaster VIEW
MERCER, Catherine Dau/law F 16 1835 Silk Winder Prescot, Lancaster VIEW
MERCER, William Son/law M 14 1837 Errand Boy Prescot, Lancaster VIEW
BALLIS, Elizabeth Dau F 4 1847 Salford, Lancaster VIEW

Piece: 2223
Folio: 0
Page: 0
Registration District: Salford
Civil Parish: Manchester
Municipal Borough:
Address: 62, Union Street, Manchester
County: Lancashire


Births Dec 1846 (>99%)
Bellis Elizabeth Salford 20 870
Bellis Elizabeth Salford 20 871

Marriages Mar 1855 (>99%)
Bellis Robert Bolton 8c 255
MERCER Margaret Bolton 8c 255