William METCALFE and Margaret ROBINSON
(m. 1819 in Bishopton, DUR)

William METCALFE and Margaret ROBINSON were my 3x great grandparents. Tracing their ancestors isn't easy, because their surnames are very common in this part of the country, but here's where I've got to.

According to the 1851 Census, William Metcalfe was born in Yorkshire, and was then aged 57, putting his birth in about 1793-4. Unfortunately the census entry doesn't give a precise place of birth, but in addition to this, (a) he wasn't in the family home in the 1841 Census and hasn't yet been found, and (b) he died about 4 months before the 1861 Census; so, no further clues there. His death certificate (Dec 1860) gives his age as 66, which is consistent with the age in the 1851 Census.

William was living in Bishopton when he and Margaret married in 1819. In 1821 he was a miller at Ricknall Mill, Aycliffe (a neighbouring parish), but from 1823-1843 he is recorded in the Bishopton parish registers as a labourer living in the parish. By 1851 he was a railway labourer living in Greatham. None of this gets me any closer to his place of birth, but I've come across a possible hint among some old family papers.

Some years ago a distant cousin made some notes on this line of the family, which say that William and Margaret's daughter Mary came from Castle Bolton, NRY. However, this suggestion seems to be incorrect, since census records consistently give her birthplace as Bishopton, where she was also baptised. However, my cousin may not have been entirely wrong: could it have been not Mary, but her father William who came from Castle Bolton? This is in the heart of Wensleydale, where most Metcalfe families have their roots, but the sheer number of them makes it hard to research with certainty. However, if anyone has a William Metcalfe born in that area around 1793-4 who disappears before 1819, it would be worth at least considering whether he might be mine.

In another place the notes say Bolton Percy, WRY, but as there is no other evidence to connect this family to that area, this is probably a mistake. On the other hand, two of Mary's sisters-in-law, Alice and Ellen Meaburn, were recorded as living in Bolton Percy in the 1861 Census. Ellen was a laundrymaid in the household of Revd. William Vernon Harcourt, no less: he had founded the British Association for the Advancement of Science in 1831, and was son of an Archbishop of York and father of a Chancellor of the Exchequer. It may be that this was a significant family memory, but it had become confused over the years.

As for Margaret's background, I do at least have her baptism in Aug 1799 in Kirklevington, NRY, her parents being Stephen and Ann Robinson of Worsall - it's getting back from there that's the problem. Stephen and Ann were with Margaret in Bishopton for the 1841 Census, in which both were said to have been born in the county; Stephen's age was given as 70 (i.e. 70-74) and Ann's as 65 (i.e. 65-69). Stephen was buried in Bishopton in 1844, said to be aged 77, suggesting that he was born in about 1767 (I haven't found a death registration), but Ann didn't die until 1864. Both 1851 and 1861 censuses give her place of birth as Wolviston, DUR; ages are a little inconsistent, but point to a birth somewhere around 1774.

With this information it's possible to speculate a little, but as yet I have no hard evidence. The best match I have found for Stephen and Ann's marriage is in Bedale, NRY in Dec 1798 - Stephen Robinson of Seamer and Ann Robinson of Bedale. While Seamer is quite close to Kirklevington, where Margaret was baptised about 8 months after this marriage, I have found nothing to link Ann with Bedale.

If this marriage should prove to be the right one and Ann's maiden name was Robinson, there's a possible baptism in Billingham, DUR (the parish which included Wolviston) in 1777 - Ann daughter of John and Martha Robinson. For Stephen there's a possible baptism in Auckland St Andrew, DUR in 1768 - Stephen son of Stephen and Margaret Robinson - and that may be worth further investigation.

If you can tell me any more about these Metcalfe and Robinson families, please get in touch.