Question on family Casson in Early 1800's in Westmorland. In family tree I have two William Barker
William George Casson KLGSLFL and Jane Elizabeth Barker 29WT6WV are the parents.
Answers
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The fact that one William Casson has zero sources would be a cause for suspicion for me.
Has anyone worked on that ID besides the "FamilySearch" account? If so, I would advise sending a message to the individual(s) who have contributed to that William Casson, asking them where they got their information for him. It's possible that he is just a different individual with the same name who got attached to the wrong parents.
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Although William Barker Casson G9MZ-K6F has no explicit sources, there's a stack of detail for him that needs to be investigated because either it's been made up or it can point you to sources. His 1844 marriage at Cartmel appears to be in FS (because Ancestry shows it as a "Select Marriage"), for instance.
The 1847 marriage of L41X-5TJ is at Manchester and is in Ancestry, where we see that that WBC is a police officer - who appears in Ancestry's West Yorkshire, England, Police Records, 1833-1914, which delightfully show his birthplace as Cartmel. Even better if you like that sort of thing, this WBC has been in the Army (Grenadier Guards!) but whether there'll be any record of his service, I doubt, as he only served just under 6y and at this stage records were only kept if he received a pension.
The G9MZ-K6F WBC (with no sources) has an interesting "Show All Changes" because the chap who's been working on this profile mentions several times "Wrong William Barker Casson had been entered". Hmm. So I looked at Ancestry's England & Wales, Civil Registration Death Index, 1837-1915 and guess what - there are two in real life.
Name:William Barker Casson
Estimated Birth Year: abt 1821
Registration Year: 1887
Registration Quarter: Oct-Nov-Dec
Age at Death: 66
Registration District:Lancaster
Name:William Barker Casson
Estimated Birth Year: abt 1822
Registration Year: 1887
Registration Quarter: Oct-Nov-Dec
Age at Death: 65
Registration District:Kendal
So, they shouldn't both be on the same set of parents, but oh dear, aren't they close in details!!
You can find the entry for the Cartmel marriage on http://www.lan-opc.org.uk/Cartmel/priory/index.html if you can't access it any other way and what we find is that one WBC has a father of William (the Cartmel marriage - the wife is Mary Ann Bell) and the other WBC has a father of George Casson (the Manchester marriage - the wife is Ann Barker).
So all you have to do is tease out which WBC is which!! (Yeah, all! 😉 ) And since they are so close, ignore the FS hints unless and until you are certain....
You may need to use paper to sort out which record belongs to which before you start entering anything. And look at Ancestry (e.g.) because there are things like probate records that give you a daughter, and a burial at Middleton, Lancs, of the widow of one (Ann, widow of William Barker Casson, it says).
You'll need to do a lot of work....
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In the sources for William Barker Casson L41X-5TJ, it lists censuses. In the 1841, William is living in Cartmel, Lancashire and says he was born in the county. What we assume is his father (it might not be since no relationships are listed), George, is an Agricultural Labourer.
1851, Willem Barker Casson is living in Haverbrack, Westmorland. States he is born in Kendal. His father Willem is a farmer of 160 acres.
1861, William B Casson is now head, married to Mary A, and a farmer of 150 acres, born in Staveley, Westmorland.
1871, there are two different censuses listed. One matches the 1861 census above: William B, married to Mary A, and a farmer of 160 acres, born in Staveley, Westmorland. The other matches the 1841 census: William B, Labourer, born in Cartmel, Lancashire. He is married to Ann.
1881 follows the Cartmel William B. Married to Ann B, gardener and domestic servant, born in Cartmel, Lancashire.
These are helpful because it clearly shows that there are two William Bs.
Now you just have sort out which one is yours. Pay attention to the relationships, occupations, birthplaces, and ages. One William clearly owned land. The other worked on other people's land. One was born in Lancashire, the other in Westmorland. You will likely need to research both until you're fairly certain which one is your ancestor.
If you have any other questions or would like more research strategies, I recommend scheduling a virtual research strategy session with a specialist from the Family History Library. You can find more information about it here.
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Probably a good idea to agree with the other guy how to handle how you decide which is which and which profile you'll work on.
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Strictly, being a farmer doesn't mean that he owned the land, but he does appear to be a bit higher up the social scale.
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I have an appointment with you at 1:30 pacific time Do you want to keep? I do have a question. Am I assuming to much that this family or time that people used their first and second names interchangeable.
Also locations are they close to each other?
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Yes! I just noticed your appointment. We'll talk then.
I have ancestors who used their first and second names interchangeably.
Yes, these locations are close to each other.
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I did and he appreciated the heads up. Notified the the project was done but haven't hear back. But i agree to notify them and work with them.
VA
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