Quote Originally Posted by tim-timothy View Post
This is very helpful and points me in the right direction. Do you all think its possible to dig any further into James family tree. I think the marriage record found of PATRICK HIGHLAND and Mary Ann Wallis is surely the right one. Thank you for that, Pam. I understand more clearly the explaination of the surnames. I just wish people would have used just one first name and one last
Actually it's the use of middle names which often helps pinpoint a person/family, as in the instance of my great-grandfather and the use of Highland in the names of James/Patrick's children.

As for going futher back with James' tree, I've tried various searches, using Lawrence and Highland, James/Patrick/Michael, census records, etc, and the only one I found which I thought was anything near was in 1871.

Oh, drat, drat, and double drat. Just found the 1881 census entry which means it's unlikely to be your man. However, I will leave the details so that you don't waste time with this person.

1871 census reference RG10/385 folio 106 page 40
Living Widnes
Patrick Highland, 25, lab(ourer), Ireland
Ellen, wife, 30, Liverpool
George R, son, 1, Widnes

GRO website index shows George Richard Highland, birth registered December quarter 1869 Prescot registration district. (Widnes is in Prescot RD.) Mother's maiden name Orrell.
Death registration for George Richard Highland, aged 20, June quarter 1888, Prescot registration district.

Ancestry's Liverpool marriages dataset (Liverpool, England, Church of England marriages and banns 1754-1935) has the PR image for a marriage 14 Fabruary 1869 in the parish church of Liverpool.
Patrick HYLAND, of full age, bachelor, labourer. Father Richard Hyland, victualler
Ellen BOLD, of full age, widow. Father George ORRELL, labourer.

Same Liverpool marriages dataset
Marriage 3 April 1861, St Nicholas church, Liverpool.
William BOLD, full (age), bachelor, Private in the 84th Regiment of Foot. Father Richard Bold, groom.
Ellen ORRELL, minor, spinster. Father George Orrell, brewer.

1881 census reference RG11/3724 folio 142 page 44
Living in Widnes, Patrick HYLAND, wife Ellen, and children George, Elizabeth, and James.
Elizabeth (1873) and James'(1875) birth registrations in the name of Hyland; Prescot and West Derby (Part of Liverpool) (1875) registration districts respectively.

Pam