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Thanks  oldohiohome,

that is a thought, I had never considered that they could just travel over the border by car and not fill in paperwork. I probably didn't consider this because the husband and wife lived at 2 addresses, but it may have been 2 far for the husband to commute.

I have one of my ancestors Agnes Saville who moved to Canada with her husband John Richard Burrill and children in 1924. They went to live in Windsor, Ontario,John Burrill however lived and worked as a mailman in Detroit (Windsor is on the opposite river bank from Detroit).  I have a found a few USA immigration documents for the various members of the family detailing when they have travelled over to Detroit to visit the husband/father. Over time the children eventually moved to the US and were granted naturalization. Agnes though did not move to the states to be with her husband until 1941/2. This did not occur until after the marriage of her daughter Olive, who was the only member of the family not to move. Reading some of the immigration documents it looks as if Olive was denied entry to the States due to being medically unfit (the only times allowed were for medical treatment). So it looks as if Agnes was looking after her daughter until she was married.

My question though is that it looks as if husband and wife were apart for 16 years and they are only a few documents detailing visits.  I wonder though if immigration documents were only issued at the Port of Detroit for ferry travel, and if travel by road, no documents were recorded or available.  Or maybe there was a neutral area between he Us and Canada where the families could meet?

I am just looking for details to help flesh out their stories.

I have my great great grandmother  Theresa Firth and on her baptism record is her mother Betty, no father. In 1841 Census there is a Theresa Firth listed  with a George Firth. However when image is looked at it shows that George is GRandfathed and head of several children. But the very next entry in census has Betty as head with a variety of siblings and other children. Was it common that a whole family may have gone in together but then the enumerators registered them as 2 heads, and make it look as if 2 households?

Bruce Saville

Hi, I have just come across this post and others posted on William Hill and Esther Creech. They are my GGGGGrandparents, with their grandaughter Fanny Hill being my great grandmother (I am descended from Francis Henry Hodgkinson).  My research has found that William Hill was a soldier stationed at Fordington Barracks and that is how he would have met Esther Creech. He was stationed in Cork and received an honourable discharge in Oct 1851 after being kicked by his horse and suffering  a compound fracture of the leg. This was why he was in receipt of a pension, it was from Chelsea Hospital.