Thanks John, I didn't know about William's other wives, I have him dying in Stockton on 22nd Oct 1839 but maybe I have the wrong William if the other one is a shipwright......do you know who this William is?
I'll have to try and find out when Rachael Wilkinson died, then I'll know who was John's mother, he was born in 1796.....I think it must be Rachael Wilkinson, if they married in 1793.
I come down from the Daughter Rachael 1826, so I assumed that Rachael Wilkinson was her grandmother. I haven't sent for Rachael's birth cert. yet but I do have her marriage cert. to William Lidster in 1851........father John Mellanby, Shipwright. It doesn't give the name of the church, just 'the Parish Church' Stockton upon Tees......Anne Mellanby (her sister) was one of her witnesses. Her father John died in 1856 age 60 and mother Sarah died in 1862.
Rachael and William Lidster lived in Kirk Merrington, where he came from......she is buried in the church cemetery with William and quite a few of their children. One of them being Thomas Mellanby Lidster, who died age 22 at Leasingthorne Colliery.
I'm so pleased to have Sarah's maiden name, thankyou so much, it's great.
If I can help in any way, just let me know
Fay