A Brickwall Knocked Over!
I have discovered that my G G Grandfather , known to all of his family as Richard Hyslop / Hislop ( a Blacksmith / Nailer in Calton) was actually born in 1777 as Richard Heslehurst in Stockton on Tees to John Heslehurst ( also a Nailer)and Elizabeth Smith.
When I began this search , I was aware of a family story about a change of name from Haslehurst / Heslehurst - whichever spelling, but did not know where this fitted in.
Working back from people I knew , I got to my G G Grandparents , Richard Hislop + Isabella Hardie but there is no marriage registered. There is , however , a union between Richard Hesslehurst and Isabella Hardie ( married June 1799) but I couldn`t just claim that.
When the OPR s were available to view , I found that Richard Hesslehurst was "a soldier in the North York Militia "and subsequent research tells me that that militia was involved in delivering prisoners from the war with the French to Edinburgh Castle so this places Richard in Glasgow for the time leading to the marriage in 1799.
I am now in contact with Heslehurst researchers in Yorkshire , Australia and New Zealand who had a Richard Heslehurst who married Isabella Hardie and then lost track of him.
It is difficult to find folk who didn`t want to be found. I presume Richard decided to cease militia duty and live in Glasgow as a blacksmith - his families` trade )Of eleven children born to this couple , only one birth ( Janet , their third child ) is registered - maybe a doctor had to attend this birth ?? I found out about the others because Isabella Hislop died in 1855 and the amount of information provided in that year only , gave me the rest of the children. How lucky was that!
So just keep chipping away at those brick walls - there is information out there somewhere.
Happy Hunting , Thommoje
