Fathers Occupation

[hiyamarra]

No, in fact it's almost the exact opposite
William was described on other baptism's as a Tinker, Basket maker and Traveller.
His children were baptised in different churches suggesting him being on the move
He was definitely a scallywag and certainly not the kind to work the land.
I'm currently researching his wife (first wife that is) who is the mother of Elizabeth who was baptised. She is an amazing character who spent more time in prison than out

[Rosinish]

Not much help but...

As the area given was 'Fellhead' then directly after 'Cottager' if it were his abode it would be 'Fellhead Cottage' with no 'R'

Annie

[hiyamarra]

Hi Annie, thanks for your input
The problem is its all subjective
We think its an r but thats based on how we write now
Someone writing 250 years ago could easily have a different style
It it an r ? or could it just be the e at the end of cottage
Questions, questions, questions

[niallm155]

It's entirely possible, you'll find that old cursive "n"s look like "m" with three looks, and "m" is four loops, and is still written that way in French cursive (and possibly others).

However, whether it is a problem in reading or not, it is probably worth looking into both eventualities given you've already found information thus far - if it is indeed location information there will likely be census data to support it!

[hiyamarra]

Sorry I don't think I mentioned the date of the baptism, it was 1785
I don't think I can tie that in with a census

[Rosinish]

Agree with Niall but maybe look at the others above/below to see what is after the area name whether each then has their occ?

Annie

[hiyamarra]

Thanks both, thats a good idea, i'll try that next time I get to the archives