Thomas Wilkinson of Ripon—or Grindon??

[BridgetM]

I originally posted this on the Durham page, but I think it might belong here?

I need some help with a Thomas Wilkinson, born about 1758. He married Mary Reynard of Ripon in 1780 in Grindon Stockton-by-Tees. Thomas was of Grindon, and was a gardener at Wynyard (near Grindon). According to their marriage bond they were both 22.

It’s very possible (even likely?) that Thomas was the illegitimate son of Ann Wilkinson of Thorpe and was baptised 1755 in Grindon.

But, in 1782 his first son, Henry, was baptised in Topcliffe by Thirsk. The baptism record has an amazing amount of information: Henry Wilkinson first son of Thomas Wilkinson of Asenby, Gardener at Newby [Hall?], Son of Henry Wilkinson of Ripon husbandman, & of Mary Daughter of Thomas Reynard of Doll [Dole] Bank Farmer. (Dole Bank Farm is in Markington, near Ripon.)

My questions: was Thomas originally from Grindon or was he from somewhere near Ripon in Yorkshire? If he was from Ripon, why was he working in Wynyard, quite a long way from home? If he was the illegitimate son of Ann Wilkinson, who is the Henry Wilkinson of Ripon husbandman mentioned in the baptism record?

Thanks!
Bridget

[rosie99]

I originally posted this on the Durham page, but I think it might belong here?

The moderators would have moved it for you, you just needed to use report to moderator link 

Other post
https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=885418

[BridgetM]

Sorry, Rosie! I tried to delete it but wasn’t able to. If you could delete the post on the Durham forum I’d appreciate it.
Thanks!
Bridget

[rosie99]

Sorry I can't delete only a moderator can do that.  I have put a link on the Durham post to this one.
Maybe if you go into your other post and select the report to moderator, bottom right hand corner of your post and ask them if they can delete it.

[BridgetM]

Thank you! I’ll do that.

[ciderdrinker]

Good Afternoon
Well if it were me I'd go for the info at Topcliffe because he and his wife must have provided that information when they were baptising their children.
He could be lying and making things grander than they were ,for instance his father Henry is a husbandman or labourer depending which child you go for but some of it is true. Mary was Miss Reynard.
I think young Thomas Wilkinson went into service in a local big house near Ripon.He did well and the family noticed his work. Maybe one of the employers had a second home in Wynyard or a child needed staff and asked their parents for someone reliable and Thomas was singled out. Once in that kind of service he would go where his rich employer told him to go.It's not a huge leap.

I'm struggling to see a Henry Wilkinson actually in Ripon but there is one marrying of Knaresborough at Ripley 29 Dec  1760 to Agnes Ray of Ripley.
Possible children -Thomas 25.9.1761 Pateley Bridge ,Henry 25.3.1763,William 19.8.1765,John 16.3.1767 ,and Elizabeth 17.7.1770

 Obviously that would make Thomas slightly younger but he wouldn't want to look younger than the bride.It could be them.

Ciderdrinker

[BridgetM]

Thank you for responding to my post—and with some ideas that I hadn’t considered!

I think Henry Wilkinson and Agnes Ray are definite possibilities to be Thomas’s parents. An Elizabeth Wilkinson, daughter of Henry, was buried 6 May 1771 in Ripon. No age is given, so she might not be the Elizabeth baptised 1770 in Pateley Bridge?

A Henry Wilkinson was buried 10 August 1792 in Ripon. Again, no age is given.

An Agnes Wilkinson, born 1730, was buried 1823 in Ripon.

[arthurk]

I haven't looked at any of the registers mentioned here, but bear in mind that Pateley Bridge was originally in the parish of Ripon. There had been a church there for centuries, with some of the registers dating back to 1551, but it didn't become a parish in its own right until 1811.

In cases like this, entries from an outlying church were quite often copied into the registers and/or bishop's transcripts for the main parish church, and this practice sometimes continued for a few years after the outlying church became independent. When online sites get their hands on the images, situations involving outlying or daughter churches aren't always recorded accurately, so events that took place there may be listed as if they were in the main church.

As I said, I haven't looked at the registers myself, but it would be a good idea to examine the entries closely, and the page headings, to check whether any of the events listed as in Ripon actually took place in Pateley Bridge.

[BridgetM]

Thanks, arthurk. I did as you suggested, and looked more closely at the records. The four earlier baptisms in Pateley Bridge—1761-176–say of Pateley Bridge. However, in 1770 Elizabeth’s says of Roundelhill. (I’ve found a Round Hill near Pateley Bridge, but not a Roundel Hill.) And the Elizabeth daughter of Henry buried 1771 in Ripon says of Studley.