John Scott brick wall

Question

I have hit a brick wall with regard to John Scott (Scott-17228) who was marriage to Mary Ann Bolton Howes (Howes-936). They had one child name Walter (Scott-16687). I need to find out who John Scott's parents were

Answer 1

Here is an 1841 census record for Wigan, Lancashire. 

Edward Scott age 40, Attorney at Law / Ann age 30 / Ann age 4 / Edward age 3 / Thomas age 1 / John age 1 month   

VIEW

 

Name:	John Scott
Age:	1 Mo
Estimated birth year:	abt 1841
Gender:	Male
Where born:	Lancashire, England
Civil Parish:	Wigan
Hundred:	West Derby
County/Island:	Lancashire
Country:	England
Street address: Occupation:	View image
Registration district:	Wigan
Sub-registration district:	Wigan
Neighbors:	View others on page
Piece:	523
Book:	7
Folio:	7
Page Number:	7
Household Members:	Name Age John Scott 1 Mo

Comments

I think this John may still be there in 1881 though.  And the one you're looking for died in 1872.  Sorry!

Answer 2

I ran across this interesting family page on Mary Ann Bolton Howes while searching for John.  It suggests that John didn't die as presumed.  I'm sure this will bring more questions than answers but the marriage date and place match with your John Scott and his wife's name (Bolton and Howes) is too unusual to pass this up.

 

Edited to add: The marriage was in Gt Broughton, not Wigan.  Gt Broughton is on the border of Cheshire and the old county of Flintshire.

Comments

Hi Brenda

Thanks for you trouble, that is really an interesting fact. I have had, over the past months, names of John Scott father being all totally different. So this is an ongoing search for me. Where can I access the detail of Mary Ann Bolton Howes hinting that John might not have died.

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Hello Pat

The linked page shows the children of this John & Mary Ann, some of whom were born after the presumed death of John.  If May Ann had remarried, the younger children wouldn't have had the surname Scott.

	1. James William Bolton Scott,   b. Abt Aug 1867, Birkenhead, Cheshire
	2. Mabel Martha Scott,   b. Abt 1869, Birkenhead, Cheshire
	3. Edith Marion Scott,   b. Abt 1877, Manchester, Lancashire
	4. Florence Maud Scott,   b. Abt 1883, Manchester, Lancashire
	5. Ethel Beatrice M L Scott,   b. Abt Aug 1887, Salford RD, Lancashire

 

At what point in your family tree do you trust the info that you've been given or have found?  I think we should look at that as a starting point and work backwards again to try and figure it out.  Scott is a fairly common surname unfortunately, which isn't helping.

Answer 3

OK - I've been doing some more poking around.  I looked at your profiles and decided to start with Walter Scott marrying Emma Lucretia Kent which took place in Preston in Lancashire:

Marriages Mar 1893

Kent Emma Lucretia Preston 8e 737

Scott Walter Preston 8e 737

The 1901 census in Bolton lists Walter's place of birth as Wigan, c1870.

The 1871 census has this family in Wigan:

Household	Role	Gender	Age	Birthplace
John Scott	Head	M	29	Cheshire
Mary Scott	Wife	F	32	Liverpool, Lancashire
Walter Scott	Son	M	1	Wigan, Lancashire

Citing this Record

"England and Wales Census, 1871", database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KD65-5SW : 24 July 2015), John Scott, 1871.

So, we have a Walter now with parents John and Mary. There are many Walter Scott's born in Lancashire between 1868 and 1870, but the good news is I can only find one born in Wigan:

SCOTT, WALTER LOWE  - GRO Reference: 1869 Sep Quarter in WIGAN Volume 08C Page 64

The LOWE is the mothers maiden name.  So I now searched for a marriage between Scott & Lowe and found this.  Nantwich is in Cheshire, same as John's birthplace:

Marriages Jun 1864

Lowe Mary Nantwich 8a 414

Scott John Nantwich 8a 414

 

John Scott died in 1872:

Deaths Mar 1872

Scott John 30 Wigan 8c 18

and Mary Scott remarried in 1873:

Marriages Mar 1873

Dodd James Wigan 8c 95

Scott Mary Wigan 8c 95

Comments

Part Two:

This new family are on the 1881 census in Preston:

Household	Role	Gender	Age	Birthplace
James Dodd	Head	M	49	Hydslea, Staffordshire, England
Mary Dodd	Wife	F	43	Liverpool, Lancashire, England
Emily Dodd	Daughter	F	23	Littleworth, Staffordshire, England
Harriett Dodd	Daughter	F	17	Littleworth, Staffordshire, England
Ann Dodd	Daughter	F	15	Littleworth, Staffordshire, England
Walter Scott	Stepson	M	11	Wigan, Lancashire, England
Mary Ellen Dodd	Daughter	F	7	Preston, Lancashire, England
Alfred Dodd	Son	M	2	Preston, Lancashire, England

Citing this Record

"England and Wales Census, 1881," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q275-YD3B : 19 August 2016), James Dodd, Preston, Lancashire, England; from "1881 England, Scotland and Wales census," database and images, findmypast (http://www.findmypast.com : n.d.); citing p. 15, Piece/Folio 4239/10, The National Archives, Kew, Surrey; FHL microfilm 101,775,195.

And the 1891 census still in Preston:

Household	Role	Gender	Age	Birthplace
James Dodd	Head	M	59	Staffordshire, England
Mary Dodd	Wife	F	52	Lancashire, England
Harriett Dodd	Daughter	F	26	Staffordshire, England
Mary E Dodd	Daughter	F	17	Lancashire, England
Alfred Dodd	Son	M	12	Preston, Lancashire, England
Walter Scott	Stepson	M	21	Lancashire, England

Citing this Record

"England and Wales Census, 1891," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QRP2-ZMM : 15 October 2015), Walter Scott in household of James Dodd, Preston, Lancashire, England; from "1891 England, Scotland and Wales census," database and images, findmypast (http://www.findmypast.com : n.d.); citing PRO RG 12, Lancashire county, subdistrict, The National Archives of the UK, Kew, Surrey.

Which brings us neatly to Walter's marriage to Emma in Preston in 1893.

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Thanks a whole lot. I did know Walter's 2nd name was Lowe and he was born in Wigan. You're a star

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You're welcome!  I think the best thing to do right now is to clean up the profiles you have on the Scotts and add in all the info you now know, including the sources.

After that, as John Scott is a common name and there are a number of Cheshire births that could be him, I think the best way forward is to order the wedding certificate of John and Mary Lowe as that will give you both parents names and will allow you to narrow down your search better.