Family of John Joyce and Elizabeth Graham.

Above: The marriage certificate of John Joyce and Elizabeth Graham.

Above: Two extracts from the1841 census return for the Chapelry of Heworth in Durham, showing that both the Joyce and Graham families lived there at this time.

Elizabeth Graham's birth details have been a source of major irritation to me for some years. When trying to pinpoint her year of birth, we have the following sources:

1841 census: She was stated as being 15 therefore born c. 1826, allowing that ages were rounded down to the nearest 5 or 0.

Marriage certificate: Says that Elizabeth was 21 in 1846, therefore born c. 1825.

1851 census: stated as being 29, therefore born c. 1822.

Passenger list of 'Athletae': 32 years of age thus born c. 1823

Death certificate: 74 years old in 1896 therefore born c. 1822.

Despite the details given on Elizabeth's death certificate that say that her parents were "John Graham, bootmaker, mother unknown", we know that in fact her father was Robert Graham, a shoemaker who had been born in Lowick, Northumberland, but lived for many years and raised a family in Felling, Heworth, in County Durham.

Robert's wife was Margery (often spelt 'Margrey') Graham, who had been born and bred in the Chapelry of Heworth. Despite sharing a common last name, I have found no evidence that the couple were related. In fact, evidence points to the two Graham families NOT being connected by blood, as Robert's hailed from Northumberland and Margery's came from Roxburgh in Scotland.

A great big sticking point when trying to find Elizabeth Graham's birth and/or baptism is the fact that while she seems to have been born between 1822 and 1826, her parents Robert and Margery did not marry until 1829. The only trace I can find of their marriage comes from 'Durham Records Online' site:

" At St. Pauls Anglican Church, Jarrow, in the South Shields District of Durham, on 11 May 1829 Robert Graham, of this parish, married Margery Graham, of this parish."

Why would Elizabeth have been born several years prior to her parent's marriage? Perhaps her father had been married before and Margery was a step-mother? When searching for a previous marriage for Robert we initially find:

" At St. Pauls, Jarrow, on 25 Jun 1822, Robert Graham, of this parish married Sarah Robinson, of this parish." Dates fit, as does the church. When looking for children born to Robert and Sarah, however, only one was located at Durham Records Online:

"23 Apr 1826: At St. Marys, Gateshead, James Robinson Graham, of Gateshead, child of Robert (seaman) & Sarah Graham."

The fact that this Robert was a seaman and not a shoemaker almost definitely ruled him out as Elizabeth's father immediately, but the knock-out punch came from the IGI which revealed that Robert and Sarah Graham were still having children together in Gateshead until at least 1837, some eight years after our Robert married Margery.

Next I checked out a marriage of Robert Graham to Elizabeth Angus which took place at St. Marys, Gateshead, on June 4, 1821. Both were stated as being "of this parish". I could find no children born to this couple. There is a burial of an Elizabeth Graham in 1827 at High Felling, Heworth: St. Mary Heworth: 15 Jul 1827, Elizabeth Graham, of High Felling, age: 34.

Another Robert Graham married Elizabeth Lumley on November 24, 1823, at Whickham, Durham, but perusing the baptism record of one of their children reveals:

" At St. Marys, Whickham, on 16 Jan 1827, Elizabeth Graham, of Swalwell, born 17-Dec 1826, daughter of Robert Graham (wherryman) by his wife Elizabeth". Again, no match.

Finally, I checked Robert Graham and Isabella Shipley who were married at St. Marys, Heworth, Durham, on July 20, 1824. Both parties were noted as being "of this parish". As yet, there are no children from this marriage in the IGI or Durham records online.

When looking for the baptism of an Elizabeth Graham between 1820 and 1826 in Durham, we find in the IGI:

Elizabeth Graham:
Birth: 14 AUG 1821
Christening: 02 JUN 1854 at Gateshead, Durham, England, daughter of Robert and Elizabeth Graham. This is an adult baptism- this Elizabeth was aged 33 when she was baptised.

Having found no match up for a prior marriage for Robert Graham in either Durham or his native Northumberland, I had to come up with another reason for Elizabeth's birth so long before her parents' marriage. I decided to have a look through the Non-conformist records found on thegenealogist.co.uk site, and hit the jackpot with information regarding the family of Margery/Margrey Graham.

Following are the relevant baptism entries that assisted me in solving some of the mysteries of this Graham family:

From the Register of Births and Baptisms at the Presbyterian Chapel at Half Moon Lane in the parish of Gateshead, Durham from 1783 to 1837.

1. The baptism of Margory Graham: " Margory Graham, daughter of George Graham and Margery his wife. Born February 2, 1800. Baptised the 24th February 1800. Living in the Chapelry of Low Heworth, County of Durham. By William McConnel, Protestant Dissenting Minister".

2. The baptism of a James Graham, a brother to Margory: " James, son of George Graham and Margory his wife, born November 25, 1796 and baptised the 16th December 1796. Living in the Chapelry of Low Heworth in the County of Durham. By William McConnel, Protestant Dissenting Minister."

3. The baptism of Sarah Graham, daughter of Robert & Margory Graham: " Sarah Graham, born 10th February, 1830, in the Chapelry of Heworth, County of Durham, and was baptised March 3, 1830, THIRD daughter of Robert Graham, Shoemaker, native of the Parish of Lowick, County of Northumberland, by Margrey his wife, daughter of George Graham, native of Melrose, Roxburghshire. Baptised by me, Hamilton Murray, Minister."

3. The Baptism of Margory/Margrey Graham, sister of the above Sarah Graham: " Margrey Graham born April 15, 1832 in the Chapelry of Heworth, County of Durham, and baptised May 5, 1832, the 4th daughter of Robert Graham, Shoemaker, native of the Parish of Lowick, County of Northumberland, by Margrey his wife, daughter of George Graham, native of Melrose, Roxburghshire. Baptised by me, Hamilton Murray, Minister."

How fantastic is that!!!!!! Still no sign of my Elizabeth Graham's birth and baptism, but the baptisms of her two sisters give a great amount of information, not in the least that there were two daughters born BEFORE the 1829 marriage date of Robert and Margrey and the 1830 birth of Sarah! So...is the marriage year somehow incorrect by several years, or was there definitely a first marriage that I am yet to unearth?

I have been in contact with Liz Bregazzi, County Archivist at the Durham Record Office, and she was a wonderful help in my queries about obtaining copies of actual parish records. She even went so far as checking to see if there was any information on the marriage entry for Robert Graham to Margory Graham regarding his prior marital status (either bachelor or widower), but no information of that nature was given. I will include Liz's precise and helpful answer here for reference for other Durham researchers:

" I have checked the marriage entry for Robert and Margery Graham in the registers of Jarrow, St. Paul, but regret that it does not include any reference to Robert being a widower. It does not give any details of his marital status. A copy of the marriage entry can be supplied at the cost of 5 pounds sterling.

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You will find detailed information on our holdings of genealogical interest on our website at www.durhamrecordoffice.org.uk. On our home page you will find a link to the Family History section. You can then access detailed information about certain family history sources by clicking on the links in the text or those down the left-hand side of the page."

Even though I believe that Margory Graham was Elizabeth's step-mother rather than biological mother, I will include further research on her family until I have proof to definitely support my theory.

I found Margory's baptism in the Non-conformist records on the site "Thegenealogist.co.uk ". It stated that she had been born in the Chapelry of Low Heworth, Durham, on February 2, 1800, and baptised in the Presbyterian Chapel at Half Moon Lane, Gateshead, Durham, on February 24, 1800. Her parents were George and Margory Graham.

I also found an entry for Margory's brother, James Graham, who had been born at Low Heworth, Durham, on November 25, 1796.

The only marriage of a George Graham to a woman named Margory was located in the IGI as follows:

"George Graham married Margory McClewer on February 5, 1787, at St. Johns, Newcastle Upon Tyne". Their children were:

John Graham: born September 7, 1788. Baptised 22 September, 1788, at Groat Market Meeting-NC, Newcastle Upon Tyne, Northumberland (an English Presbyterian Church built in 1708).

Nelley Graham: born July 16, 1790. Baptised Groat Market Meeting N-C on October 7, 1790.

Elizabeth Agnes Graham: born March 12, 1793. Baptised April 24, 1793, Groat Market.

James Graham: born November 25, 1796. Baptised Presbyterian Chapel, Half Moon Lane, Gateshead, December 16, 1796.

Margory Graham: born February 2, 1800. Baptised Presbyterian Chapel, Half Moon Lane, Gateshead, February 24, 1800.

Between the years 1793 and 1796, George Graham moved his family from Newcastle to the Gateshead district, where they settled at Low Heworth.

Margory Graham, George's wife, died in December, 1828, aged 66 years. Her residence is given as Bog House, and she was buried at St. Marys, Heworth, on Christmas Day, 1828.

Her husband George, still residing at Bog House, Heworth, died in March, 1840, aged 77 years. He was buried at St. Marys, Heworth, on March 16, 1840.

Thanks to the baptism records of two of George Graham's granddaughters, Sarah and Margory Graham, we know that George was originally from Scotland, and a native of Melrose, Roxburghshire. Turning our attention north of Durham and Northumberland, we have to consult the Scotlandspeople website, and there we can find the baptism of George Graham:

George Grahme, baptised April 24, 1763, at Melrose, Roxburgh, Scotland, to parents James Grahme and Helen Scott. Witnesses: George and Robert Scott. (Note: spelling was 'Grahme', missing the letter 'a' and adding an 'e')

George's parents, James Graham and Helen "Nelly" Scott, were married on October 27, 1758, at Melrose. Their children were as follows:

Robert Graham: baptised May 11, 1760, Melrose. Robert, along with brother George, moved down into Newcastle where on December 19, 1785, at St. Andrews, Newcastle Upon Tyne, he married Isabella Ferguson. She was from Elgin in Murray, Scotland. I have found three children born to this couple, all baptised at High Bridge Meeting, Newcastle Upon Tyne: Isabella Graham born November 17, 1796; Helen Graham born May 9, 1799; Robert Graham born January 13, 1805. It was noted on the baptism entry of daughter Isabella that her father Robert was a 'smith'.

Isobel Graham: baptised January 10, 1762, Melrose.

Patrick Graham: baptised November 23, 1766, Melrose.

James Graham: baptised July 16, 1769, Melrose.

Agnes Graham: baptised August 23, 1772, Melrose.

Nelly Graham: baptised September 8, 1776, Melrose.

James Graham's future wife, Helen "Nelly" Scott, was born at Melrose, Roxburgh, in 1731. She was baptised on September 19, 1731, the daughter of George Scott and Isobel Tailor. Her siblings were:

Robert Scott: baptised June 24, 1733, Melrose.

Elizabeth Scott: baptised October 27, 1738, Melrose.

Isobel Scott: baptised October 27, 1738, Melrose.

Andrew Scott: baptised August 23, 1741, Melrose.

James Scott: baptised August 19, 1744, Melrose.

Elizabeth Scott: baptised March 8, 1747.

George Scott, the father of Nelly Scott, was born in c. 1706, the son of Robert Graham and Isobel Patterson. He married Isobel Tailor on September 26, 1730, at Melrose.

That is as far back as I've gone with Margory/Margrey Graham's family in Scotland. I have a little more to add about her brother, James Graham, and then I will return to my Elizabeth Graham and her family with John Joyce.

To be continued.....