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Hello
My great great grandfather was James Janson born 1801 in Stockport Cheshire and dying in Bollington Cheshire in 1877. He was an engineer in a cotton mill and his children were mill hands. I have quite a few details on him, his wives and children (and further descendants), but I am having difficulty finding out who his parents were.
However, by piecing together clues from notes written by older relatives and a family letter dated 1860, I have formed a strong hunch that his father was Thomas I'Anson (later generations changed the name to Janson). The very comprehensive single name site I'Anson International lists Thomas as being born after 1763 to Joshua I'Anson and his wife Hannah Moses whom he married in 1763 in Darlington.
Unfortunately I haven't been able to find out any more than this about Thomas. If he IS my great great great grandfather AND my grandmother was correct, this might be because he emigrated to Denver Colorado. Granny also told me that he had two other sons besides James, who were in the Indian Army. I have an old photograph of two young men taken in India, which is supposed to be of them.
When it comes to my great, great great great grandfather, who may or may not be Joshua, Granny supplied details about which, with the greatest of respect to her memory, I am a little sceptical. She wrote, "Cotton mill owner - involved in Luddite riots when he imported and housed in mill Irish workers (...) Buried in Hanover Chapel, Stockport - built by him but now demolished I believe (...)" I have not been able to verify any of this as yet, but I may be able to contact a relative who might be able to throw some light on this.
Meanwhile, I have established that other details Granny gave me have an element of truth in them. For example, James's branch of the family were clearly the poor relations of rather more well-to-do Jansons living in Walthamstow. The family letter dated 1860 is I believe from Caroline Janson b 1813. It concerns a visit by James's wife Mary Ann and was forwarded by James with a note from him to a daughter.
I am new to all of this and am beginning to go round in circles! If anybody could kindly suggest to me how I might prove or disprove that Thomas was James's father I would be very grateful. Equally, I would be happy to be advised that I just need to accept that this is as far as I am going to get with this branch of the family.
Thank you very much for reading thus far!
Brenda

Hi Brenda

Is this the baptism of his father


England & Wales, Quaker Birth, Marriage, and Death Registers, 1578-1837


Name:Thomas Janson

Event Type:Birth

Birth Date:28 Nov 1763

Birth Place:Darlington, Durham, England

Gender:Male

Father:Joshua Janson

Mother:Hannah Janson

Meeting:Monthly Meeting of Darlington: Darlington

Piece Description:
Piece 1540: Monthly Meeting of Darlington: Darlington Births, Marriages, Burials (1619-1836)

England, Select Marriages, 1538–1973

Name:Joshua Janson

Gender:Male

Marriage Date:24 Jun 1763

Marriage Place:Darlington, Durham, England

Spouse:Hannah Moses

FHL Film Number:1894622

Reference ID:p87

Name: James Janson
Event Type: Census
Event Date: 1871
Gender: Male
Age: 70
Relationship to Head of Household: Self
Birthplace: Stockport, Cheshire
Schedule Type: Household
Registration District: Macclesfield
Sub-District: Bollington
Parish: Bollington
County: Cheshire
Household Role Gender Age Birthplace
James Janson Self M 70 Stockport, Cheshire
Mary Ann Janson Wife F 51 Outwood, Lancashire
Hannah Janson Daughter F 21 Outwood, Lancashire
James H Janson Son M 17 Rochdale, Lancashire
Esther Janson Daughter F 15 Rochdale, Lancashire

????????????

Name: James Janson
Event Type: Death
Registration Quarter: Jan-Feb-Mar
Registration Year: 1864
Registration District: Stockport
County: Cheshire
Event Place: Stockport, Cheshire, England
Volume: 8A
Page: 65
Line Number: 16

?????????????

Name: John Janson
Event Type: Burial
Event Date: 15 Dec 1795
Event Place: St Mary, Stockport, Cheshire, England
Gender: Male
Father's Name: Thomas Janson
GS Film number: 1941830 , Digital Folder Number: 004018727 , Image Number: 00958

1851 England, Wales & Scotland Census Transcription
Cleaveland Street, Sutton, Sculcoates, Yorkshire, England
Print household transcription
Household Members
First name(s) Last name Relationship Marital status Gender Age Birth year Occupation Birth place
James Janson Head Married Male 28 1823 Machanic At Cotton Mill Stockport, Lancashire, England
Image Transcription
Mary Ann Janson Wife - Female 26 1825 - Lancashire, England
Image Transcription
Thomas Janson Son - Male 4 1847 Scholar Manchester, Lancashire, England
Image Transcription
Hannah Janson Daughter - Female 0 1851 - Lancashire, England

????

Marriage: 27 Mar 1849 St Wilfrid, Melling in Lonsdale, Lancashire, England
James Janson - full age, Tailor, Bachelor, Wray
Mary Ann Jackman - full age, Spinster, Wray
Groom's Father: James Janson, Labourer
Bride's Father: William Jackman, Plasterer
Witness: Thomas Jackman; Mary Ann Smith
Married by Banns by: C. W. Dinsdale, Curate
Register: Marriages 1837 - 1920, Page 61, Entry 122
Source: LDS Film 1849660

Surname Forename(s) Surname Forename(s) Church / Register Office Registers At Reference
IANSON James JACKSON Mary Ann Lunesdale, Melling, St Wilfred Preston CE10/1/122
JACKSON Mary Ann IANSON James Lunesdale, Melling, St Wilfred Preston CE10/1/122
JACKSON Mary Ann JANSON James Lunesdale, Melling, St Wilfred Preston CE10/1/122
JANSON James JACKSON Mary Ann Lunesdale, Melling, St Wilfred Preston CE10/1/122

Baptism: 3 Dec 1846 St Saviour, Ringley, Lancashire, England
Thomas Janson? - Son of James Janson? & Mary Ann
Abode: Ardwick
Occupation: Mechanic
Baptised by: John Barnsdall Curate
Register: Baptisms 1841 - 1847, Entry 1811
Source: LDS Film 1545744

Thank you very much everyone. I am very grateful and intrigued. The plot thickens. A lot to muse upon here. I am now questioning whether my James is the James who married Mary Ann Jackman. I thought he had married twice - once to Mary Ann Jackman and once to Mary Ann Wardle - but the marriage to M A Jackman doesn't look right: not sure a tailor in 1849 can become a mechanic by1851! And he was definitely a mechanic. Thank you very much safc for those details. I have searched several times for him on the 1851 census but failed - not sure why I keep getting "no results" for James Janson. Thanks to AnnCardiff too - the 1871 census James is my man. He clearly moved around a bit before settling in Bollington but I can't always be sure whether the various Jameses are him! Gins - those are very interesting marriage details. They seem to fit with dates and names scribbled on the back of a letter dated 1812 I found in with some family photos. I knew some of the I'Ansons were Quakers, a fact I don't think any of the family knew when my husband and I had a Quaker wedding in 1973!

That should be letter dated 1912.
Brenda