Mary Ann Davison's Parents Discovered?

Marriage Certificate for
Thomas Davison and Jane Glossop
1809
Caistor, Lincolnshire, England
FHC film # 1450424
Courtesy of Jenny Kennington Wagstaff, great granddaughter of Henry Kennington (Uncle Hen)

The search for Mary Ann Davison's parents has been a long one with several false leads, but I think this may be the real deal.

Let's review the family traditions:

1. Name: Mary Ann Davison or Davidson (confusion has always been present on the last name) but she named her son Richard Davison Kennington.
2. Birth Date: 1 April 1810 - Date never varied in any of the family records.
3. Location: Family tradition held that she was from Durham, England. This tradition of coming from Durham may be a partial truth. Mary Ann's father may have come from Durham, or her family may have moved to Durham for part of her youth, etc. There are many Davison families in that area. The History of the County Palentine of Durham England is loaded with references to Gentlemen, Knights, Vicars, Merchants, Soldiers, etc. named Davison.
4. Parents & Family: None mentioned as far as I've been aware of in the older family group sheets.
5. Aunt Gwen in 1988: "...I did find Richard and Mary Ann in a record (as I recall Caistor) that I can't recall or find now..." They would have needed a reason to be living there.
6. Valentine Davison in Sedgefield, Durham, England and Mary Bales were good candidates for Mary Ann's parents - they did have a Mary Ann (8 May 1811 St. Giles, Durham, Durham). They were the best option yet discovered in the 1980's and are presented in the Kennington History Book, We follow Great Pioneers, Ruth Miller Kennington, 1996. One red flag with Valentine Davison is the obvious fact that his unusual surname did not continue with his Kennington descendents.

Jenny shared her information just this week. What a pleasure to connect with cousins who also have the same goals and interests in family history. We appreciate her willingness to offer up new discoveries with the blog.

A few points in favor of Thomas Davison and Jane Glossop as Mary Ann's parents are:

1. The record of Mary Davison's birth to Thomas and Jane Davison 1 April 1810 recorded in the Caistor Parish Register (Copy to follow in a later blog) The date is dead on accurate.

2. 1851 Census recording Mary Ann's birth place as Caistor (see earlier entry for census)

3. Jane's name carried on through grand daughter, Sarah Jane Kennington (1839). Though one wonders why we don't have more Thomas's and Glossops...

Take a good look at the family and the Caistor connection. Let us know if there are any red flags we should discuss. It would be fantastic to finally extend the Davison line. We'll get into Mary Ann's birth records and Caistor a bit more in the near future.

Please feel free to leave your comments or email me at kkhamblin@gmail.com