We’ve managed to connect more than thirty DNA matches from New Mexico, Canada and other north american places to a couple from Northumberland which is suggestive of a link to my maternal grandmother’s roots (Halls, Peak, Carr etc)

The couple are:

• John Watson Bell, b. 28 May 1805 in West Whelpington, Northumberland; d. 1877 in Juab, Utah, USA
• Ann Fish, b. 21 Jan 1812 in Cambo, Northumberland; d. 1872 in Juab, Utah, USA The book, Conquerors of the West: Stalwart Mormon Pioneers, Vols. 1-2, states that they married in Oct 1834 in England but I haven’t found a record of that yet. Some online trees suggest they married in Elsdon and had their first daughter there in 1836. By 1842 they were in New York.

Tracing the lines back, tentatively, using other people’s trees we found the following possible links:

• John Watson Bell’s maternal grandmother might be Jane Hall of Black Heddon (1737-1800), parents Christopher Hall (1689-1740) and Ann Robson (1693-1737) (Robson is another possible name connection)
• Ann Fish’s maternal grandmother might be Dorothy Richardson of Morpeth (1747-1811), daughter of Edward Richardson (1727-1776) and Isabella Riddle (1724-1751)

We have Richardsons in the Morpeth area but I haven’t been able to trace them back past John Richardson who died in 1806 age 33 (fell into a quarry). He married Ann Learmouth in 1798 in Earsdon, not far from Morpeth. He would have been born around 1773. It’s possible that Dorothy Richardson might be his aunt.

I looked up some records on Durham Records Online and found a John Richardson’s baptism in 1774:

• Hartburn, Northumberland, 25 Jul 1774 John Richardson, of Rothley, son of George & Sarah Richardson - Record Number: 1369830.0

Rothley is a village in the parish of Hartburn which is a few miles west of Morpeth (whereas Earsdon is to the East). Hartburn is adjacent to Cambo where Ann Fish was supposedly baptised.

I found some other baptisms in Hartburn/Rothley, none of which were of George and Sarah:

• Hartburn, Northumberland, 27 Nov 1775 Mary Richardson, of Rothley, daughter of Thomas & Ann Richardson - Record Number: 1369876.0
• Hartburn, Northumberland, 26 Jun 1777 Thomas Richardson, of Rothley, son of Thomas & Jane Richardson - Record Number: 1369925.0
• Hartburn, Northumberland, 17 Apr 1779 Frances Richardson, of Rothley, daughter of Thomas & Jane Richardson- Record Number: 1370001.0

In Netherwitton I found what looks like George and Sarah’s marriage:

• Netherwitton, Northumberland, 3 May 1769 George Richardson (of the parish of Brinkburn) married Sarah Potter (of this chapelry), by banns. Witnesses: Nicholas Watson; John Crighton - Record Number: 719830.1

Netherwitton is just a couple of miles north of Hartburn

I also found the marriage of the Thomas and Anne seen earlier, also in Netherwitton:

• Netherwitton, Northumberland, 8 Jun 1774 Thomas Richardson (of the chapelry of Brinkburn) married Anne Hutchinson (of this chapelry), by banns Witnesses: James Hucheson; William Burn - Record Number: 719855.1

Brinkburn is about six miles north of Netherwitton and eight miles northwest of Morpeth.

I found the banns of another marriage which might be another member of the family:

• Hartburn, Northumberland, 26 Sep 1762 George Ions (of Rothley, this parish) & Isabel Richardson (of [the] parish of Rothbury), married at Rothbury 27 Sep 1762 - Record Number: 753096.16

Rothbury (not to be confused with Rothley!) is just a few miles west of Brinkburn.

Finally, I found what looks to be the burial of George’s wife Sarah, a year after their son John was baptised:

• Bothal, Northumberland, 5 May 1775 Sarah Richardson, of Longhirst - Record Number: 1786050.2

I think that the John baptised in 1774 could my my ancestor. George and Sarah would be his parents, and it’s possible Thomas is his uncle.

I couldn’t find any earlier records for these people. I was also unable to find any connection with Dorothy Richardson.

There is a fairly well sourced record for Dorothy on FamilySearch: https://www.familysearch.org/en/tree/person/details/LCR9-FV8 and according to that she had siblings Michael (1741), James (1743), John (1744), Michael (1749-1753), Isabel (1750-1776) and Elizabeth (1752). The Isabel could not have been the Isabel who married George Ions since she would only have been 12 at the time.

There’s no obvious link even though it looks like these people are in the right area. More work is needed.