Hello Annie It is unlikely that you will find much in LDS after 1837 when compulsory registration came into effect in UK. You do find some data but it is usually incomplete. The occupation in 1901 sounds wrong. Is there any chance that you have found a different person with the same name? Sometimes the person you want cannot be found because the handwriting has been wrongly transcribed. South Shields is a large town. You might like to use the following links to see maps of places you are investigating modern maps http://www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/getamap/ old maps http://www.old-maps.co.uk/ In answer to your final question, there could be a Rootsweb mailing list for the Armstrong name. Ian Thompson "Annie Newnham" <gazzan@paradise. To: ENG-DURHAM-YORKS-L@rootsweb.com net.nz> cc: Subject: [D'hamYorks] ARMSTRONG, Leonard Henry 26/03/2003 03:53 AM Please respond to ENG-DURHAM-YORKS- L Not knowing too much about Durham, I hope there is someone out there who might lend me a hand. I have a Leonard Henry ARMSTRONG. He was born South Shields Durham about 1859. In the 1881 census he was 21 living in London and his occupation was given as student doctor (Cam?). He married Anne Maria SCAIFE in Knaresbrough 1888 and in the 1901 census he and Anne and their 2 boys...Leonard Christopher 10 (born Bedale) and John Scaife (born Northallerton) were living in the civil parish of Ripon. His occupation in the 1901 is given as retired labourer! Ann Maria's father Christopher was a well-to-do surgeon from Harrogate. Not able to find Leonard Henry in the IGI, so can someone please tell me if the LDS have copied the files from the parishes of South Shields? Come to that....is South Shields an area, or a town? Perhaps someone has Leonard Henry lurking within their family.....if so could we please share? Other than that could I have suggestions as to how to go about checking this chap out. With thanks Annie (NZ) --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.463 / Virus Database: 262 - Release Date: 18/03/2003 ==== ENG-DURHAM-YORKS Mailing List ==== Have you been to the *NEW* DURHAM or YORKSHIRE Message Boards? Take a tour today & learn how time-saving those *Gateway* messages are compared to findING new posts on your own. ============================== To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy records, go to: http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237