>From the Westmorland Rootsweb List, with kind permission of the poster............... The following comes from page 4 of issue #172 July 6, 1883 of the Ambleside Lakes Herald A Westmorland Claimant A somewhat rare circumstance is about being brought to light in the neighbouring county of Cumberland, or rather in respect of a considerable property in that county representing some thousands of pounds sterling, but so small that the affair is never likely to bear any analogy to the Tichborne case. It seems that many years ago there dwelt in the neighbourhood of Whitehaven a well known landed proprietor and butcher who amassed considerable wealth, but eventually went the way of all flesh leaving behind him the whole of his real property to find a new owner as best it could. The heir at law Mr. William WILSON, a Westmorland man, being nowheres to be found, after a lapse of time and no tidings being heard of his whereabouts, and not being married when last heard of, it was decided that he was dead and had left no issue, and the property was accordingly passed to the next heir, an man named FISHER who it appears was a lunatic, but died and in 1873 a portion of the property, consisting of houses, etc.. in the town of Cockermouth, was sold by auction at the Globe Inn, in that town and realized between £3,000 and £4,000. In the meantime, the missing William WILSON, who was an engineer of no mean abilities had been pursuing his avocation in different parts of France - he drove the first locomotive engine ever run in that country - in happy ignorance of the good fortune which was only awaiting him, but as age advanced he retired from his profession and settled down in a quiet villa residence at Garston, without any trouble to disturb his quiet, until he by chance glanced at a Liverpool paper in which was a reprint from the Carlisle Journal of March 27th last, when he at once found that he himself was the real "Simon Pure" and accordingly set about to regain his rights, which in less than another year would have been lost to him for ever. The first thing to be done was to enter an injunction in Chancery, and then to procure the required proofs. Mr. WILSON, who is 80 years of age has been over a great portion of West Cumberland, and has succeeded in obtaining everything that is required, with the exception of the church register of the marriage of his grandfather who is supposed to have been married either in Westmorland or in the confines of Cumberland some time between 1750 and 1764 or shortly after that date. Mr. WILSON was at Ambleside last week, and also Grasmere, to examine the registers but could glean nothing. It would not be out of place for those who have access to the registers of churches to look over them carefully, as anyone making the discovery required is sure of a substantial reward; the marriage was between John WILSON and Hannah BRAGG. If any information on the subject be forthcoming it may be communicated to Mr. J. WILSON, Windermere, who will at once attend to it. David Leverton