Excuse this long story, it all ends in a question!! If my research is accurate I have traced my ROBSON forebears as far back as 1750, my GGGGGGFather JOHN ROBSON married to ISABELLA ? was resident at Woolaw Farm near Rochester in the parish of Elsdon in Northumberland where his son JOHN was baptized on 25th of November 1750 at Birdhopecraig Presbyterian Chapel (known locally as "the Scotch church"). He appears to have moved to Siloans Farm by 1754 where a daughter MARGARET was born then baptized on 19th May 1754. A second son JAMES also at Siloans was baptized on 5th June 1757. The next five generations of my ROBSON's were also baptized at Birdhopecraig. I have been able to find only three marriages of JOHN ROBSON to an ISABELLA (or variations of that name) in Northumberland at the correct time and although I cannot eliminate all of them proof of connection is equally elusive. As the first JOHN was a member of the Presbyterian faith it is a reasonable possibility that he originated north of the border but at the time I searched records in Scotland the only JOHN ROBSON I could find who married an ISABELLA prior to 1750 was married to an ISABELLA BREMNER . I believe they were married in Canisbay but the marriage was recorded as being between John ROBSON and Elizabeth BREMNER(I believe Isabella and Elizabeth are interchangeable) , they had a son JOHN born in April 1750 in Canisbay Caithness. Having read about the Drove roads of Scotland it appears that at that time after the defeat of 1745 the economics of Scottish life was causing landowners to re-evaluate their production methods, mainly agricultural. There was movement of labour between Scotland and the rest of the world. English farming experts were attracted to Scotland to improve methods and to take over land and Scottish cattle and sheep were exported to England in vast quantity, most would be driven south on well used drove roads. It is likely that JOHN from Canisbay was a farmworker of some description, possibly a shepherd who would also take part in droving. If life was becoming increasingly hard at the time of the birth of his son and there was a chance of a better life further south, would he have journeyed south maybe starting in September when matured herds were being driven to market as far south as the English midlands. I believe one of the drove roads across the border crossed at Carter Bar but a side route to avoid customs duty crossed slightly East and down the old roman road(Watling Street) past Silloans Farm and Rochester. Had he been promised work at Woolaw, or did he take the chance of finfing work? When he arrived, which could have been in October, and once settled, joined the church at Birdhopecraig and had his son baptized for a second time to establish his presence in his new home? I haven't yet been able to prove or disprove this theory, so can anyone help? Did John ROBSON and Isabella (nee BREMNER) have any more children in Canisbay after 1750 or does anyone know that they moved somewhere else other than England? Does anyone have any knowledge of this family or any ideas for finding their origin? John Robson