On the JOHNSON family, I have traced back as far as 1780, to John JOHNSON, born in Chester-Le-Street. His descendants were all coal miners, living in the mining villages of Shotton and Penshaw, in the Sunderland area.
The ancestors of my great great grandmother, Mary BAGE, can be traced back to circa 1700 with Charles BAGE marrying Mary WILSON in Tanfield, Co. Durham in 1723. Charles' descendants all remained in the Durham area, living in the villages of Shotley Bridge, Sunderland Bridge and Houghton-Le-Spring.
Mary Bage's mother was Barbara MADDISON. That line can be traced back to John MADDISON, who was born in 1677 in Whickham, County Durham. They remained in that town until the middle of the 18th century, when they appeared in nearby Gateshead, then Edmundbyers, Tanfield and Chester-Le-Street.
There are another couple of names worth mentioning here. John FENWICK is my 7xgreat grandfather, born in 1700 in Houghton-Le-Spring. The Fenwicks married into the Maddison side of the family in 1764. They resided in very much the same locality as my other ancestors from this area, namely, Pittington, Stanhope, Tanfield and Gateshead.
The other surname which I have traced quite far back is that of my 7xgreat grandfather, Ralph LEYBOURNE. He was born in Medomsley (near Consett), Co. Durham in 1695. The Leybournes appeared in my family tree in 1760, when Susannah LEYBOURNE married Edward FENWICK. The Leybournes had lived in both Lanchester and Edmundbyers.
From my research to date, all my ancestors from this part of the world never strayed very far away from the Durham and Sunderland area and certainly never left County Durham. This was though quite usual back in those days.
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