Born around 1800 little is currently known about William’s childhood. The first we start learning about him is on 14th July 1825 when he married Margaret Cockburn.
The next we hear of them is the 1841 census, they are living on Elswick Street, Newcastle-upon-Tyne and William’s occupation is Quarryman.
The family still lived on Elswick Street (no. 23) by the time of the 1851 census and William was now listed as a Master Quarryman employing 3 men.
William was a partner in the business Appleby & Davison who were stone merchants and worked out of West Grove quarry, Newcastle-upon-Tyne. Here you can see them listed in the 1855 Whellan’s Directory, it is worth noting George Jeffrey who at the time worked Grove quarry. George married William’s daughter Jane in 1852.
Elswick Street was home for the family for a number of years. The earliest record we have found was 1841 and it goes right up past 1857 and beyond into the next generation of Appleby’s after William’s death in 1858. They moved houses on Elswick Street but never very far.
During their life together William and Margaret had 6 children together, 4 daughter’s and 2 sons. They were in birth order, Jane (b.1826), Elizabeth (b.1827), Margaret (b.1828), Henry (b.1829), Robert (b.1834) and Mary (b.1839). William died on 2nd May 1858 and his probate was 24th December 1858. Below is an image of the probate and also a link to his will. Not all his children are mentioned in the will and it could be that they had died by that time. Whilst writing this we have not looked into their lives yet.
Reading through William’s will it is interesting to note that George Jeffrey who was married to his daughter Jane and who worked Grove quarry is later listed in Whellan’s Directory as the Quarrymaster at West Grove quarry – previously a post held by William. Also the name Appleby & Davison continues on for a number of years after William’s death. So the business was continued by George alongside Davison. They are later mentioned in newspaper articles when a worker at the quarry, John Bentley is killed in an accident. As the business was at this point still run by Jane’s husband George it would have been an event they all knew about.
