Guthrie Family Group 6 – Branch B
FRANCES GUTHRIE (1764ENG-1846ENG) and ALEXANDER KNOX
of Northumberland, England

FRANCES GUTHRIE

Parents: Adam Guthrie and Elizabeth Nesbit (of Harbottle/Berwick-upon-Tweed/Tweedmouth area, Northumberland; married 23 November 1761 at Berwick-upon-Tweed).
Birth: About February 1764, Northumberland, England.
Baptism: 4 February 1764, Tweedmouth, Northumberland, England.
Marriage: 12 November 1786, Tweedmouth, Northumberland, England, to Alexander Knox.
Residences: Tweedmouth (birth/baptism/marriage); later associated with Berwick-upon-Tweed area, Northumberland.
Death: April, May, or June 1846 (Quarter 2), Berwick, Northumberland, England (civil registration district).
Burial: Unknown (pre-1850s civil registration and parish records for Berwick/Tweedmouth area may not specify; common for the period).
Notes: Frances was one of at least seven known children of Adam Guthrie and Elizabeth Nesbit in Branch B of Guthrie Family Group 6. This branch is rooted in the Anglo-Scottish border region of Northumberland, an area characterized by cross-border mobility, agricultural labor, and early industrial influences (e.g., keelmen and river trade near the Tweed). As a daughter in a family with documented parish register entries, her life reflects the typical experiences of working-class women in late-18th/early-19th-century rural Northumberland: limited formal records beyond vital events, high child mortality risks, and residence in parishes like Tweedmouth (adjacent to Berwick-upon-Tweed, with strong Scottish cultural ties). No occupation is recorded for Frances; she likely managed household and family amid the economic pressures of the Napoleonic Wars era and pre-Industrial Revolution transitions. No known emigration; the family remained in Northumberland.

ALEXANDER KNOX

Parents: Unknown (common surname in Northumberland/Berwick border area; further research into local Knox families recommended).
Birth: Estimated circa 1760s (based on marriage age and children’s births; exact date/place unconfirmed in public indexes).
Marriage: 12 November 1786, Tweedmouth, Northumberland, England, to Frances Guthrie. Occupation/Residences: Likely agricultural laborer, tradesman, or involved in Tweed/Berwick river economy (common for the locale); resided in Tweedmouth/Berwick area.
Death: Unknown (no confirmed burial or civil death record located in public searches; post-1837 civil records or local censuses 1841/1851 could clarify if surviving).
Notes: Alexander appears primarily in connection with the 1786 marriage and as father in children’s records (per compiled trees). The Knox surname was prevalent in Northumberland and the Scottish Borders, raising possibilities of Scottish origins or local intermarriage. Limited standalone records reflect challenges with common names and pre-census documentation. He and Frances raised seven known children in the same parish cluster, suggesting stability in the border community despite regional upheavals (e.g., agricultural enclosures, wartime pressures). No military, land, or probate records surfaced in initial searches; edge cases include potential variant spellings (e.g., Knocks, Knoxe) or non-conformist registers if the family had Presbyterian leanings common to the Borders.

FAMILY NOTES / HISTORY

Frances Guthrie and Alexander Knox married in Frances’s home parish of Tweedmouth shortly after her father Adam’s documented activities in the area (post-1785). The couple’s life spanned the late Georgian era in a strategically and economically dynamic border zone: Tweedmouth/Berwick-upon-Tweed served as a key crossing point with Scotland, supporting trade, fishing, and labor. Their seven children were born over roughly 17 years (1788–1805), indicating a typical large family size for the period, though infant/child mortality was high regionally (as seen in sibling lines of Branch B).

Nuances and considerations:

• Record gaps: Pre-1837 parish registers are the primary source; baptisms may have delays or omissions. Civil registration (from 1837) captures Frances’s death but not earlier events.
• Location consistency: All vital events cluster in Tweedmouth/Berwick, reducing likelihood of migration but highlighting potential for unindexed non-parish records (e.g., dissenting chapels).
• Historical context: The family lived through the French Revolutionary/Napoleonic Wars (possible male relatives in militia/service) and early 19th-century economic shifts. No evidence of wealth or gentry status—consistent with Branch B’s laboring background.

KNOX CHILDREN: 9 Known
Y-DNA Project Participants: N/A – Female Guthrie
Autosomal DNA Participants: NONE

1.) Elizabeth Knox – born abt. 1788, baptized 4 May 1788 at Tweedmouth, Northumberland, England
2.) James Knox – born abt. 1790, baptized 17 Oct 1790 at Tweedmouth, Northumberland, England
3.) Adam Knox – born abt. 1793, baptized 13 Nov 1793 at Tweedmouth, Northumberland, England
4.) Alexander Knox – born abt. 1796, baptized 17 Jul 1796 at Tweedmouth, Northumberland, England
5.) John Knox – born 13 Feb 1798, baptized 24 Feb 1798/9 at Tweedmouth, Northumberland, England
6.) Jane Knox – born 1 Aug 1801, United Presbyterian, Spittal, Northumberland, England
7.) Frances Knox – born 1 Aug 1801, United Presbyterian, Spittal, Northumberland, England
8.) Mary Knox – born abt. 1803 (sister or sister-in-law 1851 census)
9.) Robert Knox – born 14 Aug 1805, Spittal, Northumberland, England

NOTES: No confirmed marriages, deaths, or descendants detailed

Primary Sources and Citations

• Tweedmouth, Northumberland Parish Register (Baptisms): Frances Guthrie, daughter of Adam Guthrie and Elizabeth [Nesbit], baptised 4 February 1764. (Accessed via compiled indexes on Ancestry.com and FamilySearch; originals at Northumberland Archives or microfilm equivalents. Confirms parentage and exact baptism date/location.)
• Tweedmouth, Northumberland Parish Register (Marriages): Alexander Knox and Frances Guthrie, married 12 November 1786. (Parish record; indexed on major genealogy platforms. Primary evidence of union; witnesses or banns may exist in full register.)
• England & Wales Civil Registration Death Index (GRO): Frances Knox [née Guthrie], death registered April-May-June 1846, Berwick district, Northumberland (age ~82). (FreeBMD or GRO index; provides quarter/year confirmation. Post-1837 civil records add reliability over burial registers alone.)