Hi "General",
I am not sure if this will be any help, but I was trying to trace a Guthrie Shanley in Haslingden, County Lancashire for awhile. Turns out there was an error in the transcribing of the 1881 census and after looking at the original form it turns out that it was his wife, Catherine who was a widow at that time and it was her name that got transcribed as Guthrie. Catherine was married to Frank (not Guthrie) and they had emigrated from Ireland following their son Peter who had married in Mary Shalley in 1855 and raised a large family in Haslingden. Their eldest child, Bridget, married and moved to the states and I am descended from her. She had a sister named Catherine who married John Whelan. Most worked in the cotton mills. Frank and Catherine brought 2 other children, Michael and Mary with them from Ireland. Michael married and also raised a family in Haslingden. If any of those families sound familiar to you perhaps you are running into the same "brick wall" that I had encountered. I look forward to hearing from you to see if we might have ancestors in common. Thanks!
Kate