Richard is the likely father of Robert, as he married Ann Mather soon after the birth of Robert.
There are also births registered for Richard and Ann Greenhalgh of Harwood, another Richard and Ann of Bury and a third from Sharples. These cant be the same families (as the Harwood family also had a Robert in 1817) and birth dates overlap. Therefore, Robert was their only child.
One of the first pages of the Walmsley Chapel Meeting House (Presbyterian) is dominated by two Mather families, William+Ann and Peter+Ellin. These two families were to be the grandparents of Samuel Mather (1791-1854) and Alice Mather (1792-1879) who married 9 September 1810. Therefore Samuel and Alice (the parents of John Mather) were second cousins.
Richard and Ann were married in a religious ceremony on January 13th, 1808 at St. Peter's (Bolton) by minister John Wilson and witnessed by William Orrell and James Orrell.1 They had a son named Robert. There are no more children.
Family Notes
Married Ann Mather 13 Jan 1806
There is also Richard Greenhalgh and Ann Rostron married 3 Sep 1797, Walmersley, Bury There is also Richard Greenhalgh and Ann Tootill married 18 Sep 1799, Bolton There is also Richard Greenhalgh and Ann Horrocks married 12 Jan 1814, Bolton
Name Robert Mather Baptism Date 21 Apr 1805 Parish Bolton-le-Moors, Lancashire, England Mother's Name Ann Mather Register Type Bishops Transcripts Reference Number Drm/2/20a
Robert s. of Ann Mather of Little Bolton
He died at the age of 39 in November 1844 in Little Bolton.4
Death Notes
Probably died before 1851, as son Peter described as an orpahn.
Name Robert Greenhalgh Age 40 Birth Date abt 1804 Burial Date 7 Nov 1844 Burial Place Bolton-le-Moors, St Peter, Lancashire, England Reference Number GB127.L243/1/5/12