They lived in Kinnesswood, a smallish village in Kinross-shire, Scotland in the mid-19th century. He was born 1825 – the son of Elizabeth Ralph and John Fingzies, and was a hand-loom weaver (both sets of parents were too), as many in the parish of Portmoak were.

With a family name like his, James must be related to Alexander and Robert Fingzies who developed some of the housing 'colonies' in Edinburgh in Victorian times – housing for working people, especially in Leith (eg see Fingzies Place near Leith Links).

I'd love to establish the connection between James and Alexander F. Cousins maybe? Anyone know about them by chance?

On another angle, can I assume hand-loom weavers generally worked 'at home' and that this may have been an occupation Isabella was also involved with? I'm interested to know how the weaving 'industry' operated for the people involved. How did village workers get the raw material for linen / cotton / wool? Did someone 'own' their work, provide materials and pay them, or were they 'in business' for themselves and have a market somewhere? Thanks