Hannah was born on the 30th of August 1793 in the village of Gisburn, which at that time was in the West Riding of Yorkshire.  She was the fourth child born to  William Alston¹ a Carpenter, and his wife Anne (nee Turner) of Gisburn.  Hannah was baptised on the 19th of September 1793, at the Church of St Mary the Virgin in Gisburn.

No records have been found that would provide information about her childhood but it appears that she did receive an education, as she was able to sign the marriage register when she married.

In 1812, at the age of 19, Hannah became pregnant and gave birth in October to a baby boy.  The baptism register shows that the identity of the father was not declared, so the boy was baptised with the name William Alston.

A few years later, Hannah moved some 10 miles away, to the village of Whalley, in Lancashire, probably to work in service. It's most likely that she left her son William in the care of her parent's.
 
Whilst in Whalley, Hannah met a local Weaver called Thomas Exton.  They married on the 25th of May 1817, at the Church of St Mary and All Saints in Whalley.  She went on to have nine children with Thomas.

It was not unusual for an illegitimate child to be taken in by a new husband and 'adopt' a new surname.  However, as her son William used the Alston surname (or variants) throughout his life, it could mean that he was brought up by Hannah's parents and kept a secret from her husband.  Unfortunately, there are no Census records or other documents which would throw light on the issue, so we may never know.  It is clear though, that William knew the name of his mother, as her name is stated in the burial register when he died, indeed Hannah was still alive when William died, so perhaps he was in touch with her.

By 1819, Hannah and Thomas had moved to Wiswell, which is a hamlet about a mile North-East of Whalley.  Initially her husband worked as a Labourer but by 1851 was farming 20 acres of land in Wiswell.

Shortly after her husband died in 1857, Hannah was fortunate to get one of the lovely Almshouses in Whalley, which were built by a local philanthropist Adam Cottam around 1835 and which are still in use as Almshouses today.  Hannah stayed there until her death in February 1876.  She was buried on the 28th of February in the graveyard of St Mary and All Saints in Whalley.

Hannah had a total of ten children; one illegitimate and nine with Thomas Exton (of which one died in infancy).

William Alston 1812- 1869

Anne Exton 1818- ??
Oliver Exton 1819-1863
Ellen Exton 1822- ??
Thomas Exton 1823-1824
John Exton 1824-1853
Mary Exton 1828- ??
Thomas Exton 1828- ??
Edmund Exton 1830- ??
Martha Exton 1832-1851

Notes

1. Surname Variants
The surname found in records for this branch of the family take three forms; Alston, Alstead or Halstead and seem to appear randomly rather than any deliberate attempt to change - presumably this is down to parish clerks and enumerators writing down what they believe they heard.