Here is my first brick wall for the forum:
Jesse Dunn, b. abt 1818
marries Thirza Burgess, 20 Oct 1839
(have certified copy of marriage register)
Witnesses are listed as Silas Ward (on Black Country Connections marriage info he is listed as "Ware") & Sarah Burgess (probably her mother)
Jesse's father is listed as John Dunn, gardener
While I have all the census info for Jesse, both his and Thirza's death registers, I have hit a complete blank on John Dunn.
I almost ordered the Staffordshire Memorial Inscriptions today (at about $30 U.S. dollars today, but stopped myself

I've tried looking up the marriage witness Silas Ward (possible relative to Lord Ward?) Perhaps John was a gardener on an estate. I've found multiple John Dunns in the census data, with one even being a farmer, but nothing to definitely connect any of them to Jesse.
Jesse became an engineer very young...listed as such on his marriage register. Would he have needed some connections to achive this?
Should I try parish registers next?
Much thanks for any advice! Best, Lora