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Church of St Michael and All Angels, Bampton, Friday, 3 June, 2011 Photo available for reuse under this Creative Commons licence. |
John Land (bap. 26 Mar 1754 at Petton Chapelry, Petton, Devon), son of Thomas and Anne Land, married Sarah Melhuish (bap. 16 Jun 1756 at St Michael and All Angels, Bampton, Devon), Base Child (illegitimate) of Mary Melhuish, at St Michael and All Angels, Bampton on 6 May 1784. John Land appears to have signed his name and Sarah made her mark. The witnesses were a Mary something and the second Robert Phillips, who was also witness to the other three marriages on the same page of the register. Curiously, the banns of their marriage were read on 24 Nov, 1 Dec and 8 Dec 1782. Why the wedding didn't take place for almost 18 months, there are no indications. One wonders if they were read again, because in the Church of England, banns are valid for three months from the final Sunday they are read.
It appears that John and Sarah Land had four children:
- Richard Land bap. 24 Oct 1784 at St Michael & All Angels, Bampton
- Sarah Land bap. 11 Mar 1787 at St Michael & All Angels, Bampton
- John Land bap. 29 May 1791 at St Michael & All Angels, Bampton
- Mary Land bap. 29 May 1803 at St Michael & All Angels, Bampton
John Land died at 57 and was buried at St Michael, Bampton on 1 Jul 1812.
Sarah Land died, her age over-estimated to 72 (she will have been ~67) and was buried on 14 Feb 1823 at St Peter's Church, Tiverton. (From this, I assume she must have gone to live with her eldest son, Richard.)
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| West Street, Bampton cc-by-sa/2.0 - © Derek Harper - geograph.org.uk/p/2450185 |
There's no record of a marriage, anywhere, between John Land (bap. 29 May 1791 in Bampton, Devon), son of John Land and Sarah Melhuish and Loveday Flew (bap. 14 Oct 1804 in Rackenford, Devon), daughter of Richard Flew and Jane Wright (Loveday Flew, was therefore the great-aunt of William Flew, who married Jane Middleton), but they must have got together by 1823.
John Patchett has written here that, John Land, "Joined the Royal Marines in 1810 and served to 1814 then discharged for being undersize at 5ft 2.3/4 when he was 19 and 5ft 4 in 1822. Joined the 46th regiment of foot in 1815 and served in Australia and India until 1822 when discharged with chronic hepatitis. Total service 10 years 48 days. On leaving the army was given a pension of 6d per day which he received until death." John Land had joined the 46th Regt Of Foot on 14 Nov 1815, and the record of his discharge from that service in 1822, in consequence of the chronic hepatitis, confirms his previous service in the Royal Marines from 4 Sep 1810 until 14 Jul 1814.
It seems obvious that while John was useful to the Royal Marines during the Napoleonic Wars they kept him, but once they no longer needed the numbers, his height was used as an excuse to select him for discharge. Of the 46th (South Devonshire) Regiment of Foot, "When peace came in 1814, the regiment was sent to garrison New South Wales for three years and escort convicts. It moved to India for the first time in 1817 ..."
John Land already had two children from a previous relationship with Sarah (b. 1794). Again, it hasn't been possible to locate a record of a marriage:
- Richard Land b. 6 Oct 1816 At Sea, off the coast of Botany Bay, bap. 5 Jan 1817 at St Philip's Church, Sydney, Australia
- Jane Land b. 25 Apr 1818 also born At Sea, off Botany Bay, bap. 3 Aug 1818 at Christ Church Cathedral, Newcastle, New South Wales
Likewise, there are no records that explain what happened to Sarah.
John Land had a further nine children with Loveday Flew:
- John Land b. 1823
- Harriet Land b. 1827
- James Land b. 1828
- Elizabeth Land bap. 25 Jun 1830 at the Church of St Michael and All Angels, Bampton, Devon
- Loveday Land b. 1833. Died at 18 in 1851 J Quarter in TIVERTON Volume 10 Page 191.
- George Land b. 1836
- Eliza Land b. 1839 D Quarter in TIVERTON Volume 10 Page 239. Died at 19 in 1859 S Quarter in TIVERTON Volume 05B Page 291.
- Maria Land b. 1841 D Quarter in TIVERTON Volume 10 Page 249. Died at 25 in 1867 J Quarter in TIVERTON Volume 05B Page 298.
- Eleanor Land b. 1845 D Quarter in TIVERTON Volume 10 Page 249, bap. 26 Nov 1845 in Bampton, daughter of John and Loveday. Address given as Westgate and John was described as a Pensioner.
The birth registrations for Eliza and Maria confirm the mother's maiden name as FLEW. On Eleanor's it is merely mis transcribed as FLEX.
In 1841, living in Gate Street, West, Bampton, were John Land (50) Loody Land (sic) (35), Jane Land (20), John Land (18), Harriet Land (14), James Land (13), Elizabeth Land (9), Loody Land (8), George Land (5) and Eliza Land (1).
In 1851, in West Street, Bampton, Devon, we find John Land claiming to be 46 (he was 60) Pauper (ag lab), Loveday Land (47), James Land (23) Ag Lab; Loveday Land (18) Invalid; George Land (14) Ag Lab; Eliza Land (11), Maria Land (9) and Eleanor Land (5) the last three all at school.
Loveday Land died at 47 in 1851 J Qtr in TIVERTON Vol 10 Page 191.
John Land died on 22 Sep 1857 (S Qtr in TIVERTON Vol 05B Page 275) from chronic bronchitis, with his age at death over estimated to 71 (66).