Augustine Wynnall and Elizabeth Knighte

Great St Helen's Street, London, EC3
cc-by-sa/2.0 - © David Hallam-Jones - geograph.org.uk/p/3406231
The Grade II-listed 12th century Church of "St Helen's, Bishopsgate" occupies the centre space. This was William Shakespeare's parish church when he lived in the area in the 1590s.

Augustine Wynnoll (sic) and Elizabeth Knighte (I suspect the final 'e' is superfluous) - a pair of my 9th great-grandparents - married at St Helen's, Bishopsgate (one of only a few churches in the City of London to survive both the Great Fire of 1666 and The Blitz), on 12 May 1634. (Which, for context, was during the reign of Charles I of England. Interesting times.)

Augustine and Elizabeth appear to have had five children:

1. Mary Winnall b. Monday, 17 Feb 1634, Mary daughter of Augustine Winnall of Blackwall, Waterman bap. 20 Feb 1634 at St Dunstan and All Saints, Stepney (at 3 days old).
2. Elizabeth Winnall b. Tuesday, 29 Aug 1637, Elizabeth daughter of Augustine Winnall of Blackwall, Waterman bap. 6 Sep 1637 at St Dunstan's (at 8 days old). Elizabeth daughter of Augustine Winnall of Blackwall, Waterman, was buried at St Dunstan's on 24 Feb 1640.
3. Amy Winnall b. Friday, 1 Nov 1639, Amy daughter of Augustine Winnall of Blackwall, Waterman & Elizabeth bap. 6 Nov 1639 (at 5 days old)
4. John Winnall b. Wednesday, 23 Mar 1642, John son of Augustine Winnall of Blackwall, Waterman and Eliz., bap. 31 Mar 1642 at St Dunstan's (at 8 days old).
5. Rachell Winnall bap. 19 Oct 1643. Rachel daughter of Augustine Winnall of Blackwall, Waterman & Elizabeth, buried 20 Nov 1643.

Their seemingly only son, John Winnall, who was my 8th great-grandfather, therefore, was born in the same year as the start of the English Civil War.

Sadly, almost all the records of the Company of Watermen prior to 1666 were destroyed in the Great Fire of London so finding these records of a waterman from before that time, is gold. That it's my direct ancestor, breath-taking.

Buried on page 408 of the Calendar of the Quarter Sessions Papers: pt. 1. 1591-1621, is the following item: 

If this is the same Augustine Wynnall (and, with the same fairly unusual name, just seven years before the above marriage, I imagine it could be), then several conclusions may be drawn: he appears to have been wanted to appear before the Quarter Sessions for some reason that I have yet to discover; he probably originally hails from Buckland, Gloucestershire and he had been a Labourer. 

Lending more circumstantial evidence for accepting that this is the same man, is that among the notable burials at St Helen's Church, Bishopsgate is the tomb of Sir Thomas Gresham (1519-1579), royal agent to King Edward VI (1547–1553) and Queens Mary I (1553–1558) and Elizabeth I (1558–1603) and founder of the Royal Exchange, whose father, Sir Richard Gresham (1485-1549), Lord Mayor of London, and Member of Parliament, who served as a commissioner under Henry VIII - both of whom had held the manor of Buckland. One imagines, therefore, that Augustine Wynnall could have somehow come to London in the service of their descendants.

Augustine Wynnall of Blackwall, Waterman was buried, on 2 Feb 1642, at St Dunstan's, Stepney. Being in the first part of the year, prior to March 25th, this was likely 1642 per the then used Julian calendar, which would equate to 1643 in our modern Gregorian calendar, making sense of the date of his youngest child. This also suggests Rachel was a posthumous child. 

So far, I have been unable to isolate further records for Elizabeth Winnall

Blackwall and the Watermen

Samuel Pepys, who commuted by water from his home to his job at the Admiralty, refers to the death of his waterman in his diaries of 1665 revealing the particular vulnerability of Thames watermen to infection. 

On Sunday 20 August 1665, he writes, "And I could not get my waterman to go elsewhere for fear of the plague."

Thames watermen and ferries: "Wherries could be hired at many stairs that led down to the Thames. Watermen gathered at each, jostling for custom, crying “oars oars sculls”. Working a passenger wherry, ferry, or barge on the Thames in all weathers and tides required knowledge and skill, with tides used to achieve remarkably quick journeys up and down river. The men who operated such craft, as well as those who transported goods by barge or lighter, were a special breed, whose families undertook the same work for generations."

Blackwall had a proud maritime tradition and both Raleigh and Nelson are said to have had homes here. The first colonists of Virginia sailed from Blackwall in 1606 and later the East India Docks - a group of docks in Blackwall, east London - brought thriving inter­na­tional trade.

Blackwall Yard (later owned by the Perry family, to whom, I now find I am related by marriage) was famous for building East Indiamen, which vessels were often called Blackwallers. Built in 1614, it was the first wet dock in the port of London and was the East India Company's principal shipyard, "... residential development at Blackwall commenced in earnest during the 1620s and 1630s, and it continued throughout the century as both the shipyard and overseas trade prospered and the demand for labour in the area increased." 

• Anthony Tompson of Blackwall, Sawyer, aged 26 years married Mary Winnall aged 20 years, at St Dunstan, Stepney, on 13 Feb 1654.

William White and Ann Francis

All Saints' Church, Mattishall, Norfolk

William White (bap. 20 Jul 1806 at St Margaret, Garvestone), only child, son of Jacob White and Rose Bunkall, married Anne Francis (b. 3 Dec 1802 in Mattishall Burgh), daughter of William Francis and Sarah Homes, at All Saints' Church, Mattishall, Norfolk on 7 May 1826. 

Records exist for this couple having nine children:

1. Mariann White bap. 8 Oct 1826 in Mattishall
2. Anne White bap. 16 May 1830 in Mattishall (assume died in infancy)
3. Anne White bap. 23 Oct 1831 in Mattishall 
4. William White (b. 1834) bap. 26 Jun 1836 in Mattishall
5. Sarah White bap. 26 Jun 1836 in Mattishall
6. Elizabeth White bap. 27 May 1838 in Mattishall
7. Hannah White bap. 23 Aug 1840 in Mattishall
8. Maria White bap. 31 Jul 1842 in Mattishall
9. Walter White, b. 16 Nov 1845 in Thorpe (1845 D Quarter in BLOFIELD UNION Volume 13 Page 20) (Birth, marriage and death certs held.)

In 1841, William (35) and Anne (35) were living 'Near the Church, Mattishall' with children: Mariann - listed as Mary - (14), Ann (9), William (7), Sarah (5), Elizabeth (3) and Hannah (0), as well as an Ann Clark (55).

By 1851, they had moved to Thorpe Road, St Andrew Thorpe with William (44) Gardener, Anne (47), Ann (19), William (17), also employed as a gardener, Hannah (10), Maria (8) and Walter (5). Sarah White (15) Servant in the household of John Baker at 16 Victoria Street, Lakenham. Elizabeth White (13) was Servant to Susannah Balley (28) Gentlewoman, on Thorpe Road.

In 1861, at Red Lion Hill, Thorpe were William (54) Gardener, Anne (54), Hannah (26), Maria (18) and Walter (15).

In 1871, William White (64) Gardener, and Anne White (68) were in Thorpe Street, Thorpe St Andrew, with granddaughter, Mary Ann Watson (13).

William White died just 16 days after the 1871 census was taken, aged 64, on 18 April 1871 (1871 J Quarter in BLOFIELD UNION Volume 04B Page 123) and was buried at the Rosary Cemetery, Norwich, Plot D3/578.

16 Oct 1871: The will of William White late of Thorpe St. Andrew in the County of Norfolk, Gardener, who died 18 April 1871 at Thorpe St. Andrew was proved at Norwich by Francis Anthony Martyn of the City of Norwich Upholsterer one of the Executors. Effects under £100. (Francis Anthony Martyn was William's son-in-law, then married to daughter, Ann.)

In 1881, Ann White (78), widow, was living with her daughter Ann Martin (sic) (49), also then widowed, in Lothian Street, Norwich. 

Anne White died on 4 Nov 1889 (1889 D Quarter in NORWICH Volume 04B Page 92), aged 86 and is buried with her husband at Rosary Cemetery. 

After contacting a local history group for Thorpe St Andrew, I was contacted by former Sheriff of Norwich, Nick Williams, whose wife had seen my question and who provided photos and even a plan, which made the plot very easy to find. The Rosary Cemetery itself is notable, nay unique, as it was the first non-denominational cemetery in England. Laid out in 1819, it celebrated it's 200th Anniversary in 2019. Nick Williams, who is also involved in The Friends of the Rosary Cemetery, has now written several books on the site and here talks about The History of Rosary Cemetery. 

Headstone for William White and Ann Francis (left) Plot D3/578

John Lock and Mary Nott

St John the Baptist, Ashbrittle
cc-by-sa/2.0 - © Derek Harper - geograph.org.uk/p/1939290

John Lock (b. ~1781) married Mary Nott (b. ~1785) on 1 May 1806 at the church of St John the Baptist, Ashbrittle, Somerset.

John and Mary Lock had eight children:

1. Elizabeth Lock bap. 7 Jun 1807 in Ashbrittle
2. Mary Ann Lock bap. 7 May 1809 in Ashbrittle
3. John Lock bap. 19 Jan 1812 in Ashbrittle
4. Harriet Lock bap. 19 Jun 1814 in Ashbrittle
5. William Lock bap. 7 Jul 1816 in Ashbrittle
6. James Lock bap. 13 Dec 1818 in Ashbrittle
7. Thomas Lock bap. 14 Jul 1822 in Ashbrittle
8. Eliza Lock bap. 14 Nov 1824 in Ashbrittle

Mary Lock died in 1839 J Qtr in WELLINGTON SOMERSET AND DEVON Volume 10 Page 333 and was buried on 28 Apr 1839 at St John the Baptist, Ashbrittle, age listed as 54, suggesting she was born around 1785.

In 1841, in Ashbrittle Village, were John Lock (58) Ag Lab with Eliza Lock (18) and Elizabeth Lock (10). DNA links confirm that Elizabeth Lock was his granddaughter, the illegitimate daughter of Mary Ann Lock. Harriot Lock (25) was at Burrow [Farm], Ashbrittle, working as a Female Servant.

John Lock died, aged 65, in 1847 M Quarter in WELLINGTON Vol 10 Page 426 and was buried at St John the Baptist, Ashbrittle on 14 Feb 1847. The burial record lists John Lock of Wellington Union House, i.e. Workhouse.

James Ridgeway and Mary Ann Lock

Ashbrittle Village with Court Place Farm (foreground left)
Photo © Lewis Clarke (cc-by-sa/2.0)

James Ridgeway (bap. 22 Oct 1809 in Seaton & Beer), son of Jacob Ridgway and Jane Bray, married Mary Ann Lock (bap. 7 May 1809 in Ashbrittle), daughter of John Lock and Mary Nott, on 29 Apr 1833, at St John the Baptist, Ashbrittle. James and Mary Ann were a pair of my 3rd great-grandparents. Witnesses to their marriage were Henry Vickery and Elizabeth Webber. 

Mary Ann Lock had an illegitimate daughter, Elizabeth Lock (bap. 2 Jan 1831 at St John the Baptist, Ashbrittle), prior to her marriage. Confirming this, I have several DNA matches as half-relatives through three of Elizabeth Lock's sons, which list Mary Ann Lock as the common ancestor of all of us and is a huge branch of the family I would never have found otherwise.

James and Mary Ann had a further seven children together:

1. Mary Ridgeway bap. 22 Dec 1833 at St John the Baptist, Ashbrittle
2. James Ridgeway bap. 25 Oct 1835 at St John the Baptist, Ashbrittle
3. Jane Ridgeway bap. 2 Sep 1838 at St John the Baptist, Ashbrittle
4. Harriet Ridgeway bap. 14 Feb 1841 at St John the Baptist, Ashbrittle
5. Thomas Ridgeway bap. 4 Feb 1844 at St John the Baptist, Ashbrittle
6. John Ridgeway b. There are three potential birth registrations: 1847 M Quarter in WELLINGTON SOMERSET AND DEVON Volume 10 Page 501 with mother's maiden name listed as LOOK; 1847 M Quarter in WELLINGTON SOMERSET AND DEVON Volume 10 Page 411 Volume 10 Page 502 and/or 1847 S Quarter in WELLINGTON SOMERSET AND DEVON Volume 10 Page 411 with mother's maiden name LOCK, bap. 18 Apr 1847 at St John the Baptist, Ashbrittle. (Died aged 4 (1851 D Quarter in WELLINGTON-SOMERSET AND DEVON Vol 10 Page 352), already buried 6 Aug 1851 at St John the Baptist, Ashbrittle)
7. William Ridgeway b. 1850 J Quarter in WELLINGTON SOMERSET Volume 10 Page 505, although mother's maiden name is not listed, bap. 16 Jan 1850 at St John the Baptist, Ashbrittle. (Died aged 29, in 1879 J Quarter in TIVERTON Volume 05B Page 307.)

Although civil registration was introduced in 1837, they made no civil registrations until sixth child, John, in 1847, which clearly confused them.

In 1841, James Ridgway (32) and Ann Ridgeway (33), were living in Ashbrittle Village, with children; Mary (7), James (5), Jane (2) and Harriot (0). 

And in 1851, still living in Ashbrittle Village, we find James (45) and Ann (45), with Harriot (10), Thomas (7), John (4) and William (1). Mary (19) was a Servant of William Sweet at Appley Court, Appley, Stawley; James (15) had also left home and was working as a Servant in the household of Robert Venn at Little Tadbeer Farm, Ashbrittle; while Jane Ridgeway (12), was a Servant in the household of Robert Johns of Kittisford at Stawley, Somerset. 

James Ridgeway died, aged 44, in 1854 J Qtr in WELLINGTON Vol 05C Page 235 and was buried on 18 Jun 1854 at St John the Baptist, Ashbrittle. 

James Marsh, Widower, son of Richard Marsh, married Mary Ann Ridgeway, Widow, daughter of John Lock, at the Parish church of St John the Baptist, Ashbrittle, on 28 Nov 1859. Witnesses were Thomas and Harriet Ware.

James Marsh (bap. 31 Jul 1814 in Bampton, Devon) son of Richard and Mary Marsh, had married Mary Cruwys - also a widow - in Morebath, on 22 Mar 1840. They had one child, Mary Marsh, born 1841 and that year were living at Exbridge, Morebath, along with three children from that Mary's previous marriage. In 1851, they were still there with Mary (9) and three more children Elizabeth (7), Martha (5) and James (2). Mary Marsh had died in 1858. 

In 1861, James Marsh (46), Anne [Mary Ann] Marsh (51) and William Ridgeway (11) were living at 'Cottage, Bampton Down, Bampton'. Thomas Ridgeway (18), was employed as a Carter at Holcombe Barton, Holcombe Rogus. (Holcombe Barton Farm was part of the Manor of Holcombe Rogus of Holcombe Court, "the finest Tudor house in Devon.")

In 1871, still at 'Cottage, Bampton Down, Bampton', were James Marsh (60) and Mary Ann Marsh (62). William Ridgeway (21) Postman, was a lodger in Ashbrittle, in the household of William Cude (64) Carpenter & Builder. 

James Marsh died at 58 in 1871 S Quarter in TIVERTON Volume 05B Page 273 and was buried, on 3 Jul 1871, in Bampton.

Mary Ann's son, William Ridgeway died, aged 29, and was buried on 15 Mar 1879, in Uplowman. "Administration of the Personal Estate of William Ridgway (sic) late of Uplowman in the County of Devon Letter Carrier a Batchelor who died 9 Mar 1879 at Uplowman was granted at Exeter to Mary Ann Marsh of Uplowman Widow the Mother and only Next of Kin."

In 1881, Mary Ann Mash (sic) (74), Widow, was living with her son, Thomas Ridgeway, in Whitnage, Uplowman. 

In 1891, Mary A Marsh (83), was living with her daughter, Harriet Were (sic) (50), in Chettiscombe.

Mary Ann Marsh died, at 86, in 1894 D Qtr in TIVERTON Vol 05B 279.

Francis Stephen Blazey and Hannah Minns

St. Bartholomew's Tower, Heigham
cc-by-sa/2.0 - © Graham Hardy - geograph.org.uk/p/182191

Francis Stephen Blazey (b. 26 Dec 1810, bap. 30 Dec 1810 at St Martin at Oak, Norwich), illegitimate son of Susanna Blazey, married Hannah Minns, daughter of Robert Marsh Minns and Mary Kett, at St Bartholomew's, in Heigham, Norwich, on 29 Apr 1832. (The church was largely destroyed by bombing in 1944.) Witnesses were John Hubbard and Mary Hubbard.

Francis and Hannah appear to have at least 10 children:

1. Harriet Blazy b. 30 Apr 1832, bap. 8 May 1832 at St Martin at Oak. Buried at St Bartholomew's, Heigham, on 10 Jun 1832, aged 1 month. 
2. Francis Robert Blazey b. 1 Aug, bap. 4 Aug 1833 at St Martin at Oak
3. Samuel Blazey b. 13 Jul 1836, bap. 17 Jul 1836 at St Martin at Oak. Died, aged 5 and was buried on 27 Oct 1841. (This child's death was registered in 1842 M Quarter in NORWICH Volume 13 Page 205).
4. Harriet Blazey b. 11 Jan 1839, bap. 13 Jan 1839 at St Martin at Oak
5. Samuel Blazey bap. 7 Nov 1841 in the Parish of Heigham, Norfolk
6. Hannah Blazey b. 17 Jun 1845 (1845 S Quarter in NORWICH Vol 13 Page 284), bap. 7 Jul 1845 and on 17 Oct 1860 at St Bartholomew's
7. Elizabeth Blazey b. 6 Oct 1847 (1847 D Quarter in NORWICH Volume 13 Page 249), bap. 17 Oct 1860 at St Bartholomew's
8. Eliza Blazey b. 16 Feb 1851* (1851 M Quarter in NORWICH Volume 13 Page 324), bap. 21 Oct 1863 at St Bartholomew's. *Birth year stated on baptism record was 1849, but very unlikely she was registered two years late and more likely was wrongly remembered ~12 years later.
9. William Blazey b. 7 Nov 1853 (1853 D Quarter in NORWICH Volume 04B Page 129), bap. 17 Nov 1867 at Holy Trinity, Heigham
10. Alice Blazey b. 6 Nov 1857 (1857 D Quarter in NORWICH Volume 04B Page 157). bap. 2 Oct 1867 at Holy Trinity, Heigham

Holy Trinity church, Heigham, was built in the 1860's and the parish records begin in 1867, so they were among the first to use this new church. 

[i] Harriet born in 1832 doesn't appear on the 1841 census, whereas the Harriet born in 1839 does. There's no record of a burial for a Harriet, but there is a record of a burial of a Hannah Blazey at St Bartholomew's, on 10 Jun 1832, aged 1 month, which I'm confident must relate to this child. 

Most of the baptism records list Francis' occupation as a Dyer. On those of William and Alice, he's described as a Labourer. One wonders what happened for him to give up a skilled trade to take up presumably unskilled work.

In 1841, incorrectly listed as Blazeby, the family was living at Union Square, Heigham - this address was on daughter Hannah's birth certificate in 1845 - with Francis (30), Hannah (25), Francis (8), Sam (5) and Harriet (2).

Hannah Blazey (née Minns)

In 1851, Francis Blazey (40) Labourer was a Lodger in the household of Mary Wright (46) Widow at 1, Manchester Buildings, Heigham, Norwich. (Mary was Hannah Blazey's older sister.) There also were Hannah (38) Wife of Lodger; Francis (18) Labourer; Harriet (12), Samuel (9), Hannah (5) and Elizabeth (3).

In 1861, in Chapel Street, Heigham: Francis (50), Labourer, Hannah (48), Elizabeth (14), Eliza (10), William (7), Alice (3) and Mary A Wright (22), dressmaker, niece. Samuel (19) was with his brother Francis at at 2, St Pauls Street, Blockhouse, Worcester; Hannah (16) was General Servant to Anne Clifford (78), Widow, and her unmarried daughter, Elizabeth Clifford (48), teacher, at Earlham Road Terrace, Heigham, Norwich. (Today Earlham Road is part of the so-called Golden Triangle in Norwich, "The Golden Triangle's terraces house professionals, families and many students from the nearby University of East Anglia; its friendly atmosphere has resulted in the Golden Triangle being dubbed the Norwich version of London's Notting Hill.")

By 1871, Francis Blazey (60), Hannah (57), with just William (17) and Alice (13) still at home, were living at 16 Globe St, Heigham. In 1872, still in Globe Street, Francis Blazey is listed on the Norfolk Register of Electors. 

Francis Stephen Blazey died, aged 62, in 1873 M Quarter in NORWICH Vol 04B Page 111. He was buried at Earlham Road Cemetery, Norwich.

In 1881, the widowed Hannah (67), was living at 3, Duke Street, Norwich Heigham, with son Samuel (35), Sam's son Alfred (11) and daughter Hannah's two children, Walter White (11) and Laura White (10). (It is also apparently written on the back of the image of Hannah that she looked after her older sister Mary Ann Wright's children.) Elizabeth Blazey (32) Housekeeper from Norwich, Norfolk, was employed by A L Popham, Widow at Littlecott Hall, Ramsbury, Wiltshire. (Littlecote House).

In 1891, Samuel (49) and his daughter, Elizabeth (17), were still living with Hannah (78) in Manchester Street, Norwich.

In 1901, Hannah (90) and Samuel (57), still resided in Manchester Street.

Hannah Blazey died, aged 91, in 1903 S Qtr in NORWICH Vol 04B 95. Hannah Blazey was also buried at Earlham Road Cemetery, Norwich.

John Benbow Gabbedy and Isabella Cleghorn

St Bride, Fleet Street, London EC4 - East end
cc-by-sa/2.0 - © John Salmon - geograph.org.uk/p/1213706

John Benbow Gabbedy (b. 17 Nov 1771 in Limehouse, London) son of John Gabbdey and Elizabeth Travally, married Isabella Cleghorn (b. 7 Jul 1771 in Shadwell), daughter of Anthony Cleghorn and Margaret Jane Murray on 28 Apr 1795 at St Bride's, Fleet Street - the church with the famous "wedding cake" spire, designed by Sir Christopher Wren. The record states they were married by banns and were both of the parish. Witnesses were John Brown and Martha Masters. What were these "Eastenders" doing up west?

John and Isabella Gabbedy had these seven children:

1. William Anthony Gabbedey b. 5 Feb 1796, bap. 8 May 1796 at St Dunstan's, Stepney at 93 days old.
2. John Cleghorn Gabbedey b. 25 Feb 1798, bap. 8 Apr 1798 at St Mary Magdalene Woolwich
3. Margaret Elizabeth Gabbady (sic) b. 30 May 1800, bap. 6 Jul 1800 at St Mary Magdalene Woolwich 
4. Charles Gabbedey b. 23 Dec 1803, bap. 5 Apr 1812 at St Dunstan's
5. Mary Gabbady (sic) b. 19 Aug 1805, bap. 11 Sep 1805 at St Mary Magdalene, Woolwich
6. Henry Ralph Gabady (sic) b. 18 Dec 1807, bap. 17 Jan 1808 at St Dunstan's, Stepney
7. Anne Elizabeth Gabbaday, b. 23 Feb 1811, bap. 14 Apr 1811 at St Anne's Limehouse 

In the Register of Duties Paid for Apprentices' Indentures, on Friday, 30 Dec 1785, when he'll have just turned 14, John B Gabbedey was apprenticed to Owen Temple of Poplar in the County of Middlesex, Shipwright.

On William Anthony's baptism, the family's address was given just as 'Rat' (Ratcliff, between Limehouse and Shadwell), son of John, a Shipwright and Isabella. In 1808, John Benbow Gabbedy's occupation was again listed as Shipwright and on Henry Ralph's baptism, their address was Poplar. In 1811, John's occupation was listed as a Mariner, living in Gill Street, Limehouse. At the time of Charles' baptism in 1812, their address was listed as M.E.O.T. (Mile End Old Town) and John was again described as a Shipwright.

It seemed a strange career change for John to suddenly become a Mariner, when he already had a skill as a Shipwright, especially as he was 40. However, there's a record in British Royal Navy Allotment Declarations in 1811, where he's listed as John Gabidy (sic), with rank Co Mate, allotting part of his pay to his wife, Isabella. This record shows that he was with HMS Tortoise, an ex-East Indiaman, Sir Edward Hughes (1784 EIC ship). "Between March and July 1808 Tortoise was at Woolwich being fitted as a storeship for the Royal Navy." It would make total sense if he was involved in that conversion.

Under the columns for "When Allotment Ceases", is "D 27 Sept 1811 Invalid". The single D, I think means Discharged (it's DD for Discharged Dead), but, particularly as they don't have any more children after 1811, I wonder if he died then, or maybe shortly afterwards. Maybe that prompted Charles' baptism in 1812? John Benbow Gabbedy had certainly died by 1841.

In 1841, Isabella Gaberdey (sic) (70) was living in Wade's Place, Poplar in the household of William Newton (60) Mariner and his wife Margaret (40).[1]

In 1851, Isabella Gabedy (84) Widow, from Shadwell, was a Pauper Inmate of Poplar Union Workhouse, then her only option for health or elder care.

Isabella Gabadey (sic) died in 1852 M Quarter in POPLAR UNION Volume 01C Page 419, with her age over-estimated to 86 (she was 'only' 80), and was buried at All Saints Church, Poplar on 20 Feb 1852.

---

[1] It would be easy to assume that Margaret, wife of William Newton, with whom Isabella Gabbedy was lodging in 1841, could have been her daughter Margaret Elizabeth Gabbedy and, they are, coincidentally, of similar vintage. And at MyHeritage I found two trees where she listed as 'Margaret Elizabeth Newton (born Gabbadey)'. However, by researching methodically through this family, it became easy to prove that this assumption was wrong:

William Newton of this parish, Widower, and Margaret Jacobson, of this parish, Widow, were married at St Dunstan's, Stepney on 10 July 1826. As it shows that she was a widow, the next step was to see if a Margaret Gabbedy had married anyone named Jacobson. There was no such marriage. (Actually, the first clue that this Margaret was not Isabella's daughter, was because on the 1851 Census, Margaret Newton's birthplace is shown as South Shields, Durham.) The only marriage of a Jacobson and a Margaret, was that of John Jacobson of the Hamlet of Ratcliff, Batchelor, and Margaret Charlton, of the same, Spinster, also at St Dunstan's, Stepney, on 24 Jan 1820. 

 John and Margaret Jacobson had two daughters:

1. Mary Anne Jacobson b. 23 Feb 1822, bap. 4 Aug 1822 
2. Elizabeth Jacobson b. 2 Aug 1823, bap. 27 Aug 1823 

Both baptisms, which took place at St Anne's Limehouse, list their parents as John Jacobson, Mariner and Margaret.

It then appears that John Jacobson (46) - so born ~1777 - of Mile End Old Town, was buried on 5 Nov 1823 at at St Dunstan's, Stepney.

William and Margaret Newton then had four children:

1. Margaret Newton b. 21 May 1827, bap. 14 Oct 1827
2. Eleanor Newton b. 3 Jun 1829, bap. 20 Sep 1829
3. Lawrence Newton b. 1 Jul 1831, bap. 15 Jul 1831. (Died at 27 in 1858 D Quarter in POPLAR UNION Volume 01C Page 492.)
4. William Newton b. 16 Jul 1834, bap. 16 Nov 1834

All of these baptisms, which also took place at St Anne's Limehouse, list their parents as William Newton, Mariner, and Margaret.

In 1841, the household at Wades Place, All Saints Poplar, consisted of William Newton (60) Mariner; Margaret Newton (40), Margaret Newton (14), Ellen Newton (12), Lawrence Newton (10), Mary Bowers (40) and Isabella Gaberdey (sic) (70). All of them had Y in the column for being born within the county [in this case, Middlesex], which was not always correct. There are no indications of the relationships between the members in the household.

(John James Sebastian, Ship's Carpenter, had married Ellinor Newton (sic), Minor, daughter of William Newton, Mariner, at All Saints, Poplar on 13 Apr 1847. One of the witnesses was her mother, Margaret Newton.)

In 1851, living at 32, Wade Street, All Saints Poplar, were William Newton (72) General Dealer from Dorset, England; Margaret Newton (54) from South Shields, Durham; Margaret Newton (23) Dressmaker; Lawrence Newton (19) Engineer and Maria Salter (7) Granddaughter. (Born Emma Maria Salter on 2 Jan 1844 (1844 M Quarter in STEPNEY Volume 02 Page 495 mother's maiden name JACOBSON), bap. 21 Jan 1844, she was the daughter of Robert Salter, Joiner and Mary Anne Jacobson.)

Margaret Newton died, aged 54, in 1852 M Quarter in POPLAR UNION Volume 01C Page 421. This suggests she was born around 1797/8.

In 1861, still at 32, Wade Street, All Saints Poplar, were William Newton (80) Widower, Milkman from Dorsetshire; Margaret Newton (32) Dress maker, Daughter and Frances Phillips (3) Granddaughter. (Born Frances Coudun Phillips in 1857 D Quarter in MILE END OLD TOWN Volume 01C Page 542 mother's maiden name JACOBSON, bap. 20 Sep 1857 in Stepney, she was the daughter of Alfred James Phillips and Elizabeth Jacobson.) 

(Wade Street in Poplar, East London, was part of the 19th-century Wade Estate developed to the north of Poplar High Street, historically characterized by two-storey brick terraces. The Wade Estate, including Wade Street and Wade's Place , was developed over 40 years starting around 1823.)

William Newton (83) was admitted to Poplar Workhouse on 8 Dec 1864 and discharged from that institution on 19 Dec 1867, it appears to Wapping. 

William Newton died, aged 88, in 1868 D Qtr in STEPNEY Vol 01C Page 358.

Two of this Margaret's granddaughters being in the Newton households in 1851 and 1861, confirm the continuity and her maiden name of Charlton, and thus shows clearly that she was not Margaret Elizabeth Gabbedy. 

NB: I wasn't able to isolate Margaret Charlton's baptism in South Shields. William Newton, I believe, was probably bap. 23 Aug 1778 in Portland, Dorset, the son of James and Jane Newton. I haven't researched William Newton's previous marriage, as it did not seem crucial to this question. But, there does not appear to be any family connection between the Newtons and Isabella Gabbedy. Then going back to the children of John Benbow Gabbedy and Isabella Cleghorn, despite many attempts, so far I can find no further, verifiable, records for any of their first five children.

Thomas Fuller and Mary Farrant

St Mary’s Parish Church Woodford 1812
St Mary’s Parish Church and Woodford History

Thomas Fuller (b. ~1750), married Mary Farrant (bap. 9 Jul 1749 at St Michael's, Aveley), daughter of George and Mary Farrant at St Mary's Church, Woodford on 17 Apr 1775. Witnesses to the marriage were Thomas Renn and John Row. The transcriptions for this marriage, at both Ancestry and FindMyPast list her as Mary Tarrant. The original parish record, a copy of which was shared to Ancestry by my cousin, Tony Crompton, is feint and quite difficult to read, however, the style of the writer's script makes it impossible to distinguish between their capital Ts and their capital Fs. Their T for Thomas and F for Fuller appear to be identical shapes. The only record for a Mary Tarrant in the right period and area is this marriage, which doesn't mean there wasn't such person, but the baptism of Mary Farrant does seem reasonable and acceptable, although I can see no way to categorically prove it. 

(An alternative baptism of a Mary Tarrant on 29 Sep 1752, allegedly at St Gregory by St Paul, London (unlikely, as that church was destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666), the child having been born 3 days previously on 26 Sep 1752. Questionable in so many ways, I feel safe discounting it.)

One of the witnesses was listed as a Thomas Renn, but names were often written down as heard. Son Robert Fuller later married Elizabeth Bass, whose mother was Elizabeth Wren. Is it possible that these were related?

Thomas and Mary Fuller appear to have at least the following children:

1. Sarah Fuller bap. 28 May 1775 at St Mary's Church, Woodford
2. Thomas Fuller bap. 29 Mar 1778 at St Mary's Church, Chigwell
3. John Fuller bap. 19 Mar 1780 at St Mary's Church, Chigwell
4. Sarah Fuller bap. 26 May 1782 at St Mary's Church, Chigwell
5. Robert Fuller bap. 10 Sep 1785 at St Mary's Church, Chigwell
6. Mary Fuller bap. 30 Dec 1787 at St Mary's Church, Chigwell

All list the parents as Thomas and Mary. Presumably the first daughter died in infancy for another to be given the name Sarah in 1782. Neither can I find a death for Thomas born 1778, nor find records of him reaching adulthood.

There are three possible further children who could be of this family:

7. Thomas Fuller bap. 3 May 1795 at St Mary's Church, Woodford. Died 8 Sep 1795 and buried on 12 Sep 1795 at St Mary's Church, Chigwell
8. James Fuller bap. 28 Aug 1796 at St Mary's Church, Woodford
9. Thomas Fuller bap. 10 Jun 1798 at St Mary's Church, Woodford

On these three, I can neither categorically confirm nor discount them. The swaps back and forth between churches in Woodford and Chigwell are not an issue and indeed persuade me it's likely these probably are the children of this couple; there is no other marriage of a Thomas Fuller and a Mary in the area, whose children they could be otherwise. The eight year gap isn't impossible, but does slightly suggest they are of a different family. Although further children being named Thomas would support the death in infancy of Thomas born 1778. But, if we have the right baptism for Mary Farrant, this would make her 49 at the time of the last birth. Again, not impossible, but it is pushing the limits a bit. Alternatively, the then 16 year old daughter, Sarah, could have had a child in 1798 and it was often a custom to name illegitimate children after one's own father, but here I may be casting aspersions.

Mary Fuller is alleged to have died in Waltham Abbey, Essex in 1814, but I have found no record nor circumstances to substantiate this.

Thomas Fuller, aged 86, calculating to a year of birth of 1750, residence Work House (Woodford parish workhouse was set up in 1723 and became part of the West Ham Poor Law Union in 1836), was buried in the parish of Chigwell on 27 Nov 1836. A burial of someone from the Workhouse, often at the parish expense, would tend to suggest that this was his parish of birth.

Another two sisters marry two brothers: For further research later, but it's interesting to note that Sarah Fuller married John Chumley on 25 Dec 1802, at Woodford. Her sister Mary Fuller married John's brother, Joseph Chumley, also at St Mary's, Woodford, on 23 Feb 1805.

Edward Carpenter and Mary Winter

St Mary, Kentisbeare, Devon - Chancel
cc-by-sa/2.0 - © John Salmon - geograph.org.uk/p/1726294

Edward Carpenter (bap. 31 May 1730), son of Hugh Carpenter and Joan Baker, married Mary Winter on 11 Apr 1748 at St Mary, Kentisbeare. 

Records suggest the couple had seven children: 

1. William Carpenter bap. 25 Apr 1749
2. Dorothy Carpenter bap. 29 May 1752 (buried 25 Jul 1752)
3. Jenney Carpenter bap. 24 Aug 1755
4. Thomas Carpenter bap. 18 Jun 1758
5. Edward Carpenter bap. 9 Nov 1760
6. Dorothy Carpenter bap. 15 Jul 1764
7. Hugh Carpenter bap. 6 Jan 1769

There's nothing in the records I've seen to date to suggest what occupation Edward had, neither has it been possible to find a record of his death. There are several deaths for a Mary Carpenter in Kentisbeare between 1774 and 1796, any of which could relate, but it hasn't been possible to identify which one it is. Likewise, trying to trace each of their children forward has either provided no further records beyond their baptisms, or where several records exist and no clues to narrow it down. Frustrating, but common problem.

Robert Fuller and Elizabeth Ann Bradley

St Mary the Virgin, Chigwell
cc-by-sa/2.0 - © Bikeboy - geograph.org.uk/p/4190925

Robert Fuller (bap. 23 Jun 1811 in Woodford, Essex), son of Robert Fuller and Elizabeth Bass, married Elizabeth Ann Bradley (b. 29 Oct 1814 in Woodford), daughter of Henry Bradley and Mary Thompson, on 9 Apr 1832, at the church of St Mary the Virgin, Chigwell, Essex. 

Robert and Elizabeth Ann had 13 children: 

1. Eliza Fuller b. ~1832 (only ever mentioned on 1841 census)
2. James William Fuller bap. 16 Mar 1834 in Chigwell, Essex
3. Emma Elizabeth Fuller bap. 29 Jan 1837 in Chigwell, Essex
4. Ann Fuller b. ~1837 (Died, at 10, in 1847 M Qtr in WEST HAM UNION Vol 12 Page 264,  buried on 14 Feb 1847 in Woodford, Essex)
5. Emily Fuller bap. 7 Apr 1839 at St Mary the Virgin, Woodford, Essex
6. Samuel Thomas Fuller b. 1841 S Quarter in WEST HAM UNION Volume 12 Page 271, bap. 25 Jul 1841, in Woodford, Essex
7. Elizabeth Ann Fuller b. 1843 D Quarter in WEST HAM UNION Volume 12 Page 281, bap. 8 Oct 1843, in Woodford, Essex
8. William Robert Fuller b. 1845 D Quarter in WEST HAM UNION Volume 12 Page 272, bap. 21 Dec 1845, in Woodford, Essex
9. Robert Fuller (No GRO birth registration), bap. 19 Mar 1848 in Chigwell
10. George Fuller bap. 19 Jan 1851 at St Mary the Virgin, Woodford, Essex
11. Anne Fuller b. 1853 M Quarter in WEST HAM UNION Volume 04A Page 31, bap. (as Annie) on 23 Jan 1853, in Woodford, Essex
12. Jane Ann Fuller b. 1855 J Quarter in WEST HAM UNION Volume 04A Page 36, bap. 1 Apr 1855 at Woodford Bridge. (Died, aged 5, in 1860 J Quarter in WEST HAM UNION Volume 04A Page 26 and was buried on 11 May 1860 in Woodford, Essex)
13. Mary Ann Fuller b. 1858 S Quarter in WEST HAM UNION Volume 04A Page 39 (mother's maiden name mis transcribed as BEADLEY), bap. 12 Sep 1858 (as Maryann) in Woodford, Essex

In 1841, living at Woodford Bridge Flant, were Robert Fuller (25) Ag Lab, Elizabeth (25), Eliza (9), James (7), Ann (4) and Emily (2).

In 1851, at Winn Bridge, Woodford, West Ham, we find Robert Fuller (39) Ag Lab, Elizabeth (36), James Fuller (17) Ag Lab, Emma (12), Samuel (9), Elizabeth (7), William (5), Robert (3) and George (0).

In 1871, in Woodford Bridge, West Ham, were Robert Fuller (59), Elizabeth Ann (56), George (20), Ann (18), Mary Ann (12) and Emily Eliza (2). Emily Eliza was listed on that census as a "Daughter" of the head of the household, but her birth certificate clearly shows that her mother was Annie Fuller, then of Nightingale Place, Wanstead. No father's name is listed, so it's obvious she was an illegitimate child, being brought up by the grandparents. 

By 1881, they had moved to 1 Essex Cottages, Maynard Road, Walthamstow. Robert Fuller (70) still an Agricultural Labourer, Elizabeth Fuller (66) Laundress, Mary Ann (22), Ada Fuller (9) Granddaughter (this will be Annie's second illegitimate daughter) and Charles Berwick (23) Boarder. 

Robert Fuller died, aged 72, in 1882 M Qtr in WEST HAM Vol 04A Page 118.

In 1891, widow, Elizabeth Ann Fuller (78) Retired Laundress, was living alone at 13 Brunswick Street, Walthamstow. (Although, separately, there appear to be two other households also living at the same address.)

Elizabeth Ann Fuller died, aged 84, in 1898 D Quarter in WEST HAM Volume 04A Page 175.

Walter White and Hannah Blazey

Thorpe St Andrew Parish Church
The church, which was once reported to be the smallest church in Norfolk, was the subject of a Vestry meeting in 1862. It was decided at this meeting that the church needed to be enlarged and then in 1864 it was a agreed that a new one should be built. The new church was consecrated on 31st May 1866 by the Bishop of Norwich [just in time for Walter and Hannah's wedding the following year]. The remains of the medieval church still exist in front of the Parish Church.

Walter White (b. 16 Nov 1845 in Thorpe, Norfolk), youngest son of William White and Ann Francis, married Hannah Blazey (b. 17 Jun 1845 in Heigham, Norfolk), daughter of Francis Stephen Blazey and Hannah Minns on Sunday, 31 Mar 1867 at the Parish church of St Andrew, Thorpe St Andrew, Norwich. Witnesses to their marriage were Samuel Blazey, the bride's brother; Hannah White, the bridegroom's sister and an Elizabeth Blazey (this could have been Samuel's wife, or probably more likely was Hannah's younger sister).

Walter and Hannah had two children:

1. Walter White b. 1869 S Qtr in BLOFIELD UNION Vol 04B Page 179
2. Laura Elizabeth White b. 15 Oct 1870 (1870 D Quarter in BLOFIELD UNION Volume 04B Page 185) - who was my great-grandmother.

On 4 Jun 1870, The Norfolk Chronicle and Norwich Gazette reported that Walter White, of Thorpe St. Andrew's, gardener, was summoned by Hannah White, his wife, for unlawfully assaulting her on the 25th ult. [i.e. the previous month] Complainant said that she asked her husband for the money to pay the gas rate with, on which he flew into a violent passion, and beat and kicked her in the back. Defendant said he might have kicked her, but not to have hurt her, but it was under great provocation. Defendant was fined 5s, and 15s costs. [Hannah will have been ~4 months pregnant with Laura at the time.]

In 1871, Walter White (26) Gardener, Hannah White (26), Walter White (1) and Laura White (5 months) were living at Thorpe Grove, Thunder Lane, Thorpe St Andrew. In the next-door household was a Robert Knivett (53), also a gardener. Also living at Thorpe Grove, was William Birkbeck (1832–1897), banker and landowner, whose former property in Thunder Lane, now named The Cottage is currently a pub and restaurant. One presumes these gardeners were employed on Birkbeck's then quite large estate.

Walter White, Gardener, of Globe Street, Heigham, Norwich, died, aged 26 on 5 Jan 1872 (M Qtr in NORWICH Vol 04B Page 130) from Smallpox. The death certificate states that H White [Hannah] was present at his death.

Then Hannah White (29), Dressmaker, Widow, daughter of Francis Blazey (deceased), remarried to William Cooper (34) Brush Maker Journeyman, Widower, on 5 July 1875 at the Register Office, District of Norwich. (It is said that, during the late 19th century, the Norwich Register Office was situated on Bethel Street). Both gave their address as Manchester Buildings, Union Place, Heigham. William left the spaces for his father blank.

William Cooper (b. 19 Dec 1839, bap. 19 Jan 1840 at St Martin at Palace, Norwich), was the illegitimate son of Elizabeth Cooper, Spinster. When he had married for the first time, at the age of 19, to Emily Berry, daughter of Swithin Berry and Richendra Wright, at St Benedict's Church, Norwich, on 25 Jul 1859, he had also left the spaces for his father blank, but had then listed himself as William Wells Cooper, Brush maker. From this, we may surmise that his father may have been a Mr Wells. In 1861, William and Emily Cooper had been lodgers in Upper Westwick Street, St Benedict, Norwich; in 1871 they were living in Old Palace Road, Heigham, Norwich. Emily Cooper died, at 33, in 1874 J Quarter in NORWICH Volume 04B Page 100.

But just six months after their second marriage, Hannah Cooper, wife of William Cooper, a Brush maker, died, aged 30, at Union Place, Heigham, on 9 Jan 1876 (1876 M Quarter in NORWICH Volume 04B Page 104), from Phthisis (Tuberculosis). The informant, who made her mark, was 'Hannah Blazey, Mother, Present at death'. Sadly, this confirmed what seemed most likely, that Hannah had died in this period, because in 1881, both of her children, Walter and Laura, were living with their maternal grandmother.

As yet, I've not identified further records for William Cooper.

Richard Wilton and Mary Robinson

St Mary, Sawston - East end
cc-by-sa/2.0 - © John Salmon - geograph.org.uk/p/4970953

Richard Wilton (b. 1737), son of Henry Wilton and Martha Douse, married Mary Robinson on 30 Mar 1762 in Sawston, Cambridgeshire, where there are records of Wiltons, going back to the early 1600s, still to research. 

Richard & Mary had four children baptised at St Mary's Church, Sawston.

1. Elizabeth Wilton bap. 4 Jul 1762
2. Henry Wilton bap. 30 Oct 1768
3. Stephen Wilton bap. 25 Dec 1777
4. Hannah Wilton bap. 7 Jun 1779 (buried 17 Aug 1779)

They also had a daughter, Martha Wilton (for whom I found no baptism record), who I only know exists because Henry Wilton (b. 1868) mentioned her as his sister, Martha Root (Martha Wilton, who had married John Root, on 25 Jan 1791 in Sawston, Cambridgeshire) in his Will in 1839. 

Mary Wilton, wife of Richard, died and was buried on 10 Apr 1780.

Richard Wilton, Widower, was buried in Sawston, Cambridgeshire, in 1797.

Sawston, Cambridgeshire is notable as one of the very few industrial villages in the county that take advantage of the clean water supply, one of the principle industries being leather. There are two sites in Sawston which support or have formerly supported Tanning facilities and there may have been leather-workers in the parish in the Middle Ages. This very likely explains why Henry Wilton (1768) and his nephew, Henry Wilton (1809) became saddlers and my 3rd great-grandfather, Richard Wilton, a harness maker.

The River Cam (or Granta) near Sawston
cc-by-sa/2.0 - © John Sutton - geograph.org.uk/p/2860358

Richard Wilton and Catherine Byatt

Quaker Meeting House (Grade II Listed), New Street, Great Dunmow

Richard Wilton (bap. 20 Mar 1811 in Royston, Hertfordshire), middle son of Stephen Wilton and Elizabeth Hankin, married Catherine Byatt (bap. 4 Apr 1824 in Little Canfield, Essex), daughter of John Byatt and Jane Stokes, at the Independent Meeting House (Quaker Meeting House), New Street, Great Dunmow, on 25 Mar 1843, according to the Rites and Ceremonies of the Protestant Dissenters. Richard Wilton, who had been listed on the 1841 census, living in the High Street, Great Dunmow, as a harness maker (as he is on the marriage certificate), was 32 at the time of the wedding and Catherine Byatt, then 19, was listed as a minor. Witnesses were Richard's younger brother Joseph Wilton and Maria Staines (then 17) sister of Richard's brother, Henry's wives (both), daughters of Thomas Staines and Sally Hockley.

Richard and Catherine had seven children:

1. Ann Wilton b. 1844 M Quarter in DUNMOW UNION Volume 12 Page 76, mother's maiden name BYATE. (Died 27 Apr 1850 (1850 J Quarter in DUNMOW UNION Volume 12 Page 56), aged 6, buried 2 May 1850)
2. Elizabeth Wilton b. 9 Aug 1847 (1847 S Quarter in DUNMOW UNION Volume 12 Page 69). Many places, online and off, have listed Elizabeth's date of birth as 6 August, however, I've now obtained a copy of her birth certificate from the GRO and it clearly reads Ninth August 1847.
3. Richard Wilton b. 1848 (No GRO birth registration, under any name) (Died, aged 41, in 1889 J Quarter in POPLAR Volume 01C Page 322)
4. Walter Wilton b. 1850 D Quarter in DUNMOW Volume 12 Page 79 (Died, aged 1, in 1852 M Quarter in DUNMOW Vol 04A Page 219)
5. Martha Wilton b. 1853 M Quarter in DUNMOW Vol 04A Page 317 (Died, aged 1, in 1854 J Quarter in DUNMOW Vol 04A Page 209)
6. William Wilton b. 1855 J Quarter in DUNMOW Volume 04A Page 311 (Died, aged 3, in 1858 J Quarter in DUNMOW Vol 04A Page 223)
7. Ellen Wilton b. 1857 J Quarter in DUNMOW Vol 04A Page 335

On the birth registrations for Elizabeth, Walter, Martha, William and Ellen, the mother's maiden name is correctly listed as BYATT. On Elizabeth's birth certificate, her father is listed as Richard Wilton, Harness Maker and her mother, Catherine Wilton, formerly Byatt, Informant, made her mark.

Richard Wilton, Harness maker (journeyman), died on 3 Mar 1858 (1858 M Quarter in DUNMOW UNION Volume 04A Page 262), from Phthisis (pulmonary tuberculosis). He was 46. The informant, present at his death, at Dunmow Down, was Ann Whybrow. (Formerly Ann Chandler, she had married Thomas Whybrow, a Currier (specialist in the leather trade) in 1823.) Richard's burial on 8 Mar 1858, is in Non-Conformist Church Records, so may have been in the burial ground attached to the Quaker Meeting House in Great Dunmow (PDF), and listed his cause of death as Consumption. 

George Wilton, born in the Dunmow Union (Workhouse) on 3 Feb 1860 (1860 M Quarter in DUNMOW UNION Volume 04A Page 361), birth certificate says his mother's name was Caroline Wilton, no father listed, but I cannot find a Caroline Wilton in the area at any time. On later census returns George was listed as Catherine's new husband - John Eldred's - step-son, so George appears to have been Catherine's 'mystery' illegitimate son.

(George can't have been Richard's son - unless sperm freezing was invented MUCH earlier than we've been led to believe - and an attempt to 'legitimise' this birth by suggesting a death of a Richard Wilton, in Whitechapel, in 1862, I can categorically refute, as now that the GRO provide a search facility, a quick look showed that this record was the death of a child, aged 1.)

In 1861, the widowed Catherine (surname transcribed as Wilson), was living with her brother, William Byatt, in Little Canfield. George Wilton, aged 1, was listed there as nephew to the head of the household. There was a Stephen Wilton (13) Baker, lodging in the household of Elizabeth Edwards (73) at Dunmow Down, Great Dunmow, however, I believe this was a pseudonym used by Catherine's son Richard Wilton (see 1884 below). While, the 13 year old Elizabeth and her 4 year old sister, Ellen (listed as being 6), were that year, listed as inmates in the Great Dunmow Union Workhouse.

Catherine then remarried to John Eldred, widower, on 27 Sep 1862 in Great Dunmow. (Various records list her previous surname as Walton or Wilson.)

John Eldred (bap. 10 Mar 1822 in Great Dunmow) son of William Eldred and Eleanor Fewell, had married for the first time to Harriett Page, on 20 Aug 1848, in Great Dunmow. John and Harriett Eldred had three sons:

1. John Eldred b. 1849 D Quarter in DUNMOW Volume 12 Page 73, bap. 10 Jul 1853 in Great Dunmow. (Died aged 10, in 1860 J Quarter in DUNMOW Volume 04A Page 224)
2. Walter Eldred b. 1852 D Quarter in WHITECHAPEL Volume 01C Page 355, bap. 10 Jul 1853 in Great Dunmow. On the baptism, his father's occupation is listed as Brewer's Servant and address given as No 12 Smith Place High Street Wapping London. (Died, aged 18, in 1871 J Quarter in DUNMOW UNION Volume 04A Page 256)
3. Alfred Eldred b. 1855 M Quarter in SAINT GEORGE (IN THE EAST) Volume 01C Page 468 (for reasons unknown the mother's maiden name is listed as PORTER, but there does not appear to be another Alfred Eldred it could relate to) bap. 12 Aug 1855 in Great Dunmow

But Harriet Eldred died aged 28, in 1855 D Quarter in SAINT GEORGE IN THE EAST Volume 01C Page 312.

John Eldred remarried to Elizabeth Tennisse, Widow, daughter of John Pitts, Mariner, on 2 Nov 1856 at Christ Church, St George in the East. Elizabeth Pitts had previously married James Tennisse (born Jacobus Teunisse on 8 Feb 1823 in Amsterdam, Netherlands) on 5 Jun 1854, in Bethnal Green. The pair had three children, all of whom died as infants: Maria Sophia Tennisse (1849-1853); James John Tennisse (1851-1856) and Sarah Tennisse (1853-1855). James Tennisse also died, aged just 32, in 1855, in Stepney.

John and Elizabeth Eldred had one daughter:

1. Thomazine Maria Eldred b. 24 Jul 1857 S Quarter in SAINT GEORGE IN THE EAST Volume 01C Page 413, bap. 4 Apr 1858 in the parish of St George in the East, Stepney. Her father's occupation was listed as Drayman and their address again as 12 Smith's Place.

Then Elizabeth Pitts Eldred died, aged 30, on 1 Apr 1859 (1859 J Quarter in SAINT GEORGE IN THE EAST Volume 01C Page 271).

So when Catherine Wilton married John Eldred, she became his third wife.

In 1871, living in Braintree Road, Great Dunmow, were John Eldred (44) Ag Lab, Catherine Eldred (42) both had lost 5 years; Walter Eldred (18) Son, Alfred Eldred (16) Son, Maria Eldred (13) Daughter, Ellen Wilton (14) Step-Daughter; George Wilton (11) Step-Son; and Alice Wilton (2) Granddaughter (Alice Catherine Wilton born 12 Feb 1869, to Elizabeth Wilton.)

Then John Eldred died, aged 49, in 1876 D Quarter in WEST HAM UNION Volume 04A Page 54.

In 1881, Catherine Eldridge (sic) (56) Widow, Dressmaker from Canfield, Essex, was living at 23, Powis Road, Bromley, Poplar, with Richard Wilton (31) Labourer; George Wilton (21) Labourer; Ellen Wilton (24) Match Maker (although listed as married); Susan Robinson (21) Match Maker (Boarder) and four Lodgers: William Wardley (20) Labourer from Sudbury, Suffolk; Arthur Seatch (36) Labourer from Bromley; Frank Poulter (24) Carman from Cambridge and James Howard (18) Match Maker (Fusee) from Bromley.

Matchgirl strikers, several showing early symptoms of phosphorus necrosis. Unknown author, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

White Slavery in London

Living little more than half a mile from the Bryant & May's factory in Bow, it's probably reasonable to assume this was where they were all employed, where conditions were especially bad. 

"The match girls worked from 6.30am (or 8am in winter) until 6pm, with just two breaks, standing all the time. “A typical case”, wrote Besant, “is that of a girl of 16, a piece worker; she earns 4s a week ..." (Worth around £26 in 2020).

"Conditions were appalling for the 1,400 women and girls who worked at Bryant and May's match factory in Bow, East London. Low pay for a 14-hour day was cut even more if you talked or went to the toilet, and 'phossy jaw' - a horrible bone cancer caused by the cheap type of phosphorus in the matches - was common."

"If you handled white phosphorus or came into contact with it too much, then it caused serious damage to your health and you ended up with a terrible condition known as ‘Phossy Jaw’ – where you would get severe toothache followed by swelling of the gums. Abscesses would then form on the jaw-bone, and the facial bones would glow a greeny white in the dark. If untreated then ‘Phossy Jaw’ would develop into brain damage and ultimately multiple organ failure." As a result of these appalling conditions, the London Matchgirls Strike of 1888 started in the factory, which led to the establishment of the first British trade union for women. Match Girls Strike at Bryant and May Factory: The 1888 Uprising for Workers’ Rights in London

The Essex Herald of 20 Oct 1884 reported on "WHOLESALE SHOP LIFTING. - Richard Wilton, a navvy, of Bromley-by-Bow, was brought up in custody charged with stealing a black rep cloth overcoat and 12 pairs of tanned leggings, value £1, from the shop of Edwin Joseph Wilton, in High Street, Dunmow on Saturday night last. Prisoner was further charged with stealing six twill jackets, value 24s, the property of Mr John Beard, of North Street, Great Dunmow, on Saturday night. Superintendent Ackers stated that the greater part of the property had been recovered and identified, and, it being believed that others were implicated in the robbery, he asked that the prisoner, who was only arrested on Sunday night, might be remanded. The prisoner was accordingly remanded for a week. Later reports, which (named the perp as Stephen Wilton (36) Baker) noted that Mr [Edwin] Wilton stated the prisoner was his cousin. The prisoner was acquitted. (There were two cousins, to both Richard and Edwin, named Stephen Wilton [1] [2] - neither were angels - but I'm sure this was Richard and not either of them.

Of Catherine's surviving children and two step-children: her daughter Elizabeth Wilton; her son George Wilton; Alfred Eldred and Thomazine Maria Eldred ... all four gave the name Catherine as the first or middle name to their first child. In the case of her step-son, Alfred's wife's mother was also named Catherine to account for this, but for all of them to use the name, I think tells us far more about Catherine as a person than records usually can.

So far, I've not found a death for Catherine, but with so many incorrect names given throughout her life, it's not easy to guess what it might be listed under. There's also the chance, of course, that she remarried once again and therefore this is under yet another totally new name.