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Quaker Meeting House (1835), 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:
- 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)
- Elizabeth Wilton b. 6 Aug 1847 (1847 S Quarter in DUNMOW UNION Volume 12 Page 69 1847 Q3 - the whole of volume 12 is missing except for the first page (about 3000 entries missing)
- Richard Wilton b. 1848 (No GRO birth registration) (Died, aged 41, in 1889 J Quarter in POPLAR Volume 01C Page 322)
- 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)
- 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)
- 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)
- Ellen Wilton b. 1857 J Quarter in DUNMOW Vol 04A Page 335
On the birth registrations for Walter, Martha, William and Ellen, the mother's maiden name is correctly listed as BYATT.
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.
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.
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 her 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:
- 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)
- 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)
- 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 in 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, at 32, in 1855, in Stepney.
John and Elizabeth Eldred had one daughter:
- 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, in 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 Cranfield (sic), Essex, was living at 23, Powis Road,
Bromley, Poplar, with Richard Wilton (31) Labourer;
George Wilton (21) Labourer; Ellen Wilton (24) Match Maker;
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.
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Matchgirl strikers, several showing early symptoms of phosphorus necrosis. Unknown author, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons |
White Slavery in London
"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."
Having checked the records, I know my 2x great-grand aunt was not involved in the Matchgirls Strike in 1888, but it gives an insight into the conditions she must have endured. She could have been involved in an earlier, unsuccessful, strike in 1881. [As yet] I've found no verified record of Ellen Wilton after 1881, so she may have already become a victim of these circumstances.
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 not either of them.
Of Catherine's two 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.