Elizabeth Archer my 4th Great Grandmother

My Maternal 4th great grandmother Elizabeth Archer was born in August 1780 in Sittingbourne, Kent to John and Sarah Archer. Elizabeth’s grandparents Stephen and Jane Archer resided in Dartford Kent, alongside the River Thames, as did her uncle Stephen and his large family. It was possibly through this family connection to Dartford that Elizabeth met her future husband Henry Couchman, who lived with his family in the little village of Swanscombe which lies next to Dartford.

Henry Couchman’s father Thomas was a blacksmith and a farrier, who was someone who not only shoed horses but provided general veterinary care for them as well. Henry followed his father in this work, not only becoming a farrier but also a veterinarian surgeon. Henry’s uncle, Henry Couchman, was a distinguished architect who designed several public buildings and later resided in Temple House, Temple Balsall, Warwickshire. On the 25 May 1800, aged 23, Henry was initiated as a Freemason in the Emulation Lodge of Dartford. Seven months later he was married to Elizabeth Archer, on the 10 January 1801, the wedding banns were read at Dartford Church and at Frindsbury Church. Henry and Elizabeth had three daughters, Eliza who was born on the 24 March 1803, Selina who was born two years later on the 18 February 1805 and Jane who was born in 1806 who I believe died as a baby. Finally in January of 1807 a son was born to them, named after his Grandfather Thomas Couchman, he was born on the 2 February 1807. Sadly on the 18 September 1807 Elizabeth’s husband Henry passed away, he was only 29 years old and she was left with three young children, the oldest being 4 and Thomas the youngest 7 months. Henry was buried in Swanscombe, where his parents lived and I am sure that his parents helped Elizabeth financially in her first year alone with the children. The children of Henry and Elizabeth are mentioned in Thomas Couchman’s Last Will and Testament which he made in 1816 but wasn’t Proved until 1820 when he passed away. By this time baby Thomas would have been 13 years old and his eldest sister Eliza 17. A year after Henry Couchman’s death his widow Elizabeth remarried, she was only 28 years old when she married William Tozer on the 23 October 1808 at St. Dunstan’s Church in Stepney, London. William was still a bachelor aged 25, the son of Charles and Mary Tozer. After their marriage they lived in Dartford and William became the Publican of the Crown and Anchor Inn at 80 High Street, Dartford. This historic building was built in the 15th Century and is still standing and functioning as a pub to this day.

On the 13 January 1810 their son William Henry Tozer was born, a younger brother to Elizabeth’s other three children. In May of 1811 another son was born, named Charles James after William’s father but sadly baby Charles died a year later. At the end of 1812 Elizabeth gave birth to a daughter whom they named Elizabeth Ann, but sadly once again this baby died in infancy. Shortly after this baby’s death, in July 1813 they had another son who was also named Charles James Tozer, thankfully this son survived. In June of 1814 William Tozer was one of the witnesses at the famous trial of Charles Random de Berenger and Sir Thomas Chochrane (see my Blog of January 2022 ‘Fake News and William Tozer’) the following is a quote of William Tozer at the trial “ I keep the Crown and Anchor at Dartford; I remember Jem Overy bringing a fare to a house in our town on Monday about the 21st February, and the person I took notice of was sitting in the chaise. I made my obedience to the gentleman in the chaise, hoping he had brought us good news; he said he had, and that it was all over; that the allies had actually entered Paris; that Bonaparte was dead, destroyed by the Cossacks, and literally torn to pieces.” ...’ I can imagine the joy and relief that William and his family must have felt on hearing this news as the Napoleonic Wars had been going on since 1803 and the English were constantly in fear of a French invasion , especially living near to the South Coast and on the Thames Estuary, their fear would have been more relevant, not to mention the economic effect that the war was having on everything. When they heard that it was fake news their disappointment must have been great, thankfully a year later Napoleon was finally defeated and captured at the Battle of Waterloo. Sadly for Elizabeth, her second husband, William, passed away two years after the victory at Waterloo, in May 1817, he was buried at Holy Trinity Church in Dartford on 9 May. He was only 33 years old and 36 year old Elizabeth was once again left as a widow, this time with five young children and pregnant with her sixth, a son who was born five months after his father’s death and was named James William Tozer. Elizabeth seems to have managed fairly well in the years after William’s death, possibly she was able to carry on running the Public House in Dartford with the help of servants, in 1824 Richard Sears is recorded as being the victualler of the Crown and Anchor so maybe he took over from her. What I have recently discovered is that Elizabeth Tozer became the Proprietor of the Bear and Ragged Staff Pub on the High Street in Chatham, so she seems to have continued to work in a Pub but now in a different location. In April 1823 her eldest daughter, 20 year old Eliza Couchman was married to a prosperous Tea Merchant, Richard Jones and a year later her daughter Selina Couchman was married to William Greenwood Asquith a victualler of the Rose and Crown in Leadenhall, London, On the 10 January 1824 Elizabeth herself remarried for the third time, this time to a widower, William Rashbrook, who was also a victualler of the Dolphin Inn in Strood. Elizabeth’s daughter Eliza Jones was one of the witnesses at their marriage, Elizabeth was now 43 years old and her new husband ( another William) was 58. An announcement of their marriage was placed in the Essex and Herts Mercury of the 13 January 1824 announcing that they were married in Strood, William Rashbrook of the Dolphin and Mrs Tozer, late of the Bear and Ragged Staff, Chatham.

Eliza was 21 and married, Selina was 19 and on the verge of getting married, Thomas was 17 and would shortly take up employment in Hampshire by the New Forest as a registrar and later as a surveyor. I assume that he was helped in getting this employment by his paternal uncle Robert Turner who was married to Mary Couchman and was employed for many years as Deputy Surveyor of the New Forest. William Henry Tozer would have been 14 at the time of his Mother’s new marriage and his brother Charles James 11 and Elizabeth’s youngest son was only 6. William Rashbrook also had five children, his two eldest were already married but he also had three young sons who were probably still living at home, James aged 12, Robert aged 10 and Richard aged 8. Sadly 6 years after their marriage, young Richard passed away, he was only 13 years old. It is interesting to note that both James Rashbrook and William Henry Tozer became plumbers, painters and decorators so they most probably did the same apprenticeship. William Rashbrook senior was also born in Barrow, Suffolk which is where William Henry Tozer’s future wife Maria Bishop came from so I wonder whether William Rashbrook still had family connections in Suffolk and whether he took Elizabeth and her sons there for visits. Charles James Tozer also ended up marrying a girl from Bury St. Edmunds and became a Corn Merchant in that city, though originally he went to work for a short while in Eling, Hampshire as an assistant registrar to his elder brother Thomas Couchman. Elizabeth and William Rashbrook seem to have been married for quite a time, from January 1824 up to William’s death in April 1840. During this time Elizabeth’s eldest daughter Eliza who was living in Lambeth, Surrey with her husband gave birth to eight children, though sadly three died in infancy. Daughter Selina also had two daughters and in 1830 her son Thomas married Eleanor Gregson and during the coming 10 years had 6 children, so Elizabeth had many grandchildren to visit and enjoy. William Henry Tozer married in 1837 and was working as a Glazier and painter and living at 38 Gravel Lane, Newington in Surrey. Sadly in March 1837 Selina’s husband William Asquith passed away, he was 37 years old and had been the Publican of the Rose and Crown in Leadenhall. A year later Selina also became sick, she had sold the Rose and Crown and had moved to No. 2 Greyhound Place, Upper George Road with her two young daughters, Eliza aged 8 and Selina Mary aged 5. According to her death certificate, dated 15 May 1838 she died of dropsey and her Mother was present at her death. Selina left a Will in which she left to her dear mother the full and uninterrupted use of all my household furniture, plate, linen, china and glass. To her brother Charles Tozer she left a siver watch and a gold chain and seal worn by her late dear husband. Her brother William Tozer of Gravel Lane, painter is named as one of the Executors of her Will which was mainly for the benefit of her two young daughters whom she requested to be placed under the care of her mother. After William Rashbrook’s death Elizabeth moved to London, in the 1841 census both Selina’s daughters are recorded as residing at a girl’s school in Chelsea. In 1845 the eldest Eliza contracted consumption and passed away on 23 April 1846 she was only 16 years old. At the time of her death she was living at 21 Barbican, St. Giles and Jane Scriven was present at her death, I believe that Jane Scriven was a hired nurse as I found her on the 1851 census employed as a nurse for another family. I have no idea whether Eliza’s Grandmother Elizabeth was also present. Ten months later her younger sister Selina, aged 13 also passed away after 6 months of suffering with consumption. Selina died on the 5 February 1847 and Jane Scriven was also present at her death. Fifteen days later on the 20 February 1847 Elizabeth Archer her Grandmother, the widow of Henry Couchman, William Tozer and lastly William Rashbrook - Victualler passed away of heart decease, she was 64 years old, Ann Harper was present at her death. It has taken a long while and a lot of research to piece together Elizabeth’s life, especially in the time period before the Census Returns. I am still trying to find Elizabeth on the 1841 census and have tried all variants of her different surnames, but as yet have not been able to find her. Elizabeth’s youngest son is also a bit of an enigma, I didn’t know of his existence until discovering his sister Selina’s Will in which he is mentioned. I eventually found his christening record but strangely he wasn’t christened until his 16th or 17th year. His Christening was performed at St. Dionis Backchurch, the church that Selina and her husband attended and where buried at, and his residence at the time of his christening is recorded as being Leadenhall Market, so maybe he was living with his sister and brother-in-law. The christening date was 29 June 1834 but his birth date is given as the 9 October 1819, his parents are recorded as being William and Elizabeth Tozer and the occupation of his father Publican, but if he was born in October 1819 it would have been two years after his father’s death, so either the date was wrongly recorded as I have assumed and he was born in 1817, several months after his Father’s death or Elizabeth had a child in between marriages or her daughters Eliza or Selina had a child out of wedlock who was then brought up by his Grandmother. I have no idea why he wasn’t christened as a baby and I have also been unable to discover what became of him after his christening. The only possible record that I have is of a James Tozer who died in the Greenwich Workhouse, 20 September 1850 aged 31. If this is him it makes me wonder why he died in the Workhouse, unless this also functioned as an infirmary or hospital as well. More mysteries to unravel and discover. All of Elizabeth’s other children seem to have done well in their lives. When Eliza’s husband passed away in 1865, he left a Will with Effects under £4000. Elizabeth’s son Thomas Couchman passed away in 1873 after having worked faithfully for many years as a Surveyor in the New Forrest, according to an obituary in the Newspaper he was much loved and respected by the community and would be greatly missed. William Henry Tozer established a well running Painting and Decorating business in Northampton and several of his sons continued on in this business in several other locations, as did my great great Grandfather, his son William Frederick Tozer. William passed away in 1901. Charles James Tozer became a Corn and Seed Merchant in Bury St Edmunds, he passed away in 1871, via someone on Ancestry I have a copy of a portrait that was made of him as a young man. According to William Henry Tozer’s Will there was a portrait made of him and his wife Maria as well which he left to his eldest son in his Will, wouldn’t it be great to find out where these portraits are now. With genealogical research you are never finished and there is always another mystery to be unraveled.