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.

Skeletons in the closet part 2

Several years ago I wrote a blog about the tragic death of 3 year old Maria Stickland at the hands of her father John Stickland who was so distrought after his wife's death that he slit his daughter's throat with a razor and also tried to slit his own throat. Thanks to the Cornwall Parish Clerk's website I was able to find some extra information which was transcribed from local Newspapers.

The Royal Cornwall Gazette, 7th May 1868 Coroner's Inquest Maria Bowden Stickland FEARFUL TRAGEDY IN WEST CORNWALL We regret to have to announce this week the enactment of a most fearful tragedy in the neighbourhood of Hayle. A little girl has been murdered by her father, and the father has narrowly escaped death by his own hand. The prisoner is one John Stickland, a boiler maker, in the service of Messrs. Harvey and Co., of Hayle Foundry, and who lived in the hamlet of Angarrack. His wife, aged 31—whose first husband was a Mr. Miles, who, it is believed, returned from the United States to Cornwall, the possessor of considerable property—died of consumption last Friday. At the time of her demise, two children by Miles were living, and also a little girl over three years of age, born since the second marriage. On Friday, Stickland sent a razor to be ground, a circumstance which caused remark, as he did not shave. He appeared, and had done so for some days, greatly depressed, but no violence was apprehended. On Sunday night, at 9 o'clock, Stickland, who is a tall, powerfully built man, went to bed, taking with him the little girl, and both were apparently in good health. He carried the child, for whom he has always shewn great affection, and the child was very fond of him. He was offered a lighted candle, which he declined. On Monday morning, as nothing was heard of father or child up to an advanced hour, the mother of the deceased wife entered their bedroom, saw blood about the bed, and retreated horrified. She called in neighbours, who examined the occupants of the blood-stained bed, and found that the little girl's throat was frightfully cut, and she was quite dead. The unhappy father was in a sad plight; his throat was badly cut, and he lay insensible and apparently dying. A razor, covered with blood, was found near him. Mr. Mudge, surgeon, was soon on the spot, and found that although Stickland was in a very dangerous state, the carotid artery was not severed, and there was a chance of life. The body of the child was removed and placed in a coffin by her mother's side, and both were buried on Tuesday evening at six o'clock, large numbers from the surrounding districts attending. The theory formed by the neighbours, although investigation may throw additional light, is that the deceased wife's property, derived from her first husband, was found, on her death, to revert to her two first children. Thus the second husband and their child would be shut out from any participation in it. This, and the death of the wife, so oppressed the man's mind that he first killed the innocent little one, and then made the rash attempt on his own life. The statement of the Morning News, respecting the drunken habits of the wife, and the domestic misery in Stickland's house, are worthy of that paper. And with respect to the fallen man, Stickland, he had been a steady, industrious, sober person, and regarded as such by all who knew him. We understand the unhappy prisoner is slowly recovering. At intervals he has made desperate efforts to open the wound, but his attempts have been frustrated by the policeman in attendance. He sleeps tolerably well, and when awake appears very wretched, as his groans, haggard features, and movements of the head bear witness. When told that he had killed his little girl, he said, "It is dead?" and on being answered in the affirmative he was much distressed. An inquest was held on Tuesday morning, before Mr. Roscorla, County Coroner, at Thomas's Angarrack Hotel, on the body of the child, Maria Bowden Stickland, when the following evidence was given:— John Burnett said:—I am a mason and live in the village of Angarrack. In consequence of an alarm in the village yesterday morning, between eight and nine o'clock, I went to the house of John Stickland, who was in the employment of Messrs. Harvey and Company, iron founders. On reaching the house I went upstairs, accompanied by two or three persons, and in one of the bedrooms, where the body of the deceased, Maria Bowden Stickland, now lies, I found in the bed the said John Stickland, whose head was extended over the side of the bed. I spoke to Stickland and said 'What have you done?' He moved his lips but I could not understand what he said. I immediately came down stairs and suggested that a surgeon should be sent for; and soon afterwards Mr. Mudge was in attendance. Margaret Rutter said:—I am the wife of William Rutter, blacksmith. We live in this village, and very near the dwelling-house of John Stickland. Yesterday morning, between eight and nine o'clock, a person came to our house and said there had something happened at Stickland's house. This person was Jane Rutter, my sister-in-law. In consequence of what she stated, I went to the house and there found Jenifer Bond, who went into the bedroom with me. I found him lying on his right side, with his head rather over the side of the bed. I saw a great quantity of blood on the floor and bed; I thought he was dead. I then went round to see where the child was (meaning the deceased), and found her with her night dress on and the bed-clothes down. I observed a wound in her neck and a large quantity of blood on the bed and about her dress; she was quite dead, and cold and stiff; the child was the only living child of Stickland by his wife, who died on Friday last. I never heard of any misunderstandings in the family; I considered Stickland and his wife lived comfortably and on good terms. By this time I discovered that Stickland was alive, and I observed an open razor under his pillow. I took it away; it was covered in blood; the blood was dry. The razor now produced by Charles Gigg (sic), police-constable, is the same razor I found. Some man brought a razor case down stairs, but who it was I do not recollect, and I put the razor into it, and gave it to some man present. I was a good deal frightened, and cannot, therefore, recollect everything that took place. The door of Stickland's bedroom was open when I came to his room; I never heard him speak. All the parties in the house on the preceding night were Stickland, the deceased, and two children of his wife by a former husband, and a servant girl. The mother of Stickland's wife occupied separate rooms in another part of the same house. Matilda Gilbert said:—I am eighteen years of age, and for the last six months have been in the service of John Stickland; on Sunday night last about nine o'clock Mr. Stickland came in from outdoors, and after walking about the kitchen for a few minutes, without speaking to me, he took up the child at the bottom of the stairs and carried her up in the direction of his bedroom. I sent a candle after him by Elizabeth Grace Miles, one of his step-daughters; he said he did not want it and went on; there was good moonlight at the time. The child was undressed by me before she went away with her father; the child had slept with her father for some weeks alone. I heard no sounds or cries of any kind during the night of Sunday. I knew Mr. Stickland had been ill for a fortnight, and had been taking medicine. His wife had been ill the whole time of my service, and died on Friday last. I did not observe that her death made any great difference in him, or in his conduct. They lived comfortably together. I saw him smoking his pipe on Saturday last. He was by himself and leaning against the wall of the garden, in front of his house. James Mudge said:—I am a surgeon, residing, and practising at Hayle. I have known Stickland and his family for about four years, and have been in the habit of seeing them professionally. Yesterday morning (Monday), I received a message to come to Angarrack to see John Stickland. I went immediately. I found him in bed bleeding from a wound in the throat, which I proceeded to dress. During the dressing my attention was directed to the body of a child, lying in the same bed. After completing the dressing of Stickland I examined the deceased. I found a wound in the throat from which large bleeding had occurred, the blood running into the bed under her head and shoulders. The blood was cold and the linen stiff, showing that the blood had been there some hours; the body was cold and rigid. This morning, by direction of the Coroner, I made a further and careful examination of the body. I found no further marks of violence. The wound in the throat was a clean incised cut, and must have been done by a very sharp instrument. It commenced at about the middle of the neck, and to the right of the wind-pipe, and extended three inches to the left; the tissues were all divided down to the wind pipe, and the muscle on the left side partially so; blood vessels necessary to life were divided, and I attribute her death by the bleeding which thereby ensued. Strickland is in bed, and I consider in a very dangerous state; unfit to appear or to be examined on this inquiry; perhaps he would be able to appear in about ten days. There are three distinct or different incisions in his throat, which may have been inflicted by the razor produced. As the unfortunate man remains in such a precarious state the inquest was adjourned to the 15th instant. Royal Cornwall Gazette 21st May 1868 THE MURDER AT HAYLE. On Friday, the adjourned inquest concerning the death of the daughter of John Stickland, of Angarrack, near Hayle, was held before Mr. John Roscorla, county coroner. The unhappy murderer is recovering rapidly under the care of Mr. Mudge, surgeon. He has been attended ever since the sad occurrence by a policeman, and we believe that, with a view to thorough quietness of mind, the death of his child and his own attempted suicide have not been referred to. He has at times, however, made involuntary exclamations, shewing that his wife's death and family affairs still pressed on his mind. The police authorities declined to allow the attendance of the prisoner before the coroner and jury. The only additional witness examined was Benjamin Harris, hairdresser, of Copperhouse, who deposed that he met Stickland on a day early in April, and was told by him that he had left a razor at his house to be sharpened. Stickland shaved himself last summer, but had not done so for some time. Harris promised to get the razor ready quickly. When Stickland called for the razor it was not sharpened, and he complained of this to Harris, who met him on the Wednesday previous to the 1st of May, and told him it would certainly be ready on Friday, May 1st. It was left, sharp, and Stickland called and received it from Mrs. Harris. At least that was a fair inference from the facts that a razor now produced, which was the razor found in Stickland's bedroom, was the one Harris had renovated for him at his request. The jury, having heard the evidence which showed that Stickland took his only daughter to bed, and on the morning she was found dead, her throat cut, with this additional testimony, returned a verdict of "Wilful Murder" against him, and he was committed for trial on the coroner's warrant. P.C. Grigg was bound over to prosecute, and the various witnesses entered into their recognizances to appear at the assizes. Transcribed by Karen Duvall

The Cornish Diaspora

My Strickland ancestors came originally from Cornwall and most of them where connected to tin and copper mining in one way or another, either as a miner or mine adventurer, a mine engineer or a mine merchant. During the mid nineteenth century many Cornish copper and tin mines began to close down due to economic reasons and easier accessible tin and copper being found in other countries. During this time many Cornish left Cornwall to find work elsewhere in copper and tin mines throughout the world. It is estimated that 250,000 Cornish migrated abroad between 1861 and 1901 and these emigrants included farmers, merchants and tradesmen, but miners made up most of the numbers. There is a well known saying in Cornwall that 'a mine is a hole anywhere in the world with at least one Cornishman at the bottom of it!' You can also still find Cornish Pasties being made and sold in many old Cornish communities throughout the world including South America. My great, great grandfather’s family is an example of this mass emigration away from Cornwall. Robert Stickland was born in April 1829, the eldest son of John Stickland and Grace Moreshead. The family lived in Trevesack which lies between Gwinear and Phillack close by to the port of Hayle. Father John is recorded as being an engineer and most probably worked for the Cornish Copper Company which was located at the Copperhouse side of Hayle. John and Grace had 10 children, one of whom died in infancy, of the remaining 9 children, four of their sons and one daughter left Cornwall to find work elsewhere. Their youngest son Richard Arundel Stickland died on the 4 October 1862 at the young age of 14 through a fall from the mast of a schooner in the quay at Hayle resulting in serious head injuries, he only survived a half hour after his fall.

The first to leave Cornwall was my great great grandfather Robert Stickland, as a young man he probably served an apprenticeship as a Boilermaker either at Harveys of Hayle or the Cornish Copper Company. At some point in the 1840’s he moved to Birmingham which at the time was the hub of the Industrial Revolution and home to Boulton and Watts and other large engineering works where boilers and pumping machines were made. On the 14th October 1848 at the young age of 20, Robert was married to a young widow Jane Middleton née Triggs who was possibly also originally from Cornwall. This marriage didn’t last long as Jane sadly passed away in the April of 1853 and I haven’t found any children to this marriage. Shortly afterwards Robert moved further North to Newark upon Trent where he continued to work as a Boiler Maker and eventually married my great great grandmother Ann Templeman. His son John Robert eventually moved to Hull, East Yorkshire, where I was born.

The next to move away from Cornwall were sons John and William, both of whom moved a lot further afield, emigrating to Australia where large lodes of copper, with gold and other metals were found attracting large numbers of Cornish with their hard rock mining skills. The area around Orange in New South Wales, Australia is still known as the Cornish Settlement because of the large amount of Cornish communities in this area. John Stickland married Eliza Treglown in Redruth, Cornwall in 1851, but a few years later he left Eliza and emigrated to Australia, arriving in Melbourne on the 11 Augustus 1854. Husbands often traveled alone abroad, sending money back to their spouses until they could settle somewhere and send for their family to join them, in John’s case this didn’t happen as Eliza eventually married someone else in 1862 in Norwich, Norfolk, stating on the marriage certificate that she was a widow. In October of 1857, John Stickland was initiated as a Freemason in Beechworth, Victoria, Australia, he is recorded as being a miner and residing in Indigo. On the 25 November 1864 he married Isabella Emily Bowie in the Temporary Episcopal Church in Young, New South Wales, they had already had two children before their marriage, possibly he waited to marry until hearing about the marriage of his first wife. John and Emily had 11 children and lived in the area around Young, Carcoar and eventually Parkes all of which is known as the Cornish Settlement. Through a DNA match with one of John’s decendents I was able to discover all of this information about John, whom I had been unable to previously trace, he died in 1899 in Parkes, New South Wales. His younger brother William also emigrated to Australia, I am not sure whether he travelled together with his brother John but William settled and married in Beaufort, Victoria. His wife Mary Prowse was also from Cornwall, she had arrived in Melbourne in the January of 1857 with Benjamin Bone whom she had two children with even though Benjamin seems to have had a wife and children back in Cornwall. After Benjamin Bone’s death in 1861 she married William Stickland on the 4 October 1862 in Beaufort. William and Mary had three daughters one of whom was named Grace Morsehead Stickland after William’s mother. William died on the 11 May 1914 in Canterbury, Melbourne, Australia in his eightieth year, he was buried in Beaufort. I also have a DNA match with one of William’s decendents.

The next of John and Grace’s children to leave Cornwall was their daughter Wilmot. On the 17 November 1858 Wilmot was married to Thomas Miles who came from the neighbouring village of Angarrack. Shortly after their marriage Thomas and Wilmot left for America where they headed to California to take part in the Gold Rush. Their first child, a daughter, was born less than a year later on 17 September 1859 in Grass Valley, California, this is in the western foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountain range, north east of present day Sacramento, and was the richest of all California's gold mining towns. I can’t imagine how difficult it must have been for Wilmot to go through her first pregnancy and childbirth so far away from her home and literally in the Wild West, though Grass Valley had become a large bustling town and probably many other Cornish had settled here. Thomas quickly made a lot of money in a few short years because when they returned to Cornwall in order for Wilmot to give birth to their son in May 1861 he had over £1,000. Sadly, Thomas probably also picked up tuberculosis during their travels and on the 25 October 1862 he passed away. In the summer of 1864 Wilmot married her cousin John Stickland, their tragic story can be read in a previous blog called “ Skeletons in the cupboard”. Wilmot’s daughter Elizabeth Grace who had been born in California, eventually emigrated back to the USA where she married Cornish man, Charles Dawes Pascoe in Butte, Montana, another large Cornish mining community.

The last of John and Grace’s children to leave Cornwall was one of their youngest sons, James. In 1861 at age 20 he was still living at home with his parents, his younger sister Eliza and his younger brother Richard Arundell. In October 1862 Richard had his fatal accident and in 1865 father John passed away. Somewhere around the mid 1860’s James moved up to the North of England, to Haydon Bridge, Northumberland where he began work as a lead ore miner. James lived and worked here until his death in 1905, he never married. I often wonder how much communication there was between the children who left Cornwall and their parents back home, and did any letters survive? That would be wonderful to read one of their letters. I also wonder whether my great great grandfather Robert ever returned to visit his family in Cornwall. Both the names John and Grace have been used for several generations in my family which shows a continuity and a connection to the past and even before I discoverd that my ancestors came from Cornwall I felt a bond and a love to this beautiful area, a feeling of returning home.

Lest We Forget

My Grandfather Robert Strickland was called up to serve his country around 1916 when he was 27 years old and the father of four young daughters. He was trained as a Gunner in the Royal Garrison Artillery which took responsibility for heavy and siege artillery in the field. After his training he was sent over to Flanders in Belgium and was in the 308th Siege Battery Battalion.

On the 27 October 1917 Robert received a serious gunshot wound to his back, according to my aunts this occurred at a place called ‘Hell Fire Corner’. If you approach the town of Ypres in Belgium via the Menin Road you come to a large roundabout, this roundabout is located on what used to be the notorious junction ‘Hell Fire Corner’. This junction was an important transport hub on the Menin Road, which ran from Ypres to the frontline trenches. Situated in a particularly exposed area, it was under constant observation by the Germans and within easy range of their guns. Anything moving along the roads here had to run the gauntlet of shellfire. As a result, it became notorious as ‘the most dangerous corner on Earth’ and thus earned its grim nickname. Transportation during the day was impossible because of it’s visibility from the higher laying German military so all the crossings of the junction occurred at night, Artillery units would have to pass almost every night, and it was probably during one of these crossings that my Grandfather Robert was injured.

My Grandmother Charlotte originally received a telegram telling her that Robert was missing in action and presumed dead and it wasn’t until she was busy trying to get a widow’s pension that she received the notice that he was alive and in a hospital in Newcastle. Even though he thankfully survived the war he was never able work full time again because of his injuries. Apparently Grandad never wanted to talk about his time in the War and shortly after the Second World War broke out, and two of his sons were of military age, he suffered and died from a heart attack, he was only 51.

Stories from our past - part 2

After Violet finished school she got a job in Barton upon Humber which was located on the other side of the Humber from Hull. In those days there wasn’t a bridge, so Violet would take the ferry boat there and back, sometimes they would have dances on the boat during the crossing.

When Violet was 20 she moved back up to Bridlington for awhile and worked as a waitress at a Lunchroom called Oberon’s. She was obviously pleased to be able to renew her friendship with her step sisters. Violet had quite a few admirers but she eventually met and fell in love with a young man from Hull called Herbert Cyril Orwin, they married on the 31st July 1922. Violet and Herbert had three children, Cyril, Joan and Doreen. They had a happy life though sadly Violet’s Mother Rose died in December 1930 when the children where still quite young. Violet can remember seeing a rainbow around the Christmas tree on the day her Mother died.

Their youngest child Doreen was my Mum, she also shared some memories of her childhood. Her Dad, Herbert had a little car with what they called a dickey at the back where the children could sit strapped in, usually on a Saturday or a Sunday they would go for a drive to Hornsea or Withernsea, little seaside resorts. On their way home they would always stop at a wayside pub called 'The Jack of Hearts' and the children would sit outside by the tables and get a glass of lemonade and a packet of crisps. Doreen always loved this treat and sometimes if her Dad pretended to drive past the pub without stopping all three children would start yelling from the back of the car. Next to the pub was a farm and the lady who lived there got to know them quite well and would often bring over a glass of goat's milk for them to drink.

One of Doreen's stories from her growing up years is from when she was about 7 or 8 years old. The children living in her street, Spring Gardens in Anlaby near Hull, asked her if she would go to the shops for them on her bicycle, they said that they badly needed some elbow grease. Doreen recalls: "I agreed to go and get some, about 30 minutes later after having been in just about all the shops, I arrived back in the street to see my friends doubled up with laughter, it was then that I realized what elbow grease was, (elbow grease means hard work). Feeling very embarrassed, I fell off my bicycle and ended up with a very bad knee which took a few weeks to heal up, and I must say ended up with my friends feeling very sorry, but it was a laugh when I think how foolish I was."

In 1940 World War 2 broke out, with Hull being a big port it was very badly bombed during the war, Violet’s family had an air-raid shelter in the back garden with bunks and bedding and food, but it was not very nice having to sleep there every night and hearing the sirens and the bombs falling. Doreen usually received the hand me down clothes from her elder sister Joan, but once during the war she had received a brand new strawberry pink coat, she was so proud of it that she had it hanging in the living room to show to some friends, when her father came to warn them of an air-raid. They rushed to the shelter, it was very frightening as they could see the land mines coming down, thankfully the wind blew them further down the street and one of them landed in Rokeby Park in a lot of mud, but it caused such a big crater you could have fitted three houses into it, and the explosion caused all the windows to blow in and the plaster to fall from the ceilings. Luckily everyone was in the shelter so no one was injured but Doreen's new coat was covered with plaster and soot so she was most upset.

During the war Cyril enlisted in the RAF and often flew on missions to the continent, on one of these missions he was shot down above the Hoek of Holland and taken as a prisoner of war. This was a terrible time for the family, at first they didn't even know whether he was still alive until someone from the Dutch resistance was able to send word to the family. In the last years of the war Herbert was also called up to serve even though he was already in his 40's,he was sent to India.

Violet had lot’s of fond memories of Bridlington and would often visit her step sisters there in her later life.

Stories from our past

Stories from our Grandparents link us to the past they are like a bridge to an earlier time. My Grandmother Violet Popplewell, whom I called Nana, was born at the beginning of the last Century, on the 12th December 1900. Her Father, Harry Popplewell died when she was only two years old. He had worked in a coal mine since being a young boy of fourteen and the coal dust had infected and blocked up his lungs, he was only twenty six when he died. A year later Violet’s Mother Rose remarried, a widower with six young daughters between the ages of two and thirteen, Violet suddenly had six sisters to grow up with.

Violet’s step father, William Whiting and his daughters lived in the Seaside town of Bridlington, North Yorkshire. People around that time were just beginning to start taking vacations, they would usually travel with the train from the busy industrial cities to seaside places like Bridlington, for this reason Violet’s mother Rose kept a Bed and Breakfast establishment on Quay Road and William worked as a Porter by the Railway station. Violet told me that when the guests would leave at the end of their vacation, she and her sisters would line up by the front door and they would often receive a little tip. When Violet was old enough she attended school with her sisters at Oxford Street School. On this photo you can see a May Pole, the girls all learnt to do a little dance around the May Pole, each girl had a different coloured ribbon, Violet’s ribbon was red. After their performance Violet’s Mum, Rose brought a basket of little chocolate bars for all of the children.

At Easter the girls all received a new dress and bonnet, which Rose had sewed for them, they were white with a red ribbon and their straw bonnets where decorated with flowers. After church the girls asked whether they could go down to the beach, their parents gave them permission but warned them to stay on the promenade and not to go down to the sand. Once they where there it was much to tempting, one of the sisters suggested running along the sand from one set of stairs to the next before the tide came in. They all agreed but unfortunately they were not quick enough for the tide and they all got soaked, their beautiful new dresses were ruined because the red dye from the ribbons ran out over the white dresses.

One of Violet’s step sisters was called Fanny but she had a nickname, they all called her Joey, she was a year older than Violet and she was a bit of a tomboy. Violet and Joey got on really well together and Joey often thought up wild adventures for them to do. One day they borrowed a rowing boat and took it out into the bay, it was a beautiful sunny day and they had brought along a couple of books and a picnic to enjoy. Violet was a little bit worried about rowing out too far but Joey waved away her worries, they ate their lunch and then began reading their books and enjoying the sun and the solitude. At a certain moment, Violet looked up from her book and couldn’t see the harbour anymore, they had drifted far out to sea!Thankfully another boat had seen them and had notified the Lifeboat rescue service so they were eventually towed back to safety.

When the girls were a bit older they received bicycles, a relatively new invention which gave them the freedom to discover the surrounding countryside. One day one of their friends joined them for a bike ride, she had a brand new bike and Joey really, really wanted to ride that bike instead of her own. At first the friend didn’t want to swap but Joey was so insistent that eventually she gave in and Joey got to cycle on the brand new bike and the friend took Joey’s older bike. Everything went well until they started biking down a fairly steep hill and Joey couldn’t find the hand brakes to slow her decent, her friend’s new bike had back pedal brakes! Joey ended up crashing into a hedge at the bottom of the hill and learnt her lesson about being too bossy the hard way.

After spending most of her childhood and early teens in Bridlington with her step sisters, Violet’s mother Rose was divorced from William Whiting and Violet and her Mother and younger brother Hector moved down to the larger city of Hull.

Walking where our Ancestors walked

During my many years of genealogical research I have usually used a map of the area to find the villages or towns where my ancestors lived. I could then visualise how close they lived to other family members or to their future marriage partners. Even better than a map is being able to visit the places where they lived in person as you then can get a feel for the area and it’s surrounding countryside. My last blog was about my Matrilineal line which I have managed to trace back to the mid 18th Century to the small village estate of Elvetham. As I mentioned in my last blog, Elvetham was located close to the main coaching route from London to the West and some of my Turner ancestors who lived there where involved in the transportation business. Looking at a map of this area I discovered Turner’s Green Farm, Turner’s Pond and Turner’s Wood which suggests a definite link to this family. Elvetham village and Elvetham Heath are now split through the middle by the M3 motorway, and as we were driving down this motorway on our recent vacation to England we decided to take a small detour off the route and visit Elvetham. Pulling a caravan behind your car doesn’t make it easy to do spontaneous stops , but as the exit from the motorway was quite close to Elvetham we decided to go for it. We drove along the old London turnpike road and spotted an old milestone along the way, through the lovely village of Hartley Wintney and towards Elvetham Hall which is now a very expensive hotel. Thankfully just before the gates to the Estate there was a small unused road where we could park with the caravan. Leen Arie remained with the car and me and Leah (my granddaughter) went on an exploration of the Estate with it’s beautiful wooded grounds, the Hall and a lovely little church. The Hall was rebuilt after a tragic fire in the mid 1800’s and the little church was also restored, so it wouldn’t have been exactly as my ancestors remembered it, but nevertheless it was lovely to visit where they would have walked and attended church. Time restricted us (and having a caravan behind the car) from exploring further and looking for Turner’s Green Farm, but I definitely want to visit this area another time.

During our vacation we also spent a week in Cornwall where my Patriarchal line came from, in fact our campsite was located in the village of Gwinear, next to the farm where my 6th great grandmother Bridget Pryor lived and grew up, Trenoweth Farm. As we arrived at our campsite I felt like I had arrived back home, maybe a bit sentimental or maybe something in my genes. Whilst staying at this campsite I was able to go on several walks along centuries old public footpaths. From Trenoweth Farm to Coswinsawsin where Bridget later lived with her husband Robert Stickland and along the close by located farm of Penhale where my 4th great grandmother Mary Penhale probably came from.

There was also a public footpath along the back of Trenoweth Farm which took me over ancient stone stiles along fields full of daffodils and along the lovely old house of Lanyon whose family also come into my family tree via Elizabeth Lanyon who married John Arundel in 1639 and from whom another Prior family descended, Arundel Prior the grandfather of my 3rd great grandmother Grace Morsehead who married John Stickland.

Eventually I arrived in the little village of Angarrack where the widowed Grace Stickland lived with her daughter Wilmot and son in law and nephew John Stickland and where the tragic events of my Blog from June 2016 - Skeletons in the Cupboard occurred. Leen Arie and Leah met up with me here and we ate a delicious Sunday Lunch in the Angarrack Inn which was built in 1755 and was originally known as ‘The Lamb’, It owes its establishment to the Angarrack tin smelting house, which once operated nearby and was owned by William Tremayne the uncle of my 4th great grandfather Robert Stickland.

So many family connections in this small area of Cornwall, and even though so much has changed, being able to walk where they once walked brought me closer to my ancestors and also helped me to realise that a distance that looks really close on a map or travelled by a car is completely different when you walk that same distance over fields and footpaths.