Courtesy of Sue Horsman's Derby Marriage Challenge, this post contains details of further Saddington marriages which took place in the Derby Registration District.
In the Parish Church of Holy Trinity, Derby:
No. 68
January 25 1879
George Saddington, 24, Bachelor, Ticket examiner, Derby, John Saddington, Framework Knitter
Margaret Annie Bowen, 21, Spinster, -, Derby, Thomas Bowen, Joiner
After banns
Both bride and groom signed their names.
Witnesses - Robert Blood, Harriet Blood
In the Parish Church of St Luke, Derby:
No. 351
November 6 1892
Frederick Saddington, 23, Bachelor, Butcher, Appleby, Derbys, Henry Saddington, Butcher
Jessie Ward, 20, Spinster, -, 17 Crosby[?] Street, James Ward, Farmer
By Licence
Both bride and groom signed their names.
Witnesses - Samuel Banks, Eliza Banks
In the Parish Church of St Chad, Derby:
No. 386
August 30 1902
Frank Saddington, 24, Bachelor, Shunter, 43 Vale Street, John Saddington, Labourer
Alice Jemima Bloor, 21, Spinster, -, 17 Mill Hill Road, George Bloor, Blacksmith
After banns
Both bride and groom signed their names.
Witnesses - Albert Tharme, Ealand Tharme
In the Parish Church of St Paul, Derby:
No. 206
June 2 1906
George Smith, 27, Bachelor, Waggon Builder, 42 Colombell Street, William Holt Smith, Waggon Builder
Lucy Saddington, 22, Spinster, -, 10 Roman Road, Arthur Saddington, Moulder
After banns
Both bride and groom signed their names.
Witnesses - Arthur Saddington, Jane Saddington, Willons Charles Wright, Elizabeth Holt Smith
Subsequently, the locations of six other Saddington marriages have also been discovered, together with the names of their respective spouses, as follows:
December quarter 1853 - Thomas Saddington married Susannah Sporway at the Derby Register Office.
December quarter 1864 - William Saddington married Sarah Wild at the Derby Register Office.
December quarter 1869 - James Saddington married Emma Shephard at the London Road Methodist New Connection.
December quarter 1877 - Henry William Herdman married Mary Saddington at the Derby Register Office.
September quarter 1888 - George Henry Saddington married Elizabeth Meller at the Babington Lane Swedenburg Chapel.
June quarter 1903 - Henry Frederick Rankin married Mary Saddington at the Derby Register Office.
If any of these happy couples feature in your family tree, please do let me know.
Tuesday, 22 September 2009
Tuesday, 25 August 2009
Update No. 2 - Lewis Bryan Saddington, the Habitual Criminal
Just a quick one to say that I have filled in part of one of the gaps currently to be found in Lewis Saddington's dodgy career.
On doing a general search for Saddingtons in the Online Catalogue of Kent Archives Service, I discovered our friend Lewis misbehaving in Canterbury.
The index to the judicial records in the Canterbury Cathedral Archives shows that on 7 December 1882, Lewis was up before the Court of Summary Jurisdiction and was convicted on two counts as follows:
James Taylor and Bryan Louis Saddington, St Alphege: assaulting William Neville Jeffries. Each fined 5s plus 3s 9d costs payable forthwith. If in default of payment, 7 days hard labour in HMP St Augustine's, Canterbury.
Bryan Louis Saddington: assaulting PC Edgar Hawkes a police officer in the execution of his duty as a constable of the City of Canterbury Watch. Fined 10s plus 6s 6d costs payable forthwith. If in default of payment, 14 days hard labour in HMP St Augustine's, Canterbury.
My best imperial arithmetic brings Lewis' total fine to £1 5s 3d. According to the Measuring Worth website, in 2008 terms, this would be £94.74 [using the retail price index] or £662.05 [using average earnings]. Either way, not an insignificant sum. Lewis may well have preferred to do 21 days hard labour, rather than try and find that amount of money.
So what else did our black sheep Saddington get up to during his life? It will be interesting to find out.
If Lewis is one of your Saddingtons, or if you come across him in your research, please do get in touch.
On doing a general search for Saddingtons in the Online Catalogue of Kent Archives Service, I discovered our friend Lewis misbehaving in Canterbury.
The index to the judicial records in the Canterbury Cathedral Archives shows that on 7 December 1882, Lewis was up before the Court of Summary Jurisdiction and was convicted on two counts as follows:
James Taylor and Bryan Louis Saddington, St Alphege: assaulting William Neville Jeffries. Each fined 5s plus 3s 9d costs payable forthwith. If in default of payment, 7 days hard labour in HMP St Augustine's, Canterbury.
Bryan Louis Saddington: assaulting PC Edgar Hawkes a police officer in the execution of his duty as a constable of the City of Canterbury Watch. Fined 10s plus 6s 6d costs payable forthwith. If in default of payment, 14 days hard labour in HMP St Augustine's, Canterbury.
My best imperial arithmetic brings Lewis' total fine to £1 5s 3d. According to the Measuring Worth website, in 2008 terms, this would be £94.74 [using the retail price index] or £662.05 [using average earnings]. Either way, not an insignificant sum. Lewis may well have preferred to do 21 days hard labour, rather than try and find that amount of money.
So what else did our black sheep Saddington get up to during his life? It will be interesting to find out.
If Lewis is one of your Saddingtons, or if you come across him in your research, please do get in touch.
Tuesday, 21 July 2009
Derby Registration District Marriages - Part 1
These four marriages come to you courtesy of Sue Horsman's Derby Marriage Challenge. At the moment, I am just supplying the details on the marriage certificates, but hope to be able to expand on them in the future.
1.
Parish Church of St Werburgh, Derby
No. 120
March 15 1862
Abraham Joseph Yeoman, 21, Bachelor, Copper Smith, Dunkirk[?], Daniel Yeoman, Labourer
Sarah Jane Saddington, 20, Spinster, -, London Road, James Saddington, Labourer
By Certificate
Both bride and groom signed their names.
Witnesses - William Saddington, Macklin Harvy
2.
Parish Church of St Peter, Derby
No. 252
May 30 1868
Henry Saddington, 20, Bachelor, Moulder, Normanton Road, James Saddington, Labourer
Eliza Wheatcroft, Full, Spinster, -, Normanton Road, William Wheatcroft, Solicitors Clerk
After Banns
The groom signed his name and the bride made her mark.
Witnesses - Will[?] Saddington, Sarah x Saddington
3.
Parish Church of St Alkmund, Derby
No. 469
December 25 1878
Arthur Saddington, 22, Bachelor, Iron Moulder, Upper Brook Street Derby, James Saddington, Tanner
Kate Hind, 24, Spinster, Mill Hand, Upper Brook Street Derby, Thomas Hind, Iron Moulder
After Banns
Both the bride and groom signed their names.
Witnesses - John T Brailsford, Elizabeth Alice Hind
4.
Parish Church of Christchurch, Derby
No. 476
June 18 1904
John Saddington, 24, Bachelor, Clerk, 7 Webster Street Derby, George Saddington, Porter
Elizabeth Kemp, 24, Spinster, -, 83 Devonshire Street Derby, Charles Kemp, Deceased
After Banns
Both bride and groom signed their names.
Witnesses - John Kemp, Ida Kemp
If any of these marriages feature in your family, please do not hesitate to get in touch.
1.
Parish Church of St Werburgh, Derby
No. 120
March 15 1862
Abraham Joseph Yeoman, 21, Bachelor, Copper Smith, Dunkirk[?], Daniel Yeoman, Labourer
Sarah Jane Saddington, 20, Spinster, -, London Road, James Saddington, Labourer
By Certificate
Both bride and groom signed their names.
Witnesses - William Saddington, Macklin Harvy
2.
Parish Church of St Peter, Derby
No. 252
May 30 1868
Henry Saddington, 20, Bachelor, Moulder, Normanton Road, James Saddington, Labourer
Eliza Wheatcroft, Full, Spinster, -, Normanton Road, William Wheatcroft, Solicitors Clerk
After Banns
The groom signed his name and the bride made her mark.
Witnesses - Will[?] Saddington, Sarah x Saddington
3.
Parish Church of St Alkmund, Derby
No. 469
December 25 1878
Arthur Saddington, 22, Bachelor, Iron Moulder, Upper Brook Street Derby, James Saddington, Tanner
Kate Hind, 24, Spinster, Mill Hand, Upper Brook Street Derby, Thomas Hind, Iron Moulder
After Banns
Both the bride and groom signed their names.
Witnesses - John T Brailsford, Elizabeth Alice Hind
4.
Parish Church of Christchurch, Derby
No. 476
June 18 1904
John Saddington, 24, Bachelor, Clerk, 7 Webster Street Derby, George Saddington, Porter
Elizabeth Kemp, 24, Spinster, -, 83 Devonshire Street Derby, Charles Kemp, Deceased
After Banns
Both bride and groom signed their names.
Witnesses - John Kemp, Ida Kemp
If any of these marriages feature in your family, please do not hesitate to get in touch.
Sunday, 12 July 2009
Saddington One Name Study on GenealogyWise
Just a quick post to let you know that I have started a Saddington One Name Study group on GenealogyWise, the new genealogy social network.
GenealogyWise is apparently like Facebook, but for family history researchers.
Hopefully, I will see some of you there soon.
GenealogyWise is apparently like Facebook, but for family history researchers.
Hopefully, I will see some of you there soon.
Tuesday, 30 June 2009
Plush v Saddington - A suit in Chancery
Once again I must apologise for the shortage of posts this month. However, the exams are now out of the way and I have just about got my life back in order.
A couple of years ago, I received an enquiry from a gentleman in South Australia who had come across a family called Plush who, for a couple of generations, had used the name Saddington as a forename. The family descended from three brothers who had emigrated from England to South Australia in 1839, the sons of Thomas Plush and Frances Taylor. One of the sons was named John Saddington Plush, and my enquirer asked if I could assist him with any connection between the Saddington and Plush families on the basis that surnames used as forenames tend to be family surnames somewhere along the line.
Well, I had nothing in my database at the time, so I had a look round the Internet. Initially, all that I could find were IGI records for the marriage of Thomas Plush and Frances Taylor on 1 November 1804 at St Leonards, Shoreditch, London and a marriage for John Saddington and Ann Plush on 16 February 1792 at St Peters, Cornhill, London.
On the National Archives website, I also found a reference to a document referred to as "Item C 13/589/19 = Plush v Saddington. Answer only." It was dated 1801 and related to a matter in the Court of Chancery. It also appeared that only part of the paperwork still existed.
Some months later, I took a trip to the National Archives and ordered the Chancery document in advance. When I went to collect it, what I was given was a huge roll of documents which had been brought specially from the disused salt mine in Cheshire where documents which are rarely requested are kept. With my white archival gloves on, I worked my way slowly down the roll until I reached my document. Straining my eyes to read the tiny writing, I discovered the following story.
The document was an Answer to a Bill of Complaint. The Bill had been brought by John Plush and Sarah, his wife, and by Sarah Plush, James Plush, Mary Plush and William Plush, Infants [i.e. persons under the age of 21] by their father, John Plush. The Answer was submitted by the Defendants in the case, who were John Saddington and Ann, his wife, and Jane Plush, the Guardian of the Infant Defendants, Thomas Plush, Jane Plush, Elizabeth Plush and William Colewell Plush.
The Bill of Complaint [which was missing] appeared to have related to the Will of the late William Plush, who had died on 26 December 1794, and who was the father of Ann Saddington and the grandfather of the Infant Defendants.
When William Plush Senior had died, his Will had been proved in the Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury by his Executors, Daniel Tanner and Titus Tanner. In his Will, William had left his daughter, Ann Saddington, £310 in 3% Capital Stock, and he had left his four grandchildren £200 in the same 3% Capital Stock. His remaining 3% Capital Stock (about £200 worth) and his personal Estate had been left to his son, William Plush Junior. Unfortunately, William Plush Junior had died during his father's lifetime, so this bequest had lapsed and the residue was divided between his daughter, Ann Saddington, and the four grandchildren. William Plush Senior had also owed his son in law, John Saddington, the sum of £34 17s 2d, which John Saddington had kindly forgiven.
Now, during his lifetime, William Plush Senior and one Thomas Home or Horne [it was difficult to read this surname, so I will call him Thomas Horne throughout this post] had been the Trustees of a Trust Fund containing £600 worth of 3% Capital Stock for the benefit of the Complainant, John Plush. At some point in the past, £100 worth of stock had been sold at John Plush's request and the money given to him on the proviso that the stock was to be replaced using the dividends from the remaining £500 worth of stock.
However, in May 1792, Thomas Horne had prevailed upon William Plush Senior to sell out the remaining £500 worth of stock without John Plush's knowledge or consent, so that Horne could use the money himself. Horne signed a memorandum dated 8 May 1792, acknowledging the agreement and agreeing to repurchase stock to the sum of £500.
In December 1794, William Plush Senior died and Horne became the sole Trustee. From Christmas 1797, John Plush had been receiving dividends from Horne equivalent to the entire £600 worth of stock. However, when John Plush went to collect the dividends that had accrued at Christmas 1799, he discovered that Horne had absconded. Horne was insolvent, avoiding his creditors, and had never replaced the stock as agreed in the May 1792 memorandum.
The Defendants' Answer to John Plush's Bill of Complaint came in two parts. Firstly, it stated that William Plush Senior's Executors, Daniel and Titus Tanner, had not done their job properly. They had failed to make the proper enquiries in relation to the Estate, and they had refused to allow John and Ann Saddington to make the proper enquiries. The Executors had therefore been unaware of the Trust Fund and indeed one of the Executors was now dead. The 1792 memorandum signed by Thomas Horne had only lately been discovered by John Saddington amongst a bundle of William Plush Senior's papers which were in the custody of William Plush Junior's widow (probably Jane Plush, the Guardian of the Infant Defendants).
Secondly, the Defendants stated that John Plush should have made proper enquiries in relation to the Trust Fund and paid proper attention to the reinvesting of the stock after the initial £100 worth had been sold at his request. They went on to say that Thomas Horne had been solvent for many years after William Plush Senior's death, so if John Plush had taken proper care, things would never have been able to get to this point.
And for these reasons, the Defendants should not have to reimburse John Plush out of what they had inherited from William Plush Senior's Estate.
Unfortunately, there appears to be no further documentation to say what the outcome of the case was.
However, putting all the evidence together, I believe that the Thomas Plush who married Frances Taylor in 1804, and who named one of his sons John Saddington Plush, was the Infant Defendant Thomas Plush in this case. It would seem that his aunt's husband was sufficiently important in his life that he named one of his sons after him.
But who was John Saddington and where did he come from? The Answer doesn't say. If you have any further details relating to this case and/or John Saddington, I would be delighted to hear from you.
A couple of years ago, I received an enquiry from a gentleman in South Australia who had come across a family called Plush who, for a couple of generations, had used the name Saddington as a forename. The family descended from three brothers who had emigrated from England to South Australia in 1839, the sons of Thomas Plush and Frances Taylor. One of the sons was named John Saddington Plush, and my enquirer asked if I could assist him with any connection between the Saddington and Plush families on the basis that surnames used as forenames tend to be family surnames somewhere along the line.
Well, I had nothing in my database at the time, so I had a look round the Internet. Initially, all that I could find were IGI records for the marriage of Thomas Plush and Frances Taylor on 1 November 1804 at St Leonards, Shoreditch, London and a marriage for John Saddington and Ann Plush on 16 February 1792 at St Peters, Cornhill, London.
On the National Archives website, I also found a reference to a document referred to as "Item C 13/589/19 = Plush v Saddington. Answer only." It was dated 1801 and related to a matter in the Court of Chancery. It also appeared that only part of the paperwork still existed.
Some months later, I took a trip to the National Archives and ordered the Chancery document in advance. When I went to collect it, what I was given was a huge roll of documents which had been brought specially from the disused salt mine in Cheshire where documents which are rarely requested are kept. With my white archival gloves on, I worked my way slowly down the roll until I reached my document. Straining my eyes to read the tiny writing, I discovered the following story.
The document was an Answer to a Bill of Complaint. The Bill had been brought by John Plush and Sarah, his wife, and by Sarah Plush, James Plush, Mary Plush and William Plush, Infants [i.e. persons under the age of 21] by their father, John Plush. The Answer was submitted by the Defendants in the case, who were John Saddington and Ann, his wife, and Jane Plush, the Guardian of the Infant Defendants, Thomas Plush, Jane Plush, Elizabeth Plush and William Colewell Plush.
The Bill of Complaint [which was missing] appeared to have related to the Will of the late William Plush, who had died on 26 December 1794, and who was the father of Ann Saddington and the grandfather of the Infant Defendants.
When William Plush Senior had died, his Will had been proved in the Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury by his Executors, Daniel Tanner and Titus Tanner. In his Will, William had left his daughter, Ann Saddington, £310 in 3% Capital Stock, and he had left his four grandchildren £200 in the same 3% Capital Stock. His remaining 3% Capital Stock (about £200 worth) and his personal Estate had been left to his son, William Plush Junior. Unfortunately, William Plush Junior had died during his father's lifetime, so this bequest had lapsed and the residue was divided between his daughter, Ann Saddington, and the four grandchildren. William Plush Senior had also owed his son in law, John Saddington, the sum of £34 17s 2d, which John Saddington had kindly forgiven.
Now, during his lifetime, William Plush Senior and one Thomas Home or Horne [it was difficult to read this surname, so I will call him Thomas Horne throughout this post] had been the Trustees of a Trust Fund containing £600 worth of 3% Capital Stock for the benefit of the Complainant, John Plush. At some point in the past, £100 worth of stock had been sold at John Plush's request and the money given to him on the proviso that the stock was to be replaced using the dividends from the remaining £500 worth of stock.
However, in May 1792, Thomas Horne had prevailed upon William Plush Senior to sell out the remaining £500 worth of stock without John Plush's knowledge or consent, so that Horne could use the money himself. Horne signed a memorandum dated 8 May 1792, acknowledging the agreement and agreeing to repurchase stock to the sum of £500.
In December 1794, William Plush Senior died and Horne became the sole Trustee. From Christmas 1797, John Plush had been receiving dividends from Horne equivalent to the entire £600 worth of stock. However, when John Plush went to collect the dividends that had accrued at Christmas 1799, he discovered that Horne had absconded. Horne was insolvent, avoiding his creditors, and had never replaced the stock as agreed in the May 1792 memorandum.
The Defendants' Answer to John Plush's Bill of Complaint came in two parts. Firstly, it stated that William Plush Senior's Executors, Daniel and Titus Tanner, had not done their job properly. They had failed to make the proper enquiries in relation to the Estate, and they had refused to allow John and Ann Saddington to make the proper enquiries. The Executors had therefore been unaware of the Trust Fund and indeed one of the Executors was now dead. The 1792 memorandum signed by Thomas Horne had only lately been discovered by John Saddington amongst a bundle of William Plush Senior's papers which were in the custody of William Plush Junior's widow (probably Jane Plush, the Guardian of the Infant Defendants).
Secondly, the Defendants stated that John Plush should have made proper enquiries in relation to the Trust Fund and paid proper attention to the reinvesting of the stock after the initial £100 worth had been sold at his request. They went on to say that Thomas Horne had been solvent for many years after William Plush Senior's death, so if John Plush had taken proper care, things would never have been able to get to this point.
And for these reasons, the Defendants should not have to reimburse John Plush out of what they had inherited from William Plush Senior's Estate.
Unfortunately, there appears to be no further documentation to say what the outcome of the case was.
However, putting all the evidence together, I believe that the Thomas Plush who married Frances Taylor in 1804, and who named one of his sons John Saddington Plush, was the Infant Defendant Thomas Plush in this case. It would seem that his aunt's husband was sufficiently important in his life that he named one of his sons after him.
But who was John Saddington and where did he come from? The Answer doesn't say. If you have any further details relating to this case and/or John Saddington, I would be delighted to hear from you.
Sunday, 31 May 2009
Transported to Australia - Saddington convicts
To begin with, I would like to apologise for the shortage of posts this month, but I am labouring under the burden of revision for exams in June.
This is a brief post resulting from the appearance on-line of British Convict Transportation Registers, courtesy of the State Library of Queensland.
So far it appears that only two Saddingtons emigrated to Australia courtesy of the criminal justice system. These were Eliza Saddington who was sent to Van Diemen's Land for 7 years in 1850, and George Saddington who was sent to Western Australia for 7 years in 1865.
Eliza Saddington was convicted of a felony, to wit the theft of four pairs of clogs at Coventry, at the Lent Assizes held at Coventry on 28 March 1850. She was 17 years old. Eliza was sentenced to 7 years transportation, and consequently sailed from London on 30 October 1850 aboard the 'Emma Eugenia', together with 169 other female convicts.
The 'Emma Eugenia' arrived in Hobart Town, Van Diemen's Land (now Tasmania) on 7 March 1851. The Archives Office of Tasmania has now digitised a lot of their convict records. Eliza Saddington is described as being a nursemaid, aged 18, 4'9" tall, with brown hair and eyes, and a fresh complexion. She had a scar on her left cheek, a scar and blue marks on her right arm below the elbow and another scar over her right brow. She could read and write imperfectly. It appears that she had also spent 12 months 'on the town' before this conviction, i.e. she had been a prostitute.
According to the records, her native place was Appleby, probably Appleby Magna in Leicestershire. Her father was John, her mother was Elizabeth, and she had a sister, also Elizabeth. As yet, I have not been able to place Eliza within the Appleby Magna branch of the family.
Unfortunately Eliza did not flourish in Van Diemen's Land. The surgeon on board ship reported that her conduct was indifferent. It appears that Eliza was then sent to the Brickfields Hiring Depot at Hobart New Town. Here she would have waited to be hired as a servant for the period of her sentence or until she was paroled. Eliza never went into service in Van Diemen's Land. The records show that she died in the Hospital at the Brickfields Hiring Depot on 4 July 1851.
Moving on to George Saddington, the records show that, at the age of 25, George was convicted of larceny at Guildford Assizes in Surrey on 1 August 1864 and sentenced to be transported for a term of 7 years. He left England on 20 or 30 September 1865, sailing from Portland on the 'Vimiera' with 280 other male convicts, bound for the Swan River Colony. The voyage took 83 days and the ship arrived at Fremantle, Western Australia on 22 December 1865. It appears that 3 of the convicts had died on the way, as only 278 convicts landed in their new country.
In the convict records, George is described as being a carpenter, married with one child, 5'11 1/4" tall, with brown hair and grey eyes. His face was long, he had a pale complexion and his build was middling stout. He also had a scar over his left eye. Most of this additional information comes from Convicts to Australia , a website compiled by the Perth Dead Person's Society.
According to the records of Fremantle Prison, George received his ticket of leave on 11 February 1868. This was his document of parole, which entitled him to seek employment within a specified district, marry or bring his family over from England, and to acquire property. Despite having a wife and child back in England, George married Dorah Toole on 20 February 1869. He received his Certificate of Freedom at Perth, Western Australia, on 2 November 1871, having completed his sentence.
The records then show that George died on 20 April 1895 in the Champion Bay Registration District, Western Australia, when he was about 60. He was buried in the St Francis Xavier Cemetery, Geraldton, despite being a Protestant. His wife, Dorah, died on 25 July 1905, age 62, and was buried in the Urch Street Cemetery, Geraldton. It is not known whether they had any children. A George Saddington was also buried in the Urch Street Cemetery in February 1905, age 55. Now was this a relation, or did Dorah have her husband's body moved?
If either Eliza or George belong to your family, please get in touch.
This is a brief post resulting from the appearance on-line of British Convict Transportation Registers, courtesy of the State Library of Queensland.
So far it appears that only two Saddingtons emigrated to Australia courtesy of the criminal justice system. These were Eliza Saddington who was sent to Van Diemen's Land for 7 years in 1850, and George Saddington who was sent to Western Australia for 7 years in 1865.
Eliza Saddington was convicted of a felony, to wit the theft of four pairs of clogs at Coventry, at the Lent Assizes held at Coventry on 28 March 1850. She was 17 years old. Eliza was sentenced to 7 years transportation, and consequently sailed from London on 30 October 1850 aboard the 'Emma Eugenia', together with 169 other female convicts.
The 'Emma Eugenia' arrived in Hobart Town, Van Diemen's Land (now Tasmania) on 7 March 1851. The Archives Office of Tasmania has now digitised a lot of their convict records. Eliza Saddington is described as being a nursemaid, aged 18, 4'9" tall, with brown hair and eyes, and a fresh complexion. She had a scar on her left cheek, a scar and blue marks on her right arm below the elbow and another scar over her right brow. She could read and write imperfectly. It appears that she had also spent 12 months 'on the town' before this conviction, i.e. she had been a prostitute.
According to the records, her native place was Appleby, probably Appleby Magna in Leicestershire. Her father was John, her mother was Elizabeth, and she had a sister, also Elizabeth. As yet, I have not been able to place Eliza within the Appleby Magna branch of the family.
Unfortunately Eliza did not flourish in Van Diemen's Land. The surgeon on board ship reported that her conduct was indifferent. It appears that Eliza was then sent to the Brickfields Hiring Depot at Hobart New Town. Here she would have waited to be hired as a servant for the period of her sentence or until she was paroled. Eliza never went into service in Van Diemen's Land. The records show that she died in the Hospital at the Brickfields Hiring Depot on 4 July 1851.
Moving on to George Saddington, the records show that, at the age of 25, George was convicted of larceny at Guildford Assizes in Surrey on 1 August 1864 and sentenced to be transported for a term of 7 years. He left England on 20 or 30 September 1865, sailing from Portland on the 'Vimiera' with 280 other male convicts, bound for the Swan River Colony. The voyage took 83 days and the ship arrived at Fremantle, Western Australia on 22 December 1865. It appears that 3 of the convicts had died on the way, as only 278 convicts landed in their new country.
In the convict records, George is described as being a carpenter, married with one child, 5'11 1/4" tall, with brown hair and grey eyes. His face was long, he had a pale complexion and his build was middling stout. He also had a scar over his left eye. Most of this additional information comes from Convicts to Australia , a website compiled by the Perth Dead Person's Society.
According to the records of Fremantle Prison, George received his ticket of leave on 11 February 1868. This was his document of parole, which entitled him to seek employment within a specified district, marry or bring his family over from England, and to acquire property. Despite having a wife and child back in England, George married Dorah Toole on 20 February 1869. He received his Certificate of Freedom at Perth, Western Australia, on 2 November 1871, having completed his sentence.
The records then show that George died on 20 April 1895 in the Champion Bay Registration District, Western Australia, when he was about 60. He was buried in the St Francis Xavier Cemetery, Geraldton, despite being a Protestant. His wife, Dorah, died on 25 July 1905, age 62, and was buried in the Urch Street Cemetery, Geraldton. It is not known whether they had any children. A George Saddington was also buried in the Urch Street Cemetery in February 1905, age 55. Now was this a relation, or did Dorah have her husband's body moved?
If either Eliza or George belong to your family, please get in touch.
Thursday, 30 April 2009
Elizabeth Saddington (1828 - 1863): Trying to tie up loose ends
This post relates to Elizabeth Saddington, eldest child of my 3x great grandparents, Thomas Saddington and Hannah Deacon, and demonstrates how incomplete information can lead to wrong conclusions. The research involved in this post has taken place over a twenty year period.
Elizabeth Saddington, daughter of Thomas and Hannah, was born in December 1828 in Great Bowden, Leicestershire, and was baptised on 29 December 1828 in the Parish Church.
Her life is then conjecture until the 1841 census, due to the lack of official documentation. In 1841, Elizabeth, now aged 13, was living in Great Bowden with her parents, Thomas and Hannah, and six of her siblings, namely Thomas (1830), John Jonathan (1831), William (1834), Joseph (1836), Ann (1838) and Jonathan (1841).
Over the next ten years, Elizabeth appears to have remained at home, helping out with the housework and the younger children. In the 1851 census, she was still living in Great Bowden, aged 22, with her now widowed father and seven siblings, being the six present in 1841 and a further brother, Henry (1843). Elizabeth's occupation is given as 'housekeeper'; her mother, Hannah, having died only about six weeks before.
When the 1861 census was taken, Elizabeth, aged 32, was still living at home at Middle Green, Great Bowden with her father and her three youngest brothers, Joseph, Jonathan and Henry. However, her occupation is now given as 'charwoman', so she was presumably working outside the home, cleaning other people's houses. Her father had not remarried, so it is reasonably safe to assume that she was also still keeping house for him and her brothers.
After that, I could find no record of her in the 1871 and 1881 censuses, so at that stage in my research I presumed that she had probably moved away and possibly got married. Elizabeth is a fairly common name amongst Saddingtons at the time, so tracing her marriage would not be easy, and so I let it ride.
Research later showed that, at the time of the 1871 census, her father, Thomas Saddington, was living alone at Lucas Yard, Great Bowden; all of his children had seemingly left home. And in 1881, he was living in Foxton with his next youngest and unmarried brother, John, and their youngest and spinster sister, Sarah. But when Thomas died on 28 May 1883, he was back in Great Bowden and his death was registered by "E. Saddington, Daughter, Present at the death, Great Bowden". When I bought his death certificate back in 1998, I assumed that this meant that his daughter, Elizabeth, had not married after all and had come back from wherever she had been for the 1871 and 1881 censuses to care for her father in his final illness.
Recently, however, I went back through the notes that I had originally taken from the Great Bowden parish registers. There, amongst the burials, I found an entry for an Elizabeth Saddington, aged 34, being buried on 26 February 1863. I did the maths and the dates were right for Elizabeth Saddington born in 1828. So I bought the certificate to make sure one way or the other.
When the certificate arrived, it stated that Elizabeth Saddington, aged 34 and a charwoman, had died on 22 February 1863 of chlorosis and exhaustion. The death was registered by one Sarah West, present at the death. Further research was called for. Going back to the 1861 census, I found a Sarah West, wife of Samuel, living two doors away from the Saddington family. I can now be almost 100% certain that the Elizabeth Saddington on the death certificate is the same as Elizabeth Saddington, daughter of Thomas and Hannah Saddington. The only other Elizabeth Saddington of a similar age known to be living in Great Bowden in 1863 was the wife of Thomas Saddington, Elizabeth's oldest brother, but she is known to have lived until 1914 and is buried with her husband in the Great Bowden cemetery.
This means that the conclusion I reached in 1998 regarding which Elizabeth Saddington had registered Thomas Saddington the elder's death was completely wrong. It had been his daughter in law, Elizabeth Saddington (nee Smith), not his own daughter, Elizabeth. I had been misled by the custom of referring to sons and daughters in law as sons and daughters, something which happens frequently in historical documents.
To tie up the final loose end, I investigated the cause of Elizabeth's death. According to Wikipedia, chlorosis is a form of anaemia (iron deficiency), one of the symptoms of which is lack of energy - which probably led to exhaustion being given as a secondary cause of Elizabeth's death. It may have been hereditary, and today it would have been treated with vitamin supplements. In Elizabeth's day, it was also known as green sickness, because a sufferer's skin developed a pale green tinge. An academic article about chlorosis can be found here.
So Elizabeth Saddington died relatively young and unmarried, having spent most of her life looking after her family. The possibility of her cause of death being hereditary has now made me look more closely at her mother, Hannah, who died at the age of 42.
Any comments on this post will be gratefully received.
Elizabeth Saddington, daughter of Thomas and Hannah, was born in December 1828 in Great Bowden, Leicestershire, and was baptised on 29 December 1828 in the Parish Church.
Her life is then conjecture until the 1841 census, due to the lack of official documentation. In 1841, Elizabeth, now aged 13, was living in Great Bowden with her parents, Thomas and Hannah, and six of her siblings, namely Thomas (1830), John Jonathan (1831), William (1834), Joseph (1836), Ann (1838) and Jonathan (1841).
Over the next ten years, Elizabeth appears to have remained at home, helping out with the housework and the younger children. In the 1851 census, she was still living in Great Bowden, aged 22, with her now widowed father and seven siblings, being the six present in 1841 and a further brother, Henry (1843). Elizabeth's occupation is given as 'housekeeper'; her mother, Hannah, having died only about six weeks before.
When the 1861 census was taken, Elizabeth, aged 32, was still living at home at Middle Green, Great Bowden with her father and her three youngest brothers, Joseph, Jonathan and Henry. However, her occupation is now given as 'charwoman', so she was presumably working outside the home, cleaning other people's houses. Her father had not remarried, so it is reasonably safe to assume that she was also still keeping house for him and her brothers.
After that, I could find no record of her in the 1871 and 1881 censuses, so at that stage in my research I presumed that she had probably moved away and possibly got married. Elizabeth is a fairly common name amongst Saddingtons at the time, so tracing her marriage would not be easy, and so I let it ride.
Research later showed that, at the time of the 1871 census, her father, Thomas Saddington, was living alone at Lucas Yard, Great Bowden; all of his children had seemingly left home. And in 1881, he was living in Foxton with his next youngest and unmarried brother, John, and their youngest and spinster sister, Sarah. But when Thomas died on 28 May 1883, he was back in Great Bowden and his death was registered by "E. Saddington, Daughter, Present at the death, Great Bowden". When I bought his death certificate back in 1998, I assumed that this meant that his daughter, Elizabeth, had not married after all and had come back from wherever she had been for the 1871 and 1881 censuses to care for her father in his final illness.
Recently, however, I went back through the notes that I had originally taken from the Great Bowden parish registers. There, amongst the burials, I found an entry for an Elizabeth Saddington, aged 34, being buried on 26 February 1863. I did the maths and the dates were right for Elizabeth Saddington born in 1828. So I bought the certificate to make sure one way or the other.
When the certificate arrived, it stated that Elizabeth Saddington, aged 34 and a charwoman, had died on 22 February 1863 of chlorosis and exhaustion. The death was registered by one Sarah West, present at the death. Further research was called for. Going back to the 1861 census, I found a Sarah West, wife of Samuel, living two doors away from the Saddington family. I can now be almost 100% certain that the Elizabeth Saddington on the death certificate is the same as Elizabeth Saddington, daughter of Thomas and Hannah Saddington. The only other Elizabeth Saddington of a similar age known to be living in Great Bowden in 1863 was the wife of Thomas Saddington, Elizabeth's oldest brother, but she is known to have lived until 1914 and is buried with her husband in the Great Bowden cemetery.
This means that the conclusion I reached in 1998 regarding which Elizabeth Saddington had registered Thomas Saddington the elder's death was completely wrong. It had been his daughter in law, Elizabeth Saddington (nee Smith), not his own daughter, Elizabeth. I had been misled by the custom of referring to sons and daughters in law as sons and daughters, something which happens frequently in historical documents.
To tie up the final loose end, I investigated the cause of Elizabeth's death. According to Wikipedia, chlorosis is a form of anaemia (iron deficiency), one of the symptoms of which is lack of energy - which probably led to exhaustion being given as a secondary cause of Elizabeth's death. It may have been hereditary, and today it would have been treated with vitamin supplements. In Elizabeth's day, it was also known as green sickness, because a sufferer's skin developed a pale green tinge. An academic article about chlorosis can be found here.
So Elizabeth Saddington died relatively young and unmarried, having spent most of her life looking after her family. The possibility of her cause of death being hereditary has now made me look more closely at her mother, Hannah, who died at the age of 42.
Any comments on this post will be gratefully received.
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