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The Kingsdown Cottages:
Part 2 Residents Jane Hussey, June 2020 Residents in Box village rarely had knowledge of events in Kingsdown, except casual information about Kingsdown Fair, the golf club and the Somerset Yeomanry camps. Sometimes they were able to read alarmist newspaper reports of fatalities, such as the death of Ann Little described as Savage Murder .. the effect of passion and drunkenness combined.[1] Another case was the death of 70-year-old John Greenaway who fell off a cart whilst loading a hay rick.[2] As a result of ignorance about the area and its inhabitants, much knowledge of the people who lived at Kingsdown has been lost. It was only when Kingsdown people moved into the central village that many histories became known. Charlotte Betteridge and her dog Naylor in 1930s outside the middle cottage now called Vine Cottage (courtesy Jane Hussey) |
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In the last issue we traced the history of Three Kingsdown Cottages and, in this article, we throw light on the families who lived in them and their lifestyles, many of them my relatives.
Local Communities
My family owned or tenanted these three cottages for over five generations from the end of the Georgian period until 1985. The first mention of these dwellings in my family line is when Jacob Newman of Bathford, the son of Richard Newman of Box, wrote his will in 1838. Jacob mentioned the three cottages marked on the Tithe Apportionment map as plot 613 which were then occupied by John Greenaway, Isaac Stephens and William White. He also listed a separate fourth property, occupied by James Gale. These cottages were held on a sub-lease by Jacob from the lords of the manor, Edward Richard and William Brook Northey.
We can see more about Kingsdown residents in the 1841 census. For many years the area had been home for quarrymen and masons with their families. As a result, the tiny cottages were greatly overcrowded. In 1841, the occupants of one cottage were William White aged 47, a labourer and his wife and two teenage children. In another were John Greenaway, 25, a carpenter with his young wife, one child and two lodgers, Thomas Greenaway and Henry Stevens, both stone excavators by trade. The next entry on the census is John Harris aged 45, a stonecutter with his wife and two children.
It was important for the cottages to be kept in family ownership because they were almost the only assets of the families, easily transferable and divisible (unlike chattels or furniture) and could be owned by women. Jacob Newman tried to make provision for the cottage occupied by John Harris. He left it to John Newman of Woodside Brewery, Bathford, but, fearing John's death, it was then to go to John’s wife Mary, followed by his grandson, Frederick Newman Smith, eldest son of his son-in-law Moses Smith and Jacob's daughter Charlotte Newman. It didn’t work out the way Jacob planned. John did not make a will and Mary, his wife, never took up the Letters of Administration, and, on her death in 1870, all the property reverted to Jacob's oldest son, James Newman, Mary’s brother-in-law.
The properties continued in my family’s occupation through marriage and inheritance with names Newman, Smith, Betteridge and Shell. In their isolated location, few outsiders came to the area and marriages between these families was common. In the 1861 census Frederick Newman Smith and his wife Mary (née Shell) lived in Number 2, the middle cottage. By 1871 Thomas Betteridge, brother of my ancestor James Betteridge, was living next door with his wife Sarah (née Hancock) and their surviving child, renting the cottage from the Newmans.
Why the Cottages were Built
The Kingsdown properties are built on the outskirts of common land. For centuries the enclosure of properties around commons had been brought into residential development. We can speculate that the status of the cottages was originally a form of leasehold which evolved into freehold after the Great Reform Act of 1832. This Act extended franchise rights to owners of land in copyhold (subject to the customs of the manor) which were worth £10. The tenure of the cottages became even more important after the Second Reform Act of 1867 when the franchise was extended to freehold properties worth £5. Today, residence (not ownership) is the qualification for the franchise and forms of tenure like copyhold have been simplified into freehold and leasehold.
The original cottages were built by the quarrymen themselves. Many properties were extended as family needs necessitated and some residences appear to be infill developments as married children needed their own homes. As time went on, some houses were sublet when quarrymen owners moved out of the area and themselves became absentee landlords. In 1876 Jacob Smith, son of Frederick Newman Smith, was living at Ashley according to the Box voters’ list but with the right to vote in respect of the cottages on Kingsdown, which had been let. In 1882 Jacob Smith left Kingsdown and took up the licensed tenancy of the Quarryman's Arms, Box, succeeding Thomas Newman Smith.[3] He gave up the licence two years later and moved back to Kingsdown where he lived with his second wife Emma (née Hancock). Jacob died in a riding accident in 1886 when he was thrown from his horse and killed. He had not made a will but the cottages would have passed according to the laws of the manor allowing Emma to live there for the remainder of her life.
My family owned or tenanted these three cottages for over five generations from the end of the Georgian period until 1985. The first mention of these dwellings in my family line is when Jacob Newman of Bathford, the son of Richard Newman of Box, wrote his will in 1838. Jacob mentioned the three cottages marked on the Tithe Apportionment map as plot 613 which were then occupied by John Greenaway, Isaac Stephens and William White. He also listed a separate fourth property, occupied by James Gale. These cottages were held on a sub-lease by Jacob from the lords of the manor, Edward Richard and William Brook Northey.
We can see more about Kingsdown residents in the 1841 census. For many years the area had been home for quarrymen and masons with their families. As a result, the tiny cottages were greatly overcrowded. In 1841, the occupants of one cottage were William White aged 47, a labourer and his wife and two teenage children. In another were John Greenaway, 25, a carpenter with his young wife, one child and two lodgers, Thomas Greenaway and Henry Stevens, both stone excavators by trade. The next entry on the census is John Harris aged 45, a stonecutter with his wife and two children.
It was important for the cottages to be kept in family ownership because they were almost the only assets of the families, easily transferable and divisible (unlike chattels or furniture) and could be owned by women. Jacob Newman tried to make provision for the cottage occupied by John Harris. He left it to John Newman of Woodside Brewery, Bathford, but, fearing John's death, it was then to go to John’s wife Mary, followed by his grandson, Frederick Newman Smith, eldest son of his son-in-law Moses Smith and Jacob's daughter Charlotte Newman. It didn’t work out the way Jacob planned. John did not make a will and Mary, his wife, never took up the Letters of Administration, and, on her death in 1870, all the property reverted to Jacob's oldest son, James Newman, Mary’s brother-in-law.
The properties continued in my family’s occupation through marriage and inheritance with names Newman, Smith, Betteridge and Shell. In their isolated location, few outsiders came to the area and marriages between these families was common. In the 1861 census Frederick Newman Smith and his wife Mary (née Shell) lived in Number 2, the middle cottage. By 1871 Thomas Betteridge, brother of my ancestor James Betteridge, was living next door with his wife Sarah (née Hancock) and their surviving child, renting the cottage from the Newmans.
Why the Cottages were Built
The Kingsdown properties are built on the outskirts of common land. For centuries the enclosure of properties around commons had been brought into residential development. We can speculate that the status of the cottages was originally a form of leasehold which evolved into freehold after the Great Reform Act of 1832. This Act extended franchise rights to owners of land in copyhold (subject to the customs of the manor) which were worth £10. The tenure of the cottages became even more important after the Second Reform Act of 1867 when the franchise was extended to freehold properties worth £5. Today, residence (not ownership) is the qualification for the franchise and forms of tenure like copyhold have been simplified into freehold and leasehold.
The original cottages were built by the quarrymen themselves. Many properties were extended as family needs necessitated and some residences appear to be infill developments as married children needed their own homes. As time went on, some houses were sublet when quarrymen owners moved out of the area and themselves became absentee landlords. In 1876 Jacob Smith, son of Frederick Newman Smith, was living at Ashley according to the Box voters’ list but with the right to vote in respect of the cottages on Kingsdown, which had been let. In 1882 Jacob Smith left Kingsdown and took up the licensed tenancy of the Quarryman's Arms, Box, succeeding Thomas Newman Smith.[3] He gave up the licence two years later and moved back to Kingsdown where he lived with his second wife Emma (née Hancock). Jacob died in a riding accident in 1886 when he was thrown from his horse and killed. He had not made a will but the cottages would have passed according to the laws of the manor allowing Emma to live there for the remainder of her life.
Three cottages (centre of the map) with Keeler’s Cottage just visible attached to Vine Cottage, followed by Tumble Down and Tyning Cottage, (Northey Sale 1919 map courtesy Diana Northey)
Betteridge Family
Another feature of the occupiers was that quarrying was a young man’s job, partly because most payment was piecework and depended on extracting enough stone to generate a living wage. The ups and downs of the house building industry meant that some families sought employment elsewhere and new young families moved into Kingsdown. By 1881 my 2-times great grandfather James Betteridge, widower aged 49, had returned home from Devon and was living with his parents, George Betteridge, an agricultural labourer, and Ann (née Gibbons), in a cottage on the lower level further along the Lower Kingsdown Road, probably the one now ironically called Tumble Down which George rented from Henry Salmon, quarryman who probably lived further along at The Tynings. James’ younger brother, Thomas, and his wife and four children already lived in Ash Cottage, the top cottage in the rank of three. Next door was Mary Smith (née Shell), in number 2 The Cottage. She was born in 1826, so was 53 years old in 1881 and the widow of Frederick Newman Smith. She was working as a dressmaker and took in James’ teenage children because the board and lodging money was welcomed.
Every day, Mary had to pass Tumble Down to get water from the well at the far end of the lower row. James and Mary decided they might make a go of getting married. Financially it suited them both and they married in 1881. This was much to the horror of James' son George (my great grandfather) who had by then fallen in love with Mary's youngest daughter Charlotte. They were afraid that as step-brother and step-sister they might not be able to marry but, in the event, it did not deter them. James Betteridge then became the owner of Vine Cottage and Mary had to relinquish all her worldly possessions to her husband on her re-marriage. They were only married a few years because James died in late 1887 and the cottage then reverted once again to Mary.
Kingsdown Community
In 1893 Mary Betteridge made her will, bequeathing the cottage she lived in to her daughter Charlotte, wife of George Betteridge. From 1894 to 1897 she was classed as owning a house on Kingsdown on the voter's lists when suddenly her name disappeared. This may have been the property she gave to her daughter Elizabeth Ann Smith who had married James Beale, a Bath builder. Mary’s father Isaac Shell did own the end cottage (Plot 610 of the Tithe map) which latterly was the baker's adjoining the former Post Office. The Tithe Apportionment of 1838 tells us that it consisted of a cottage outhouse and garden and was then in the occupation of the Tanner family.
We can begin to see how the area began to be developed by these families. They were a long way from Box village with its church, school and shops. Before the Kingsdown Methodist Church and schoolroom were built in 1926, many local children had little education and simply followed their parents into the quarries or into marriage to a quarryman.[4] The marriages of the Newman, Smith and Betteridge families involved spouses in the row of just three cottages.
This is where a notorious incident entered the history of the cottages. In 1880-81, Charles Hawkins, mason, was listed in the Bath Directories as living in Jessamine or Jasmine Cottage, Kingsdown. Charles’ son, also Charles Hawkins, married Mary Jane Smith, sister of Jacob Smith. The young couple were listed at Kingsdown in 1881, before moving to Bathford, next door to William Hiscocks Newman. And the notoriety? In 1901 Charles Hawkins junior left his wife Mary Jane Smith and ran off with a younger woman. Not only this he absconded with the whole of the Bathford Church funds, where he was assistant overseer.
Another feature of the occupiers was that quarrying was a young man’s job, partly because most payment was piecework and depended on extracting enough stone to generate a living wage. The ups and downs of the house building industry meant that some families sought employment elsewhere and new young families moved into Kingsdown. By 1881 my 2-times great grandfather James Betteridge, widower aged 49, had returned home from Devon and was living with his parents, George Betteridge, an agricultural labourer, and Ann (née Gibbons), in a cottage on the lower level further along the Lower Kingsdown Road, probably the one now ironically called Tumble Down which George rented from Henry Salmon, quarryman who probably lived further along at The Tynings. James’ younger brother, Thomas, and his wife and four children already lived in Ash Cottage, the top cottage in the rank of three. Next door was Mary Smith (née Shell), in number 2 The Cottage. She was born in 1826, so was 53 years old in 1881 and the widow of Frederick Newman Smith. She was working as a dressmaker and took in James’ teenage children because the board and lodging money was welcomed.
Every day, Mary had to pass Tumble Down to get water from the well at the far end of the lower row. James and Mary decided they might make a go of getting married. Financially it suited them both and they married in 1881. This was much to the horror of James' son George (my great grandfather) who had by then fallen in love with Mary's youngest daughter Charlotte. They were afraid that as step-brother and step-sister they might not be able to marry but, in the event, it did not deter them. James Betteridge then became the owner of Vine Cottage and Mary had to relinquish all her worldly possessions to her husband on her re-marriage. They were only married a few years because James died in late 1887 and the cottage then reverted once again to Mary.
Kingsdown Community
In 1893 Mary Betteridge made her will, bequeathing the cottage she lived in to her daughter Charlotte, wife of George Betteridge. From 1894 to 1897 she was classed as owning a house on Kingsdown on the voter's lists when suddenly her name disappeared. This may have been the property she gave to her daughter Elizabeth Ann Smith who had married James Beale, a Bath builder. Mary’s father Isaac Shell did own the end cottage (Plot 610 of the Tithe map) which latterly was the baker's adjoining the former Post Office. The Tithe Apportionment of 1838 tells us that it consisted of a cottage outhouse and garden and was then in the occupation of the Tanner family.
We can begin to see how the area began to be developed by these families. They were a long way from Box village with its church, school and shops. Before the Kingsdown Methodist Church and schoolroom were built in 1926, many local children had little education and simply followed their parents into the quarries or into marriage to a quarryman.[4] The marriages of the Newman, Smith and Betteridge families involved spouses in the row of just three cottages.
This is where a notorious incident entered the history of the cottages. In 1880-81, Charles Hawkins, mason, was listed in the Bath Directories as living in Jessamine or Jasmine Cottage, Kingsdown. Charles’ son, also Charles Hawkins, married Mary Jane Smith, sister of Jacob Smith. The young couple were listed at Kingsdown in 1881, before moving to Bathford, next door to William Hiscocks Newman. And the notoriety? In 1901 Charles Hawkins junior left his wife Mary Jane Smith and ran off with a younger woman. Not only this he absconded with the whole of the Bathford Church funds, where he was assistant overseer.
Jessamine Cottage on the Lower Kingsdown Road (courtesy Carol Payne)
Identifying Properties and Occupants
For many years no individual names were given in the censuses for Kingsdown cottages, making it difficult to get a clear picture. This began to change after the 1880s. We know that in 1880 and 1881, Charles Hawkins, mason, was listed in the Bath Directories as living in Jessamine or Jasmine Cottage, Kingsdown on the Lower Kingsdown Road and by the 1901 census, that George and Eliza Ford were positively listed in a property named as Jessamin Cottage, next door to the Post Office and cottages called The Firs. In 1911 Jasmin Cottage was identified as having five rooms.
We can see a good example of life in the area in the late Victorian period in the life of Wallace Ford (1869-1955). Wallace was born in Kingsdown and in 1881 and 1891 he lived with parents, Charles and Elizabeth, at an unidentified location in Kingsdown. Wallace married Margaret Ellen Smith (1872-28 November 1960), who was the daughter of Jacob). In 1901 they lived in the property next to Jessamine Cottage where Margaret Ellen was named as a self-employed person in a grocery store. Either she ran a separate shop or, more probably, ran the retail shop at the Kingsdown Post Office, whilst John Brooke (later chairman of the Parish Council) was occupied as the baker.
By 1901 my family’s three cottages were next to two unoccupied properties called Garden Cottage and Barton Cottage, names which subsequently dropped out of use, possibly now known as Tumble Down and Down Under. The next cottage was owned by Henry Salmon, part of a well-known, historic Box family in Tyning Cottage.
For many years no individual names were given in the censuses for Kingsdown cottages, making it difficult to get a clear picture. This began to change after the 1880s. We know that in 1880 and 1881, Charles Hawkins, mason, was listed in the Bath Directories as living in Jessamine or Jasmine Cottage, Kingsdown on the Lower Kingsdown Road and by the 1901 census, that George and Eliza Ford were positively listed in a property named as Jessamin Cottage, next door to the Post Office and cottages called The Firs. In 1911 Jasmin Cottage was identified as having five rooms.
We can see a good example of life in the area in the late Victorian period in the life of Wallace Ford (1869-1955). Wallace was born in Kingsdown and in 1881 and 1891 he lived with parents, Charles and Elizabeth, at an unidentified location in Kingsdown. Wallace married Margaret Ellen Smith (1872-28 November 1960), who was the daughter of Jacob). In 1901 they lived in the property next to Jessamine Cottage where Margaret Ellen was named as a self-employed person in a grocery store. Either she ran a separate shop or, more probably, ran the retail shop at the Kingsdown Post Office, whilst John Brooke (later chairman of the Parish Council) was occupied as the baker.
By 1901 my family’s three cottages were next to two unoccupied properties called Garden Cottage and Barton Cottage, names which subsequently dropped out of use, possibly now known as Tumble Down and Down Under. The next cottage was owned by Henry Salmon, part of a well-known, historic Box family in Tyning Cottage.
Down Under, Tumble Down and Tyning Cottages (courtesy Carol Payne)
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Later Ownership of My Family’s Cottages
In 1901 William Hiscocks Newman died without children and left his share of two of the cottages to his nephew Herbert Pimbury (son of his sister Jane Hiscocks Newman) who lived in London. By the time of her death in 1905 Mary Betteridge had moved out of Cottage 2 to live with her daughter Charlotte and son-in-law George Betteridge at the Swan Inn on Kingsdown, where George had become landlord. Right: Swan Inn in 1950s (courtesy Jane Hussey) |
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Charlotte and George thought that their inheritance should have been not only Cottage 2 but also the top cottage, because there was a through door to Ash Cottage. They disputed the inheritance based on this, but Emma and Jack Ash, who lived there, would not give in and claimed it as their own.
The 1909 Land Survey reveals further information. The two cottages inherited by Herbert Pimbury had tenants Mr Hancock in Cottage 2 and William Robert Ashley and George Archer, both with families and both labourers, in cottage 3. The value of the two Pimbury cottages was £160 with the land worth £13, comprising about a quarter of an acre. Herbert was liable for all repairs and the payment of the rates, which for the whole were £3.15s. Emma Ash was the owner of the top cottage, although she was living at the time in Chelsea, London, where she ran a business. The occupant of the cottage in 1909 was a man called Pinnock, the value of the cottage was £75 and the Pinnocks’ rent was £6.
In 1926, in the middle of the Great Strike, the cottages were put up for sale.[5] They were advertised as four cottages because
the bottom one appears to have been divided, although the lower part was vacant at the time. The two cottages owned by Herbert Pimbury were sold the following year along with all his other inheritances in the Box - Bathford area.
By 1929 George Betteridge retired from the Longs Arms in South Wraxall and came home to Kingsdown to claim his remaining cottage. He had not won the court case which would have given him the top cottage, so George and Charlotte lived out the rest of their lives in the middle one which we always knew as Vine Cottage, though its name was only changed to this long after their deaths. In 1933 their daughter Amy Betteridge returned to Kingsdown to live with them. She opening a shop in Box with her cousin Elizabeth Winifred Ford, and called the business the Betty Shop. When Amy's mother died in 1940, she stayed and looked after her father, though by this time her boyfriend Charles Freeme had moved to Kingsdown and bought the lower cottage to be near her. She would not marry him whilst her father was still alive and needed care. It was during the Second World War that youngest Betteridge daughter, Kathleen now married to Claude Gibbons, returned whilst her husband was away at war to be near her father and lived in the lower cottage which Charlie Freeme had bought for £360 according to the family.
The 1909 Land Survey reveals further information. The two cottages inherited by Herbert Pimbury had tenants Mr Hancock in Cottage 2 and William Robert Ashley and George Archer, both with families and both labourers, in cottage 3. The value of the two Pimbury cottages was £160 with the land worth £13, comprising about a quarter of an acre. Herbert was liable for all repairs and the payment of the rates, which for the whole were £3.15s. Emma Ash was the owner of the top cottage, although she was living at the time in Chelsea, London, where she ran a business. The occupant of the cottage in 1909 was a man called Pinnock, the value of the cottage was £75 and the Pinnocks’ rent was £6.
In 1926, in the middle of the Great Strike, the cottages were put up for sale.[5] They were advertised as four cottages because
the bottom one appears to have been divided, although the lower part was vacant at the time. The two cottages owned by Herbert Pimbury were sold the following year along with all his other inheritances in the Box - Bathford area.
By 1929 George Betteridge retired from the Longs Arms in South Wraxall and came home to Kingsdown to claim his remaining cottage. He had not won the court case which would have given him the top cottage, so George and Charlotte lived out the rest of their lives in the middle one which we always knew as Vine Cottage, though its name was only changed to this long after their deaths. In 1933 their daughter Amy Betteridge returned to Kingsdown to live with them. She opening a shop in Box with her cousin Elizabeth Winifred Ford, and called the business the Betty Shop. When Amy's mother died in 1940, she stayed and looked after her father, though by this time her boyfriend Charles Freeme had moved to Kingsdown and bought the lower cottage to be near her. She would not marry him whilst her father was still alive and needed care. It was during the Second World War that youngest Betteridge daughter, Kathleen now married to Claude Gibbons, returned whilst her husband was away at war to be near her father and lived in the lower cottage which Charlie Freeme had bought for £360 according to the family.
More Marriages
In 1945 Edwin Onslow Ford (Ted) and his wife Winifred (nee Betteridge, another of Amy's sisters) retired from school teaching in Romford, Essex and came back to Kingsdown where until 1947 they lodged c/o Mrs. Betteridge. Presumably this was also in one of the three cottages, as they did not move into their retirement home of 66 Kingsdown until late 1948 or early 1949. Win's will stated that she was living at 3 Vine Cottage at the time of her death in 1975, Ted having pre-deceased her by two years, Amy at this time was trying to care for her elder sister in her old age and number 66, Kingsdown, was declared uninhabitable and demolished after Win’s death
After her father George Betteridge died in 1949, Amy inherited the middle cottage and then married Charles Francis Freeme. The electoral roll for 1950 confirms that Charles was living at The Cottage. This name now relates to the lower one, but in earlier times it appears to denote the whole row. Amy Freeme was listed as living at No 2 The Cottage, with her sister Kathleen Gibbons but Kathleen's husband Claude was said to be living next door at No 1 The Cottage! The Gibbons did not live there long before moving in 1954 to their council house at 19 Brunel Way, Box. Ethel Painter was listed at The Cottage, Kingsdown, the lower cottage.
Charles Freeme died in 1965 and Amy lived there until a couple of years before her death in 1985 when she was unable to cope and moved to a flat in Box. At this point Vine Cottage was sold, the last cottage owned by my family.
In 1945 Edwin Onslow Ford (Ted) and his wife Winifred (nee Betteridge, another of Amy's sisters) retired from school teaching in Romford, Essex and came back to Kingsdown where until 1947 they lodged c/o Mrs. Betteridge. Presumably this was also in one of the three cottages, as they did not move into their retirement home of 66 Kingsdown until late 1948 or early 1949. Win's will stated that she was living at 3 Vine Cottage at the time of her death in 1975, Ted having pre-deceased her by two years, Amy at this time was trying to care for her elder sister in her old age and number 66, Kingsdown, was declared uninhabitable and demolished after Win’s death
After her father George Betteridge died in 1949, Amy inherited the middle cottage and then married Charles Francis Freeme. The electoral roll for 1950 confirms that Charles was living at The Cottage. This name now relates to the lower one, but in earlier times it appears to denote the whole row. Amy Freeme was listed as living at No 2 The Cottage, with her sister Kathleen Gibbons but Kathleen's husband Claude was said to be living next door at No 1 The Cottage! The Gibbons did not live there long before moving in 1954 to their council house at 19 Brunel Way, Box. Ethel Painter was listed at The Cottage, Kingsdown, the lower cottage.
Charles Freeme died in 1965 and Amy lived there until a couple of years before her death in 1985 when she was unable to cope and moved to a flat in Box. At this point Vine Cottage was sold, the last cottage owned by my family.
Conclusion
Throughout the period, the breadwinners were involved in the stone quarry trade as miners excavating the stone or as masons shaping it. Some were self-employed and may have had enough money to build or extend their properties; others worked for the Bath Stone Firms. All suffered in times of recession. The cottages were small and families were large with much of the children’s social life being conducted outdoors in Totney Woods and on Kingsdown. Education was scarce. Most women were fully engaged in drawing water, cleaning, washing and other domestic needs such as collecting wood or coal for heating. Widows needed a husband to provide an income to pay the rent. These conditions lasted for several hundred years, a cycle of poverty in childhood and old age with work and family in the middle years.
The three cottages in this story pop in and out of my different family lines for at least five generations: Betteridges, Newmans, Smiths, Hawkins and Hancocks, but there is still a lot to discover and, without the actual cottage deeds, it is not an easy job.
The names and even the numbers of the properties changed as people adapted them for their personal family needs.
I would love to hear if anyone has knowledge of their family ancestors in the area.
Throughout the period, the breadwinners were involved in the stone quarry trade as miners excavating the stone or as masons shaping it. Some were self-employed and may have had enough money to build or extend their properties; others worked for the Bath Stone Firms. All suffered in times of recession. The cottages were small and families were large with much of the children’s social life being conducted outdoors in Totney Woods and on Kingsdown. Education was scarce. Most women were fully engaged in drawing water, cleaning, washing and other domestic needs such as collecting wood or coal for heating. Widows needed a husband to provide an income to pay the rent. These conditions lasted for several hundred years, a cycle of poverty in childhood and old age with work and family in the middle years.
The three cottages in this story pop in and out of my different family lines for at least five generations: Betteridges, Newmans, Smiths, Hawkins and Hancocks, but there is still a lot to discover and, without the actual cottage deeds, it is not an easy job.
The names and even the numbers of the properties changed as people adapted them for their personal family needs.
I would love to hear if anyone has knowledge of their family ancestors in the area.
Family Trees
Smith
Moses Smith (1799-1855), postboy and coachman, married Charlotte Newman (1803-1837). Children included:
Frederick Newman Smith (1826-1875).
Frederick Newman Smith (1826-1875) married Mary Shell (1826-) of Bathford, daughter of Isaac Shell, tiler, on 11 October 1846. Children:
Ellen (1847-1937); Elizabeth Anne (12 November 1848-1894); Mary (1849-); Jacob (1850-1880) who married 1. Margaret Elizabeth Hawkins on 10 July 1868 and 2. Emma Jane Ford on 30 October 1975; Mary J (1853-); Frederick (1854-) (all born in Bathford); and Charlotte (b 1865 in Box -)
Jacob Smith (1850-1880), quarryman, married 1. Margaret Elizabeth Hawkins on 10 July 1868 and 2. Emma Jane Ford on 30 October 1875. Children of 1:
Margaret Ellen Smith (b 1872) married Wallace Ford, mason, son of Charles Ford, labourer, on 18 November 1893.
Charlotte Smith (1865-1940) married George Betteridge (1862-1949) – see below
Shell
Isaac Shell (b 1806) married Sarah Flint (b 1805) on 18 July 1821. Children:
Elenor (b 1825); Mary (1826-);
Mary Shell (1826-) married 1. Frederick Newman Smith of Bathford on 11 October 1846 – Children listed above; and 2. James Betteridge on 26 December 1883, as below.
Betteridge
George Betteridge (1805-1883), labourer, and Ann Gibbons. Children:
James (1831-1887); Henry (1833); Edward (1835); Alfred (1838); Thomas (b 1840); Henry (1842); Elizabeth Ann (1845); Charles (1848); William (1850); Frederick (1852); and Mary Ann who married George Ford.
James Betteridge (1831-1887) married 1, Mary Taylor in 1853 and 2. Mary Smith (nee Shell) on 27 December 1881, Children with Mary Taylor:
Frederick (1857-1929); Ann Eliza (1860); George (1862-1949) married Charlotte Smith; Charles Henry (1865-1949); Mary Ann (1868-1944); and John (1871-1944), shunter with GWR, who married Christina (1877).
George Betteridge (1862-1949) married Charlotte Smith (1864-19 February 1940) on 26 December 1883. They tenanted The Swan Inn. Children:
Winifred Mary (1884-17 July 1975) who married Edwin Onslow Ford (see below); Cicely (1885-1927): Ernest George (1887-1974); Alice Maud (10 December 1889 – 12 March 1972); Amy Georgina (30 October 1894 – 15 January 1985) who married Charles Freeme; Frederick James (1898-24 May 1985); John William (1903-1904); and Kathleen Lotty (16 June 1906 – 6 February 1991) who married Claude Gibbons.
Amy Georgina (30 October 1894 – 15 January 1985) married Charles Francis Freeme (1892-22 January 1965) in 1949
Hawkins
Charles Hawkins senior (1829-1922) married Leah. Children:
Margaret Elizabeth (1849-75) married Jacob Smith (1850-1880) on 11 July 1869; Charles junior (b 1852) married Mary Jane Smith (1852-1933) in 1872; Emma (b 1860); and Leah (1864)
Ford
Michael (1796) and Amy (1801) Ford. Children:
Thomas (1816); Michael (1821); Jeremiah (1826); Charles (1826); James (1829); and Mary (1831)
Charles Ford (b 1826), labourer and army pensioner, married Elizabeth Jenkins (b 1837) in 1862. Children included:
Matilda J (1865); Albert J (1867); Wallace Ford (1870-1955), mason, who married Margaret Ellen Smith (b 1872); Ernest (1872); and Selina R (1874).
Wallace Ford (1870-1955), mason, married Margaret Ellen Smith (b 1872), daughter of Jacob Smith, on 18 November 1893. Children:
Victor Leonard (1902); Winifred May (1907); Ethel Margart (1908).
Edwin Onslow (Ted) Ford (1883-28 August 1973), a school teacher, married Winifred Mary Betteridge (1884-17 July 1975) in 1929.
Family of George Ford (b 1847)
John (1807), rail labourer, and Jane (1812). Children:
Ann (1837); Alfred (1841); Elizabeth (1843); Edwin (1845); George (1847); James (1851); John (1853); and Frederick (1855). It isn’t possible to identify their house in 1861 and 1871 which is just called Kingsdown.
George (1847) had married Eliza H Thurston (1852), Children:
Frederick G (1874); Robert J (1877); Arthur (1879); George (1882); Herbert William (1888).
James Ford (1851) married Sarah Ragbourne. Children:
Mary J (1875); Harriett A (1877); Henry J (1878); George (1879-1947); Beattrice (1882); Lilly T (1885); and William 1886.
In 1939 George (b 21 December 1879-1947) and Frances (b 3 June 1884) lived at 3 The Firs, Kingsdown. Children: Stanley (1908); Raymond (1910).
Family of Edwin Ford (1845-1921)
John (1821), labourer, and Jane Woodman (1822), laundress. Children:
Alfred (1841): Edwin (1845-1921); George (1848); James (1850); John (1852); Frederick (1855).
Edwin (1845-1921) married Eliza (1855).
Smith
Moses Smith (1799-1855), postboy and coachman, married Charlotte Newman (1803-1837). Children included:
Frederick Newman Smith (1826-1875).
Frederick Newman Smith (1826-1875) married Mary Shell (1826-) of Bathford, daughter of Isaac Shell, tiler, on 11 October 1846. Children:
Ellen (1847-1937); Elizabeth Anne (12 November 1848-1894); Mary (1849-); Jacob (1850-1880) who married 1. Margaret Elizabeth Hawkins on 10 July 1868 and 2. Emma Jane Ford on 30 October 1975; Mary J (1853-); Frederick (1854-) (all born in Bathford); and Charlotte (b 1865 in Box -)
Jacob Smith (1850-1880), quarryman, married 1. Margaret Elizabeth Hawkins on 10 July 1868 and 2. Emma Jane Ford on 30 October 1875. Children of 1:
Margaret Ellen Smith (b 1872) married Wallace Ford, mason, son of Charles Ford, labourer, on 18 November 1893.
Charlotte Smith (1865-1940) married George Betteridge (1862-1949) – see below
Shell
Isaac Shell (b 1806) married Sarah Flint (b 1805) on 18 July 1821. Children:
Elenor (b 1825); Mary (1826-);
Mary Shell (1826-) married 1. Frederick Newman Smith of Bathford on 11 October 1846 – Children listed above; and 2. James Betteridge on 26 December 1883, as below.
Betteridge
George Betteridge (1805-1883), labourer, and Ann Gibbons. Children:
James (1831-1887); Henry (1833); Edward (1835); Alfred (1838); Thomas (b 1840); Henry (1842); Elizabeth Ann (1845); Charles (1848); William (1850); Frederick (1852); and Mary Ann who married George Ford.
James Betteridge (1831-1887) married 1, Mary Taylor in 1853 and 2. Mary Smith (nee Shell) on 27 December 1881, Children with Mary Taylor:
Frederick (1857-1929); Ann Eliza (1860); George (1862-1949) married Charlotte Smith; Charles Henry (1865-1949); Mary Ann (1868-1944); and John (1871-1944), shunter with GWR, who married Christina (1877).
George Betteridge (1862-1949) married Charlotte Smith (1864-19 February 1940) on 26 December 1883. They tenanted The Swan Inn. Children:
Winifred Mary (1884-17 July 1975) who married Edwin Onslow Ford (see below); Cicely (1885-1927): Ernest George (1887-1974); Alice Maud (10 December 1889 – 12 March 1972); Amy Georgina (30 October 1894 – 15 January 1985) who married Charles Freeme; Frederick James (1898-24 May 1985); John William (1903-1904); and Kathleen Lotty (16 June 1906 – 6 February 1991) who married Claude Gibbons.
Amy Georgina (30 October 1894 – 15 January 1985) married Charles Francis Freeme (1892-22 January 1965) in 1949
Hawkins
Charles Hawkins senior (1829-1922) married Leah. Children:
Margaret Elizabeth (1849-75) married Jacob Smith (1850-1880) on 11 July 1869; Charles junior (b 1852) married Mary Jane Smith (1852-1933) in 1872; Emma (b 1860); and Leah (1864)
Ford
Michael (1796) and Amy (1801) Ford. Children:
Thomas (1816); Michael (1821); Jeremiah (1826); Charles (1826); James (1829); and Mary (1831)
Charles Ford (b 1826), labourer and army pensioner, married Elizabeth Jenkins (b 1837) in 1862. Children included:
Matilda J (1865); Albert J (1867); Wallace Ford (1870-1955), mason, who married Margaret Ellen Smith (b 1872); Ernest (1872); and Selina R (1874).
Wallace Ford (1870-1955), mason, married Margaret Ellen Smith (b 1872), daughter of Jacob Smith, on 18 November 1893. Children:
Victor Leonard (1902); Winifred May (1907); Ethel Margart (1908).
Edwin Onslow (Ted) Ford (1883-28 August 1973), a school teacher, married Winifred Mary Betteridge (1884-17 July 1975) in 1929.
Family of George Ford (b 1847)
John (1807), rail labourer, and Jane (1812). Children:
Ann (1837); Alfred (1841); Elizabeth (1843); Edwin (1845); George (1847); James (1851); John (1853); and Frederick (1855). It isn’t possible to identify their house in 1861 and 1871 which is just called Kingsdown.
George (1847) had married Eliza H Thurston (1852), Children:
Frederick G (1874); Robert J (1877); Arthur (1879); George (1882); Herbert William (1888).
James Ford (1851) married Sarah Ragbourne. Children:
Mary J (1875); Harriett A (1877); Henry J (1878); George (1879-1947); Beattrice (1882); Lilly T (1885); and William 1886.
In 1939 George (b 21 December 1879-1947) and Frances (b 3 June 1884) lived at 3 The Firs, Kingsdown. Children: Stanley (1908); Raymond (1910).
Family of Edwin Ford (1845-1921)
John (1821), labourer, and Jane Woodman (1822), laundress. Children:
Alfred (1841): Edwin (1845-1921); George (1848); James (1850); John (1852); Frederick (1855).
Edwin (1845-1921) married Eliza (1855).
References
[1] Bath Chronicle and Weekly Gazette, 9 September 1841
[2] Wiltshire Times and Trowbridge Advertiser, 6 July 1878
[3] Register of licences, Wiltshire History Centre
[4] Date of chapel courtesy Julian Orbach, notes for revised edition of Pevsner, Architectural Guides: Buildings of England: Wiltshire
[5] Bath Chronicle and Herald, 2 October 1926
Sources:
Box Land Tax assessment 1780-1831 WRO A1/345/45
Box rates 1820-30 WRO 1719/19
Box Tithe Map and Apportionment 1838 WRO
Survey of Box 1842
1841-1911 Census for Kingsdown, Box
Land Valuation 1909 Box PRO IR/58/81598/81600
Will of Jacob Newman of Bathford PCC London 1853
Will of James Newman of Bathford proved London 1876
Admon. John Newman Bristol 1871
Will of William Hiscocks Newman proved Bristol 1901
Will of Mary Betteridge proved Salisbury 1905
Electoral Rolls Box 1837-1970
Bath Trade Directories
Family photographs.
[1] Bath Chronicle and Weekly Gazette, 9 September 1841
[2] Wiltshire Times and Trowbridge Advertiser, 6 July 1878
[3] Register of licences, Wiltshire History Centre
[4] Date of chapel courtesy Julian Orbach, notes for revised edition of Pevsner, Architectural Guides: Buildings of England: Wiltshire
[5] Bath Chronicle and Herald, 2 October 1926
Sources:
Box Land Tax assessment 1780-1831 WRO A1/345/45
Box rates 1820-30 WRO 1719/19
Box Tithe Map and Apportionment 1838 WRO
Survey of Box 1842
1841-1911 Census for Kingsdown, Box
Land Valuation 1909 Box PRO IR/58/81598/81600
Will of Jacob Newman of Bathford PCC London 1853
Will of James Newman of Bathford proved London 1876
Admon. John Newman Bristol 1871
Will of William Hiscocks Newman proved Bristol 1901
Will of Mary Betteridge proved Salisbury 1905
Electoral Rolls Box 1837-1970
Bath Trade Directories
Family photographs.