28 Castle StreetThe Early Occupiers |
|
|
Home Page
Castle Street |
Click here to read about the early history of the property that is now 28 and 28A Castle Street The Land Tax Records from 1800 show that this house was occupied by George Longden. By 1823 the Record says "late George Longden". We do not know how up to date these records were but the parish records of St Mary' Church show that George Longden died aged 81 in March 1821. At this stage we know little about George Longden but it appears that his wife was Rose Longden nee Flyde who died September 1809 aged 70 years. George and Rose had married in April 1771. By 1822 the Land Tax Records show that this house was occupied by Thomas Landsdown. The will of Abraham Riddiford shows that he left the properties that became 28 and 28A Castle Street to his daughter Ann. In 1827 the will described them as follows; "all that my freehold messuage or dwellinghouse in three tenements in the several occupations of William Liddiatt John Longden and Mary Hopkins widow as my tenants thereof with the gardens and appurtenances thereto adjoining and belonging and which said I bought and purchased of Mark Nash and also all that messuage or dwelling house in two tenements in the several occupations of Richard Lansdown and …(left blank)..Carter as my tenants thereof with the garden and appurtenances thereto adjoining and belonging which I bought and purchased of William Taylor all which said messuages tenements or dwelling houses gardens and premises are lying and adjoining on the East side of the …street of the town and borough of Thornbury aforesaid." The will is therefore indicating that in 1827 one house was divided into two and these properties occupied by Richard Lansdown and someone called Carter as tenants. On the 1840 Tithe Map (which was drawn up some time between 1837 and 1840) one property is shown as number 277 and it is occupied by two tenants; Joseph Carter and Edward Trayherne. This appears to correspond to what is now number 28 Castle Street. Joseph Carter died in Thornbury on 17th April 1840. He was 56 years old. Click here to read about Joseph Fletcher Carter and his wife Elizabeth. Richard Lansdown. At the moment we have no information whatsoever about Richard. Edward Trayherne (or Trayhurn) seems to be the tenant who replaced Richard Lansdown. Edward married Eliza the daughter of Joseph Birt who was living in the adjoining property which became 28A. Click here to read more about Edward and Eliza Trayhurn. An indenture of 1852 says that the property was "then or late" occupied by William Howard and John Luce but it is likely that both of these families lived in the property some years earlier. The first of these, William Howard was living in what is now Chapel Street in the 1851 Census. He was aged 59 and an agricultural labourer born in Oldbury. His wife was Hannah Howard was 56, a charwoman and of their sons Stephen was also an agricultural labourer and aged 16. Another son, George, a scholar aged 12. In 1861 the family was living in what is now Upper Bath Road. Click here to read more about William Howard The second tenant mentioned John Luce was a master butcher aged 42 living in 17 St John Street by the 1851 Census. By the 1870's they were living in Pullins Green. Click here to read more about John Luce The 1851 Census seems to show that a shopkeeper was living in the house which is now 28 Castle Street. This was a grocer called Henry Withers aged 46. His wife was a school mistress called Sarah aged 46. Their children were Henry aged 14, Frederick aged 12, Ann aged 8 Joseph aged 7 and Isabella aged 4. Click here to read more about Henry Withers and his family The 1851 Census also shows three other households in this area; James Moxham, Joseph Birt and Sarah Webb. In the absence of further information we have assumed that these families were living in parts of what is now 28A Castle Street. In the 1861 Census the tenants were Thomas Hopkins and Joseph James. Thomas Hopkins was then aged 60 and an agricultural labourer from Shirehampton. He had a son Jonathan aged 25 and unmarried who was born in Berkeley.
Thomas Hopkins appears to have been
baptised in Westbury on Trym near Bristol on 18th April 1800. His
parents were Jonathan Creed Hopkins and his wife Nancy or Naomi. We
believe that the family lived mainly in Berkeley. Jonathan Creed
Hopkins, Thomas's father died there and Thomas's children seem to have been
born there.
Thomas Hopkins had been widowed twice. Although
we know that Thomas was the tenant of a cottage at Stokefield according to
the Tithe Apportionment Survey of 1840, we have been unable to trace him in
the 1841 Census. His children were living in one of these cottages
without a parent at the time of the Census.
They were;
Lucy Hopkins aged 16, Thomas aged 15 and Jane aged 14. We
cannot explain why but the rest of the family is shown in this Census as a
separate household. They were William Hopkins aged 12 and John Hopkins aged 10.
The explanation seems to be partly because the head of the household in 1841
was a widower, Thomas Hopkins, a servant. It may have been that his work
took him away from home. Thomas married Celia Whatkins on 14th October 1846 in Thornbury.
The 1851 Census
shows that the Hopkins family lived next door to the Gastrell family in the
Stokefield Cottages, possibly in part of the original house that had been
built there and much later divided into two. Thomas was a general labourer aged
51 and his wife
Celia was also aged 51 John aged 19 was a shoemakers apprentice Jonathan aged 16
was an agricultural labourer. They had an agricultural labourer
staying with then who may have been called William Stephens.
On 13th August 1852 George Ponting
inspected premises occupied by Thomas Hopkins in Castle Street, which we
assume must be in Stokefield Cottages and "found that swine were kept
thereon so as to be a nuisance to the occupiers of adjoining properties."
A complaint was made to the magistrate to get it abated.
In 1853
Celia was a recipient of the mayors' charity. Celia died
aged 60 and was buried 29th July 1860. Thomas seems to have left
Thornbury after the 1861 Census and in 1871 he was lodging with a publican
in Berkeley. We believe that he was buried in Berkeley on 26th
October 1875.
Of the children of Thomas Hopkins
Lucy Hopkins born about 1825
married George Pullin a gamekeeper of Olveston on 12th June 1851.
William Hopkins in 1851 and
then aged 21 and born in Berkeley was a coachman for the Maclaine family in
Kington.
John Hopkins died aged 26
years and was buried in Thornbury on 31st May 1857.
Jonathan Hopkins
may have died in Berkeley in
1865.
In 1861 Joseph James was an agricultural
labourer from Stapleton in Bristol who was living with his wife Priscilla
aged 38 from Alveston. Joseph, the son of Henry James a labourer was a
widower aged 40 when he married Priscilla Cornock aged 29 on 16th May 1852.
Joseph's first wife was
Ruth Greenman the daughter of Richard Greenman.
Ruth died in December 1851. In 1871 Joseph and Priscilla were still
living in this house. Joseph died on 22 November 1879. In
1881 Priscilla was a charwoman aged 60 living alone in Silver Street in
Thornbury. Priscilla died on 17th April 1885.
1867 the Rate Book shows there were three
tenants John Foot Joseph James and Joseph Birt.
In 1871 the Rate book shows there were the same three tenants
John Foot Joseph James and Joseph Birt.
In 1880 the Rate Book still shows that Joseph James
was the tenant of the property which by this time was owned by George
Crossman. This is despite the fact that Joseph died in November 1879.
This might be because the book was out of date or because Priscilla was
managing to pay the rent for a while before she moved to Silver Street.
The James's were the
last remaining tenants apart from the Eddingtons who subsequently bought the
house.
Click
here to read about the earliest owners of the houses
Click here to read
about the Eddingtons who became the owners of the house.
Click here to read
about the Mills family who owned the houses
Click
here to read about the tenants of 28A Castle Street
This page was last updated:
06/05/2012 |