Person:Christopher Drake (2)

Christopher Foot Drake was baptised on 11th January 1829 at Bere Ferrers in Devon, son of Mary Drake, formerly Harris, and her husband John Drake, a husbandman. He was named after his paternal grandmother's father, Christopher Foot. Young Christopher was the youngest of seven children. His mother Mary died in 1832, when Christopher was only three years old.

Christopher appears in the 1841 and 1851 censuses living with his father in Bere Ferrers. The family appears to have lived at Monkeys Castle or Monks Castle, which seems to have been in between Bere Ferrers and Bere Alston in the vicinity of Well Farm; Christopher's baptism gives the family's abode as Monks Castle, whilst the 1851 census gives their address as Monkeys Castle. In 1851 Christopher was working as a labourer in a lead mine.

By 1860 he had moved into the village of Bere Alston (which is in the parish of Bere Ferrers). He married Ellen Oliver at Bere Ferrers on 8th December 1860, aged 31. They appear to have had three children who appeared with them in the censuses, although there was a large gap between the second and third child. Each census from 1861 to 1881 finds Christopher and Ellen living in the parish of Bere Ferrers, with Christopher working as an agricultural labourer. Both his sons in 1881 were working as copper miners.

Christopher died in 1885, aged 56. Ellen outlived him by 43 years.

1. ↑ Baptisms register, in Church of England. Parish Registers of Bere Ferrers. (Exeter: Devon Heritage Services).

   BAPTISMS solemnized in the Parish of Beer Ferris n[ea]r Tavistock in the County of Devon in the Year 1829
   No.	When Baptized	Child's Christian Name	Parent's Name		Abode	Quality, Trade, or Profession	By whom the Ceremony was performed
   			Christian	Surname
   928	January 11th	Christopher Foote Son of	John and Mary	Drake	Monk's Castle	Husbandman	W. Servante

2. ↑ England. 1841 Census Schedules for England and Wales, Isle of Man and the Channel Islands. (
   Kew, Richmond, Greater London TW9 4DU, United Kingdom:
   The National Archives (abbreviated TNA), formerly the UK General Register Office.)
   Class HO107; Piece 240; Book 5; Folio 11; Page 17, 6 Jun 1841.

   Address: Church Cot, Beerferris, Devon [listed between Well and Woolacombe]
   John Drake, male, 50 [1786-91], Ag[ricultural] lab[ourer], b. in county
   Mary Drake, female, 20 [1816-21], b. in county
   Christopher Drake, male, 13 [1827/8], b. in county
   Mary Drake, female, 18m [1839/40], b. in county
   William Drake, male, 14m [1840], b. in county

3. ↑ England. 1851 Census Returns for England and Wales. (
   Kew, Richmond, Greater London TW9 4DU, United Kingdom:
   The National Archives (abbreviated TNA), formerly the UK General Register Office.)
   Class HO107; Piece 1883; Folio 79; Page 18, 30 Mar 1851.

   Address: Monkeys Castle, Beerferris, Devon
   John Drake, head, widower, male, 65 [1785/6], Ag[ricultural] lab[ourer], b. Beerferris, Devon
   Jane Harry, daughter, married, female, 27 [1823/4], b. Beerferris, Devon
   Christopher Drake, son, unmarried, male, 22 [1828/9], Labourer in Lead Mine, b. Beerferris, Devon
   Mary Ann Harry, granddaughter, female, 1m [1851], b. Beerferris, Devon
   ~ [2nd household at Monkeys Castle]
   Jacob Hooper, head, married, male, 28 [1822/3], Ag[ricultural] lab[ourer], b. Stoke Damerel, Devon
   Mary Hooper, wife, married, female, 31 [1819/20], b. Beerferris, Devon
   Mary A. Hooper, daugher, female, 2 [1848/9], b. Beerferris, Devon
   John Hooper, son, male, 7m [1850], b. Beerferris, Devon
   Mary Jane Drake, daughter in law, female, 11 [1839/40], b. Beerferris, Devon

4. ↑ England. 1861 Census Schedules for England and Wales, Isle of Man and the Channel Islands. (
   Kew, Richmond, Greater London TW9 4DU, United Kingdom:
   The National Archives (abbreviated TNA), formerly the UK General Register Office.)
   Class RG9; Piece 1547; Folio 47; Page 48, 7 Apr 1861.

   Address: Cottage, Bere Alston, Bere Ferrers, Devon
   Christopher Drake, head, married, male, 33 [1827/8], Ag[ricultural] lab[ourer], b. Beerferris, Devon
   Ellen Drake, wife, married, female, 24 [1836/7], b. Lifton, Devon

5. ↑ England. England and Wales. 1871 Census Schedules. (
   Kew, Richmond, Greater London TW9 4DU, United Kingdom:
   The National Archives (abbreviated TNA), formerly the UK General Register Office.)
   Class RG10; Piece 2142; Folio 5; Page 4, 2 Apr 1871.

   Address: Goldstreet, Beerferris, Devon
   Chistopher [sic] Drake, head, married, male, 43 [1827/8], Ag[ricultural] la[bourer], b. Beerferris, Devon
   Ellin [sic] Drake, wife, married, female, 31 [1839/40], Ag[ricultural] la[bourer']s wife, b. Lifton, Devon
   Chistopher [sic] Drake, son, unmarried, male, 9 [1861/2], Scholar, b. Beerferris, Devon
   William Henry Drake, son, unmarried, male, 8 [1862/3], Scholar, b. Beerferris, Devon

6. ↑ England. 1881 Census Schedules for England and Wales, Isle of Man and the Channel Islands: . (
   Kew, Richmond, Greater London TW9 4DU, United Kingdom:
   The National Archives (abbreviated TNA), formerly the UK General Register Office.)
   Class RG11; Piece 2215; Folio 34; Page 25, 3 Apr 1881.

   Address: Frog S[ree]t, Bere Alstone, Bere Ferrers, Devon
   Christ[ophe]r Drake, head, married, male, 51 [1829/30], Farm labor[e]r, b. Bere Ferrers, Devon
   Ellen Drake, wife, married, female, 41 [1839/40], b. Lifton, Devon
   Christ[ophe]r Drake, son, unmarried, male, 18 [1862/3], Copper Miner, b. Bere Ferrers, Devon
   William Drake, son, unmarried, male, 16 [1864/5], Copper Miner, b. Bere Ferrers, Devon
   Emma L. Drake, daughter, female, 2 [1878/9], b. Bere Ferrers, Devon

7.   Deaths index, in General Register Office. England and Wales Civil Registration. (London: General Register Office).

   d. Christopher DRAKE, March Quarter 1885, Tavistock Registration District, Vol. 5b, page 275, aged 55 [1829/30]

8. ↑ Burials register, in Church of England. Parish Registers of Bere Ferrers. (Exeter: Devon Heritage Services).

   BURIALS in the Parish of Bere Ferrers in the County of Devon in the Year 1885
   No.	Name	Abode	When buried	Age	By whom the Ceremony was performed
   1465	Christopher Drake	Berealston	14th Jan[uary]	55	Cha[rle]s F. Buckley, Curate