Person:Ann Moles (3)

Ann Moles was baptised on 7th May 1809 at Willian in Hertfordshire, daughter of Mary Ann Moles, formerly Best, and her husband Thomas Moles, an agricultural labourer.

On 13th December 1829, when she was 20 years old, Ann married a labourer named John Pratt at Willian. Ann's brother William had married John Pratt's sister Hannah eighteen months earlier, and Hannah was one of the witnesses to Ann and John's marriage.

Less than three months after their marriage, Ann had a daughter, Hannah, who sadly died as a baby, being buried just nine days after her baptism. Following Hannah's death, Ann and John left Willian and spent a few years living for short periods of time in various nearby parishes. They had a son, Daniel, baptised at Weston in 1831, followed by two daughters, Catherine and Elizabeth, baptised at Graveley in 1834 and 1836. They then moved to the nearby market town of Baldock, where they had a son named Philip baptised in 1838, followed by a daughter named Hannah in 1840. John, Ann and their children appear in the 1841 census living in Baldock. They had a daughter called Eliza in 1842, but she died as a baby the following year.

By 1843 the family had returned to Willian, where they had another seven children baptised between 1844 and 1856, although one (Maria) died as a baby in 1846. By the time their youngest child, Joseph, was baptised, Ann was 47 years old. The 1851 census finds the family living at Willian, with Ann and most of her daughters working as straw plaiters, whilst John and most of their sons were agricultural labourers. Although the family had moved about, all the children were stated to have been born in Willian. Ann's father died in Willian in 1853.

The 1861 census finds the family living in the neighbouring parish of Graveley in the Jacks Hill area. Later that year Ann's mother died at Offley, a few miles west of Willian.

By 1871 Ann and John had once again returned to Willian, settling at 18 Roxley Cottages, where they lived for over ten years, also appearing at that address in the 1881 census.

Ann died in 1883, and was buried at Willian on 24th April 1883. She was about 74 years old. John outlived her by less than three years.

1. ↑ Church of England. Willian Parish Registers.

   Baptized Anno D[omi]ni 1809 / Ann Moles, Daughter of Thomas & Sarah Moles May 7

   Although Ann's parents' names are given as Thomas and Sarah, it is believed that this is an error in the parish register, and that they were actually Thomas and Mary. There are nine baptisms at Willian between 1807 and 1829 of children of Thomas Moles - three (1809-1813) giving the mother's name as Sarah but the remainder (1807 and 1816-1829) give the mother's name as Mary. The spacing of children does not suggest that there were two separate couples. One theory might be that Thomas was married first to a Mary, second to a Sarah and third to another Mary, but there is no evidence of a burial for wives 1 and 2, nor marriages 2 and 3 to support that theory. We therefore conclude that the clerk at Willian was confused as to Mary's name. The fact that Thomas and Mary had only moved to Willian relatively recently and named their first daughter after moving there Sarah may partially explain the mistake.

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 436; Book 4; Folio 46; Page 6, 6 Jun 1841.

   Address: Baldock, Hertfordshire
   John Pratt, male, 30 [1806-11], Ag[ricultural] Lab[ourer]
   Ann Pratt, female, 30 [1806-11]
   Daniel Pratt, male, 9 [1831/2]
   Catherine Pratt, female, 7 [1833/4]
   Elizabeth Pratt, female, 5 [1835/6]
   Philip Pratt, male, 3 [1837/8]
   Hannah Pratt, male, 1 [1839/40]

   The column which was supposed to be used to indicate whether born in the county or not has not been filled in for anyone on this page.

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 1709; Folio 140; Page 14, 30 Mar 1851.

   Address: Village, Willian, Hertfordshire
   John Pratt, head, married, male, 45 [1805/6], Ag[ricultural] Lab[oure]r, b. Willian, Hertfordshire
   Ann Pratt, wife, married, female, 42 [1808/9], Platting, b. Willian, Hertfordshire
   Daniel Pratt, son, unmarried, male, 20 [1830/1], Ag[ricultural] Lab[oure]r, b. Willian, Hertfordshire
   Phillip Pratt, son, unmarried, male, 13 [1837/8], Ag[ricultural] Lab[oure]r, b. Willian, Hertfordshire
   John Pratt, son, male, 1 [1849/50], b. Willian, Hertfordshire
   Katharine Pratt, daughter, unmarried, female, 17 [1833/4], Platting, b. Willian, Hertfordshire
   Elizabeth Pratt, daughter, unmarried, female, 15 [1835/6], Platting, b. Willian, Hertfordshire
   Mary Ann Pratt, daughter, unmarried, female, 6 [1844/5], Platting, b. Willian, Hertfordshire
   Jane Pratt, daughter, unmarried, female, 3 [1847/8], b. Willian, Hertfordshire

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 816; Folio 100; Page 18, 7 Apr 1861.

   Address: Graveley, Hertfordshire [listed between Jacks Hill Farm House and "Wind Miller"]
   John Pratt, head, married, male, 55 [1805/6], Farm Labourer, b. Willian, Hertfordshire
   Ann Pratt, wife, married, female, 52 [1808/9], Wife, b. Willian, Hertfordshire
   Mary Ann Pratt, daughter, female, 16 [1844/5], b. Willian, Hertfordshire
   John Pratt, son, male, 11 [1849/50], Scholar, b. Willian, Hertfordshire
   Sarah Pratt, daughter, female, 9 [1851/2], Scholar, b. Willian, Hertfordshire
   James Pratt, son, male, 7 [1853/4], Scholar, b. Willian, Hertfordshire
   Joseph Pratt, son, male, 4 [1856/7], b. Willian, Hertfordshire

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 1365; Folio 19; Page 11, 2 Apr 1871.

   Address: No. 18 Roxley Cottages, Willian, Hertfordshire
   John Pratt, head, married, male, 64 [1806/7], Farm Lab[ourer], b. Willian, Hertfordshire
   Ann Pratt, wife, married, female, 62 [1808/9], b. Willian, Hertfordshire
   John Pratt, son, unmarried, male, 20 [1850/1], Farm Lab[ourer], b. Willian, Hertfordshire
   Sarah Pratt, daughter, unmarried, female, 18 [1852/3], Plaiter, b. Willian, Hertfordshire
   James Pratt, son, unmarried, male, 16 [1854/5], Miller Lab[ourer], b. Willian, Hertfordshire
   Joseph Pratt, son, male, 14 [1856/7], Farm Lab[ourer], b. Willian, Hertfordshire

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 1416; Folio 119; Page 13, 3 Apr 1881.

   Address: 18 Roxley Cottages, Willian, Hertfordshire
   John Pratt, head, married, male, 74 [1806/7], Ag[ricultural] Lab[ourer], b. Willian, Hertfordshire
   Ann Pratt, wife, married, female, 73 [1807/8], b. Willian, Hertfordshire

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

   d. Ann PRATT, June Quarter 1883, Hitchin Registration District, Volume 3a, page 248, aged 75 [1807/8]

8. ↑ Burials register, in Church of England. Willian Parish Registers.

   No. 370
   When buried: 24 Apr 1883
   Name: Ann Pratt
   Abode: Willian
   Age: 75 [1807/8]