Person:Elizabeth May (45)

Elizabeth May was born on 30th August 1838 at Bradninch in Devon, daughter of Susannah May, formerly Greenslade, and her husband William May, a dairyman. Shortly after Elizabeth's birth the family moved to the neighbouring parish of Cullompton, where they appear in the 1841 census at the hamlet of Knowle. They had moved again by 1851 and were living at Higher Ford in the parish of Halberton. By 1861 they were living at East Barton in the parish of Tiverton. At this time Elizabeth was working as a dressmaker.

Elizabeth then went into domestic service, appearing in the 1871 census working at a big house in Exeter for a physician's family.

On 28th September 1872 Elizabeth was married at Silverton, aged 34, to a coachman named William Coombes, who was 28 and originally from Stoke Canon in Devon, although at the time of their marriage he was living in Taunton, Somerset. They initially lived in Taunton, where their eldest daughter Mabel was born in 1873. They then moved to Trent on the Somerset / Dorset border (at the time it was in Somerset but has subsequently been transferred to Dorset). They had another four children born at Trent.

In 1879 Elizabeth's mother Susannah died. After her death, Elizabeth's father William came to live with Elizabeth and her family at Trent, appearing with them in the 1881 census.

Elizabeth's youngest son, Fred, was born in spring 1883 (his birth was registered between April and June). Elizabeth died a few weeks later, aged 44. She was buried at Trent on 25th July 1883. Baby Fred was not baptised until the October after his mother's death. William survived Elizabeth by about 47 years, and married again the year after her death.

1. ↑ Birth certificate, in General Register Office. England and Wales Civil Registration. (London: General Register Office).

   REGISTRATION DISTRICT Tiverton and Dulverton
   1838 BIRTH in the Sub-district of Silverton in the County of Devon
   No.	When and where born	Name, if any	Sex	Name and surname of father	Name, surname and maiden surname of mother	Occupation of father	Signature, description and residence of informant	When registered	Signature of registrar
   149	Thirtieth of August 1838 4AM Bradninch	Elizabeth	Girl	William May	Susannah May formerly Greenslade	Agricultural Laborer	The X Mark of William May Father Bradninch	Fourteenth September 1838	Mordecai Abraham Clear Registrar

2. ↑ Church of England. Parish Registers of Bradninch, Devon. (Exeter: Devon Record Office).

   Baptised: 16 Sep 1838
   Name: Elizth
   Parents: Wm & Susan
   Abode: Bradninch
   Father's occupation: Husbandman

3. ↑ 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 225; Book 6; Folio 7; Page 9, 6 Jun 1841.

   Address: Knowle, Cullompton, Devon
   William May, male, 25 [1811-16], Ag lab, b. in county
   Susan May, female, 35 [1801-06], b. in county
   Ann May, female, 7 [1833/4], b. in county
   William May, male, 5 [1835/6], b. in county
   Elizabeth May, female, 3 [1837/8], b. in county

4. ↑ 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 1888; Folio 545; Page 9, 30 Mar 1851.

   Address: Higher Ford, Halberton, Devon
   William May, head, married, male, 40 [1810/1], Dairyman, b. Templeton, Devon
   Susanna May, wife, married, female, 50 [1800/1], b. Shobrook, Devon
   Elizabeth May, daughter, female, 14 [1836/7], Scholar, b. Bradninch, Devon
   Amy May, daughter, female, 9 [1841/2], Scholar, b. Cullompton, Devon

5. ↑ 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 1480; Folio 85; Page 17, 7 Apr 1861.

   Address: East Barton, Tiverton, Devon
   William May, head, married, male, 50 [1810/1], Dairyman, b. Templeton, Devon
   Susanah May, wife, married, female, 61 [1799/1800], b. Showbrook, Devon
   Emma May, daughter, unmarried, female, 20 [1840/1], b. Cullompton, Devon
   Elizabeth May, visitor, unmarried, female, 23 [1837/8], Dress maker, b. Bradninch, Devon

6. ↑ 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 2052; Folio 111; Page 27, 2 Apr 1871.

   Address: Grove House, Exeter (St Leonard), Devon
   [Large family (head being Patrick Miller, physician) with several servants, including two named May:]
   Ann May, servant, unmarried, female, 54 [1816/7], Domestic Servant, b. Broad Clist, Devon
   ...
   Elizabeth May, servant, unmarried, female, 32 [1838/9], Domestic Servant, b. Bradninch, Devon

7. ↑ 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 2118; Folio 41; Page 11, 3 Apr 1881.

   Address: Trent Road, Trent, Somerset
   William Coombes, head, married, male, 35 [1845/6], Gardener, b. Stoke Canon, Devon
   Elizabeth Coombes, wife, married, female, 40 [1840/1], b. Badninch, Devon
   Mabel Coombes, daughter, unmarried, female, 7 [1873/4], Scholar, b. Taunton, Somerset
   Alice M. Coombes, daughter, unmarried, female, 6 [1874/5], Scholar, b. Trent, Somerset
   Elizabeth Coombes, daughter, unmarried, female, 4 [1876/7], Scholar, b. Trent, Somerset
   William M. Coombes, son, unmarried, male, 1 [1879/80], b. Trent, Somerset
   William May, wife's father, widower, 70 [1810/1], Annuitant, b. Templeton, Devon

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

   d. Elizabeth COOMBES, September Quarter 1883, Sherborne Registration District, Volume 5a, page 191, aged 44 [1838/9]

9. ↑ Burials register, in Church of England. Parish Registers of Trent. (Dorchester: Dorset History Centre).

   BURIALS in the Parish of Trent in the County of Somerset in the Year 1883
   No.665
   Name: Elizabeth Coombes
   Abode: Trent
   When buried: July 25th
   Age: 44 [1838/9]
   By whom the Ceremony was performed: Charles Richmond Tate