Person:Thomas Primet (1)

Thomas Primet's origins have yet to be established. If the age quoted when he died was correct, then he was born around 1745.

Thomas's first confirmed sighting is on 8th June 1769, when he married Sarah Peet at Great Wymondley in Hertfordshire. She was from the neighbouring parish of St Ippolyts. It is not clear whether they had any children. Sarah died in 1772, aged about 20, and was buried at St Ippolyts.

Three years later, Thomas married again. On 25th February 1775, he married Sarah Dixon at Great Wymondley.^[2] They went on to have eight children baptised at Great Wymondley between 1776 and 1787, including twins in 1781. Their second child died as a baby and one of the twins died when she was only two years old.

Thomas's eldest son, John, married in 1798, and Thomas's first known grandchild was born the following year, although both John and the baby died early in 1799. In 1801 Thomas's daughter Sarah married, and more grandchildren followed from later that year.

In 1803, Thomas's daughter Ann died as a young woman. Thomas therefore outlived four of his eight children.

Thomas's wife Sarah died in 1822 and was buried at Great Wymondley. Her burial records that she had lived at 'Spring Hall' but it has yet to be established where this was, although it would seem likely that it was in the area where there is now a house called Spring Cottage, on the western edge of the parish near the border with Hitchin and close to the source of the River Purwell.

Thomas outlived Sarah by six years and was buried at Great Wymondley on 11th January 1829. He was said to have been 83 years old. He had seen at least 32 grandchildren born in his lifetime.

1. ↑ ^1.0 1.1 Burials register, in Church of England. Parish Registers of Great Wymondley. (Hertford: Hertfordshire Archives & Local Studies).

   BURIALS in the Parish of Great Wymondley in the County of Hertford in the Year 1829
   No.	Name	Abode	When buried	Age	By whom the Ceremony was performed
   46	Thomas Primett	Great Wymondley	Jan[uar]y 11th	83 y[ea]rs	W. Lax

2. ↑ Thomas's second marriage does not specify whether he was a bachelor or widower, but his signature is remarkably similar on both marriage records.