|
|
Facts and Events
Early life
William Marshall was baptised on 21st January 1776 at Luton in Bedfordshire. He was the second of six children of Elizabeth Marshall, formerly Arnold, and her husband John Marshall. The family lived at Chiltern Green, a hamlet some distance out of the town itself, right on the border with the neighbouring parish of Kimpton in Hertfordshire. No record has yet been found of William's father John's occupation, but in 1779 John was acting as an employer, suggesting a certain level of standing.
Shortly before William's third birthday his elder brother George died, leaving William the eldest surviving child. In 1802, William's sister Phoebe died of a fever, aged 19.
Adulthood
William was married aged 27 on 30th May 1803 at Luton to Elizabeth Bent, who was 20, and from Newmill End, just over a mille from Chiltern Green. William's mother Elizabeth died about the same time that William married; she was buried three days after the marriage.
After their marriage, William and Elizabeth moved just over the border from Luton to Kimpton, where they had nine children between 1804 and 1824. From 1813 the baptism registers record addresses and occupations, and William and Elizabeth were recorded as living at Peters Green, a hamlet in the west of the parish just a quarter of a mile from Chiltern Green. We are also told that William worked as a labourer. Between the baptisms of their last two children the family left Peters Green and moved to the parish of King's Walden, which starts just north of Peters Green, although they still had their youngest daughter baptised at Kimpton.
William's wife Elizabeth died in 1826, aged 43. She was buried in Luton on 15th March 1826, but her abode was given as King's Walden. William was left looking after their nine children, who ranged in age from 21 down to about two years old.
William appears in the 1841 census living at Diamond End in King's Walden, which is within a mile or so of both Chiltern Green and Peters Green. William was still working as an agricultural labourer. His three youngest children were living with him, as was his baby granddaughter, Elizabeth.
William died on 14th November 1847 at The Heath near Breachwood Green, the largest village in King's Walden parish. He was about 72 years old.
References
- ↑ Church of England. Parish registers of St Mary, Luton, 1603-1944. (Bedford: Bedfordshire and Luton Archives and Record Service).
Baptiz[e]d in Year 1776 / Jan[uar]y 21 William Son of John Marshall & Eli[abeth] from Chiltongreen
This baptism has been linked to the adult William who married Elizabeth Bent largely on the basis of proximity and re-use of family names. No records have been found definitively proving a link from the adult William to his childhood family.
However, we know from the 1841 census and his death certificate that William was born around the mid 1770s. The William baptised in 1776 was from a family which lived at Chiltern Green, which is in Luton parish in Bedfordshire, but right on the border with the parishes of Kimpton and King's Walden in Hertfordshire. The adult William married in Luton but then had children baptised at Kimpton, and several of the Kimpton records tell us that the family lived at Peters Green, which is just a quarter of a mile from Chiltern Green. At the time of the 1841 census William was living at Diamond End in King's Walden parish, which is only about a mile from Chiltern Green and Peters Green. William claimed in 1841 to have been born in the county where he was then living (i.e. Hertfordshire), which may cast doubt on a Bedfordshire baptism such as the 1776 one in Luton. However, given that the 1776 baptism relates to a family which lived almost literally on the boundary between the two counties at Chiltern Green, it is perhaps understandable. In the 1841 census William's granddaughter Elizabeth was living with him at Diamond End with her birthplace given as 'in county' (i.e. Hertfordshire) when her birth certificate of four months earlier clearly indicates that she was born in the parish of Luton and therefore in Bedfordshire.
Moreover, no other plausible William Marshalls of the right age have been found in the areas of Hertfordshire around Kimpton, King's Walden and surrounding area. Nor has any alternative William Marshall who might be the one baptised in 1776 been found.
The other evidence in favour of the 1776 baptism being correct comes from the use of family names; the William baptised in 1776 had siblings called George, Elizabeth, Sarah and Phoebe. The adult William who married Elizabeth Bent went on to use each of these names (albeit Eliza rather than Elizabeth) for his own children. The re-use of the unusual name Phoebe is particularly suggestive of a link.
- ↑ 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 445; Book 10; Folios 28-29; Pages 11-12, 6 Jun 1841.
Address: Diamond End, Kings Walden, Hertfordshire
William Marshall, male, 66 [1774/5], Ag Lab, b. in County
George Marshall, male, 22 [1818/9], Ag Lab, b. in County
Eliza Marshall, female, 20 [1820/1], b. in County
Sarah Marshall, female, 17 [1823/4], b. in County
Elizabeth Marshall, female, 4mos [1841], b. in County
~ (second household at same address)
John Angle, male, 28 [1812/3], Ag Lab, b. in County
Sophia Angle, female, 29 [1811/2], b. in County
Ann Angle, female, 9 [1831/2], b. in County
Eliza Angle, female, 5 [1835/6], b. in County
Henry Angle, male, 2 [1838/9], b. in County
Alice Angle, female, 12 days [May 1841], b. in County
- ↑ Death certificate, in General Register Office. England and Wales Civil Registration. (London: General Register Office).
| Registration District Hitchin | | 1847 DEATH in the Sub-district of Hitchin in the Counties of Hertford and Bedford | | No. | When and where died | Name and surname | Sex | Age | Occupation | Cause of death | Signature, description and residence of informant | When registered | Signature of registrar | | 75 | Fourteenth November 1847,
The Heath, Kingswalden | William Marshall | Male | 72 years [1774/5] | Labourer | Hydrothorax,
Certified | X The mark of Elizabeth Chalkley,
present at the death,
Kingswalden | Eighteenth November 1847 | James Coleman,
Registrar |
|
|
