Person:William Marshall (188)

Childhood

William Marshall was baptised on 22nd December 1805 at Kimpton in Hertfordshire, son of Elizabeth Marshall, formerly Bent, and her husband William Marshall, an agricultural labourer. William was the couple's second child - they went on to have eight or nine children in total. William had at least one surviving grandparent when he was born - his maternal grandmother Susannah Bent, formerly Sheffield, who lived in neighbouring Luton. The family did not live in Kimpton village itself, but at the western end of the parish at Peters Green. This was close to where William's father had been born at Chiltern Green in the neighbouring parish of Luton.

William's grandmother Susannah Bent died in 1822, aged 64, when William was 16 years old.

Some time between 1821 and 1824 the family moved away from Peter's Green into the neighbouring parish of King's Walden, although in all likelihood they probably moved to a hamlet in the south of King's Walden parish - probably Diamond End - which is very close to Peter's Green. Although they had moved to King's Walden parish, their youngest daughter was still baptised at Kimpton in 1824.

In 1826, William's mother Elizabeth died, aged 43. For some reason she was buried at Luton rather than King's Walden. William's father was therefore left with eight or nine children to look after, ranging in age from 21 down to about 2 at the time of their mother's death. William was 20 when his mother died.

Adulthood

William was married on 11th December 1830, aged about 25, to Sarah Almond. She was 21 and was also from the King's Walden and Luton area.

Just under seven months after their marriage Sarah gave birth to a son, Joseph. Two and a half years later he was followed by another son named James. Both boys were baptised in January 1834 at the Coleman's Green Baptist Church in King's Walden, when the family was described as living at Lawrence End in King's Walden. The family then moved to Luton, living in the rural hamlets to the south east of the town, where they had another four children (Mary, George, Elizabeth and Esther) between 1835 and 1848.

The 1841 census finds William, Sarah and the children living at East Hyde in Luton parish. William's father and several of his siblings were living at Diamond End in King's Walden parish in the 1841 census. William's father died in 1847 at The Heath in King's Walden parish, aged 71. William was 41 when his father died.

In 1851 William, Sarah and their children were living at Newmill End, which adjoins East Hyde, where they had been ten years earlier. William was still working as an agricultural labourer, whilst Sarah was described as a straw plaitter. William's youngest three children, George, Elizabeth and Esther, were all baptised on the same day in 1850 at the recently opened Holy Trinity church at East Hyde.

William's daughter Mary had not been baptised as an infant. She was baptised aged 15 in 1851 at the Wesleyan Methodist Church in Luton, but died the following year aged only 16.

Some time between 1851 and 1861 the family moved away from the rural hamlets of Luton parish into the town itself. The 1861 census finds William and Sarah living at 72 Albert Road. Four of their five surviving children were also living in Albert Road at that time - and the fifth was just around the corner in Chobham Street. In 1861 Sarah was described as a bonnet sewer, whilst William was no longer an agricultural labourer following the move into town - he was described as a brewer's man.

Between 1853 and 1863, William saw four of his children marry, all in Luton. By 1863 William and Sarah had had nine grandchildren born (all in Luton), although one had died as a baby.

On 13th August 1863, William was making deliveries by horse and truck for his employer, the brewer Henry Pinks Arnold. Whilst making deliveries at The Heath in King's Walden he suffered some sort of fit of apoplexy or heart attack, fell from the horse and was run over as the it bolted, pulling the brewer's truck behind it. William died in the road where he fell. He was 57. The subsequent inquest described William as a "steady sober man".

Sarah outlived William by less than five years.

1. ↑ Church of England. Kimpton Parish Registers
   22 Dec 1805.

   William Son of William Marshall & Elizth his Wife

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 4; Book 13; Folio 3; Page 1, 6 Jun 1841.

   Address: East Hyde Hamlet, Luton, Bedfordshire
   William Marshall, male, 35 [1801-6], Ag lab, b. Bedfordshire
   Sarah Marshall, female, 30 [1806-11], b. Bedfordshire
   Joseph Marshall, male, 9 [1831/2], b. Bedfordshire
   James Marshall, male, 7 [1833/4], b. Bedfordshire
   Mary Marshall, female, 5 [1835/6], b. Bedfordshire
   George Marshall, male, 3 [1837/8], b. Bedfordshire

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 1757; Folio 377; Page 1, 30 Mar 1851.

   Address: Newmill End, East Hyde, Luton, Bedfordshire
   William Marshall, head, married, male, 44 [1806/7], Ag lab, b. Kimpton, Hertfordshire
   Sarah Marshall, wife, married, female, 41 [1809/10], Straw plaitter, b. Kings Walden, Hertfordshire
   Joseph Marshall, son, unmarried, male, 19 [1831/2], Ag lab, b. Kimpton, Hertfordshire
   James Marshall, son, unmarried, male, 17 [1833/4], Straw plaitter, b. Kimpton, Hertfordshire
   George Marshall, son, unmarried, male, 14 [1836/7], Ag lab, b. Luton, Bedfordshire
   Elizabeth Marshall, daughter, female, 8 [1842/3], b. Luton, Bedfordshire
   Esther Marshall, daughter, female, 2 [1848/9], b. Luton, Bedfordshire

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 1012; Folio 122; Page 37, 7 Apr 1861.

   Address: 72 Albert Road, Luton, Bedfordshire
   Wm Marshall, head, married, male, 54 [1806/7], Brewers man, b. Kimpton, Hertfordshire
   Sarah Marshall, wife, married, female, 51 [1809/10], Bonnet sewer, b. Kingswalden, Hertfordshire
   Elizabeth Marshall, daughter, unmarried, female, 18 [1842/3], Bonnet sewer, b. Luton, Bedfordshire
   Esther Marshall, daughter, unmarried, female, 12 [1848/9], Bonnet sewer, b. Luton, Bedfordshire

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

   No. 290
   13 Aug 1863
   The Heath, King's Walden, Herts
   William Marshall / Male / 48 years / Brewer's Labourer
   Cause of death: Fell from and run over by a Brewer's Truck whilst driving same abdominal injuries
   Informant: Information received from Charles Times Coroner for Hitchin District Inquest held 14th August 1863
   Registered: 24 Aug 1863

   
6. ↑ Linkage from the adult William Marshall to the 22 Dec 1805 baptism at Kimpton:
   
   Little doubt about the adult William Marshall - his son George's birth certificate (1838) gives parents as William Marshall and Sarah Almond, matching exactly the 1830 marriage at King's Walden. Seemingly no clues as to William's parentage from the witnesses to the marriage.
   
   1851 and 1861 censuses agree that William was born in Kimpton. There appear to be two plausible baptisms of William Marshalls in Kimpton at about the right time:
   William son of John & Ruth Marshall on 19 Apr 1801
   &
   William son of Wm & Elizth Marshall on 22 Dec 1805.
   
   So we look into both families:
   John Marshal and Ruth Guerney were married at Wheathampstead on 28 Jan 1798, and had the following children baptised at Kimpton:
   William 19 Apr 1801
   George 13 Nov 1803
   John 9 Feb 1806
   Vincent 16 Oct 1808
   James 2 Dec 1810
   and then seemingly moved away, with a Sophia daughter of John & Ruth baptised at Redbourn on 2 Jul 1815.
   
   There is then a marriage of a 36 year old William Marshall son of John at Redbourn on 7 Oct 1837, who must in all likelihood be the one baptised in 1801 at Kimpton.
   
   Conversely, William Marshall and Elizabeth Bent had married in Luton in 1803 and had all their children baptised at Kimpton, with their youngest's baptism at Kimpton indicating that they'd moved to the neighbouring parish of King's Walden - where William married in 1830. Also, the baptisms of William's other siblings born after 1813 record that the family lived at Peter's Green - very close to the border with King's Walden. This William (senior) and several of the children appear in the 1841 census at Diamond End in King's Walden parish, and there is a nicely matching baptism for William senior at Luton in 1776 described as being of Chiltern Green - a hamlet on the edge of Luton parish but very close to both Peters Green in Kimpton parish and Diamond End in King's Walden parish.
   
   More evidence that the William son of William and Elizabeth baptism is the correct one comes from the fact that William's daughter Mary appears in the 1851 census lodging with his sister Sarah (albeit they are both described as lodgers rather than aunt and niece).
7.   The Hertfordshire Express - Saturday, August 22, 1863
   Hertfordshire News
   KINGSWALDEN - INQUEST - An inquest was held on Friday the 14th instant, at Kingswalden before Charles Times, Esq., coroner, touching the death of William Marshall, a man in the employ of Mr. Arnold, brewer, of Kingswalden, who met his death on the previous morning. Alfred Punter, labourer, of Beechwood-green, deposed that on the morning of the 13th instant, he was in a field near Coxgate and saw an empty brewer's truck, drawn by one horse, going up the hill as fast as it could go. He went across the field to the road and saw deceased lying in the way, and when he got up to him deceased fetched one gasp and died.
   Henry Pinks Arnold, deposed that deceased was his brewer, and was a steady sober man, and he went out on that morning with beer. George Marshall Phillips, Esq., surgeon, of Kingswalden, deposd that he examined the body of deceased, and found a bruise on the right arm and a scratch on the forehead; there were no bones broken; and he could find no external injury sufficient to cause death. His impression was that deceased had a fit of apoplexy, or a disease of the heart.
   A verdict of "Accidental death" was returned.