Orpheus
RootsChat Member
Posts: 124
Census information Crown Copyright, from www.nationalarchives.gov.uk
|
I think this could be the news you've been waiting for!
I visited the Oxfordshire Record Office again yesterday and whilst there I checked on the Jane SAWYER mentioned in my earlier post. She turned out to be something of a red herring and not connected to William SAWYER and Martha HONEY. I then looked at the marriage of William and Martha:
At St Mary Magdalen, Oxford, by Banns.
17 Nov 1839 Wm SAWYER, of full age, bachelor, blacksmith of this parish, son of Wm EYRES, deceased
Martha (X) HONEY, of full age, spinster of this parish, dau of Wm HONEY, deceased
Witnessed by: James PAVIER, Sarah PAVIER
I was interested to discover who the witnesses were as sometimes these can provide clues. From the Oxfordshire Marriage Index I discovered that this couple had married:
At St Peter in the East, Oxford, by Banns.
7 Oct 1812 James PAVIOUR of this parish
Sarah SAWYER of this parish
Witnessed by: Jno TANDY, Sarah HUGHES
So, as Sarah's maiden surname was SAWYER, was she a relative? Unfortunately I could not establish a connection so I decided to attack the problem from another angle.
Using the Oxfordshire FHS databases I discovered the baptism of a son, William, to a William and Martha SAWYER on 30 Oct 1842 in the parish of Wheatley, Oxfordshire. In the same parish I also discovered the baptism, on 18 Oct 1837, of Ellen the daughter of William SAWYER (blacksmith) and Martha HONEY. This child was privately baptised 'from illness' and may have died (although I could not find a burial) as she does not appear with Martha in the 1841 census in Wheatley (Ref: HO107/876/15). Martha is living alone in this census and her age is given as 20. I was unable to find William.
The Wheatley parish registers contained three other SAWYER baptisms which I found of interest because in each case the father was listed as a blacksmith.
29 Apr 1839 Henry, son of George SAWYER, blacksmith, and Anne
8 Feb 1846 John, son of John SAWYER, blacksmith, and Anne
19 Sep 1847 Sarah, dau of John SAWYER, blacksmith, and Ann
As members of the same family often follow the same trade I looked for the above John and George SAWYER in the 1851 census in order to discover their birthplace. I was unable to find George, Ann and Henry but I did find John:
HO107/1727/057 - Wheatley, Oxfordshire
John SAWYER, Head, Mar, 61, Smith, born Oxon, Stanton St John
Ann SAWYER, Wife, Mar, 45, born Northants, Kings Sutton
John SAWYER, Son, 5, Scholar, born Oxon, Wheatley
Sarah SAWYER, Dau, 3, Scholar, born Oxon, Wheatley
Next I looked at the parish registers for Stanton St John and this is where I hit the jackpot:
BAPTISMS 1654-1824
8 Feb 1784 Elizabeth, dau of John and Elizabeth SAWYER
2 Oct 1785 Hannah, dau of John and Elizabeth SAWYER
17 Jun 1787 Mary, dau of John and Elizabeth SAWYER
24 Jul 1791 John, son of John and Elizabeth SAWYER
5 Oct 1794 James, son of John and Elizabeth SAWYER
21 Aug 1796 Edward and George, twin sons of John and Elizabeth SAWYER
26 Apr 1807 Edward, base born son of Robert ROBBINS and Hannah SAWYER
13 Jun 1813 John, illegitimate son of Mary SAWYER and John PULMAN
11 Jan 1818 William, son of Hannah SAWYER, labourer's daughter
MARRIAGE
29 Oct 1781 John (X) SAWYER
Elizabeth (X) BRYAN
Witnessed by: Robert (X) BRYAN, Edward RAWLINS
BURIALS 1654-1840
12 Mar 1797 Edward, twin infant son of John and Elizabeth SAWYER
4 Jul 1819 Hannah SAWYER, aged 33
30 Jan 1825 John SAWYER, aged 66
5 Jun 1825 Elizabeth SAWYER, aged 69
20 Jul 1832 Edward SAWYER, aged 24
9 Feb 1838 Thomas SAWYER, aged 47, died Feb 7
30 Dec 1838 George SAWYER, aged 2, died Dec 27
9 Feb 1840 Thomas SAWYER of Long Crendon, aged 89, died Feb 6
In conclusion, William was baptised at Stanton St John on 11 Jan 1818, the illegitimate son of Hannah SAWYER. His mother died when he was less than 18 months old so he, and his older half-brother Edward, were probably raised by their grandparents, John and Elizabeth SAWYER, until their deaths in 1825. Thereafter it is likely that he was raised by his aunts and uncles and may have been apprenticed to his uncle John to learn the trade of a blacksmith. This would account for his being in Wheatley where he met Martha HONEY who was probably in service there. Being an apprentice might also be the reason why he and Martha did not marry in 1837 when their illegitimate daughter was born as most apprentices were not permitted to marry whilst still in their indentures.
Finally, even though I found no baptism for her in Stanton St John I suspect that the Sarah SAWYER who married James PAVIOUR in 1812 was a daughter of John and Elizabeth SAWYER and therefore William's aunt. Sarah was buried at St Mary Magdelen, Oxford in 1841 aged 58, which gives an approximate year of birth for her of 1783. This would fit in well with the gap between John and Elizabeth's marriage in October 1781 and the baptism of Elizabeth in February 1784.
Orpheus
|
Author
Logged