Becoming a Landlord

[jibba]

Afternoon

I'm trying to investigate when an ancestors of mine became the Landlord of the Horse & Groom pub in Ipswich.

William Stephens (1796-1839) was a sergeant in the 69th regiment who served at Waterloo, India, and lastly Ireland where he left the army c.1833. By 1835, according to his children's baptism records, he was the Landlord of the Horse & Groom where he remained until his death. His wife, and her second husband, then ran the pub until her death in the early 1870's.

From what I've read so far, any potential Landlord had to apply for a licence at the Quarter
Sessions or the Petty Sessions. In some cases guarantors where also listed to vouch for the individuals character.

Given that William appears to have no links to the area until 1835, I'm interested to see how he got from Ireland to Ipswich and was able to secure a licence in a short space of time. If he or his wife had family in Ipswich, they might have been his guarantors.

Does anyone know if a list has been compiled from the Ipswich Quarter/Petty sessions regarding Landlords and Victuallers licences? If not, which record office do you think might have these records?

[kettleburger]

Hi Jibba, I don't know if this is any help but there was a large garrison at Ipswich in the Napoleonic era with a satellite barracks eight miles away at Woodbridge. The 69th came in during November 1812 and left in Dec 1814. If your man was with them at that time, no doubt he got to know the Ipswich area well and made some connections. Irish men made up a large proportion of the British army, many marrying local girls. Regards, Kettleburger.

[jibba]

Hi

Thanks for information. I have been trying to piece the 69th movements during the time William served with them, largely to determine when/where he married his wife.

Can you please let me know where you found this information?

[kettleburger]

Hi Jibba, I studied Napoleonic Suffolk when writing my thesis so spent ages reading local sources!
Troop movements are not censored at this time and the Ipswich Journal and Suffolk Chronicle happily inform readers where a regiment has marched in from and where they are going when they leave. I am pretty sure that William never married in Woodbridge St Mary during the regiment's stay as I recorded all military weddings at that church. There are of course many villages surrounding Woodbridge and Ipswich. The church nearest the barracks in Ipswich is St Mathews and there is a William Stevens marrying a Charlotte Bennett there in 1820 but that is probably a complete red herring! I googled "the 69th Regt of Foot" and there is a mass of information available but I am sure you have already done that. Regards, Kettleburger.
 

[jibba]

Hi. Very interesting! Would you be able to confirm if the 69th (2nd Battalion) returned to Ipswich after Waterloo? I read somewhere that the 2nd Battalion returned to England c.Jan 1816 and was here till at least October before being disbanded. William would have then been sent to fight with the 1st Battalion in Bellary/Mysore in late 1816/early 1817.

In addition to the above, are there any records of tradesmen moving with the regiment? This query is due to trying to determine when and where William and his wife, Harriet, married. Harriet's father, Samuel, was a blacksmith. When their first child was conceived (c.June 1818) the bride would have been between 15-18 years old. Prior to them conceiving, there was roughly a year and a half gap before William arrived in India, so its looking unlikely they married in England. Could it be that Samuel was a blacksmith in the army and that he took his family with him to India and that where the couple met?

[kettleburger]

Hi Jibba, Unfortunately my interest stopped with the closing of Woodbridge barracks in 1813 so I can't help you there. With reference to your other point, at Woodbridge, the blacksmiths had their forges around the perimeter of the site but there were cavalry regiments there for most of the time and I assumed that the farriers belonged to them. Infantry regiments often hired wagons and horses from local suppliers when on the move, causing the contractors to complain that the army never paid enough!
Six wives of n.c.o.s were allowed to travel with their husbands but I am not sure whether this applied to prospective brides or to postings abroad. Sorry I can't be of more help, Kettleburger.   

[Historycat]

My best guess as to the office to contact would be Ipswich, as this is where he settled and ran the pub. 
http://www.suffolk.gov.uk/libraries-and-culture/culture-and-heritage/suffolk-record-office/

you can either ring or e-mail them, they are generally very helpful. Good luck!

[Greensleeves]

I'm afraid I can't shed any light on Jibba's search, but I was most interested to read Kettleburger's information about Woodbridge Barracks since I have - in my late husband's tree - a marriage and baptism, both of which took place at St Mary's, Woodbridge.  The marriage between John Hewison (Royal Horse Artillery) and Lucy Bristo  took place in 1806 and the baptism of their daughter Lucy was in 1807.  However Lucy Bristo Hewison is later found with her parents' and known as Lucy Bristo, and her daughter was also known as Lucy Bristo.  I have no idea what happened to John Hewison or the marriage.  So it's interesting to read what a busy place Woodbridge  must have been in those days with all the troop movements.

Regards
GS

[geoff_43]

The Ipswich RO has the "Ale House Recognises" records. Every year landlords had to reapply for their licence. The records are kept in Pub name not landlord's. They show when the landlord took over, any complaints about them, and the date they left & new landlord's name.

I have found from researching my family that 90% of the time, the people vouching for them were also landlords. In other words they backed each other up.