Connection between Earls Colne and South Benfleet

[rsel]

Hi all,   
     I am looking for somebody with local historical knowledge of Earls Colne and South Benfleet, to help break a brick wall down in my tree :-)
     My great (x4) Grandfather is a Martin Ellis, and we have him as a Gardener living from his marriage in 1804 in South Benfleet, through to his death in 1848 again in South Benfleet. The records give us an estimate of his birth yeasr as around 1776, but so far we have had no joy tracking down a record of the birth/baptism in that area.  Recently another family member on this line has found a baptism in Earls Colne for 1776 for a Martin Ellis, which looks promising as no further trace of him can be found in that area (the parents/siblings are all still present in the parish registers), and family names match quite well with my Martin's children's names. My concern is that its quite a way to move from Earls Colne to South Benfleet in those days, so i am tryign to find a connection that could explain the movement for a Gardnener.
     I have tried doign a google search to see if prehaps an important family owned property in both locations (and therefore they 'moved' a staff member), or if there was something else that might have linked them, but can find nothing that jumps out.   Does anybody else have any thoughts/clues to a possible connection between the places that would explain the move (assuming it did occur).

Thanks

Richard

[richardanthony]

Have you found him on the 1841 Census in South Benfleet?

[rsel]

Have you found him on the 1841 Census in South Benfleet?

Yes, as but it doesnt help much address appears to be 'Bisea Cottage Hall, South Benfleet' but its unclear which is just one of a number of cottages in the area at the time.

Thanks

Richard

[richardanthony]

But where did it say his place of birth was or did it just say essex?

[jonw65]

The two Martins in the June 1841 rate book for South Benfleet? Other books available on that film
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:9Q97-YS29-32ZZ?i=449&cat=364726

If it's any help, in answering queries down the years I have found that gardeners could be extremely mobile!
John

[jonw65]

Burial of Martin Ellis at South Benfleet, 9 August 1848
Rather faint image
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:9Q97-YSLH-RFN?i=377&cc=1465710&cat=488175

Age 77 yrs
Abode South Benfleet (Old Hall)

[jonw65]

Burial of Sarah Ellis in November 1845, age 61
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:9Q97-YSLH-RN1?i=365&cc=1465710&cat=488175

Back in June a Sarah Ellis witnessed the marriage of Eliza (father Martin)
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:9Q97-YSLH-RV5?i=347&cc=1465710&cat=488175

Marriage of Thomas Ellis on image 346

[rsel]

Thanks John, I have all of those....its his birth and parents that we are stuck with :-)  Martin is my first Gardener in the family, I do have lots of Ag Labs who have been fairly mobile, but you can normal find them moving towards London over the years down the ''main' routes.  I wouldn't have expected gardeners to move around to much, and I was assuming that if they did it was between 'family estates', but I would love to be corrected on that assumption.

richardanthony,  1841 census only ever lists if 'born in county', which is true in his case, and his death in 1848 meant he missed the first census that would have been useful for that :-)

Richard