James GILL bap 1810 St Sidwells:
IGI record:
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:JSJB-3ZYI have a few reasons for suspecting the James GILL St Sidwells bap 1810 is more of a possibility than Yarcombe in 1805:
AGE:
[Burial record] burial Jan 1844 age 35 puts bir/bap around 1809. Possibly our best guide to birth date?
[1841 census Ilminster] age 25 allowing for rounding down puts age 25-29, so bir 1812-1816
[1841 census Ilminster] had a 9 year old son at this time; so James maybe closer to the upper end of the 25-29 age possibility?
LOCATIONS:
[Bap. William GILL 1832 8 Apr 1832] James first son was bap. Colyton, one week after parent's marriage. I take this as more of an indication of mother's home; James & Elizabeth were not married at the time; seems natural for unwedded Elizabeth to give birth at home with mother in Colyton.
[Marr. James GILL & Elizabeth PAGE 1 Apr 1832 Colyton] as marriages are more likely to take place in the bride's parish, again I see this as more of an indication of Elizabeth's home - Colyton.
[Bap. 2nd child Eliza GILL 22 Nov 1835, Saint Sidwells, Exeter] Father James is a Postboy; abode St. Sidwells, Exeter. Why baptise here if they lived elsewhere?
[Bap. 3rd child Thomas Page GILL 9 May 1838 St Sidwell, Exeter] Father James is Coachman of Paris Street Exeter. Again why baptise here if they lived elsewhere?
[Bap. Mary Ann Gill 1840 Ilminster] this and 1841 census suggests to me that the family moved to Ilminster area between 1838 & 1840.
Burial at Yarcombe I think just represents where James and family had settled, not necessarily his birthplace.
[The Taunton Courier of 31 January 1844] ‘for many years driver of the Defiance coach, on the Ilminster Road’
My thinking is that James started his working life as a young man in Exeter/St Sidwells; ( 2 children baptised there); later became a coachman; was assigned the Ilminster 'stage' of the Exeter-London coach route, & moved with his family to Ilminster, to drive this stretch.
Of course none of this can be seen as proof, but a St Sidwells boy was a little more likely to get involved in the coaching trade.
. . . . .
Further reading (interesting, but proves nothing apart from St Sidwells being a hub for the coaching business):
From:
http://www.devonheritage.org/Places/Exeter/CoachinginExeterCossins.htm"James Cossins who was born in Exeter in 1823, had a tobacconist shop at 36 Paris Street, Exeter ... seems to have been on familiar terms with all the key people in his parish of St. Sidwel, especially the coaching fraternity." ...
"It was computed that in the parish of St Sidwell alone, 3000 persons derived their maintenance in connection with the above occupations."
[Surely 3000 is a transcription/OCR error? I'd believe 300!?]
. . . . .
Dorothy: I see some differences in our data: as above, I think I have 2 St Sidwells baps for children of James GILL & Elizabeth, you previously posted 'James had issue baptised at Colyton, Ilminster and Membury'. Is this the crux of the matter?
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