William Ponting SCREEN

[trish1120]

John/Ruths Childrens Baptism are on FreeREG in Kilmersdon, Somerset (some were late Baptisms)

1841 in Midsomer Norton, Somerset we have;
ohn Ponting, 45, Yeoman
Ruth Ponting, 44
Elizabeth Ponting, 18
Tom Ponting, 15
Fredrick Ponting, 12
Mary Ponting, 9
Sarah Ponting, 7
William Ponting, 4
Ann Ponting, 2

1851 Census
John Ponting, 55, Farmer, born Holcombe, Somerset
Ruth Ponting, 55, born Mid Norton, Somerset
Frederick Ponting, 22
Wm Ponting, 16
Ann Ponting, 14


According to a Tree some of John/Ruths Children ended up in Victoria, Australia.
(EDIT, although these appear to be the Children of John/Leah Ponting/Pontin from other Trees)

[kaoota]

Thank you for the messages of Saturday 25th.  I will investigate those further.

[pjrich]

If Londonderry does prove to be correct it is worth noting that 1810 was during the Napoleonic wars so it is possible that the Screen family were a military family who were serving in Londonderry in 1810.

My interest is that I came across William Screen as being an ancestor of one of my DNA Matches on the Ancestry Website, and if that does turn out to be significant the Bath/Bristol area may be where the family are from. I was hoping William Screen may give me a starting point for the ancestry of my 3xGt grandparents George Shell and Sarah Pike who were married at Bath St James in 1813.

Regards
Peter

[Capetown]

Ancestry marriage of George SHELL to Sarah PIKE Bath St James 1813:  witnesses: C Russell and John COLE.

Tree on the net - states: George SHELL was born c1785


Ancestry has:

Baptism at Box, Wiltshire (about 8 miles from Bath) -

George SHELL 9 October 1785, parents: James &  Mary SHELL

and George SHELL baptism at Box 19 May 1782, parents: Michael & Margaret

(Box was a Sunday School outing when I was a child)
----

Forest of Dean records:

Gloucestershire Marriage Allegations etc.

14 April 1751

two records:  Record ID 1028 and 57366 (incorporated together)

Thomas SHELL aged 25, Batchelor
residence: Box

Martha RISE over 24, Spinster, residence: Little Sudbury

Marriage by Licence and Marriage Bond

He signs:

The mark of Thomas SHELLARD of Little Sodbury

witnesses: Ann PEACE and Joseph BENNETT

Sworn beford P COLE , Vicar of Hawkesbury, to marry at Hawkesbury

The groom and Thomas SHELLARD are bound in the sum of £500 to marry at Hawkesbury

[Capetown]

Appears to be quite a lot of info on Ancestry on SHELL marriages etc around Bathampton, Somerset ... including....

UK Royal Hospital Chelsea Pensioner
Admissions and Discharges

Geo SHELL

Age 25:

birth year : abt 1782

3 Aug 1807

Bath Wilts

14 Dragoon

[trish1120]

Several Shell Marriages Bath c 1813 give or take 5 years including;
CHARLES 1811 and 1827 (widower on 2nd)
GEORGE 1813
JACOB 1 Nov 1813 to Elizabeth TOTTILL, Witnesses were John/Hannah COLE

1851/1861 Jacob is born c 1785 Box, Wiltshire

[pjrich]

Thanks for the information submitted on George Shell.

I have quite a good database on the Shell name in the region at the time.

My George Shell was a baptist minister and tended to a number of Baptist communities including Pill Gloucestershire 1815-1816, Wells Somerset 1816-1824 and Semley Wiltshire 1824-1832. His death was recorded in the Semley Baptist Records in 1832 and his age is given as 47 hence the 1785 birthdate assigned to him.

There are three Georges born in Box in the 1780s - George baptised in 1782 to Michael Shell & Margaret Doggett is in my opinion the one who served in the 14th Dragoons. It appears that he was in a bad way when he was discharged from the army in 1807 "Discharged aged 25 after 4 years 6 months of service due to Serafula and Veneral Disease contracted at Hounslow by which he lost the use of his right arm" so I suspect that he is likely to be the George buried in Box in 1808. The Box burials don't give ages so it is difficult to tell but my strong suspicion is that the other two Georges (bp 1785 & 1788) died in infancy in each case a couple of weeks after their baptisms. There was an extensive census of Box taken in 1801 which is held at Chippenham Record Office which has been a help in assembling the Shell families of Box - I don't think either of the 1785 or 1788 Georges survived that long.

There is a further George - bp 1786 Batheaston to Edward Shell & Diana New but I think he was still living in Batheaston up the 1861 census so he too can be eliminated from my enquiries.

It has occurred to me that if my George was from a Baptist family that it is unlikely that he would have had a childhood baptism which makes him difficult to find. There was however an Abigail Shell aged 86 "widow many years an inhabitant of Walcot" recorded in 1788 in Somerset Street Baptist RG4/1790 who in terms of age could be a reasonable fit for Abigail Harel who is reputed to have married a William Shell in 1733. William and Abigail had one child baptised in Box in 1734 and then more in Bathford between 1736 and 1741 before falling off the radar.

In addition at Somerset Street there is a difficult to make out record dated August 1802 for "_____SHILL painter of the parish of St Peter & St Paul aged_____"  I wonder whether this may related to a George Shell painter resident of Montpellier Row in Walcot from 1775 onwards. I think he was likely the husband of an Ann Shell who drowned in the river in Bath in 1792. This couple had a son named George baptised in Bath St Michael in 1771 - probably too old to be my George, but maybe if he died young and the name were recycled who knows.

Regards
Peter

 

[Capetown]

?

In my previous reply quoting the marriage of Thomas SHELL of Box  marrying Martha RISE - 14 April 1751 - the groom and Thomas SHELLARD are bound in the sum of £500.


I have seen surnames shortened and variations from generation to generation (also in my own family with alias etc).  On my friend's family tree from the West Country, HOLLAND later became ALLEN when the family moved North, partly due, I except, with the 'H' & 'D' silent with the local accent.....  so anything is possible

There is a on ancestry

George SHELLARD (Georgius SHELLARD) - christened 25 January 1795 at Waltcot St Swithin, Somerset : parents, Daniel & Mary

siblings:
Samuel : 10 February 1789
James : 4 January 1790
Thomas : 4 September 1792


(Burial at Walcot St Swithins 15 December 1797 Daniel SHELLARD)

---

George SHELL married at Bath St James in 1813


A James SHELLARD married Hannah BROWN at Bath St James - 18 August 1814 (and is on later census')

[pjrich]

Thanks for the suggestion

However my 3xGt grandfather was literate so I would not expect confusion between Shell and Shellard in his case

Regards
Peter