Fownes (Devon) Family Bible - part 1

[Bruce59]

Transcription of record on the last three pages of the Fownes Family Bible


John Yarde Fownes third son of the Rev Thomas Fownes by Ann/ Vanham his wife of Kittery Court in the County of Devon &/ Margaret Roope eldest daughter of Roope Harris Roope Esq/ by Mary his wife of Chipton in the same County, were married/ in Dittisham Church 24 October 1799 by Rev Thomas Fownes

their issue

Maria Somerville - born 8 August 1800 at Islington/ christened at St Mary’s the parish Church on 24 Oct 1800

Godfathers   Godmothers
William Henry Phibbs of Croydon, Esq   Elizabeth Maria Somerville of Bath
William Newman of Dartm., Esq   Margaret Champernoune of Totnes

innoculated for and passed the Cowpox december 1800 and pased the Chickenpox May 1802, passed the Scarlet fever October 1804, the Measles March 1805, the Hooping Cough 1811.

Willoughby Ilbert - born 15 November 1802 at Harper Street London, christened 16 December 1802 in Harper Street by the Minister/ of Queen’s Square Chapel where he is registered

Godfathers   Godmothers
Rev William Somerville of Dinder   Anne Vanham Fownes - his Grandmother
Roope Harrris Roope, Esq - his Grandfather   Francis Fownes - of Guildford Street

innoculated for and passed the Cow Pox December 1802

On the 19th February 1803 it pleased Allmighty God to take unto himself/ Margaret Fownes, she departed this uncertain life at Lisbon where (accompanied by her husband and daughter) she/ went in the hopes of recovering her health.

“She was an affectionate wife, a tendeer parent, a dutifulchild, a sincere friend & died univerdally regretted”

Willoughby Ibert Fownes died at Chipton on 20th April 1803 and was buried in Dittisham Church, where a monument is erected to his memory and that of his invaluable Mother.
John Yarde Fownes and Hannah Curtis eldest daughter and co-heiress of the late Edward Curtis Esq (by Hannah his wife) of Mardyke House in the parish of Clifton were married at Clifton Church on Thursday the 17th day of October 1805, by the Revd. Hawes, Curate.

Their Issue

Edward Curtis born at 2 o’clock on Sunday morning 23 November 1806 at their house in Guildford Street Parish of St Pancras London. christened at the Parish Church 15th January 1807.

Godfathers   Reverend James Allen, his Mother’s Uncle’s son
   James Somerville Fownes, his uncle
Godmothers   Anne Vanham Fownes, his grandmother
   Mary Margaret Curtis, his aunt

Innoculated for and passed the Cow Pox 1st May 1807, passed the measles June 1814.

Mary Anne born at 10 o’clock on Sunday morning 15th November 1807 at their home in Guildford Street London, privately baptized 22 November by the Revd John Ra...? & and afterwards publicly baptised at the Parish church of St Pancras. 14 January 1808

Godfather   Captain William Dunford of Tiverton, Devon
Godmothers   Charlotte Anne Fownes, his aunt
   Dorothy Marvin

innoculated for and passed the Cow Pox, March 1808
Died 30th May 1811, her remains deposited in the vaults under St George’s Church Hart Street Bloomsbury, June 3rd 1811.

[richardsonh]

Hello, Bruce.

I found the Fownes family bible very interesting indeed, and I am descended from Charlotte Roope, the sister of John Yarde Fownes' first wife Margaret nee Roope.

I have seen the monument to Margaret in the Dittisham Church. It reads:

Sacred to the memory of Margaret Fownes, Wife of John Yarde Fownes Esq. of London, and eldest Daughter of Roope Harris Roope Esq. at Chipton in this Parish, who died at Lisbon 19th February 1803, aged 30 years. Also of Willoughby Ilbert Fownes their Son, who died 20th April 1803, aged 5 months. Also of the above John Yarde Fownes Esq. who died 23rd October 1839 aged 67 years.

I had wondered why she was in Lisbon, where her brother William Newman Roope was a wine merchant, but apparently she went "in the hopes of recovering her health". Perhaps she had TB. Her elder brother George had died  of TB in 1796, and perhaps they thought the Portuguese climate would help in her recovery.

John Yarde Fownes stayed in close contact with the Roope family even after Margaret's death. A cousin of mine has a letter dated July 26 1828, from JYF to Mragaret's brother William Newman Roope (who was by then a merchant in Madeira), detailing the death of another Roope brother, Jonah Lavington Roope, this time of typhus. 

I have also seen (from the outside) Chipton Farm, and Kittery Court, mentioned in the Bible. Kittery Court in Kingswear was bought in 1828 by another Roope brother, Benjamin. Kittery Court was burned down a couple of years ago by a plumber's accident, when it was being renovated.

I would be interested in knowing more about the Fownes family.

Hilary

[Bruce59]

Hi there Hilary

The Fownes, originally Fones and various other subsequent spellings, are an old family, seemingly Norman, settling in Saxby, Lincs after 1066. Considerable information is available at www.fones.org and particularly at www.fones.org/EnglishFones.html.

In the 16th century there was a migration by part of the family to the south-west of England, via Worcester, Bristol, Plymouth, Whitley finally to Kittery Court occupied by John Fownes, d. 4 Oct 1731. He as you probably know married Anne Yarde in 1681.

An important part of this line proceeded with the Reverend Thomas Fownes of Kittery Court (1730 to 1808) the grandson of this John Fownes. He married in 1764 Anne Vanham Somerville, daughter of Col the Hon George Somerville, son of James 12th Lord Somerville. Thomas Fownes and Anne produced, inter alios, James Somerville Fownes (1769-1848).  He inherited from his uncle, the Reverend William Fownes, the Dinder estate, (Wells, Somerset) which had come to the Somervilles when George Somerville married Elizabeth Hicks, daughter of Robert Hicks of Combe, Gloucester, and Lord of Dinder Manor.

To keep the Somerville name associated with the estate and, I think, in respect to a wish of his benefactor, James Somerville Fownes somewhat unimaginatively changed his name to James Somerville Somerville. Thus subsequent Somervilles have mostly borne the name Fownes as well, as I do myself.

John Yarde Fownes married twice more after the death of Margaret Roope: Hannah Curtis in 1805, who bore him four children, and Nancy Hearn in 1816, who bore him two more.

The Roope name appears again in my family. Lt Cmdr Gerard Broadmead Roope  RN VC (1905-1940) was, if I have it right, my first cousin, twice removed.

I did not know about and am sorry to learn of the destruction of Kittery Court.

Bruce

[richardsonh]

Thank you very much for the Fownes family information, Bruce. Some of it I knew and some was new to me.

This is the URL for the article about the Kittery fire. Don't know if I can copy it here:

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/article-23393040-details/Blundering%20plumber%20burns%20down%20%C3%BD%C3%BD5m%20mansion/article.do

Ray Freeman, in "Dartmouth and its neighbours", says, 'In 1717, John Fownes bought the whole manor of Kingswear including the buildings at Kittery. He added a Georgian front to an old building, later called Kittery Court.'

Re Dinden House, from the 1960s until about 1990 some now deceased distant cousins of mine, Rita and Hugh Brooking Clark (Clark's Shoes) lived there. It is a lovely house not unlike Richard de Vere's in "To the Manor Born".

The Fownes also owned (built?) Nethway House, Kingswear, dating from 1689, where a 1st cousin of mine (several times removed), John Brooking, lived in the nineteenth century.

I have seen the memorial to war hero Gerard Broadmead Roope, in St. Petrox Church in Dartmouth.  He is also a distant cousin of mine.

John Yarde Fownes and Margaret Roope's surviving child Maria married a Rev. Davies. She was still alive in 1828, as she is mentioned in a letter of that year from JYF to William Newman Roope.

This has been very interesting. If you should want to contact me by email (eg if you can't access the link to the Kittery fire from here), it is ^(*)

I may have more information somewhere about the Fownes family, but I think that's about it. Let me know if you would like to know anything more about the Roopes.

Thanks, Hilary.


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to avoid spamming and other abuses.
Please use the Personal Message (PM) system for exchanging personal data.

[kathrynclancy]

Hello Bruce,
 I am interested in your bible pages. I am a decendent of the William Henry PHIBBS who was a godfather to Maria Somerville, born 1800. I was wondering if you have any more info about the PHIBBS and the link between the families maybe.
Wiliam Henry PHIBBS married Jane HORNSEY in 1792 in Hackness Church Yorkshire. They were also having there family around the 1800's. They had one son in 1801 in Hertsfordshire others were also born there.
 regards Kathryn

[kathrynclancy]

Hello again Bruce,
 I was just looking a some baptism's of my PHIBBS family.
 I have a John Yard Founes Esq. as a sponsor for a child of William Henry and Jane PHIBBS
in 1803 at East Barnet, Hertsfordshire.  June 1803, William Henry PHIBBS baptised.
 Also on Oct 7 1801  baptised Robert PHIBBs and a sponsor was a Mrs Somerville.
 So the families were very friendly it appeares.
 regards Kathryn

[Bruce59]

Hi Kathryn

I know nothing of PHIBBS.

The Mrs Somerville who was sponsor for William Henry PHIBBS in October 1807 is perhaps Anne Vanham Somerville (1731-1812), mother of John Yarde FOWNES. As yet I can see no other candidate.

Bruce