Peerless Powditch's
Volume 3, Norfolk Vacated
|
You are here: home > Peerless Powditch > chapter 8
|
Chapter 8
WELLS - The Late Starter.
"Peerless Powditchs"
 Vol.3 Norfolk Vacated |
Wells would appear to have been a late starter in marrying and creating a
family.
Fourth born (but third surviving) son of James and Elizabeth (nee Wells),
and baptised on 16 April 1765, Wells waited 24 years before marrying -
and then to a widow - Sarah Garritt - who was just one year younger than
him.
Sarah's original maiden name had been Cook, and confusingly in later
years, the Baptismal registers refer to their children as being of Wells and
Sarah (nee Cook). The Marriage Register however, records that the
marriage actually took place between Wells - a bachelor - and Sarah
Garritt , nee Cook - a widow ; the ceremony being at St. Nicholas Church,
Wells-next-the-Sea.
The entry reads that they were "married by Banns on the 23rd April 1799,
by me, Francis William Roll (or Robe), Curate", and shows the marks
("X") of both Wells and Sarah, together with the signatures of the two
witnesses; Christopher Savory and Jameson Frost.
Wells and Sarah, though marrying in their mid-30s, produced six children;
their youngest being born when both Wells and Sarah were in their late
40's ! although 3 of the children died very young.
Their children were;
- 47 -
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"Peerless Powditchs"
Vol.3 Norfolk Vacated |
Although I hadn't found any records (at Wells-next-the-Sea) of Wells and
Sarah's first-born son -James - other than his birth on 30 January 1803,
recent information highlights that after his baptism in 1915 (at Wells-next-
the-Sea), his next "sighting" was at King's Lynn, where, on 5 June 1833,
he married Sarah Lack, at St. Margaret's Church.
Founded over 800 years ago, and with a Priory and cottages attached,
St. Margaret's is one of the larger Churches in King's Lynn, and contains
two of the best 14th century brasses in the country.
Whether James and Sarah were aware of the history of St. Margaret's
is unknown, but what is more certain is that their first child, Samuel James,
was born at King's Lynn.
There were however six children of James and Sarah's marriage;
N.B. a little while after 1834, James and Sarah returned to Wells-next-
the-Sea, for the Registers at St. Nicholas Church continue, recording
that;-
- 48 -
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"Peerless Powditchs"
Vol.3 Norfolk Vacated |
I do believe however that "Martha" was the "family name" of
Only surviving child of the marriage would therefore appear to have been
James Robert.
Unlike his father, who at various times of his life, and at the baptisms of
his children, was stated to be, or have been, a Sea Captain; a Ship's
Captain; and a Shipmaster, James Robert became a "Shop Fitter", and
sometime after 1881 was in business at Little Queen Street, off Holborn,
London City.
Marrying Louise ....... in the Islington district of London, at the end of 1881,
James was father to two children. First child was Louise, who died not
long after being born. Her birth and death are recorded in the
St. Catherine's Registers as having been in the Registration district of
Holborn, and both to have occurred (and been registered) between July
and September 1883.
James and Louise's second child - Hubert James, was born at the end
of 1885, at Holborn - his survival past childhood being fairly certain, as
no death of a Hubert James is recorded before 1912 (no marriage for
anyone of the same name is recorded up to 1912 either).
At the end of 1886, just one year after Hubert James' birth, his mother -
Louise - at the tender age of 33 years, died.
Left with baby Hubert James, James Robert waited another eight years
before re-marrying; this time in the district of Edmonton, in 1894.
Did James Robert and his new wife have any children of their own? Did
Hubert James marry and have children? The answers to these questions
I don't presently know, but hope that present day readers' may be able
to point in the right direction for more research.
- 49 -
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"Peerless Powditchs"
Vol.3 Norfolk Vacated |
I
I
Returning to James and Sarah ( James being the first chiId of Wells and
Sarah), Sarah died on 5 May 1851. Visitors to St. Nicholas' Church at
Wells-next-the-Sea will - if they walk alongside the north-west wall of the
graveyard - be able to seen Sarah's imposing gravestone standing (or
rather, leaning) 1310mm (52½ inches) high, above the ground, and
920 mm (36¾ inches) wide. The smooth, dark grey (slate?) is an
impressive 50 mm (2 inches) thick, and judging by the quality of the
stone, and the excellence of the carved inscriptions (by LE TALL of
WISBECH), was almost as clear in 1988 as it was when originally
erected in 1851; 137 years ago !
- 50 -
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"Peerless Powditchs"
Vol.3 Norfolk Vacated |
After Sarah's death, James moved to Kent, and four years later, in the
spring of 1855 he re-married - his marriage being registered in the
district of Faversham (Kent). Six years on, James, aged 54 years old,
with his "new" wife, Alice, aged 50 years old, Alice's own two children -
a girl and a boy, aged 19 and 17 years old respectively - and James'
own son, James, who was aged 14 years old, appear on the 1861
Census. The date on which the Census was taken, was 7 April - and
the family's address in Faversham was "Partridge Lane". James'
"Occupation'' is recorded as "Master Mariner", and his place of birth,
as being "Wells, Norfolk" whereas his wife, his step-son and step-
daughter have their place of birth shown to be "Faversham, Kent".
James Powditch junior, at age 14, has been recorded as a "Scholar".
James (senior) can lay claim to an unusual place of death, for on
8 October 1884, at the age of 78, he died an the platform of St. Mary
Cray (Kent) Railway Station !
Approximately six months later, his second wife - Alice Mary, aged 74 -
also died, and the deaths of both James and Alice Mary were registered
in the district of Bromley, Kent. Little wonder then that the "space'' on
the left-hand side of Sarah Powditch's gravestone in the churchyard of
St. Nicholas, Wells-next-the-Sea, (see Fig. t.b.a.) was blank - for Sarah's
husband, James, far from having died at Sea, was buried in Kent, and
(although I haven't traced his gravestone) is most likely buried with his
second wife.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>><<<<<<<<<<<<<<
Thomas was the second son, and the second child to survive, of Wells
and Sarah Garritt (nee Cook).
Born on 4 October 1804, and baptised on 26 November the same year,
Thomas, - on 29 October 1829 married Mary Matthews.
Mary, who was single, hailed from Warham St. Mary, an inland village
not far from Wells-next-the-Sea, and her marriage to Thomas - also
single - was by Licence. At the Parish Church of St. Nicholas, Wells-
next-theSea, both signed their names in the Register, and their
witnesses signed likewise.
There were three witnesses, and interestingly, one appears to indicate
that Sarah (who had married Wells) had had at least one child by her
former marriage, for Henry Cook Garritt was the first signature on the
Register of Thomas and Mary's marriage. Second witness was Alice
(or Avice) Matthews (sister/Mother to Mary?) and third witness was
Elizabeth Powditch - who may have been Wells' sister.
Marjorie Stein, when I first made contact with her in 1985, sent me a list
of all of Thomas and Mary's children - all eleven of them, together with
the years of births.
- 51 -
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"Peerless Powditchs"
Vol.3 Norfolk Vacated |
Since then, I have been able to expand the details of this prolific family.
Thomas and Mary's children, therefore, were as follows;-
- 52 -
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"Peerless Powditchs"
Vol.3 Norfolk Vacated |
After the birth of James, details of Thomas and Mary's next three children
- all daughters - have been recorded from the St. Catherine's Birth
Registers. Therefore exact dates of birth have not been stated, as I am
still awaiting those details.
Thomas and Mary's fortunes may be followed by his inclusion in the
various "Directories" published for the town of Wells, during the period
1836 to 1869, together with record of the family in the 1841 and 1851
Census.
Thus it is, that in White's Directory for 1836, we find Thomas Powditch
living in Freeman Street - a Master Mariner.
Indeed, in 1841, at the time of the Census, Thomas and his family are still
living in Freeman Street, and the members present in the household on
that day, are recorded as;-
As can be seen from the Census, when used in conjunction with the
earlier "birth" details), Cook must have been born around 1831; the
first Mary had already died, and the Mary (above) who was born in 1833,
is shown as aged 8. "Thos" is Thomas Williams, and "Elizabeth" is
Sarah Elizabeth. The rest of Thomas and Mary's children are not
shown, simply because they were not born until after the Census had
been taken.
- 53 -
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"Peerless Powditchs"
Vol.3 Norfolk Vacated |
interestingly, whereas in other 1841 Census households, Powditch's
were servants to others, in Thomas and Mary's house, they employed
their own young female servant - Charlotte Pigott.
By the time that White's Directory for 1845 had been published, Thomas,
still a Master Mariner, had moved to "East End", and six years later had
moved yet again, to "Quay", where in the 1851 Census, just Thomas and
Mary were at home, and recorded as;-
- the occupation of Thomas on the 1851 Census, highlighting, perhaps a
better standard of living than other members of his family - which had
enabled him, 10 years earlier, to be the employer of a servant within his
household.
Certainly by 1853, Kelly's Directory shows Thomas at Stoughton's Yard
- Ship Owner. White's Directory of 1854 has him at Staith Street, a
Master Mariner and Ship Owner, whilst Kelly's Directory for 1859 shows
him living at West End - a Master Mariner.
Thomas Williams (son of Thomas and Mary), followed in his Father's
footsteps, for White's Directory of 1864 lists Thomas junior, living at
Freeman Street, following the occupation of Master Mariner and Ship
Owner, whilst the next year of 1865, both Father and son appear in
Kelly's Directory; Thomas (Senr.) at "Quay" - a Ship Owner - and
Thomas (Junr.) still at Freeman Street - Master Mariner.
Thomas Williams (otherwise known as Thomas, junior) - who had been
born on 18 March 1835 - married Elizabeth Ann --------- (surname
unknown at present) at Wells-next-the-Sea, in 1857 (registered between
April and June of that year).
Thomas Williams and Elizabeth Ann had four children;
- 54 -
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"Peerless Powditchs"
Vol.3 Norfolk Vacated |
- 55 -
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"Peerless Powditchs"
Vol.3 Norfolk Vacated |
In Harrod's Directory of 1868, Thomas (Snr.) is at Nelson's Square, a
Ship Owner, and in 1869, Kelly's Directory shows Thomas at "Quay";
still a Ship Owner.
Knowing that Thomas (senior) died in 1879, aged 76 years old, and
that Mary (his widow), died in 1889, aged 80, I had often wondered what
had happened to Thomas ( junior ) after 1866 - for the Directories of
1868 and 1869, make no mention of him.
A copy of a letter, written on 20 October 1913 by Thomas Walker
Powditch (son of Thomas junior), was sent to me in August 1988,
containing the answer to my "wonderings". According to Thomas Walker,
his father, "Thomas Powditch, Master Mariner and Ship Owner, of
Freeman Street, Wells-next-the-Sea, drowned at sea in his own ship".
I don't know a date, the name of the ship, his age at death, or the area in
which the ship was lost, although I do hope, one day, to be able to
uncover those details, but the information in the letter, nevertheless,
does answer the previous questionning of where Thomas Williams
Powditch 'went' after 1866.
Although Thomas Walker Powditch (living on 30 October 1913, at Burkitt
Street, North End, King's Lynn) and his wife, Sarah Maria didn't have any
children, his other two brothers, did
- 56 -
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"Peerless Powditchs"
Vol.3 Norfolk Vacated |
Alfred Albert John Powditch and his; wife, had two children - Albert
Robert, whose birth at Wells-next-the-Sea was Registered between
October and December 1906, and Mabel Maud, registered between
July and September 1907, also at Wells.
Alfred (senior) and family, lived at Freeman Street, Wells-next-the-Sea,
where Alfred was a well known Fishmonger. Older members of the
current Wells' community remember Alf going around the village with a
horse and cart, selling the fish (which he had bought off the local fishing
boats). Others believed that it was either Alf, or another Powditch, who
used to "cure" his own fish in the village.
Alfred's son, Alfred Robert Powditch, on 27 December 1930, at the age
of 24, became virtually the last Wells-living-Powditch to marry in the
Parish Church of St. Nicholas, when he married lrene Isabel
Wordingham. lrene was aged 26, and was a spinster. Her father
(Charles Edward Wordingham), and Alfred Robert Powditch were both
Fishermen, and with Alfred (senior) being a Fishmonger, it was in the
closeness of the fishing community that the young couple first met.
After their marriage, Alf and lrene went to live in a cottage opposite the
"Shipwrights' Arms" public house, in an area known as "East End". In
1988, although there were many colourful cottages in some of the lanes,
the cottage where "our" couple had lived, had been demolished long ago.
Dated 6 November 1973, a letter from Alf - then aged 67, and living at
81, Northfield Crescent - a new part of Wells-next-the-Sea - was sent to
Marjorie Stein (nee Powditch); its contents tell his own story;
Within just a few sentences. we therefore discover much about this little
family.
In the new Cemetery at Wells-next-the-Sea, there are two Powditch
graves. One is to Alf's wife, Irene Isabel Powditch, who died 28 December
1935, aged 31. The other is to the only witness at Alf and Irene's
marriage - Hannah Sarah Powditch, who died in 1933.
Of his two marriages, Alf, as he advises us in his letter, had three sons.
In 1973, Geoffrey (lrene's son), was the eldest, and had been living in
Australia for 14 years (emigrated in 1959?). Alf's other two
- 57 -
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"Peerless Powditchs"
Vol.3 Norfolk Vacated |
sons, were David - who in 1973 was working in the City of Norwich as an
"electronic engerneer" [sic], and Philip, who had been "at home last
week as it was half-term".
Although I don't know Alf's second wife's christian name, her surname
may have been Neilson, for later in his 1973 letter, Alf records the name
of T. Neilson.
Alf, as he says in his letter (apart from the loss of his two wives) must
have had a charmed life, for;-
and again;-
as Alf put. it, "Well I could write a book some amuseing some but thats
life"
Four years later, in 1977, Alf was lying in hospital, when;-
At the present I know very little more about Alf. Cynthia Tuck, a short,
plump, pleasant grandmother, who looks after the locked away
- 58 -
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"Peerless Powditchs"
Vol.3 Norfolk Vacated |
Parish Registers of St. Nicholas Church, Wells-next-the-Sea, and who
sometimes helps with recording their written details - remembers a few
details about Alf and some of his family.
(In 1988) Cynthia told me that AIf 's first wife Irene (known as "Renee" ),
was a Wells "born and bred" girl, and that his second wife came "from
Cromer way".
Alf (as several locals advised me) died approximately 6 years ago (i.e.
around 1983), and was cremated at Kings Lynn the nearest Crematorium.
No-one in the village remembered Thomas, or Francis, although Cynthia
believed Eva Elizabeth had married a Mr. Reynolds, although they didn't
marry (or live) in Wells. They apparently had a daughter - Sylvia - who
married an American Serviceman, and the couple now live in America.
With Alf's death, Norfolk became a poorer place, for although his
handiwork, in helping to build the new houses opposite St. Nicholas
Church, lives on for all to see, Alf was the last Powditch to have been born
at, married at, and died at, Wells-next-the-Sea. With his passing, there
now are no Powditch's living in the County of their origin.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>><<<<<<<<<<<<<<
Returning to the children of Thomas Williams Powditch and his wife
Elizabeth Ann, their last child was Francis James, who was baptised at
Wells, on 21 October 1866.
By 1895, some twenty-nine years later, it is apparent that Francis
James - otherwise known as "Frank", had moved from his birthplace,
and had travelled south, to the great metropolis of London. The district
of Poplar, London, was now the home of many Powditch's, and it was
here that Frank - a "Sailor" - married Annie ....... , their marriage being
registered during the last three months of 1895.
Although the couple married at Poplar, by the following year they had
moved back to Frank's home town of Wells-next-the-Sea, where their
first child, Rose Emily, was born in 1896 (Registered between October
and December)
Two years later, their second child - Maud Annie, was born (Registered
between January and March 1898) - whilst the next year saw their only
son, Alfred Clifford, being born on 11 May 1899, and his baptism two
months later, on 16 July.
To date, apart from knowing that Maud Annie died before her first
birthday - her death being Registered between January and March
1899 - I have no further details regarding Francis James, of his wife, or
of his children - and I hope that someone, somewhere may be able to
assist with further information.
- 59 -
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"Peerless Powditchs"
Vol.3 Norfolk Vacated |
Rather interestingly, during the period from 1866 (when Francis James
Powditch was born) until 1896, (when Rose Emily was born), no other
Powditch births occurred at Wells-next-the-Sea.
During the same 30 year period, there were only four Powditch
marriages; three girls - one in each of the years 1868, 1872 and 1876 -
and one boy - Alfred John - in 1889.
Again, during the same period, seven Powditch deaths occurred. The
youngest person was aged 62, and the oldest 83, with an average age
of 76 years ! In fact, up to 1912 ( from 1866), there were only 9 deaths,
which, apart from the deaths already mentioned, there were two others -
one an infant in 1899, and one aged 43 in 1905. Even with these two
deaths being at younger ages than the aforementioned, the age of the
deaths, gives an average of 64 years old !
From the ages of those dying at at Wells, and the lack of marriages or
births in that area, there is an indication that sometime around 1870,
the majority of families had moved to new pastures; but then, jobs were
were no longer totally dependant on sea-faring. Many new areas were
crying out for skills. Skills learnt at sea, and now beneficial in land-based
jobs - as we shall see In the late 1800 and 1900 Powditch families.
I am presently left wondering what happened to descendants of Wells
and Sarah, Did Miles (or Wells) - their son; or Hubert James, their Great
Grandson; or Cook, and John Matthews - their Grandchildren, remain
single, and die after 1912? - or did they, perchance, seek their fortunes
across the seas"? Did they at some time, marry and raise families,
miles from these shores?
Only time will tell.
The family tree of Thomas and Mary is shown Overleaf:
- 60 -
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
"Peerless Powditchs"
Vol.3 Norfolk Vacated |
I
I
I
- 61 -
|
Acknowledgements |
|
|