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HEWITT, Shenley Area, 1780-1851 May, 2013 |
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Coreen Allen (c.allen187 @t ntlworld.com) of Hertford writes: I am trying to trace the parents and/or the siblings of a Walter Hewitt, a shoemaker/cordwainer, born in Hertfordshire in about 1774. I have his D/C & he died 02/07/1846, aged 72 in South Mimms. I believe he is probably the Walter Hewitt who married Elizabeth Johnson in Abbotts Langley on 08/10/1798. I have traced five children via IGI. The eldest, William, was born in 1800 in Chipping Barnet. The others are; Sarah Mary born 1804 in Shenley, Walter, born 1807 in Shenley, Ann, born 1809 in Shenley & James born & died 1812 in Shenley. There may well be more children that I have not found.
I did visit HALS but all I could trace was an extract from the Easter session Rolls 07/04/1782 of an order dismissing the appeal of Ridge against a warrant removing Mary Hewitt & John, Walter & Lucy, her children, from Shenley. This maybe my Walter but I have no way of confirming this. Unfortunately I have been unable to trace Walter in 1841, although I have traced his widow, Elizabeth, in the 1851 census (she did not die until 07/01/1854). I just wondered, with your knowledge of local genealogy, if you could help me find any additional info about this family.
You are in a situation where, unfortunately, records can start getting thin, and there are no birth/baptism records for many in the population. What can be done can depend on what records survive for individual parishes - and HALS is the place to look - for instance to see if there are any account books which could include payments to, or rates received from, the family. One thing you can do is to track any contacts to see if they are relatives, as this can sometimes be the best way round a missing birth problem.
As Walter Hewitt is not a particularly common name I start by assuming that all the references you give refer to the same man. I review the evidence and suggest lines you might like to follow up.
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1782 an extract from the Easter session Rolls 07/04/1782 of an order dismissing the appeal of Ridge against a warrant removing Mary Hewitt & John, Walter & Lucy, her children, from Shenley
Does HALS have any poor law record books for Ridge or Shenley for this period?
Have you been able to track down Mary Hewitt's burial - possibly at Ridge? Or did she remarry?
What happened to John? The name is probably too common to track reliably
What happened to Lucy? The name is far less common. If we can track her down we might be able to find where she was born - and perhaps Walter was born in the same place. Could the following be relevant?
Lucy Hewitt married John Andrews at Hatfield 29 Nov 1802 [Who were the witnesses?]
In the 1841 census John and Lucy Andrew were living at West Side, Fore Street, Stevenage. Both are recorded as being born in Hertfordshire.
In the 1851 census the couple were living in Back Lane, Stevenage. John was a 76 year old pauper (agricultural labourer) born at Wymondley, Herts, while Lucy was 74 and born at Plaistow, Essex. There was a 9 year old granddaughter, Sarah Rance born at Wheathampstead.
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1798: Walter Hewitt married Elizabeth Johnson in Abbotts Langley on 08/10/1798.
Both Walter and his bride could sign their name - so if you get any other suitable document you may be able to compare signatures. Did Elizabeth sign Walter's Death Certificate? [You may need to set the original which is possibly with the registrar at Hertford.]
Who are Mary Marston and James Smith? Could Mary be his mother remarried? Could James Smith be a brother-in-law? If you can identify them it may turn up some clues.
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1800-1809: The eldest child, William, was born in 1800 in Chipping Barnet. The others are; Sarah Mary born 1804 in Shenley, Walter, born 1807 in Shenley, Ann, born 1809 in Shenley & James born & died 1812 in Shenley. There may well be more children that I have not found.
William turns up married, with a family, living at Smug Oak, St Stephens, St Albans in the 1851 census.
Was another child, Elizabeth born circa 1803? (see below)
What happened to Sarah Mary?
Ann born 1809, Shenley - Buried at South Mimms, on 19 November, 1815 aged 6.
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1841: Census: South Mimms, Middlesex
| HEWIT, Walter | M | 30 | Shoe Maker | Middlesex |
| HEWIT, Elizabeth | F | 50 | ||
| YEOMAN, Sarah | F | 6 | Middlesex |
I agree that Walter Hewitt senior is not obvious in the census. In the 1841 census there were problem with fully recording people who were away from home on census night.
Who was Sarah Yeoman? Was she a granddaughter. This 1851 census may be a clue.
263 Road Side, St Mary Whitechapel, Tower Hamlets, Middlesex