Hancock Family 1740- 1927
Mary Ann Hancock was my maternal great grandmother and the starting point for my research of the Hancock family. The Hancock family was from Gloucestershire - the villages of Uley, Dursley, Minchinhampton and Leonard Stanley - and worked in the woollen cottage industry. The Hancocks were devout Methodists and often gave their children unusual biblical names.
A family story exists that the Hancock's were connected with the French Revolution and that a Hancock was illegitimately descended from a French aristocrat who lost his head! This account has not been supported by my research, however two further stories have surfaced from distantly related cousins who have similar accounts - one involving the Duc de Berry who was assassinated in 1820 and another being a Lady Longstreth running off with her coachman.
A family story exists that the Hancock's were connected with the French Revolution and that a Hancock was illegitimately descended from a French aristocrat who lost his head! This account has not been supported by my research, however two further stories have surfaced from distantly related cousins who have similar accounts - one involving the Duc de Berry who was assassinated in 1820 and another being a Lady Longstreth running off with her coachman.
Abel Thomas Hancock (my 4ggf) abt. 1740
Abel Thomas married Sarah Yewen from Uley in 1769. They had five children:
1771 Elizabeth
1774 Twins Thomas and Sarah
1775 Abel (my 3ggf)
1777 Twins Hannah and Rebekah
Abel Thomas married Sarah Yewen from Uley in 1769. They had five children:
1771 Elizabeth
1774 Twins Thomas and Sarah
1775 Abel (my 3ggf)
1777 Twins Hannah and Rebekah
Abel Hancock (my 3ggf) 1775 - 1839
Proof of Abel’s existence is from his son Timothy’s marriage record in 1842.
Abel was christened in Minchinhampton in February 1795. He had three wives - Sarah Longstretch, Olive Longstretch and lastly Sarah Parslow. With Sarah Parslow, from whom I am descended, he had three children:
1821 Timothy (my 2ggf) was born in Stonehouse
1822 Tryphena was also born in Stonehouse but christened in Dursley. She was a wool carder[1] in 1851 (25) and a woollen wharfer in 1861. Tryphena married Dishan Farmiloe of Cam.
1831 Tryphosa was born in Eastington but christened in Stonehouse. She was a mule spinner[2] in 1851 (19) and a woollen spinner in 1861. She married Henry Hawkins, also of Eastington.
1836 Emma
In 1841, his wife Sarah, now a widow, and family were living in Stonehouse Street, Stonehouse. Thereafter in 1851 and 1861, the family lived in the hamlet of Poplar Gate, northwest of Leonard Stanley. Poplar Gate no longer exists. In 1851, Sarah was an “abb winder” in the woollen industry in which her daughters also worked. By 1861, aged 65, Sarah was retired.
Abel was christened in Minchinhampton in February 1795. He had three wives - Sarah Longstretch, Olive Longstretch and lastly Sarah Parslow. With Sarah Parslow, from whom I am descended, he had three children:
1821 Timothy (my 2ggf) was born in Stonehouse
1822 Tryphena was also born in Stonehouse but christened in Dursley. She was a wool carder[1] in 1851 (25) and a woollen wharfer in 1861. Tryphena married Dishan Farmiloe of Cam.
1831 Tryphosa was born in Eastington but christened in Stonehouse. She was a mule spinner[2] in 1851 (19) and a woollen spinner in 1861. She married Henry Hawkins, also of Eastington.
1836 Emma
In 1841, his wife Sarah, now a widow, and family were living in Stonehouse Street, Stonehouse. Thereafter in 1851 and 1861, the family lived in the hamlet of Poplar Gate, northwest of Leonard Stanley. Poplar Gate no longer exists. In 1851, Sarah was an “abb winder” in the woollen industry in which her daughters also worked. By 1861, aged 65, Sarah was retired.
Timothy Hancock (my 2ggf) 1821 – 1889
Timothy’s birth year is estimated to have been between 1821 and 1826 in Stonehouse, Gloucestershire. The record of his marriage confirms his father as Abel Hancock.
He married Mary Ann Phipps, a seamstress from Birmingham[3], in Tipton in 1842. She was the daughter of Hezekiah and Ann Phipps. It is not known how Timothy, a rural Gloucestershire lad, came to meet Mary Ann, a city girl from Birmingham but they went on to have seven children:
1846 Timothy was born in Swan Village, Staffordshire. He became a train engine driver.
1848 Lotan was born in Swan Village.
1851 Mary Ann (my great grandmother) was born in Leonard Stanley, Gloucestershire.
1855 Olive was born in Haughton, Staffordshire.
1858 Albert Llewellyn was born in Haughton.
1860 Elizabeth Sophia was born in Haughton.
1862 Alice Matilda was born in Haughton. She married Thomas Jones in Burslem 1882.
1868 Sarah was born in Seighford, Staffordshire
Timothy does not appear in either the 1841 or 1851 census returns. However, when his daughter Mary Ann was born in Leonard Stanley in 1851, Timothy was recorded on the birth certificate as working as a Coke Maker.
By 1861 the family had moved to Staffordshire where Timothy worked on the railway as a Plate Layer[4] and lived at The Stables, Haughton, 5 miles west of Stafford. By 1871, the family were living at Stacking Gate, Seighford, 4 miles northwest of Stafford. In 1881 Timothy was working on the railways as a Gatesman and living in Seighford. Apart from his wife, Mary Ann, the family had left home.
The couple ended up living at Crossing Cottage in Derrington. Mary Ann died in 1888 and Timothy in the following year on 12 May 1889. A photograph of the cottage was taken in 1902 (here) when it was occupied by a subsequent gatesman, Edwin Hughes.
He married Mary Ann Phipps, a seamstress from Birmingham[3], in Tipton in 1842. She was the daughter of Hezekiah and Ann Phipps. It is not known how Timothy, a rural Gloucestershire lad, came to meet Mary Ann, a city girl from Birmingham but they went on to have seven children:
1846 Timothy was born in Swan Village, Staffordshire. He became a train engine driver.
1848 Lotan was born in Swan Village.
1851 Mary Ann (my great grandmother) was born in Leonard Stanley, Gloucestershire.
1855 Olive was born in Haughton, Staffordshire.
1858 Albert Llewellyn was born in Haughton.
1860 Elizabeth Sophia was born in Haughton.
1862 Alice Matilda was born in Haughton. She married Thomas Jones in Burslem 1882.
1868 Sarah was born in Seighford, Staffordshire
Timothy does not appear in either the 1841 or 1851 census returns. However, when his daughter Mary Ann was born in Leonard Stanley in 1851, Timothy was recorded on the birth certificate as working as a Coke Maker.
By 1861 the family had moved to Staffordshire where Timothy worked on the railway as a Plate Layer[4] and lived at The Stables, Haughton, 5 miles west of Stafford. By 1871, the family were living at Stacking Gate, Seighford, 4 miles northwest of Stafford. In 1881 Timothy was working on the railways as a Gatesman and living in Seighford. Apart from his wife, Mary Ann, the family had left home.
The couple ended up living at Crossing Cottage in Derrington. Mary Ann died in 1888 and Timothy in the following year on 12 May 1889. A photograph of the cottage was taken in 1902 (here) when it was occupied by a subsequent gatesman, Edwin Hughes.
The Birmingham Daily Gazette reported his death due to a fall from a ladder while lighting a signal post lamp. Timothy and Mary Ann are buried at St Matthew's in Church Lane, Derrington (below), where the headstone records his accidental death on the crossing (link).
In |
In |
Mary Ann Hancock (my great grandmother)
Mary Ann was born 12 February 1851 in Poplar Gate. At that time, the hamlet was a small collection of buildings housing workers associated with the woollen industry. Both prior to and shortly after her birth, the family was living in Staffordshire so it is probable (and given that her father was absent from the census) she was born while her mother was visiting her grandmother.
In 1871, aged 22, Mary Ann was working as a live-in cook for a girl's boarding school run by Ann Blakemore on Eastgate Street. Eastgate Street was, of course, in the parish of St Mary where she met my great grandfather James Goodwin.
For the rest of Mary Ann's story - see Goodwin family
Mary Ann was born 12 February 1851 in Poplar Gate. At that time, the hamlet was a small collection of buildings housing workers associated with the woollen industry. Both prior to and shortly after her birth, the family was living in Staffordshire so it is probable (and given that her father was absent from the census) she was born while her mother was visiting her grandmother.
In 1871, aged 22, Mary Ann was working as a live-in cook for a girl's boarding school run by Ann Blakemore on Eastgate Street. Eastgate Street was, of course, in the parish of St Mary where she met my great grandfather James Goodwin.
For the rest of Mary Ann's story - see Goodwin family
Notes
[1] Carding is a process that disentangles and cleans wool fibres to produce a continuous web or sliver suitable for subsequent processing. In Leonard Stanley, this would have been a cottage industry
[2] The mule spinner would have taken the carded wool to spin it into yarn.
[3] Many Ann’s occupation and birth place are indicated on the 1851 census.
[4] A platelayer was a railway employee whose job is to inspect and maintain the track, including all its component parts such as rails, sleepers, fishplates, bolts, etc. His duties include greasing points, and generally watching for wear and tear. In the heyday of steam railway operation a platelayer might be assigned to each mile or two miles of track, with a platelayers' hut as his shelter and working base. He would regularly patrol his section of track.
[2] The mule spinner would have taken the carded wool to spin it into yarn.
[3] Many Ann’s occupation and birth place are indicated on the 1851 census.
[4] A platelayer was a railway employee whose job is to inspect and maintain the track, including all its component parts such as rails, sleepers, fishplates, bolts, etc. His duties include greasing points, and generally watching for wear and tear. In the heyday of steam railway operation a platelayer might be assigned to each mile or two miles of track, with a platelayers' hut as his shelter and working base. He would regularly patrol his section of track.