Elizabeth Lanham (1754 - 1829)

52 Ancestor Challenge - Challenge 39

Blake, King, Coleman, Pearce, Farmer, Mary (unknown), Lambden, Sarah (unknown), Knight, Ellis, Knight, Vincent, Butt, O'Ford, Arnold, Molton, Cotterell, Bartlett, Alderman, Shepherd, Sherwood, Elizabeth (unknown), Happerfield, Collins, Rawlings, Tanner, Dove, Morgan, Lywood, Lanham, unknown, Peck, Pincombe, Charley, Rowcliffe, Pearse, Rew, Moggridge, Siderfin, Kent, Gray, Hilton, Cobb, Sproxton, Routledge, Tweddle, Routledge, Routledge, (unknown) Buller, unknown, Beard, Hemsley, Welch, Brockhouse, Cheatle, Woodcock, unknown Taylor, unknown, Harborne, Lewis, Roberts, Croxall, Lawley, unknown

Perhaps one of my greatest discoveries of this past year was the correct spelling of the surname of the wife of George Lywood. Listed as Canham for all the years that I have been researching; finding it to be Lanham has been a breakthrough. I discussed my breakthrough earlier in the year as it was a random search that disclosed it to me:

 http://kippeeb.blogspot.ca/2015/05/52-ancestor-challenge-benefits.html

Doing the search for the surname Canham and ending up looking for Lanham was a completely random happening which yielded great results. Then entering the corrected surname into my tree at Find My Past was an avalanche of new results permitting hopefully the linkage back to the father of Elizabeth Lanham as Joseph Lanham/Lannum. The marriage of George Lywood and Elizabeth Lanham 18 Jul 1780 at West Harnham fits so clearly into the records for this family. Their children were baptized:

Jane Lywood (no baptism found), married James Tyneham 9 Aug 1797 at West Harnham
John baptized 22 Jan 1784 at West Harnham
George baptized 7 May 1786 at West Harnham (my ancestor)

Elizabeth Lanham could be baptized 12 Aug 1754 at Melksham daughter of Joseph Lannum and Elizabeth Willmore/Wilmar. They themselves were married 22 Sep 1752 at Melksham. Elizabeth was a widow at the time of her marriage.

This Joseph could be the son of Joseph Lanham (clothier) and Hannah Grimshire and they were married 30 Jun 1695 at Amesbury. I have not yet found a baptism for either Joseph or for Hannah who was buried 30 Sep 1739 at Melksham. A Joseph (possible son of Joseph and Hannah) married Agatha Stevens 3 May 1728 at Bradford on Avon. There was a Joseph Lannum baptized 17 Sep 1729 at Melksham son of Joseph and Agatha Lannum. Do these all link together? I had a match on AncestryDNA with another Lywood descendant and I wrote to mention my latest find. He checked it out and came back with "In agreement." But now I would like to look at it in more depth.

Now for a little geography just to make sure that all of these places are in a reasonable distance from each other. The search engine at Find My Past revealed these possibilities to me and I now need to give them a longer look.

Melksham where an Elizabeth Lanham was baptized is 30 miles from West Harnham but Bradford on Avon is closeby Melksham. Amesbury is close to West Harnham. Is it practical to think of Elizabeth as being baptized at Melksham in 1754 and married to George Lywood in 1780 at West Harnham? The marriage of Joseph Lanham and Hannah Grimshire (grandparents of Elizabeth) at Amesbury lends credence to this possibility. Hannah (married at Amesbury) is buried at Melksham where they are living at that time.

Can I find a baptism for Hannah Grimshire? There is a baptism for a Hannah Grimshire 12 Oct 1678 at Amesbury daughter of Thomas and Hannah Grimshire. That would have her only seventeen years old when she married Joseph Lanham at Amesbury and 61 if this is her burial 30 Sep 1739 at Melksham. There is a Thomas Grimsheere married to Hannah Jarvis 25 Nov 1677 at Amesbury. Hannah appears to be the only baptism for this set of parents. Interesting that the spelling of the Lanham name is that at Amesbury but at Melksham one finds Lannum and Lanham.

Another interesting commonality is in the naming of the children of Joseph Lannun (baptized 17 Sep 1729 at Melksham son of Joseph and Agatha Lannum and married to Elizabeth Willmore/Wilar 22 Sep 1752 at Melksham) all baptized at Melksham:

Elizabeth Lannum no baptism found but  buried 20 Jan 1753 at Melksham
Elizabeth Lannum baptized 12 Aug 1754
Agatha Lannum no baptism found but buried 7 Jul 1756 at Melksham

No other children found for this couple. Elizabeth would have been sixteen years of age when her father was buried 6 Apr 1770 at Melksham.

There are no wills for Lannum but there are wills for Lanham at Melksham and other places:

Ref No    Title    Date    Name    Occupation    Community       

P1/12Reg/296B  Will  1770  Lanham, Joseph  Melksham
   
P1/1843/18  Will, wrapper  1843  Lanham, William Randell  Tailor and draper  Salisbury
   
P1/L/257  Administration bond, inventory  1708  Lanham, William  Whiteparish
   
P1/L/487  Will  1770  Lanham, Joseph  Innholder  Melksham
   
P2/1806/57  Will, wrapper  1806  Lanham, William  Cooper  Upavon
   
P2/1819/64  Administration bond  1819  Lanham, Hannah  Widow  Bishopstone, South
   
P2/1820/22  Administration bond, wrapper  1820  Lanham, Edward  Bachelor  Bishopstone, South
   
P2/2Reg/99A  Will  1550  Lanham, John  Martin 

P2/L/102  Administration bond, inventory, will  1605  Lanham, Robert  Martin 
   
P2/L/111  Administration bond, inventory, will  1607  Lanham, Robert  Husbandman  Bishopstone, South
   
P2/L/176  Account, administration bond, inventory  1629, 1630  Lanham, William  Martin  

P2/L/211  Inventory, will  1636  Lanham, Gabriel  Bishopstone, South 
   
P2/L/266  Inventory, will  1661  Lanham, Thomas  Yeoman  Bishopstone, South
   
P2/L/345  Inventory  [1676]  Lanham, William  Lace maker  Martin
   
P2/L/384  Commission, inventory, will  1685  Lanham, John, senior  Broad weaver  Wilton
   
P2/L/458  Inventory, will  1703  Lanham, John alias George  Broad weaver  Wilton
   
P2/L/504  Inventory, will  1712  Lanham, John  Cheesemonger  Wilton 
   
P2/L/518  Administration bond  1713  Lanham, Joseph  Amesbury
   
P2/L/601  Will  1734  Lanham, Thomas  Yeoman  Bishopstone, South
   
P2/L/800  Administration bond  1793  Lanham, Henry  Bachelor  Market Lavington
   
P25/1774/4  Administration bond  1774  Lanham, Henry  Westbury
   
P25/1815/2  Oath, will  1815  Lanham, William  Tiler and plasterer  Westbury
   
P4/1718/18  Two inventories, will  1718  Lanham, Philip  Cooper  Salisbury
   
P5/15Reg/320B  Will  1715  Lanham, Mary  Spinster  Heytesbury
   
P5/1690/28  Inventory, will  1690  Lanham, Mary  Widow  Heytesbury
   
P5/1712/34  Administration bond  1712  Lanham, William  Heytesbury
   
P5/1715/23  Will  1715  Lanham, Mary  Spinster  Heytesbury
   
P5/1749/33  Will, wrapper  1749  Lanham, Richard  Heytesbury
   
P5/1756/20  Will  1756  Lanham, Alice  Widow  Heytesbury

I need to learn more about the Lanham family and why their surname was Lannum at Melksham in the parish records. I did find the Lannum spelling on Family Search. In Find My Past it appears to be Lanham for the same individual. The marriage bond for Joseph Lanham and Elizabeth Wilmar (widow) at Melksham of 1752 lists John Rutty as bondsman. Why are there two wills listed for Joseph Lanham in 1770 at Melksham? Are there two who died in the same year?

Joseph Lanham married at Rowde Hannah Banks of Lacock 23 Aug 1738. Joseph was of Melksham but I am suspicious that his wife Agatha was deceased as no more children after the burial of Agatha.

I also found the Marriage Licence Bonds transcription for Joseph Lannum 3 May 1728 at Amesford with marriage at Bradford. He was a cloth worker living at Amesbury and Agatha Stephens was of Melksham. So it would appear that the Joseph Lannum/Lanham at Amesbury is also the Joseph Lannum/Lanham at Melksham where he was a clothier. Another interesting record for a baptism of Joseph Lanham 6 Oct 1754 at Market Lavington son of Joseph (no other details).

Do I have enough evidence to show that the Joseph Lanham at Amesbury was also the Joseph Lanham at Melksham? It would appear that the marriage bond does give sufficient information. I need to purchase the wills (both are available) although Elizabeth his likely daughter was not married until 1780 so will not likely show any relationship to the Lywood family into which I postulate she married. However did George and Elizabeth meet one is left to ponder but losing her father at 16 years of age probably changed her life especially as that father had gone bankrupt as a clothier in Melksham. If I could learn more about her mother perhaps I could learn more about the daughter and where she was located after her father's death.

I did not yet purchase the wills but will do so eventually.

Ancestry of Elizabeth Lanham:

1. Elizabeth BLAKE
2. Ernest Edward George BLAKE (b 20 Aug 1904) - Eastleigh Hampshire England
3. Edith Bessie TAYLOR (b 1 Apr 1875) - Kimpton Hampshire England
4. Elizabeth RAWLINGS (b 19 Oct 1853) - Enford Wiltshire England
5. Elizabeth LYWOOD (b 25 Dec 1826) - Milston Wiltshire England
6. George LYWOOD (b 7 May 1786) - West Harnham Wiltshire England
7. Elizabeth Lanham (b 12 Aug 1754) - Melksham Wiltshire England
8. Joseph Lannum (b 17 Sep 1729) - Melksham Wiltshire England
9. Joseph Lannum
10. Joseph Lanham

Rawlin[g]s Family of Enford, Wiltshire

Depending upon which cousin I write to the spelling of this surname varies between Rawlings and Rawlins. My 3x great grandfather Thomas spelled his name Rawlins but his son William (my 2x great grandfather) spelled his name Rawlings. Elizabeth, the daughter of William and my great grandmother, spelled her name Rawlings.


Elizabeth Rawlings was born 19 October 1853 at Enford, Wiltshire the daughter of William Rawlings and Elizabeth Lywood who were themselves married 22 Sep 1849 at Amesbury, Wiltshire which is seven miles south of Enford or 3 miles south of Milston where Elizabeth lived. I suspect that they ran away to be married. William and Elizabeth had seven children: George, Harriet, Elizabeth, Mary Jane, William, David, and Sidney Herbert. Harriet married  Charles Butler and died in childbirth although her son Thomas Butler survived. Charles remarried. Mary Jane does not appear to have married but the four brothers all married. I have met several of their descendants online at Genes Reunited.

William Rawlings was born circa 1825 at Enford but I have not yet found his baptism. He died 10 Sep 1902 at Ludgershall after being paralyzed for three years from a stroke. A picture I have of him is below. William's parents were Thomas Rawlins and Mary Dove who were likely married 9 Dec 1807 at Woodford, Wiltshire. However my proof for this is rather weak. They had six children Harriet born circa 1813, Isaac born circa 1818, Harriet born circa 1819, Jeremiah born circa 1821, Jane born circa 1823 and William born circa 1825.

As I will mention later with the Lywood family where George was in the 23rd Regiment of Foot and served in the Peninsular Wars and at Waterloo, I wonder if Thomas was also in the military but have not yet found any record of that. The birth of Harriet in 1813 and then Isaac in 1818 as the first children is quite suspect for someone being away in the military. The first Harriet must have died as the second Harriet arrives in 1819. I do know that Thomas Rawlins was baptized 20 Sep 1783 at Enford and that his wife Mary died sep quarter 1849 at Enford. Thomas died march quarter 1866 in Pewsey Registration District (Enford is in Pewsey). I do have the parish records for Enford Baptisms 1635 - 1813, Burials 1722 - 1813, and Marriages 1722 - 1837. I know that Thomas was not married at Enford. According to the 1841 census Thomas and Mary were born in Enford and circa 1786 but this age was rounded up or down depending on their actual age in this case the implied age is rounded to 55 years so somewhere around that mark and I know that Thomas was born around 1783 so he was rounded down to 55 years when he was actually 58 years of age. Mary did not survive to the next census so do not have any record of where she was born. On the 1851 census Thomas states that he was born at Enford. Living with him in 1851 is William and Elizabeth Rawlins (spelled that way but in the 1861 spelled Rawlings). They do not have any children in 1851 as George was born after the census was taken (their eldest child).

But continuing with the Rawlins family and Thomas was the son of  Jeremiah Rawlins and Sarah Tanner who were married 1 Nov 1780 at Tilshead (image acquired at Salt Lake City). The priest having kindly recorded that Jeremiah was from Enford although he spelled his surname Rallings and indeed he was baptized 13 Apr 1755 at Netheravon (just two miles away) although all the rest of his siblings were baptized at Enford.

The Church at Tilshead is a Grade I listed building dating back to the 1100s
 http://www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/en-319876-church-of-st-thomas-a-becket-tilshead-

I acquired an interesting list of the Vicars at Tilshead whilst at Salt Lake City in 2008:

1317  Adam de Newenham
13..    Henry de Rowde
1348  John Scoter de Mershton
1361  William de Mershton
1393  William Baroun or Brown
1399   Roger Mey
1403   John Bulwere
14 . .   William Penne
1422   William Frye
1423    Thomas Pule
14 . .    William Francombe
1443   John Lorde
1448   John Hyllynge
1456   William Grove
1460   John Putwell
1462   Richard Belle
1469   Thomas Philippes
1475   Thomas Lorde
14 . .    John Holes
1495   William Okey
1522   Robert Counetable
15 . .    William Merchaunt
1529   John Hobbes
1575   Edward Colthurst
1598   Henry Moore
1623   Richard Foote
16 . .   John Thornborough
1661   Henry Hoskins
1663   Anthony de la Court
1711   Thomas Higgons
1722   George Jacques
1772   John Edwards
1783   Lewis Jones
1803 3 Aug   David Williams
1836   Joseph Holden Johnson
1884 27 May   Horace Vere Thompson
1899   Hugh Corrie Frere
1903   3 Mar   Bernard Barton
1905   10 Nov   Henry Emery
1939   24 Dec  Wilford Gordon Griffin
1945   20 Dec   William John Freeman
1954   8 Dec Arthur Samuel Berry
1959   1 Jun   Cecil Ayshford Duke Baker
1963   12 Mar   Frederick George Chamberlain

I know that Jeremiah was the son of William and Mary Rawlins who lived at Enford but searching back through the Enford Parish Registers William and Mary were not married at Enford nor were they baptized there. They may be the William Rawlins and Mary Foord married at Wylye 30 Sep 1741. Mary was buried at Enford 10 Mar 1789. I did not find a burial for William at Enford. They had eight children:

Mary (not baptized at Enford) married Stephen Cotterel 28 Jan 1764 at Enford, one son Stephen Cotterel.

William baptized 17 Nov 1743 at Enford and married Mary Dyke 25 Sep 1766 at Enford and they had three children Anne, Charlotte and William

Edward was not baptized at Enford but he married Ruth White 20 Jun 1766 at Enford and they had five children: Mary, Anne, Elizabeth, Mary and John

Elizabeth was baptized 26 Jun 1747 at Enford and married thomas Hillier 31 May 1772 at Enford and they had nine children: Elizabeth, William, John, Jeremiah, Letticia, Rebecca, Sarah, David and Rosanna of whom only five survived past infancy

Thomas was baptized 14 Jan 1747 at Enford and buried there 11 Jul 1758

Martha was baptized 23 Jun 1751 at Enford and had a son Jeremiah Rawlins (reputed father Robert Matthews)

John was baptized 22 Oct 1752 at Enford

Jeremiah was baptized 13 Apr 1755 at Netheravon and married Sarah Tanner 1 Nov 1780 at Tilshead. They had nine children Elizabeth, Thomas, Anne (died as an infant), John, Jeremiah, Anne (died as an infant), William, Anne and James. I have been able to trace down the families of Elizabeth, Thomas, John and James.

The next research day I shall have a look at Find My Past for the Rawlins/Rawlings family. I could consider transcribing the Enford Parish Registers or the Protestation Returns for this area as I have images for both of these.