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From: "Ian J Trewhella" <>
Subject: Re: [ZA-IB] For Descendants of James HAYWARD and Tabitha PRISTOW
Date: Mon, 12 Mar 2007 05:34:16 +1100
References: <200703111720.l2BHK47G000399@mail.rootsweb.com>


Hi Sue,
Just a couple of thoughts that may (or may not) help about your note.
My ancestors are mostly from Cornwall and I have been working the family
lines since about 1979. Somewhere along the line, I think about the mid
1990's, I came into contact with a couple of distant, and then unknown,
cousins in the USA. I also met my long distant cousin Nancy Tonkin at the
Cornwall Record Office in Truro in 1994.
However, what I want to say about your note comes from my long
association working with these 'cousins' about our own family history.
In general we are in agreeance that, certainly in Cornwall, even back
into the 1600's (and we have some proof of this) it was not entirely unusual
for a woman to be having children up until the age of about 48.
So, particularly cousin Kathie and I look at that possibility when
trying to determine the parentage of someone for whom little information is
immediately available.
I must say that we have 'turned up trumps' on numerous occasions.
Theories turn to more thinking which leads to the opportunity to recognise
another possible source of information not previously found, considered or
even thought of.
An example I can give is that of William TREWELLA who married Mary
ROBERTS at Illogan, Cornwall in 1824.
Mary was born about 1806 (haven't found her details yet because Roberts
is a not uncommon name in the area) and her last child was born and baptised
at Illogan in 1851. (This is from the original Parish Register.)
Mary had 14 children in that time and, although I cannot find it right
now, I am almost certain I have one family where there were up to 18
children.
So work on about 48 as being the maximum age for the wife and that gives
a little scope for error and more possibilities to find an avenue to find
the right parentage.

May be a little confusing, but I hope it helps,

All the best,

Ian
----- Original Message -----
From: "Sue Mackay" <>
To: <>;
<>
Sent: Monday, March 12, 2007 4:19 AM
Subject: [ZA-IB] For Descendants of James HAYWARD and Tabitha PRISTOW


> James HAYWARD and Tabitha PRISTOW of JAMES' Party, from Westbury in
> Wiltshire, were my 4 x great grandparents. I have been sharing some
> information with Rod Gebhardt and a query of his re the HAYWARDs caused me
> to look at a file I haven't looked at properly for ages. I discovered that
> when I got a fiche of Westbury burials (I already had the baptisms) -
> round
> about the time I moved house - I obviously looked for HOBBS and HAYWARDS
> but
> not for PRISTOWs. I have spent a sad couple of hours sorting through it
> all
> this afternoon, and realise that I am now very lucky to be here. I knew
> infant mortality was high in the late 18th century, but this family seems
> to
> have had more than their fair share of heartache. As there are quite a few
> people descended from James and Tabitha I thought I'd share my findings
> with
> the list and let Rod pick it up from here.
>
> William PRISTOW and his wife Elizabeth lived in Westbury, Wiltshire from
> at
> least 1756. I THINK their marriage might have been the one listed on the
> IGI
> as that between William BRISTOW and Elizabeth GARDINER on 20 July 1743 in
> Warminster, Wiltshire, but this has not been proved. If it is the right
> marriage, then they had a daughter Betty baptised in Warminster on 20 Nov
> 1743 (so we know why they got married) and another daughter Sarah baptised
> on 29 Oct 1746.
>
> What is certain is that my 6 x great grandparents, William and Elizabeth
> PRISTOW, whoever they were, buried an infant son William in Westbury and
> that by this time they already had two children, John and Ann.
>
> On 3 June 1759 they had three children baptised in Westbury in a triple
> baptism ceremony. John was described on the baptismal register as 'aged
> about 6 years', but as he died in May 1836 aged 88 he was probably
> actually
> born in 1748/9. Ann was described as 'aged 5', and baby Thomas was
> presumably an infant. Ann was buried on 25 August 1760 and baby Thomas on
> 25
> Oct 1760, leaving John seemingly without siblings.
>
> A second Ann was baptised on 14 June 1761 but died aged 3 and was buried
> on
> 3 Oct 1764. A second Thomas was born in 1763 but not baptised until 6 Oct
> 1765. He survived his youngest years but died of fever in 1773, aged 10,
> and
> was buried on 11 Oct.
>
> A second William was baptised on 20 July 1767. This William did survive
> and
> married Elizabeth DOEL on 24 December 1786. Subsequent baptisms of
> children
> described as 'of William and Elizabeth Pristow' therefore refer to this
> couple. They probably moved away from Westbury after 1793, but they had
> three daughters baptised in Westbury between 1787 and 1793. Having got
> married on Christmas Eve, which in 1786 fell on a Sunday, it seems that
> Christmas Day was the only day they had free to go to church to baptise
> their children. Susannah was baptised on Christmas Day 1787, Ann on
> Christmas Day 1790 and Elizabeth on Christmas Day 1793.
>
> But back to the first William and Elizabeth. William PRISTOW died in 1774
> and was buried in Westbury on 27 February. He was described in the burial
> register as a 'wool tryer'. His wife Elizabeth was probably the Elizabeth
> PRISTOW, widow aged 70, who was buried on 11 Oct 1786. I say probably,
> because although I can find no other Elizabeth PRISTOWs in Westbury at the
> time, if she was really 70 when she died it means she would have been 51
> when her son William was baptised, though of course William might have
> been
> born a couple of years earlier and having a child in her late forties
> would
> not have been an impossibility. Certainly if I am right about the marriage
> of William and Elizabeth GARDINER the age would fit, as Elizabeth GARDINER
> was baptised in Warminster on 7 Oct 1718.
>
> So what about John PRISTOW, the eldest surviving son of William and
> Elizabeth and as far as I know one of only two surviving children? Despite
> the early deaths of so many siblings, John PRISTOW lived to the ripe old
> age
> of 88 - he was obviously pretty hale to survive all those epidemics that
> were around when he was a child.
>
> John PRISTOW (my 5 x great grandfather) married Grace TOWNING on 28 Nov
> 1768
> in Westbury.
> They had eight children that I know of:
> Elizabeth, baptised 31 March 1771, buried aged 3 on 28 Oct 1774:
> Grace, baptised 17 July 1774, married James BOFFEN 1 Dec 1793 Westbury:
> Tabitha, baptised 24 Feb 1777, married James HAYWARD 14 Mar 1797 Westbury:
> James, baptised 31 Oct 1779, married Meriam WOLLEY 1 Nov 1804 Westbury:
> Jeffery, born 1782, buried 11 Sep 1785 (died of a cold)
> John, born 1786, baptised 15 June 1788, married Jane PEPLER 10 Oct 1808
> Westbury:
> Elizabeth, born 1789, baptised 20 Nov 1807 aged 18, married James DOEL 10
> Oct 1808 Westbury (in double ceremony with her brother John)
>
> The following children of James HAYWARD and Tabitha PRISTOW sailed on the
> Weymouth:
> Samuel, baptised 14 Oct 1798 (aged 3 weeks):
> John, born 29 Sep 1802, baptised 17 Oct:
> Elizabeth, born 1 Mar 1805, baptised 2 June:
> Selina, baptised 8 Aug 1809 (aged 6 months)
> William, baptised 10 Apr 1814
> Eliza, born 11 Apr 1819 Frome, Somerset
>
> Hope this helps
>
> Sue
>
>
>
>
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>
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