AOTM Blog

December 2021

Edwin Hatcher 1824 – 1893

My third great-grandfather Edwin spent his whole life in Osmington, Dorset. Raised by his parents John and Elizabeth, Edwin had three brothers and one sister and worked as an agricultural labourer. He married Mary Neal in 1851, a lady who also came from Osmington. In 1864, Edwin was called as a witness to an arson case, having seen a hayrick on fire at 4:30am on 25th July. A report can be seen in the Weymouth Telegram, detailing how John Newman and Thomas Kerr were found guilty for the offence. There is no evidence that Edwin ever lived anywhere other than Osmington. He died there on 23rd July 1893 and his headstone can be seen at the front of the churchyard there.

Edwin's grave at Osmington, seen in the bottom right of the picture

November 2021

Sarah Tucker Bugden 1825 - 1877

My fourth-great grandmother Sarah was born in 1825 to Wesleyan Methodist parents, Robert and Elizabeth Bugden. She was later baptised into the Church of England alongside her brother and sister in Poole, Dorset in 1828. The family moved further north when Sarah was a child and she went on to marry Josiah Blundell in Potterspury, Northamptonshire in 1844, aged 19. They had four sons together in the space of five years, with Sarah supporting the family by working as a bonnet sewer. Sadly their last son, Joseph, was born after her husbands early death in 1850. Sarah went on to remarry Abraham Bilbey in Cheddington, Buckinghamshire in 1854. They had a further seven children. The family moved to London where they remained until her death in 1877, caused by cancer of the uterus at the age of 52.

October 2021

Samson Barlow 1838 - 1919

My third great-grandfather was Samson Barlow. Born in Cheadle, Staffordshire, Samson moved around a lot during his life and changed jobs frequently. He resided at Cheadle, Colwich, Milford and Longdon all in Staffordshire, as well as living in Kensington and marrying in Liverpool to Rosanna Sarah Marshall. His various occupations included working as a postmaster, porter, coal miner, groom and servant. Samson appears in newspapers sporadically for facing fines, including being fined for his children’s low school attendance in 1883, for his dog not having a collar or muzzle in 1901 and for owning a carriage without a licence in 1915. Samson died in 1919 aged 80 and is buried in Longdon. His headstone survives in the parish churchyard, with the incorrect death year of 1920 inscribed.

September 2021

Hannah Osment 1793 - 1841

My fourth-great grandmother Hannah Osment spent her life in Sutton Poyntz, Dorset. Born in 1793, Hannah had a tough life from the start. Her father Thomas died when she was 1. Her mother Elizabeth remarried to Thomas Horsey when Hannah was 4, which helped to provide some family stability. Hannah never married and had two children out of wedlock, Elizabeth in 1818 and Thomas in 1824. She worked as an agricultural labourer and owned her own small cottage in the village, however she seems to have struggled for money. In 1829, Hannah was sentenced to one months hard labour for stealing wood and in 1838 she was admitted to Dorchester Prison for six months for smuggling. She died on 4th September 1841 of bowel inflammation, after leaving a short will naming both of her children. The document shows she was illiterate, signing only with her mark.

August 2021

Robert Samuel Eggelton 1920 - 2006

It only seems right that the first Ancestor of the month is my maternal Grandfather Robert, known as Bob. It was in his house that I came across a small family tree in 2006, which initially started my interest in genealogy. Luckily for me, my grandfather left behind a wealth of useful documents which helped me piece together parts of his life which I previously knew nothing about. It is always a great first step when building a tree to gather together anything relevant, such as photographs, diaries and letters. Bob served with The Royal Signals during World War 2, spending most of this time in Italy. He married Gwendoline Keep in 1942 and they had two children. For most of his life he lived in Buckinghamshire, before retiring in Dorset. Bob was an intelligent family man who enjoyed playing football, betting on the horses and listening to music. When researching your more recent relatives, make the most of those around you. Ask them questions to learn as much as possible about those who are no longer with us, but are still remembered.

Ancestor Of The Month Blog