Origins
The first Mortimers known to live in Bristol arrived in the mid 17th century, perhaps from nearby Almondsbury. This Mortimer family presumably descended from the earlier Mortimers of Olveston, in Gloucestershire. It seems as though the family disappeared in the male line, though some members of the family may have moved away from Bristol and founded offshoot Mortimer family branches elsewhere.
John? Mortimer of Almondsbury (1601-c.1650)
A Mortimer lived in Almondsbury, Gloucestershire in the first part of the 17th century, and had the following children. This may have been John Mortimer b. 1601/2 Olveston. His wife was Mary d.1657, who was bur. 7 Jan 1656/7, Almondsbury.
1. John Mortimer c.1631-1661, born c. 1630s, whose wife is unknown. He died in 1661 and was bur. 24 Oct 1661 Almondsbury. John had the following children.
i. John? c.1655
ii. Mary b.16 May 1656
2. Thomas c.1633-1666, who was b. in the 1630s, he m. c.1654, and they had the following children. Thomas was bur. 27 Mar 1666 Almondsbury; his wife may have been Jane Mortimer bur. 7 Jul 1666.
i. Edward Mortimer of Almondsbury (c.1655-1682), who may have been a son of Thomas Mortimer of Almondsbury. He m. Margaret Hort 14 Nov 1676 Bristol, and they had the following children. Edward was bur. 10 Nov 1682 Almondsbury. Margaret was bur. 1 Apr 1722 Bristol St James.
1. Edward Mortimer II 1677-1740, baker, bap. 2 Oct 1677 Almondsbury, m. Susanna Churchman 27 Jan 1703/4 Bristol St James. Susanna his wife was bur. 13 Jun 1720 Bristol St James. Edward featured in the 1734 and 1739 Bristol poll books, and died some time after the latter date.
i. Thomas Mortimer of Bristol 1707-1758, bap. 22 Sep 1707 Bristol Temple, m. Susanna Retherington, 15 Aug 1730 Bedminster. He was bur. 31 Dec 1758 Bristol. Susanna was bur. 13 May 1770 Bristol. They had no issue.
ii. Mary bap. 4 Aug 1709 Bristol Temple
2. George Mortimer of Aust c.1680- , whose parentage is unknown, but who may have been a son of Edward and Margaret Mortimer of Almondsbury. He m. Sarah Thomas 13 Apr 1707 Henbury, and they had the following children. George Mortimer and Sarah his wife died at an unknown date after 1727.
i. Elizabeth 1708, bap. 15 Feb 1707/8 Henbury
ii. Thomas 1709-1714, bap. 11 Dec 1709 Henbury
iii. Mary 1712, bap. 2 Jun 1712 Aust
iv. George 1714, bap. 31 Oct 1714 Aust
v. John Mortimer of Horsley 1716-1745, bap. 9 Dec 1716 Aust
vi. Thomas 1722, bap. 6 May 1722 Aust
vii. Sarah 1727-1802, bap. 22 Jan 1726/7 Aust, bur. 28 May 1802 Bristol St Philip and St Jacob.
ii. Mary 1659
iii. Nicholas Mortimer
iv. Thomas Mortimer of Bristol c.1665-1737, pin maker, presumably a close relative of the above Nicholas Mortimer, who was also a pin maker in Bristol. Thomas may have been the son of either Thomas or Peter Mortimer, and named one of his sons Peter, supporting the connection. The older Thomas Mortimer died in 1766, and Jane Mortimer died later the same year. If Thomas Mortimer was orphaned, he may have been raised by an uncle, Peter Mortimer (c.1644-1709). Thomas married Mary West 5 Jul 1696 Bristol St James, and they had the following children. Mary was bur. 1724 Bristol; Thomas was bur. 25 Feb 1736/7 Bristol St Stephen.
1. Joseph 1698-1698, b. 9 Oct 1698, bur. 16 Oct 1698 Bristol St Michael.
2. Mary 1699, b. 28 Sep 1699 Bristol St Michael
3. Thomas 1701-1708, b. 8 Feb 1701/2 Bristol St Michael
4. George 1704-1707, b. 12 Oct 1704 Bristol St Nicholas, bur. 7 Dec 1707 Bristol St Michael.
5. Hannah 1706, b. 7 May 1706 Bristol St Nicholas, m. Richard Ponting, 29 May 1729 Bristol St Mary Redcliffe.
6. Jane 1709-1710, b. 6 Apr 1709 Bristol St Stephen, bur. 19 Jan 1709/10 Bristol St Michael.
7. Peter 1710, b. 8 Jun 1710 Bristol St Stephen, of whom nothing further is known. A Peter Mortimer lived in Plymouth from c.1750s, though this may have been a different person (see Mortimers of Plymouth).
8. William 1713-1714, b. 3 Mar 1712/3, bur. 1 Feb 1713/4 Bristol St Stephen.
3. George Mortimer c.1630, m. Elizabeth Maunsell, 29 Apr 1664 Bristol St Augustine the Less. Elizabeth his wife was bur. 16 Jun 1672 Almondsbury. George was bur. 19 Feb 1673/4. They had two children:
i. George 1665-1665, b. 5 Jan 1664/5, bur. 21 May 1665 Almondsbury
ii. Ann 1672-1722, b. 12 Jun 1672 Almondsbury, orphaned aged 1 year 8 months. Ann m. Nicholas Reede 28 Aug 1691 Bitton, bur. 6 Sep 1722 Bitton.
4. Peter Mortimer c.1644-1709, a tyler, was born in the mid 17th century. He m.1. Jane c.1675, who was bur. 29 Dec 1687 Bristol. Peter m.2. Joan (surname unknown) 20 Oct 1689 Bristol. He died in 1709 and was bur. 3 Feb 1708/9 Bristol St Philip and St Jacob.
Peter and Jane his first wife had the following children:
i. Mary 1677, b. 2 Jun 1677 Bristol St James.
ii. Joseph c.1680-1681, bur. 25 Sep 1681 Bristol St James.
Peter and Joan his second wife had the following children:
iii. Ann 1690-1691, b. 3 Aug 1690 Bristol St Stephen, bur. 10 Mar 1690/1 Bristol St Nicholas.
iv. Joseph 1692-1693, b. 14 Sep 1692 Bristol St Leonard, bur. 30 Nov 1693 Bristol St Nicholas.
Nicholas Mortimer of Bristol (c.1660-1730)
Nicholas was born about the year 1660, presumably near Bristol. He may have been the son of Thomas Mortimer d.1666 Almondsbury, above. Nicholas m.1. Joanna Fett (1660-1701), 6 Apr 1684 Wells, Somerset, and they had eight children. Joanna died about 1701, and Nicholas m.2. Ann James, 1702, Bristol. He featured in the Bristol poll records as Nicholas Mortimer of Bristol St Mary Redcliffe, pin maker, dated 1721. Ann his wife was bur. 17 Nov 1725 Bristol St Mary Redcliffe. He was presumably related to Thomas Mortimer, pin maker of Bristol (c.1672-1737). Nicholas was bur. 21 Apr 1730 Bristol St Mary Redcliffe. Nicholas and his first wife Joan had the following children.
1. Thomas Mortimer (1686-1732), bap. 10 Jan 1685/6 Bristol St Mary Redcliffe, he m.1. Sarah Griffin 22 Jun 1719 Bristol St Mary Redcliffe; Sarah was bur. 5 Aug (1724?) Bristol Temple. Thomas m.2. Margaret Wilson 28 Oct 1725 Bristol St James. Like his father before him, Thomas worked as a pin maker in Bristol. He died in 1732 and was bur. 12 Dec 1732 Bristol St Philip and St Jacob. Margaret his widow was bur. 20 Dec 1737 Bristol St Mary Redcliffe. Thomas and Margaret had the following children:
i. Thomas 1725-c.1727, bap. 28 Oct 1725 Bristol St James, d. before 1728.
ii. Thomas Mortimer II 1728-1756, tyler, b. & bap. 3 Mar 1727/8 Bristol St James, m. Ann Bees 16 Sep 1753 Bristol St James. He died in 1755 at St Peter’s Hospital, Bristol and was bur. 13 Jan 1755 Bristol Temple. Ann his widow died in 1776, Bristol.
iii. James 1729-1730, bap. 27 Jun 1729 Bristol St Mary Redcliffe, bur. 12 Apr 1730
iv. James 1731-1731, bap. 22 Aug 1731 Bristol St Philip and St Jacob
2. Mary 1688-1744, bap. 31 Jan 1687/8 Bristol St Mary Redcliffe.
3. Nicholas Mortimer
4. Elizabeth 1691, bap. 25 Oct 1691 Bristol St Mary Redcliffe, m. Abraham Jones, the first day of Christmas 1713, Bristol St Mary Redcliffe.
5. Ann 1693-1745, bap. 10 Dec 1693, m. Ezekiel Goodman 4 Feb 1721/2 Bristol St Mary Redcliffe, she was bur. 15 Dec 1745 the same parish.
6. John 1696-1698
7. Martha 1698-1756, b. 20 Nov 1698, m. Thomas Sartaine 22 Apr 1731 Bristol St Mary Redcliffe, bur. 30 Mar 1756 same parish.
8. Sarah 1700, bap. 14 Jun 1700, m. Henry Stannard, Christmas Day 1725 Bedminster St John.
Nicholas Mortimer (1690-1755)
Nicholas was bap. 30 Jan 1689/90 Bristol St Mary Redcliffe, mentioned in the 1721 Bristol Poll book as Nicholas Mortimer junior. Like his father and grandfather before him, he worked as a pin maker in Bristol. He m.1. Mary Pitts, Christmas Day 1725 Bristol St James, and they had the following three children. Mary his wife was bur. 22 Oct 1741 Bristol St Mary Redcliffe. Nicholas m.2. Christian Bush, widow, 22 Jul 1742 Bristol Cathedral. Nicholas was bur. 28 Oct 1755, Bristol St Mary Redcliffe. Christian his widow d. aged (72) and was bur. 11 Apr 1762 in the same parish.
1. Nicholas Mortimer III 1726-1757, pin maker, bap. 1 Dec 1726 Bristol St James, m. Ann Jones 31 May 1750 Bristol St Mary Redcliffe, was occupied as a pin maker in Bristol, 23 May 1754 as recorded in the duties paid for apprentices indentures. He was a non-conformist and died in 1757. He was bur. 6 Feb 1757, Grace Acres Moravian church, Bristol. His will was dated 28 Jan 1757, in which he left his estate to his wife Ann. Nicholas and Ann had the following children:
i. John 1753-1756, b. 6 May 1753, bap. 10 Jun 1753, bur. 25 Feb 1756 Bristol St Mary Redcliffe.
ii. Elizabeth 1755-1777, b. 2 Jan 1755, bap. 26 Jan 1755 Upper Maudlin St. Moravian church, Bristol. She m. James Lock 16 Jul 1776 Bristol and was bur. 1777 Bristol Cathedral churchyard.
iii. Mary 1757-1757, b. 23 Jan 1757, bap. the same day, Bristol Maudlin St. Moravian church. She was bur. 30 Jan 1757.
2. John Mortimer 1729-1773, pin maker, bap. 16 Nov 1729 Bristol St Mary Redcliffe, m.1. Elizabeth Davis 19 Feb 1764 Bristol St Mary Redcliffe, Elizabeth his wife died in 1769, John m.2. Elizabeth Linford 10 May 1772. John was bur. 3 Dec 1773 Bristol St Mary Redcliffe, Elizabeth his widow was bur. 30 Jul 1775. John and his first wife Elizabeth had two children:
i. Elizabeth 1764-1818, bap. 2 Oct 1764 Bristol St Mary Redcliffe, m. John Mayo Tandy (1765-1854) 8 Jul 1786 Bristol St Mary Redcliffe, bur. 27 May 1818.
ii. John Mortimer II 1769-aft.1812, bap. 20 Apr 1769 Bristol St Mary Redcliffe, apprenticed aged 16 to William Oldland, haberdasher, 11 May 1785 Bristol. He was listed as a seller of food and drink in the New Bristol Directory, 1792. John m. Ann Curnock 4 May 1793 Frocester. He was resident in Bristol in 1812 when he was occupied as a haberdasher, and died after this date. John and Ann Mortimer had one daughter:
1. Ann Marklove Mortimer, 1797-1798, bap. 3 Aug 1797 Bristol St James, bur. 25 May 1798 Bristol St Mary Redcliffe.
3. James 1732, bap. 6 Feb 1731/2 Bristol St Mary Redcliffe.
What about Lord Edward who changed his name to Mortimer?