resources page picture
24
Jul
2019
old book open
resources page picture
resources page picture
The Mortimer surname’s origins date back a thousand years to eleventh century Normandy. By this time, the village of Mortemer-sur-Eaulne had developed in the Pays de Bray region of Normandy, between the historic cities of Rouen and Amiens. The old French word ‘bray’ meant a swamp or marsh, while the place name Mortemer also derived from such a description. The Latin word ‘mort’, meaning die, combined with the old French ‘mer’, for lake or sea, can be translated as ‘dead water’ a poetic description of the stagnant water of the Pay de Bray’s marshland. Mortemer castle was constructed in 1020, and by 1054 had come in to the hands of Roger FitzRalph, a Norman knight. Fitz meant son, and as a son of Ralph de Warenne, Roger was distantly related to William Duke of Normandy. His mother Béatrice de Vascoueil was apparently a niece of the duke’s paternal grandmother Duchess Gunnor.
The Normans were originally the “Northmen” from Scandinavia, descended from the Vikings who raided Europe in the eight to tenth centuries. A powerful Viking chieftain named Rollo conducted raids along the French coast. In one such raid he kidnapped a young Brittonic noblewoman Poppa of Bayeux, and married her in the Viking fashion. He eventually returned to the region to settle permanently, establishing a separate County in northern France. Rollo founded the line of Dukes of Normandy, and is an ancestor to all subsequent royal houses. The Normans soon converted to Christianity and adopted Frankish customs, making an indelible mark on the region. They transformed Normandy by building magnificent churches, abbeys and castles, one of which was the castle of Mortemer. The medieval Mortimers were ultimately descended from Vikings and seemingly inherited their warlike nature.
The French King Henry launched an invasion of Normandy in 1054, supported by his brother Odo. Targeting the Norman county of Évreux, Odo invaded Eastern Normandy supported by the French Counts Renaud of Clermont and Guy of Ponthieu. Together they pillaged the countryside and caused widespread devastation. Whilst Duke William intended to lead the defence of Normandy against Henry, he sent an allied army to relieve Évreux, lead by Robert of Eu, and supported by Roger FitzRalph and Walter Giffard.
The French forces were more numerous than the Normans, but through their pillaging they had become scattered and disorganised. Encamping at Mortemer Castle, they soon descended into drunken debauchery. Sensing opportunity, Roger FitzRalph used his superior knowledge of the terrain to launch a surprise attack. Making a move before dawn break, Roger’s army ambushed the French, inflicting heavy casualties. In a fierce battle that lasted several hours, the Normans ultimately succeeded in gaining ground and routing the invaders.
Weighed down by heavy chain mail, many French soldiers drowned in the boggy conditions, while those soldiers who stayed on the battlefield were either killed or captured. The French commander Guy of Ponthieu surrendered and Roger FitzRalph personally captured Ralph de Montdidier, Count of Valois. The Norman victory was clear and decisive. Upon hearing word of the defeat, King Henry decided to retreat without engaging the Duke’s forces on the other side of the Seine.
This was an important victory for Duke William, as it secured Norman territory and promised stability of his Duchy. Guy of Ponthieu was imprisoned for two years and forced to pay homage, while Ralph of Valois was made a captive of Roger. However, as Roger’s feudal overlord and father in law, Roger treated him fairly. He accommodated the count at his castle and afterwards released him, incurring the wrath of Duke William.
For releasing the Duke’s enemy, Roger was punished with banishment. His estates in Normandy were confiscated, and Mortemer was given instead to Roger’s young kinsman William de Warenne, who had conducted himself admirably in the battle. Thus Mortemer was lost, and would never be within the family again. Despite this setback, Roger remained proud of his role in defending Mortemer from Normandy’s enemies, and took the name of the castle despite losing the lordship. He was known as Roger de Mortimer, essentially Roger ’of Battle of Mortimer fame’. The fact he didn’t use the name while lord there, but instead some time after, shows that the Mortimer surname is perhaps derived from the battle rather than the lordship itself.
Around the time of the battle, Roger’s son was born. He was named Ralph after his paternal grandfather, a Norman naming convention that the family would follow for centuries. Roger Mortemer was forgiven for his actions and granted the town of St Victor-en-Caux, Normandy, 25 miles West of Mortemer-en-Bray. By the time of the Norman invasion of England in 1066, Roger was by then in his 40s, with significant military experience. He had already shown his skill in battle and may well have been among the knights who sailed with William to England and fought in the Battle of Hastings. At the time, Ralph was likely a young squire and might have participated, but he was probably too young to fight. The twelfth century chronicler Wace writing a hundred years later, describes a Hugh Mortimer fighting at Hastings, but this must be in error as no such Hugh is known from contemporary sources. Only the names of fifteen men are confirmed by contemporary sources to have accompanied William in the conquest, including bishop Odo of Bayeux and Eustace of Boulogne, who both feature in the Bayeux Tapestry. Many more knights participated, and those who were granted land after the conquest were presumably so rewarded for their military service to the new King.
The Norman conquest changed England forever, transferring the feudal way of life from France. The surviving Saxon leadership in the country was immediately excluded from all office or property, while areas which resisted such as Yorkshire and the North were burned to the ground. English land was partitioned among the invaders on a scale seen neither before nor since. William the Conqueror as monarch took ownership of all English land, a legal status quo which technically continues to this day. The king divided the spoils of conquest among his lords and knights who had been loyal and supported him throughout the hard times. Twenty years after conquest, the new political landscape was reflected in Domesday. This ambitious national land survey was undertaken with the purpose of assessing the full wealth and resources of the country, and showed who retained property in every parish of England.
Though Roger Mortimer was granted land in England, he remained more interested in his Norman lands than the realm across the channel. Roger stayed in Normandy in the 1070s, and evidently spent his final years focused on religious devotion. He might not have visited England at all. In 1074 he petitioned for the Priory of St Victor to become an abbey, and he evidently died sometime after this date, upon which he was succeeded in his estates by his son Ralph. Ralph de Mortimer expanded the family’s horizons and was the first to spend a significant proportion of time in England. Ralph engaged in the Norman conquests of southern Wales and played an important role in the development of the Welsh Marches, the tumultuous border between Wales and England. With Ralph’s marriages and sons, the family line would become secure and expand into several offshoot branches by the 12th century. The Mortimers were certainly in England to stay.
Continue to Chapter 2. The Welsh Marches – Life on the frontier of England and Wales
The following resources should be useful for those researching the Mortimer family, particularly in Devon. These resources have been created for free access, for the purposes of genealogy and one name studies.
The Lay subsidies of 1523-4 and 1543-5, and 1581 are particularly well preserved for the county of Devon. Henry VIII levied the taxes in order to continue with his “war games” against France. The lay subsidy only includes the names of men and some widows, who were liable to pay the tax. Only those above a certain income were included and the tax often excluded those of lower income such as labourers. Some parishes were missing but the survey is relatively complete for central Devon, where the majority of Mortimers lived. Many Mortimers appear in the subsidy, meaning it is one of the oldest and most important sources for studying the history of the family in Devon.
All original Devon wills and probate records were lost during World War II when the Exeter Probate registry was destroyed in the Exeter Blitz. The Mortimer Wills Index is an extracted list of all Mortimer wills included in the Devon Wills Project. The vast majority were proved in Exeter or London. The list has been edited to reflect the most useful surviving copy or abstract of a will. All wills with the Group Code WOR were included in Charles Worthy’s 19th century book “Devonshire Wills” which can be read online here: Devonshire Wills: A collection of annotated testamentary abstracts
Extract of all Mortimer entries from “Devonshire Wills”: Mortimer Will extracts
In January 1642, angered by the recent actions of the King Charles I, Parliament enacted an Oath of allegiance to the “True Protestant Religion” to preserve the supremacy of Protestantism and the privileges of Parliament. This oath was to be signed by all men in the Kingdom over the age of eighteen, in order to guard against potential Catholic insurrections. With rumours swirling and tensions mounting, this was the preamble to a devastating war that would split the Kingdom in two and permanently change the political landscape forever. At the heart of the lists produced, are the lives of thousands of ordinary men pulled into a conflict that was not of their making, many yeomen, tradesmen, labourers, mariners and miners who lived with little impact on the political changes in the country but who were made to reinforce the superiority of the Protestant government. The records in Devon survive well compared to elsewhere in the country, and many Mortimers appear in the records, giving us a snapshot of the distribution of the name in Devon by this point and the number of family members in each location.
The Hearth Taxes were levied in 1662 in an attempt to make up the shortfall in the Royal allowance, the income granted to King Charles II and the Royal household. This novel form of tax was new to England but had been used before abroad. The charge of one shilling for every hearth in a dwelling was to be paid in twice yearly instalments, at Michaelmas and Lady Day. The tax was payable by the occupier but later changed to the landlord. Paupers and those with a household income of less than £1 were exempt from the tax. Generating significant debate, the tax was much despised by the upper classes, whom it hit particularly hard. Many tried to avoid the tax altogether by blocking up the hearths to conceal them from the inspectors, but those who were caught were charged double.
The Bristol Mortimers burial index is a small index of Mortimer entries into the burial registers of Anglican churches in Bristol and nearby, 1754-1837. This index does not include entries in non-conformist chapels, which will be included in due course.
The following is a list of will transcriptions and abstracts among further resources. Wills and probate records are a vital source of information for genealogists.
Will of John Mortimer of Priorton, 1604/5 – Transcription
Here is a list of my favourite websites; for research, historical records and genealogy. Favourite Websites
Are you a family history researcher? I can potentially help with busting that brick wall in your research. Get in touch with me here.
Welcome to the home of the Mortimer family tree, with its various branches in Great Britain and around the world.
Explore the Mortimer families from different counties with the interactive map below:
If you’re looking to see where you fit in to the Mortimer family tree, you can search the site here:
DNA studies can be a useful tool for modern genealogists; read all about the Mortimer DNA project here. If you have the surname yourself, it would be great if you could also take part!
Explore the blog entries from Mortimer History, featuring topics including family history, medieval monuments and many other subjects.
Get in touch with here. Did this page help you? It would be great to hear feedback in your comments on the pages listed above.
James Mortimore was born around 1833, the son of William Mortimore and his wife Jane (nee Moody). Like his older sister Mary, his parents did not baptise him at birth. He was born in Upper Knowle, Bristol, originally a separate village which by the 1830s had become part of the sprawling city. James had two older sisters, Matilda and Mary Ann. It would be a hard childhood ahead for him. When he was only a baby, his mother Jane died, perhaps killed by one of the many diseases that continuously ravaged the port city. His father remarried the following year to Mary Ann Tippins a young woman from the Forest of Dean.
Growing up, James experienced the excitement of the birth of younger half sisters but also the hurt and sadness of losing three of his baby sisters. In 1840 when James was 7, his oldest sister Matilda died aged 18, and this must have been a devastating time for the family to lose the eldest daughter just approaching adulthood. James was finally baptised the following year, together with his sister Mary Ann. His step mother Mary acted as a caring maternal figure for him. James never knew his own birth mother, and both his maternal grandparents died before he was 11, so he would go on to develop a closer relationship with his step mother’s family than his own blood relatives.
In the late 1830s the family moved closer to the centre of Bristol and lived at 7 Pipe Lane, Temple parish. The family was by any description poor and James experience of schooling was extremely limited. He would have to labour from a young age to support his family. Bristol was situated near large coal seams centred to the south of the city and beginning in the mid 18th c., the coal seams were exploited. By the 1840s there were extensive coal pits in Bedminster, with many miners and labourers working there. Around the late 1840s, James began working in the coal industry as a teenager, perhaps as early as fourteen. Colliery labour was dangerous work. There was little oversight of safety and accidents were frequent, sometimes deadly.
James might have left home at about the age of 16 to live with his step uncle George Tippins, who was a colliery engine driver in the Forest of Dean. This was the occupation that young James would eventually follow, after first toiling as a general labourer. These men performed an important function in the colliery by driving the steam engines carrying wagons from the colliery to the sidings for collection and transport on the main line.
The 1851 census shows George Tippins had taken in James Mortimer under his wing. They lived next to his brothers William and Henry Tippins, who also worked in the coal mining industry.
Coal mining in the Forest of Dean coalfield had taken place since Roman times, although it wasn’t until the development in steam power during the industrial revolution that coal mining and working really took off in the area. In 1787 the area had 90 working coal mines, and 31 that had fallen into disuse. The product was transported to ports on the river Severn, where it was loaded onto barges, transported to Bristol and shipped afield. For centuries mining was regulated through the free mining system, in which leases were granted to individuals as a right to mine a specific area and reap the profits from mining production.
In 1853, when James was 20, his step mother Mary Ann escaped her married life in Bristol to move back home to the Forest of Dean, abandoning her husband William Mortimer but taking her 11 year old daughter Elizabeth with her. Mary Ann then proceeded into a bigamous marriage with Thomas Beach, a local widower, although she made no attempt to disguise her name upon marriage. Although her father’s name was William Tippins, she presumably pretended to be his illegitimate daughter. The marriage took place in Ellwood Primitive Methodist chapel, West of Parkend, so there were no local objections. James’ half sister Elizabeth’s name was changed to Beach to reflect her new family until her marriage, when she reverted to Mortimore.
It is possible to speculate over the circumstances but chances are the reason for the incident will remain unknown. James presumably empathised with his step mother and continued to live near her in the Forest of Dean. Mary Ann and Thomas had no children together. She continued to live at Whitecroft, Gloucestershire with her new husband.
In his 20’s, James Mortimer became an engine driver and in the 1861 census is listed as such. At this time he was 28 years old and still lodging with his uncle George, although he was ready to settle down and have a family of his own. His fiancé was a young school mistress called Sannabia Phipps, whose distinctive name was invented by her Methodist parents. Methodists were known to employ unconventional names. They had initially met through a personal connection. Sannabia’s father George Phipps was an engine driver and coworker of George Tippins. The marriage took place on 14 Sep 1862 in Newnham on Severn.
James Mortimore was 29 while Sannabia Phipps was 20. While neither were from Newnham, they lived in the same parish of West Dean parish, near Parkend in the Forest of Dean. James Mortimore’s sister Mary Ann and her husband Charles James were witnesses.
Together James and Sannabia had seven children, though their eldest son and daughter both died in infancy.
The family lived in the vicinity of Yorkley hamlet, near the village of Pillowell and between the settlements of Whitecroft and Viney Hill. Their son George Phipps was named after his grandfather George Phipps. James Mortimore worked as an engine driver in a nearby colliery, perhaps Parkend colliery. The map below shows the Forest of Dean network of collieries and trainlines that had built up by 1894. Together with the welsh valleys region to the West, the area developed into a powerhouse fuelling Victorian industry across the whole UK.
Shortly after the birth of James Edward Mortimer, James’ step mother Mary died, at the age of 54 years. She was buried in Parkend churchyard on 13 Apr 1870, alongside her parents and other members of her family.
By 1881, James Mortimer had started to be a grocer alongside his job in the colliery. This might have been an occupation he acquired from someone else who stopped working, as people often picked up others jobs after a vacancy. All of James and Sannabia’s children except Annie are listed as young scholars and so must have attended school up to the age of about 14. James evidently wanted them to have the opportunity to learn given he only received a limited amount of schooling. Sannabia was also once a school mistress and doubtless an influence on their education. She encouraged them to attend school to better their prospects.
Sadly, the harsh colliery environment and unwholesome atmosphere generated from the smelting of coal eventually took its toll on James Mortimer’s health. Unbeknownst to his family, he was already in the twilight of his years. Within three years of the 1881 census, James had fallen ill and by April his condition had detoriated. On 26 Apr 1884 he suffered a fatal heart attack. He was aged 51. He was buried the 29 Apr 1884, in Viney Hill churchyard. James death left a young family of 5 children without a father, the youngest of whom was Percival Albert (Percy) Mortimer, aged 3 years old. His widow, Sannabia remarried to Edwin Thomas Curnock in 1887. They had only one daughter, Eva Eugenia R Curnock (1889-1907). Sannabia died on 24 Apr 1931 aged 87 and was buried the 28 Apr 1931 Viney Hill. Edwin survived both Sannabia and their daughter, living to 1941. James’ two sons started branches of the Mortimer family that continue to this day.
James Edward Mortimer was born in the summer of 1869 in Yorkley, Gloucestershire, the fourth child and eldest surviving son of James Mortimore and Sannabia his wife. His father James worked as a colliery engine driver and grocer, a rather unusual combination! The family lived at Yorkley near Parkend, Gloucestershire. In 1881 he was attending school and was listed as a scholar in the census record. Sadly, in 1884 when James was 14 his father James died, leaving the family without a father. His mother Sannabia remarried to Edwin Thomas Curnock, who also worked in a colliery, variously as a fireman, miner and roadman.
Before 1891, James had decided on following the same occupation as his father, as in the 1891 census we find him working as an engineer in the city of Gloucester. He was boarding with George Harris and his niece Eliza as a lodger. George Harris was from Ross, Herefordshire and may have been a family friend. It was about this time that James changed the spelling of his name to Mortimer, which it has remained ever since. This is the most common spelling of the name. He maybe encountered other unrelated Mortimers on his travels and decided this was the way it should be spelt.
James E Mortimer’s younger sister and brother Blanche and Percival both became teachers, like their mother. In 1891, aged 23 and 20 respectively they were teaching in the Forest of Dean and living with their mother and step father.
James met his future wife Gertrude Caroline Poulton in Gloucester, they married 27 Jan 1894 Gloucester St Luke church and below is the record of their marriage.
James Edward Mortimer was aged 24, a bachelor, living at 18 Cecil Rd, working as an engineer in Gloucester. His father was James Mortimer, engine driver. He was deceased by this point but this isn’t stated in the record. Gertrude Caroline Poulton was aged 23, a spinster and she lived at 9 Bristol Villas, Bristol Rd. The marriage was witnessed by Edward and Elizabeth Poulton, brother and sister of the bride. Together the couple had four children:
1. Hubert James Mortimer (1894-1992)
2. Douglas Edward Mortimer (1898-1980)
3. Gertrude Olive Mortimer (1904-2003)
4. Kathleen Blanche Mortimer (1906-1982)
According to family sources, after 1906 James Mortimer moved to Panama to aid in the construction of the Panama canal. The passenger shipping records that show his journeys to and from America presumably haven’t survived. His engineering skills and ability to drive a steam engine were in high demand at the time. It would have been a high pressured environment and the ability to work under pressure he had developed at home would have helped him carry out his work. During the construction, James would have been working with hundreds of other engineers and labourers from around the world and it would have been an interesting change in cultural experience for him. Below are a series of pictures which show the Panama canal being constructed. Challenges included the frequent mudslides which disrupted the construction work and railways. A feat of engineering, the Panama canal was the largest and most expensive engineering work of the World at the time.
Back home, the Mortimer brothers moved into diverse occcupations. James E Mortimer became an engineer, then a steam engine driver before 1901 and finally a blacksmith. His brother George Phipps Mortimer became a coal miner before 1901, then a tobacconist by 1911. He then became a milk vendor and died in 1946, aged 72. Percival became a teacher and later moved to Pangbourne, Berkshire and died in 1969. He was the last surviving and longest lived all the Mortimer siblings.
Unfortunately neither of James Mortimer’s sisters attained a great age. Annie Mortimer married William Evans in 1889 and died in 1901, aged 35. Blanche married three times, in 1904 to Albert George Price, 1915 to John Henry Chew and 1924 to Mansfield Collins. She died 24 Apr 1926, aged 49. Their mother, Sannabia, lived to the age of 90 and died in 1931, outliving both her daughters. All the family members were buried at Viney Hill church yard, except for James Mortimer, who lived for the rest of his life in Gloucester. In 1925 he bought a house in Gloucester for £300. He lived at 31 Seymour Rd with his wife Gertrude Caroline and died on 15 Apr 1949 aged 79. Probate was granted the 20 Jul to his daughter Gertrude Olive Blackwell.
My fourth great grandfather was William Mortimore. Both his origins and early life are obscure, but two facts of his life are known. He was probably born into the lower rung of society, and he moved to Bristol for work during the employment troubles caused by the industrial revolution. By trade he was variously described as either a milkman or labourer, and he was perhaps a labourer in a dairy. He moved to Bristol before the age of 30, marrying twice and fathering eleven children. The earliest sign of his arrival in Bristol was his marriage to Jane Moody, a spinster from Wiltshire, on 22 Nov 1819, in the parish of St James Bristol. William was aged over 30 and Jane was aged 22. Both were illiterate and used a mark to sign their names. The register recorded neither their ages nor occupations and no family members attended as witnesses, making it a challenge to trace their families. Both were born in neighbouring counties and had moved to Bristol from the countryside. Jane was born in Nov 1797, North Bradley, near Trowbridge, Wiltshire, where coincidentally, an unrelated Mortimer family also lived, derived from the Mortimers of Wiltshire.
William and Jane exchanged marriage vows at the parish church of St James, Bristol. The church was originally built as a Benedictine Priory in the 12th century, and became the location of a popular annual fair from 1374. The fair was held in St James’ churchyard, and spilled into the surrounding streets, providing entertainment and merry making for many. In the early 1800’s the fair had become so popular that merchants planned their shipping routes around the fair to supply luxury goods like wine, dyes and exotic fruits or oils.
William Mortimer arrived at a time of great change in Bristol. Across the skyline, the ancient buildings of the medieval city were being demolished to make way for the new architecture of Empire and prestige. Wealthy merchants and financiers, some of whom had made their fortune in the slave trade, wanted to live in modern housing with style and opulence. Whilst the splendid medieval merchant houses of Bristol had previously been a sign of wealth and privilege, by the 1800s these antiquated buildings had lost their appeal and turned into slums, becoming a magnet for disease and malnourishment. The majority of these ancient buildings were home to the poorest of Bristol society, and those who lived there had no other choice. Bristol antiquarians managed to commission engravings of many such buildings before they were lost to history, with some illustrations completed just as the buildings were being pulled down.
William and Jane had four children together. Their first child was born 2 years after their marriage.
After 1822 William and Jane stopped baptising their newborn children, presumably after lapsing into non-religious observance. By 1822 they had moved to Upper Knowle, where their daughters Matilda, Mary Ann and second son James were born. Although it was required to baptise children in the parish where they were born, Mary and James weren’t baptised until 1841. They might even have had more children who did not survive. At this point Upper Knowle would have been at the fringes of the city, as the industrial success of Bristol attracted migrants from rural areas, forcing expansion. By the 1830’s the population had grown over 10 fold since medieval times, the overwhelming majority of the population boom occurring from the industrial revolution.
William Mortimer and his family lived during a time of great social change. Bristol was a fast growing industrial town, but was still not given the political representation it deserved. Aside from this, only 6 out of 100 Bristolians had the rights to vote. The 1831 Reform Bill which aimed to get rid Parliament of the rotten boroughs and give industrial cities like Bristol greater representation, was defeated in the House of Lords, leading to bitter resentment.
When the local magistrate arrived to open the new assize courts in Bristol, anger towards the establishment boiled over. An angry mob attacked and chased the magistrate to the Mansion House in Queen’s Square, and hundreds of people began rioting. The rioters set fire to several important public buildings, also destroying the Bishop’s Palace and setting free the prisoners from Bristol gaol. The Dragoon Guards were called in to restore order and shot at the rioters to disperse the crowds. Four rioters were killed in the ensuing melee, and several soldiers injured. The city must have seemed akin to something like a way zone, as fighting erupted in the streets and further fires were started.
The fires of Bristol blazed throughout the city centre, and could be seen from many miles away. Many unfortunate residents perished in the inferno, which continued to rage through the night. The following day, Bristol residents were greeted with a scene of devastation, as the Mansion House, Bishop’s Palace and many other buildings on Queen Square were gutted and destroyed. A thick layer of ash fell like snow on the city, and the fire service worked hard to extinguish any remaining small fires. The repercussions of the riots were severe. 114 people were convicted of rioting, of which 31 were executed. The commander of the Dragoons was court martialled for leniency, having ordered the 14th Light Dragoons away from the riots during the heat of the action. He later committed suicide before his trial.
While devoted to his younger wife Mary Ann, William obviously cherished the memory of Jane, as he continued to name three of his daughters after her. The family were living at 7 Pipe Lane, Bristol Temple by 1838, when Mary Jane was born. Her birth record showed William worked as a milkman. Their eldest child Jane did not survive, as Mary Jane was known just by her middle name until her marriage. Although the children were born south of the river, William and Mary continued to cross the river to baptise their children at St James and then St Philip & St Jacob parish church. Mary Ann and James, children by his earlier marriage to Jane, were both baptised on 17 Jan 1841, they were aged 13 and 8 respectively.
Though William lost his wife in 1834, his fortunes were sadly not to improve. Both William and his family would have to endure even further heartbreak, that would break even the most tight knit of families. For in 1838 and 1840, the unimaginable happened. Both William’s eldest children, his son John Edward Mortimer and his daughter Matilda, died before their eighteenth birthdays, killed by the hideous diseases that continued to ravage industrial cities. Matilda was doubtless loved by all her siblings, and in the death of poor John, young James no longer had an older brother to look up to. William must have been devastated, for he had always hoped that in his eldest son, his line would continue, and in time his children would be both safe and prosperous. No man could ever recover from such a loss, and William was left a broken stranger to all.
The Mortimer family, or those who had survived the devastating sickness outbreaks of the 1830’s, continued to live in Bristol, for by then they had no other choice. The year after Matilda’s death, the Mortimers lived in Pipe Lane, Bristol. The first national census was carried out in June 1841. Whilst it is not entirely clear exactly where Pipe lane was, it should not be confused with Pipe Lane, St Augustine parish, which is closer to the city centre. Bristol Temple parish was south of the river Avon and originally in Somerset, but was incorporated into Gloucestershire as part of boundary changes, along with the rest of Bristol city registration district. In the census the family members’ ages were rounded down to the nearest five years and the relationships between the family members were not stated, though the head of the house was written first.
The 1841 census imparted limited but interesting information about the household. William and Mary were both born outside Bristol, while the children were all born in the Bristol area. William worked as a labourer, but only a few years before in 1838 he had been termed a milkman. He either laboured in a dairy, or his milk and dairy work was equivalent to that of a labourer. Both Mary and James were probably working at the time, for the family had lost the income of both John and Matilda Mortimer. It wasn’t until 1876 that school attendance was made compulsory, and the young children of the family’s experience of school would probably have been very limited. James might have received only some schooling, for he was able to sign his name in 1862. Elizabeth Stripling, a washer woman, also lived with the Mortimers in 1841 but was unrelated to the family. Elizabeth was born c.1805 in Minehead, Somerset. It was common for people to cohabit at the time, and many poorer families had to share lodgings. The family probably lived all on one floor of a house.
Oddly, William seems to have aged 24 years in just a decade, reflecting the inaccuracy of the census ages! Here is evidence that there was at least a 30 year gap between William and Mary Ann. James Mortimer is recorded in the household, even though he was no longer living with them, having moved to live with his step uncle George Tippins in the Forest of Dean and work as a colliery labourer.
By this point the once close Mortimer family had begun to drift apart, with Mary Ann, William’s eldest daughter, moving to live with Charles James, having a daughter seven years before their marriage in 1852 and James, the only surviving son, moving to the Forest of Dean to live with his Tippins relatives. Sometime between 1851 and 1853, William and Mary Ann separated. What followed the separation though was extraordinary. Mary Ann moved back to the Forest of Dean, taking Elizabeth, her youngest daughter with her. It was there that she remarried in 1853 to Thomas Beach. Whether they had been having an illicit affair and promised to run away together is unknown but it is an interesting thought. Not only that, but William Mortimer was still alive. This was unashamed bigamy at its most blatant and a flagrant violation of Victorian moral values. Thomas and Mary were also breaking the law. Their bigamous marriage was carried out four years before the 1858 Matrimonial Causes Act which legalised divorce through the civil courts.
In this context it is surprising that Mary Ann made no attempts to even conceal her identity or change her name before marrying Thomas. The marriage record follows:
27 Sep 1853, marriage solemnized in the Methodist Chapel of Elwood, Monmouthshire.
Groom: Thomas Beach, age 50, widower, Collier, Breams Eaves West Dean, father: Thomas Beach, collier.
Bride: Mary Mortimore, age 36, spinster, housekeeper at home, Breams Eaves West Dean, father: William Tippins, collier.
Both bride and groom signed their names with a mark (X). The marriage was performed by Nicholas Pascoe and witnessed by William and Ann Jones, who were clearly friends of the couple. Both also signed with a mark. At first glance, there is nothing unusual about the marriage. The couple were from the same area with a similar social background, less than a generation’s age gap between them. Both their fathers worked as colliers in the Forest of Dean. The bride, groom and witnessed all signed with a mark, reflecting the low rate of literacy in the area. What is striking is that Mary stated her status was a spinster, meaning an unmarried woman, yet as her father is William Tippins, Mortimer is clearly not her maiden name. She must have been married or widowed herself and her only grounds for marriage being as a widow, like her fiancee Thomas Beach, yet this detail seems to have passed unnoticed. She presumably pretended that she was an illegitimate daughter of William Tippins by a woman called Mortimer. It is clear why they married far away from Bristol, so to limit the chance of objections to their impending marriage.
In 1861 we find the happily wedded couple living together in Whitecroft, near to where Mary Ann was born herself. Interestingly, her daughter Elizabeth’s name had changed to Elizabeth M Beach, to reflect her new marital status. Presumably the M stood for Mortimer, reflecting her real maiden name. Why Mary Ann Tippins moved from West Dean to Bristol, only to move back again 18 years later and marry Thomas Beach is a mystery and one that will probably never be answered! Being a family of very little substance, they left nothing of value to be handed down the generations that might have enlightened their lives. Eventually all but one of William Mortimer’s surviving children joined her in the forest of Dean, including Mary Ann, James, Mary Jane and Elizabeth. Perhaps they sympathised with Mary Ann’s side. Sarah Jane married and stayed in the Bedminster area before emigrating with her husband to Tuscarawas, Ohio, USA. Mary Ann Beach died in 1370 and was buried 13 Apr 1870 Parkend St Paul church.
William Mortimore stayed in Bristol but moved to 41 St Thomas St, in the parish of St Thomas Church. Before 1861 he was invalidated and forced to retire. In 1861, William was into old age and approaching the end of his life. At the census, his age was stated as 68 but he was likely older. With none of his family around to care for him, he finally perished of Bronchitis in 1862. Ellen James was present at his deathbed, although she was likely a servant of no connection to Charles James who married his eldest daughter Mary Ann Mortimer. With no possessions or property to speak of, William made no will and there is no record of administration after his death. He was likely buried in the cemetery of Arnos Vale near Totterdown, south of Bristol city. The streets that he lived in throughout his time in Bristol were destroyed during the Blitz and subsequent post war redevelopment. The streets were completely renamed and there is now little to suggest what Bristol might have looked like during William’s time, except a number of churches, sometimes ruinous and a scattered collection of antique engravings.
Inspired by medieval history, I began my family tree in 2013. This was exciting for me, as I was the first in my family to truly look into family history and attempt to take the tree back beyond a few generations. After quickly making fascinating discoveries using the Victorian census returns, I soon hit an impasse after researching back to my 4th great grandfather William Mortimore, born about 1787, who it seems was born in Devon but then moved to Bristol before 1819. By profession he was variously described as a dairyman, milkman or labourer, and was presumably from a labouring background. Though William’s name was invariably spelt Mortimore, this is simply a variant spelling of Mortimer, spelling variation common to all names in the past. Mortimore, is how the name was typically spelt in the West Country, perhaps because of the local accent. Further back in time the y was used instead of the i, which was common to all spelling.
The mission to find William Mortimore’s parentage has led me on my own journey of research in documenting the whole Mortimer family of Devon, in order to find the origin of my elusive ancestor. I have closely followed the Mortimers of Bristol and Wiltshire in my research, in order to find more connections, and narrow down the options for William’s parentage. At present, no definitive answer to the dilemma of William’s ancestry has presented itself, but there are several compelling options which are worth exploring further.
In the county of Devon, farming dominated, especially dairy farming. The industrial revolution mechanised the agricultural industry and lead to great social changes, forcing many labourers like William Mortimore to emigrate to cities such as Bristol to find work. This lead to a breakdown of social and community relief structures, and an increased reliance on charity and the state for relief.
The following are stories about the lives of my ancestor William Mortimore and his descendants, complete with family trees and supporting information. The different generations are included on separate pages.
Two Weddings and a Scandal – William Mortimore c.1790-1862
Forest Fuel and Colliery Steam – James Mortimore c.1833-1884
A Panamanian Venture – James Edward Mortimer 1869-1949
Voyage into the Unknown – Hubert James Mortimer
My Mortimer tree is also on ancestry.
See my ancestry profile here.
Hi! My name is David Mortimer, site owner and author of Mortimer History. As a blog about history and genealogy, Mortimer History has been up and running since 2019. Visit the About Page to learn more about my work and the overall purpose of Mortimer History.
On this page you can contact me; get in touch to share your interests, request further information, or give feedback on the site. If you would like your message to be seen by other readers, please do share your thoughts in a Comment in a “Comment on this” section at the bottom of any page.
I always like hearing from readers, so please do get in touch using the contact form below. I like to research many topics and it’s quite possible our interests overlap. I do get a lot of emails but drop me a line and I will respond to all messages in time. Thanks for visiting!
Did you like the Mortimer History site? Or have you got suggestions for improvement? Please leave a review on webwiki!
Try using the Search form below:
Recent Comments