Hawkesbury History
The following are transcripts from original poor law inquisitions kindly supplied and transcribed by Ray Price
NOTES
G.R.O. = Gloucester Record Office
2 G.R.O. ref P 170 OV 3/4 6th March 1789 Settlement examination of Daniel Smart
3 G.R.O.ref. P 170 OV 3/4 2nd March 1827 Settlement examination of William Smart who went to live with his Uncle Francis at Alderly under no fixed hiring, to work in the clothing business at the age of seven. At the time of this examination he had 4 children, the oldest, Caroline aged “upwards of 3 years”. Caroline was not baptised at Hawkesbury. Her parents were married at Wotton – under – edge so it is likely that Caroline was baptised there.
4 G.R.O. ref P 170 OV 3/3 24th November 1766 Order for removal from Alkington (Berkley) to Hawkesbury of William Smart and his wife Ann.
5 G.R.O. ref P 170 1//7 Parish accounts charged 4 shillings for taking Nathaniel Smart & his wife to Wickwar for his examination.
6 William Smart, born 31st May 1829, joined the Durham Light Infantry at the age of 17 and later served in the Crimean War. He married Ann Arthurs on the 14th June 1858. Their daughter Mary Anne was born on the 25th March 1859.
7 G.R.O. ref 170 ¾ 2nd March 1827 Settlement examination of William Smart whose father, Nathaniel, was apprenticed to a sope boiler in the parish of St. John in the city of Bristol. Therefore Nathaniel’s legal settlement was St. John’s parish
BAPTISMS OF THE SMART FAMILY AT HAWKESBURY
Children of Nathaniel Smart (died 1778) and his wife Mary (died1783)
(see note 1)
29th July 1739 Sarah
18th Oct 1740 William (see notes 1 & 4)
26th Dec 1741 Daniel (see note 2)
6th Nov 1743 Ann
26th Jun 1745 Francis (see note 3)
29th Sept 1747 Martha (I.G.I. does not match parish register)
18th Dec 1748 Robert
11th Feb 1750 John
27th Jan 1752 Nathaniel (see note 5)
26th May 1754 Mary
23rd May 1756 Susannah
Children of Nathaniel (baptised 1752) and Alice Smart (nee Mallard)
(see note 7)
1783 Nathaniel
1784 Robert
1792 John
8th Jun 1794 William (see notes 3 & 7)
1797 Sarah
1799 Daniel
1799 Martha
Children of William (baptised 1794) and Mary Smart (nee Cornwall)
(?) 1823 Caroline (see note 3)
25th Apr 1824 Thomas
8th May 1825 Anthony
11th Mar 1827 Henry
31st May 1829 William (see note 6)
25th Mar 1832 Louisa
15th Jan 1837 Sarah Ann
Sworn before us
This 6th day of March 1789
Geor Hardwicks Mark of
Rich’d Haynes
Isaac Webb Horlock Daniel Smart
Glocester now resident in the parish of Hawksbury in
The said County – Cloth worker. Taken
Before us his Majesty’s Justices of the peace In and for the county aforesaid this 6th day of March 1789 Who upon his Oath saith.
That he was born in the aforesaid parish of Hawksbury as by his parents he hath been informed and where they were residing under a Certificate from the parish of St. John in the city of Bristol as he hath also heard and doth believe with whom he continued to dwell till he was Seven or Eight and Thirty years of age or thereabout when his father died & Examinant continued to dwell with his Mother till she died which happened about Six years since
Since that time Examinant hath together with his brother Occupied a tenement and premises situate in the said parish of Hawksbury of the yearly rent of Two Guineas, that he hath not paid any parish Taxes or serv’d any Parochial Office, nor done any other Act or Deed in any place or parish whatever whereby to gain any other Settlement than above set forth.
Sworn and Acknowledged The mark of
The day and year first above
Written Before us William Smart
Geo Hardwicks
Rich’d Haynes
Isaac Webb Horlock
County of Gloucester The Examination of William Smart,
now residing in Gloucester the parish of Hwkesbury in the said County taken upon his Oath before Us his Majestys Justices of the Peace in and for the said County this 2nd. Day of March 1827
Who saith that he was born in the Parish of Hawkesbury aforesaid where his Parents then resided but whose legal Settlement was in the parish of St. John in the city of Bristol through his father the Grandfather of this Examinant who was, and that his father gained the same Apprenticed to a Sope boiler under regular indentures for seven years. That when he was about seven years of age he went and lived with his Uncle Francis Smart in the parish of Alderly in the said County under no kind of hiring whatsoever to work at the Clothing Business, and his Uncle gave him on Saturday Evenings one Shilling, and his Dinner every day in the week during which time he slept in his Uncles House, and he continued to serve his said Uncle for the space of nine years and his wages was yearly advanced per week unto him and the last year he had eight shillings per week Examinants Uncle then died and he has continued to work in the Clothing Business as weekly servant to this present time. Examinant further saith that about seven years since he was married in the parish of Wooton-underedge in the said County unto Mary his now wife by whom he issue four Children namely Caroline aged upwards of three years Thomas aged upwards of two years, Anthony aged upwards of one year and an Infant son not yet baptized, and hath not done any act or deed whereby to gain Settlement save what is here set forth and further that his parents are relieved by the Parish Officers of St. John’s at this present time but this examinant is now become chargeable to the said Parish of Hawakesbury
Sworn before Us The mark of
F Trotman
Thos Brooke A Copy William Smart
I W W Horlock
Francis Pelly
NATHANIAL SMART (the elder)
Nathanial Smart and his wife Mary came originally from the parish of St. John in the city of Bristol (St. John’s on the arch). The records here were destroyed during World War II, so further research is difficult. The first record of Nathanial and Mary in Hillesley is the baptism of their daughter Sarah on 29th July 1739. In the next sixteen years they had another ten children.
Shortly after Daniel was born in December 1741 they were removed by the overseers of the poor to their parish of settlement, St John’s in Bristol, by order of removal. Before long, however, they were back in Hillesley under a certificate from the churchwardens of St. John’s. They were not away very long judging by the regular intervals at which their children were baptized at St. Mary’s church in Hawkesbury. It seems that they continued to live in Hillesley. Nathanial died about 1778 and Mary died about 1783. In 1789 two of their sons, William and Daniel were examined by Justices of the peace to prove their legal settlement in Hillesley. The settlement examination shows that William lived with his parents until his mother died at which time he was forty two
NATHANIEL SMART (the younger)
Nathaniel Smart was born in Hillesley and baptized on 27th January 1752. Referring to the Settlement examination of his son William in 1827 it appears that Nathaniel gained settlement in St. John’s, Bristol by being apprenticed to a Sope Boiler in that parish for seven years. It is not known where his wife Alice came from or where or when they were married. It is known, however, that they had seven children who were baptized in Hawkesbury, one of whom was William Smart, (both Alice and Nathaniel Smart were still alive in 1827 according to the examination).
WILLIAM SMART (the elder)
William was baptized on 8th June 1794 at Hawksbury. His settlement examination in 1827 tells his story. At the age of seven he went to live with his uncle, Francis Smart, in the parish of Alderley to work in the clothing business. At first he was paid one shilling a week and given a bed and his dinner every day. He worked for his uncle for nine years during which his wages were increased yearly and at the end of nine years he was getting eight shillings a week. Then when William was sixteen his uncle died. William continued to work in the clothing business as weekly servant until March 1827 when he was thirty two. At this time perhaps the new owner of the business died or sold up and William lost his job. At about the age of twenty six William got married to Mary in the parish of Wotton under Edge and at the time of the Settlement examination they had four children. In 1858, when his son got married William’s trade was given on the marriage certificate as Joiner. It seems, therefore, that William lost his job in 1827 and as he had a wife and four children he had to apply for parish relief - hence the settlement examination. The overseers of the poor, following the practice at that time, supported his family and at the same time gave him tools and put him to work with a new master to learn a new trade. Their last child, Sarah, was baptized in January 1837. In the 1841 census William’s widow Mary was still living in Hillesley with her sons Henry and William.
Siege of Sebastopol (Crimean war) 1854
In the winter of 1854 the Durham Light Infantry (68th) was encamped on the hills overlooking Sebastopol. They were not equipped for a winter campaign. On the 14th of November they were subjected to severe winds with rain and sleet. The tents were blown down and stores scattered; the scene was of utter chaos. The soldiers did not receive any rations that day. Although the weather was very cold there were no casualties that day but several men died of hypothermia during the night.
The rain continued for the rest of November and most of December and the ground became a mass of mud. A result was that the supply of food was hindered and often the men were on half or quarter rations for several days. Fuel was also very scarce and the men still had only their summer uniforms which soon wore out. Disease was common and many died of cholera and dysentery, the remaining fit men were hard pressed to maintain the camp.
The situation was reported to The Times by their correspondent William
Howard Russell, the first ever war correspondent. Queen Victoria insisted that winter uniforms and other vital supplies must be sent out urgently and they arrived in the Crimea – the following spring!
William Smart was a survivor of this siege.
Source :- the regimental records of the Durham Light Infantry, Hutchinson’s History of the British nation, the Public Records Office at Kew, and other records
WILLIAM SMART (the younger)
William was baptized in Hawkesbury on 31st May 1829. He had three brothers and three sisters but at the age of eleven he was living with his mother and one brother in Hillesley (1841 census). One brother, Anthony, had gone to work as a servant for farmer Jesse Lewis, the others had left Hillesley or died. During this time he may have known his future wife, Anne Arthurs. By the age of seventeen he was working as a farm labourer; then in December 1846 the Durham Light Infantry had a recruiting drive in Wotton under Edge, and William Smart joined the 68th light Infantry as 2537 Private William Smart. His discharge papers show that he served for twenty one years including service abroad in Malta and the Ionian Islands, the Crimean War and in the Maori uprising in New Zealand. He earned five good conduct badges (the maximum) and was awarded the long service and good conduct medal, the Crimean War medal, the Turkish Crimean medal and the New Zealand medal. Further he was never tried by Court Martial and had no entry in the Regimental Defaulters Book. In the conditions prevailing in the army at that time this was an excellent military career.
The Duke of Wellington described the rank and file of his army before the Battle of Waterloo in 1815 as “the scum of the earth”. In general most people agreed with him. Living conditions in the army were generally worse than in civilian life and rewards were worse. The result of this being that the army recruited the worst class of men. A Royal Commission on Recruiting concluded that “Enlistment is, for the most part, occasioned by want of work – by pecuniary embarrassment (debt) – by family quarrels – or by any other difficulties of a private nature”
Traditionally, the regular army served as a refuge for men escaping from their domestic circumstances, particularly from their amatory indiscretions. Once enlisted, the soldier could not be arrested for leaving a wife and a child as a charge on the parish, or for incurring a debt of under £30. When William Smart enlisted an army career was held in very low esteem by the general public.
The Crimean war was a watershed in the relations between the army and society. This was largely due to William Howard Russell, war correspondent of The Times. The image and reputation of the British soldier was greatly enhanced by the end of this war. The army returned from the east to be fêted and feasted. The Times would claim that “any hostility which may have existed in bygone days towards the army has long since passed away. The red coat of the soldier is honoured throughout the country” (22 October 1856). William Smart returned and doubtless shared in the triumph.
During his period of army service, after his return from the Crimea, William got married. On the 14th of June 1858 he married Anne Arthurs and although he was still in the army his address was Ludgate Hill, Leeds. In 1861 he was living with his wife and daughter at 16 Neville Street, Leeds. From 1861 to 1867 his wife ran a fishmongers shop nearby at 8 or 9 Neville Street. On his discharge in 1868 he decided to go into business. He moved to 37 Lady Lane where he ran an eating house. He also took in lodgers. His business career was short lived however as he died only three years later in 1871. He was only forty two when he died and the cause of death was certified as “Abscess of lung”. According to his discharge papers he was never wounded but it is possible that his early death may have resulted from the appalling conditions during the Crimean War, and he was probably a pipe smoker.
