|
|
The Littles of Stanton St. Quintin, Wiltshire Stanton St Quintin consists of two villages in Wiltshire just north of the M4 near Leigh Delamere service station. One contains the church, and the other, a short distance to the north east, is known as Lower Stanton St. Quintin. Lewis's Topographical Dictionary (1840) says of Stanton St. Quintin "Good slate, limestone and a very hard bluestone for building abound within the parish. A ruined castle was entirely removed within the last few years". John LITTLE (parish unknown) married Betty BARRINGTON in St Giles church, Stanton St. Quintin (below) on December 12th 1785. [Betty was the daughter of Isaac and Betty (nee SAINTSBURY) BARRINGTON who had married at nearby Hullavington in 1752. She was baptised on June 1st 1760. Isaac and Betty's other children, baptised at Stanton St. Quintin were David (1752-1753), David (1754), Edith (1756) and Mary (1762). Isaac was buried at Stanton in 1769.]
John Sr. was described in the parish records as a pauper in 1788, 1793 and 1801. He was committed for trial on May 2nd 1799 "by G.S. Bayliffe esq., charged on the oath of William Lesiter, with having feloniously stolen from his hay-rick in his field, in the parish of Staunton St. Quintin, a quantity of hay, his property". No evidence was brought and the charge was dismissed. He died in 1800 and Betty his widow died in 1801. They were both buried at Stanton. John (1793), a labourer, married Elizabeth HERD (b. Gloucestershire) at Westonbirt and Lasborough, Gloucestershire in 1815. Westonbirt is dominated by Westonbirt House and estate, and it seems probable that John was a gardener or stable lad, and Elizabeth a domestic servant. Later that year their first child Ann was born. Westonbirt House was a 16th century manor house, and its owner George P Holford, made rich by involvement in the New River project supplying water to London, decided to demolish it and began to replace it with a neo-Tudor mansion in 1818. Undoubtedly the staff had all been laid off, and that may be the reason that the Littles were the subject of an Order of Removal from that parish to Lower Stanton St. Quintin (John's home parish) on May 15 1816. The print below was made shortly before the demolition, possibly in 1813.
The family fortunes were now obviously at a low ebb, and on August 3rd 1819 John was charged with having in his possession a scythe, scythe handle wedges and a poll ring stolen from out of a field in the parish of Old Sodbury the property of John Baker of Yate, labourer, and also a scythe and grafsnail the property of James Hopkins of the parish of Acton Turville in the county of Gloucester labourer. He had Dark brown hair dark grey eyes fresh complexion long face a mole on the right side of the small of his back middle finger left hand very remarkable in being very much longer than the other and quite flat. He was a labourer, heighth (sic) 5 feet seven and a half inches. At the summer assizes, August 21 1819 he was sentenced to 8 lunar months in the house of correction at Horsley. He was removed 26 August 1819, his attitude "Indifferent".
There are about 35 entries of parish relief being given to John from 1828 to 1834 in Stanton, the sums ranging from sixpence to £2 (the latter in 1829, 1830 and 1831 for "house rent"). He died of bronchitis in 1845. John and Elizabeth's subsequent children were Eliza (1817), James Hazel (1819), Edith (1822), Giles 1825, Mary (22 March 1829) and John (1836). The second name of the first son is possibly a mistaken transcription of the maiden name of the mother. Mary (1829) married George KING at Batheaston on March 25th 1849, gave birth to nine children and died in 1910. She and George were buried in an unmarked grave at St. Catherine's church in the parish of Batheaston. Her mother Elizabeth was a washerwoman in Batheaston in 1851.
Above: Westonbirt church with the newer Westonbirt House visible to the rear right.
Order Of Removal from Westonbirt and Lasborough to Stanton St. Quintin
24/12/06 |
