BICKERTON, Henry (Grimwade p.440)

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buckler
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BICKERTON, Henry (Grimwade p.440)

Post by buckler »

Father- John Bickerton, Mother Elizabeth.

Henry was born 4th March 1723 and baptised at St Giles, Cripplegate on 12th March 1723.
He was the brother of John Bickerton (born 26th March 1716) and Benjamin Bickerton (born 17th January 1734 ) John may well have been a silversmith although no marks are recorded for him, and Benjamin is well known to buckle and tong collectors !
Other siblings were George , Mary, Elizabeth, Joseph and Katherine.
(Parish Records of St. Giles and Peter Otton - a descendant of Benjamin)

He was apprenticed on 2nd May 1738 to John Alcock a smallworker. Alcock, free in 1724, was an apprentice of Daniel Skinner, who in turn had been an apprentice of Maurice Boheme, a noted early bucklemaker. Henry was turned over to William Wheate two days later, and subsequently turned to his father. (John Bickerton Snr or Mr Wheate Senior ? - Grimwade leaves this ambiguous ), on 7th June 1741.

Henry appears in the Land Tax assessments of the parish of St Michael, Wood Street by 1750, at the premises formerly occupied by William Wheate from at least 1735 . A John Bickerton, probably his elder brother briefly occupied the same premises after Wheate but before Henry . The Wheate connection continued as on 3rd September 1746 Henry took as apprentice Samuel Wheat, son of William Wheate (his old master ). The spelling of Wheat(e) varies .

On 7th June 1749 Henry took as apprentice his brother Benjamin Bickerton.

The marriage by licence on 4th July 1754 is on recorded in the register of St Alban ,Wood Street of Henry Bickerton, Batchelor of that parish, to Anne Grace, of the parish of St Botolph, Bishopsgate, Widow. . Although Henry was in the parish of St Michael , Wood Street in 1750/51 he may have moved by 1754 to St Alban.

The will of his father, John Bickerton of St Giles, Cripplegate , made 6th October 1747, was proved at PCC on 26 November 1754.
A really generous man, his father he leaves to Henry £1.05p !
" Item. Whereas I have already fully advanced my Son Henry in the World I do notwithstanding and to encourage his Industry give and bequeath unto him one guinea"
He also virtually disinherited his eldest son, John.
However Benjamin Bickerton was left half of the leasehold of a property in Nags Head Court, Southwark.

Henry took as apprentice William Roker, son of Phillip Roker II. on 6th April 1757

Some time around 1759 Henry moved ,taking over the premises of Richard Pargeter, at 37 Monkwell Street, next door to William Harrison at No 38. Richard Pargeter was probably the largeworker given in Grimwade on pages 614 and 761/2. Henry Bickerton’s first recorded mark ( 26th August 1762) is at this address, although as Grimwade suggests he almost certainly had marks in the lost Smallworkers Register previously .
(Poor Rate Books of St Olave, Silver Street)

The marriage seems fruitful as on 3rdJuly 1761 the birth of Richard, son of Henry and Ann Bickerton was recorded in Parish Register of St Olave, Silver Street. Baptism date slightly uncertain . A second child, Jane Ann was born June 27th 1764 and christened 18 July 1764

He is recorded on 3rd September 1765 in the Broken Plate Book of Goldsmiths Hall with a parcel of work weighing 5lbs. 10ozs. 5dwts which was ii dwts below standard. Typical of bucklemakers, who took in many scrap buckles in part exchange
(Broken Wares Notebook compiled 1763 -1769 by Francis Pages, Deputy Assayer.) .

But it was a shortlived marriage. On 7 0ctober 1765 the newspaper Public Ledger reports "Friday morning died ,of a violent fever Mr Henry Bickerton, Silversmith in Monkwell Street"
Death was presumably 4th October 1765 and other sources confirm 1765 and that he was aged only 41 or 42

The burial register of St Botolph, Bishopsgate records the burial on 11 October 1765 of a Henry Bickerton , aged 42. This is the same parish that his wife had come from and as he does not appear in the burial registers of St Olave, Silver Street in seems that Ann, his widow probably took the family to her people.

The Will of Henry Bickerton Monkwell Street London Goldsmith dated 20th February 1765 was proved at PCC on 14 October 1765
Joint executors and executrix were
My loving Wife Anne Bickerton
My Brother John Bickerton
My Friend William Grove ? of Bishopsgate Street, Coppersmith
He left the majority of his property Ann for life, then to his children (unnamed) equally when they reached twenty one years of age
Other legacies to
Brothers Thomas, Joseph, and Benjamin Bickerton
Sister Elizabeth Clarke, wife of Simon Clark .

His Widow , Ann Bickerton is known to have worked as silversmith after Henry’s death as she was fined for substandard buckle by Goldsmiths Hall on 18th Feb 1766 indicating that she was either using Henry’s old punches or new , unregistered , ones of her own. The existence of an unrecorded AB mark seen on several buckles and sugar nips of the correct period seems to indicate the latter.

An Anne Bickerton who describes herself as a Goldsmith in the trial of her maid for theft in 16 Jan 1766 was almost certainly the same lady although no address given in the Old Bailey trial report.( t17660116-25)

Whether she remained at Monkwell Street is at present unknown. I will be looking again at the Poor Rate / Land Tax Assessments at LMA and hopefully all will be revealed. Or as usual, made more confused.

Kent's Directory for the Year 1768 gives Thomas Wallis as silversmith at 37, Monkwell Street London - so she must have left or died by that date — unless she had married Wallis !
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Re: BICKERTON, Henry (Grimwade p.440)

Post by MCB »

The christening of William, another son of Henry & Anne Bickerton, is recorded at St Alban Wood Street on 19th June 1757.
Son Richard, only 3 days old, is recorded as christened at St Olave on 5th July 1761.
Anne, still Bickerton, has her burial recorded at St Olave Silver Street on 17th October 1779.

Mike
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Re: BICKERTON, Henry (Grimwade p.440)

Post by buckler »

Thanks again Mike.
Can I ask where the death informtion on Theodorsia Ann Atkins and Anne Bickerton came from ?
I tried Ancestory.com and IGI to no avail on both of them !
Or maybe I looked in the wrong place ,
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Re: BICKERTON, Henry (Grimwade p.440)

Post by buckler »

The only Ann Bickerton I found was in the register of St Andrew ,Holborn, which records the burial of an Anne Bickerton of Cockpit Court on 12th Jan 1773 but MCB's seems much more likely.
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Re: BICKERTON, Henry (Grimwade p.440)

Post by MCB »

Hello Clive

Using the "London, England Baptisms, Marriages & Burials 1538-1812" data section on the Ancestry.co.uk site an estimate of Ann Bickerton's year of death was made taking account her husband being 42 years old in 1765. Arriving first at the 1773 burial you mentioned this was put to one side because the church recording the burial didn't seem to fit what we already knew; moving the death year on a few times in the search parameters the "hit" was made in 1779 with the record at St Olave's which was taken as the one we were looking for.
Similarly with Theodosia Atkins but with such an unusual christian name it wasn't necessary to discount any "hit".
This "scatter gun" approach works fairly well when the names are a little out of the ordinary; quite another matter though for anyone named John Smith!
The other bits and pieces such as christenings were picked up along the way of the searches.
Hope this helps.

Regards
Mike
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Re: BICKERTON, Henry (Grimwade p.440)

Post by buckler »

Many thanks indeed.
I totally messed up on Theodosia Ann, missed it completely ! Thanks to your help I found it. It's given more data on her - see the entry.

The burial of the Ann Bickerton on 17th October 1779 was at St Olave, BERMONSEY, Southwark . Not at St Olave, Silver Street, City . It is still a possible for her, although unlikely as Southwark is south of the Thames.

The registers of St Olave, Silver Street are I believe incomplete, missing much of the period 1666 - 1770, and again missing 1774 -1800. So a marriage to Thomas Wallis , or her death in either of those periods cannot be discounted. We may never know
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Re: BICKERTON, Henry (Grimwade p.440)

Post by buckler »

Anne Bickerton remained at 37, Monkwell Street for about two years after the death of her husband as she appears in the Land Tax Assessments as Widow Bickerton at his old address in 1766/67 and 1767/68. She was replaced in the 1768/69 Land Tax Assessments by Thomas Wallis, which nicely agrees with Kent's Directory for the Year 1768 which gives Thomas Wallis as silversmith at 37, Monkwell Street London.

The Land Tax Assessments were done by Ward, not Parish , and I have found them less reliable than the Poor Rate returns which were by Parish, by Parish officials. The numberings in the LTA lists confusingly appear to be serial assessment references, not house numbers. Also many people are still recorded as paying Land Tax at an address for some time after their death !
So why have I not used the Poor Rate Books ?
Particularly as the Poor Rate was collected every SIX months not yearly.

I did try them - but the period from March 1765 to March 1768 has been cut out from the book, leaving a plaintive note from the next (incoming) church warden that they were missing when he took over! Not a trace remains of an Ann Bickerton, as by September 1768 Wallis is given at No 37.

I still do not know what became of her.
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Re: BICKERTON, Henry (Grimwade p.440)

Post by buckler »

The Land Tax Assessment record for 1751/52 shows Henry Bickertons premises in St Michael, Wood Street Precinct as "Empty, late Bickerton" . He'd moved elsewhere by 1752.

We believe he married while resident in St Albans, Wood Street in 1754
From Mike's information
The christening of William, another son of Henry & Anne Bickerton, is recorded at St Alban Wood Street on 19th June 1757.
Son Richard, only 3 days old, is recorded as christened at St Olave on 5th July 1761.
So he was almost certainly in St Alban in the 1750's.


A quick look at the LTA for St Alban, Wood Street failed to find him there, although there may be more than one Ward involved, so I may have to find if St Alban comes under any others. Or hope the Parish Poor Rate Books survive.
Researchers will know that when the Poor Rate Books are lost (which they are for St Michael WS for this period) the LTA's can be a real pain to use. Monkwell Street in St Olave Silver Street for example comes under Aldersgate Within Ward and Cripplegate Within. Ward. Plus Farrington Within Ward in which Henry's premises at 37, Monkwell Street lay .
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Re: BICKERTON, Henry (Grimwade p.440)

Post by buckler »

We now have the full details of Henry Bickerton's movements before his arrival at Monkwell Street - all of which is not covered by Grimwade as it's Lost Register material.

Henry Bickerton first appears in the Land Tax Assessments (LTA) of St Michael, Wood Street by 1750, having taken over the premises formerly occupied by William Wheat, his old master. In fact a John Bickerton, probably his elder brother, briefly occupied the premises after the departure of Wheat but before Henry .

He moved around 1751 as the St Michael Wood Street Land Tax Assessment record for 1751/52 shows the his premises as "Empty, late Bickerton. "

However he reappears in the Land Tax Assessment records of the adjacent St Albans, Wood Street parish in 1751/52, as taking over the premises of James Cotsford (?) who had vacated them by the end of the 1747/48 Land Tax period . Must have been in quite a state !
The premises were very close to those occupied by William Justis and probably in Wood Street. He was still there for the 1754/55 assessment but the 1755/56 LTA records the house was occupied by a William Johnson , and Henry Bickerton is shown in a another part of St Albans as having taken over the property formerly used by a Robert Mirfield . The new property was next to that of William Turner, another silversmith and was probably in Addle Street. He did not stay long, the house being assessed in 1758/9 to a Joseph Steward . He had moved to Monkwell Street in the parish at St Olave , Silver Street where he is recorded as paying Poor Rate in 1759 . Interestingly William Turner moved around the same time, but he stayed in St Albans
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