Monday, July 9, 2012

Thomas Litchfield


1826 Birth: Thomas was baptized on 27 Aug 1826 in the parish of Belper.  His family was living in Belper at this time and his father was farming.[1]
1841 Census: Thomas, age 15, was living with his oldest brother William (25) and sister-in-law Ann Litchfield in Ripley, Derbyshire, England.[2]
1851 Census: Thomas, age 24, was living with his parents, Godfrey and Lucy Litchfield and three of his brothers, Godfrey (28), Octavius (16) and George (12) in Heage. His father Godfrey is farming 65 acres.[3]
1860 Newspaper Article: Thomas Litchfield of Toadmoor, was charge by police constable Carter with stealing three cow chains, the property of Mr. Barker, Angel Inn.  Belper. – He remained till Wednesday.  This was in the Derby Mercury issue #6718 on Wed Dec 19 1860 however the Petty Session was held on Dec 14, 1860.[4]  Mr Barker is married to Eliza Litchfield who is one of Thomas’ older sister.  This is probably our Thomas since the family was from the Toadmoor area.
1861 Census: Thomas, age 32, is unmarried and living in Heage with his aged parents, Godfrey (73) and Lucy (72).  Godfrey’s occupation is farmer and Thomas’s occupation is farmer’s servant.[5]

Recommendations:
Marriage: The Thomas Litchfield who married Margaret Haslam on Aug 28, 1842 in Alfreton, Derbyshire, England[6] was the son of Charles Litchfield.[7]  So this is not our Thomas.  This record needs to be corrected in new.familysearch.org.

Death:  I found two death records for a Thomas Litchfield. 
·            One was for a death in 1883.  This one is probably incorrect since his death age was given as 79 but really he would have been about 57. 
·            The second record gives his death in June 1864 in Belper.[8]  This one could be correct.  I found him listed on the 1861 census.  I need to do more research with the census to see if I can find him after this date and request this death record to see if any additional information will help identify if this is the correct date.  Another thing to consider is in the “Godfrey Litchfield” history from Glenda Wright the notes under Thomas state “Was Thomas living in his Uncle James’ lands at Chevinside near Belper when James died in 1873?”[9]  This notation should be followed up as well.  Perhaps there is a will from his uncle James that will shed some light on the subject.
Newspaper Article:  Eliza’s husband John Barker accused Thomas Litchfield (presumably his brother-in-law) of stealing from him.  I believe the Thomas Litchfield mentioned in the article really is our Thomas because the article says he was from Toadmoor which is very close to Heage and where Thomas was living with his older brother in the 1841 Census.  But more research needs to be done to see if there is another Thomas Litchfield in the Toadmoor area.


[1] Church of England, Chapelry of Belper (Derbyshire), Bishops Transcripts for Belper, Baptism Register for 1826, FHL British microfilm 497383 Doc# Thomas 3
[2] 1841 England Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc, 2010. Original data: Census Returns of England and Wales, 1841. Kew, Surrey, England: The National Archives of the UK (TNA): Public Record Office (PRO), 1841. Class: HO107; Piece: 180; Book: 13; Civil Parish: Duffield; County: Derbyshire;  Enumeration District: 15; Folio: 31; Page: 18; Line: 25; GSU roll: 241287. Doc # Thomas 8  April 27, 2012
[3] 1851 England Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Census Returns of England and Wales, 1851. Kew, Surrey, England: The National Archives of the UK (TNA): Public Record Office (PRO), 1851. Class: HO107; Piece: 2145; Civil Parish: Heage; County: Derbyshire; Enumeration District: 1c; Folio: 61; Page: 10; GSU roll: 87776-87777.  Doc # Thomas 9  April 27, 2012
[4] British Library; 19th Century British Library Newspapers [database on-line], Family History Library, Arvada CO. Original Data: The Derby Mercury (Derby, England), Wednesday, December 19, 1860; Issue 6718.  Doc # Lichfield 65  May 22, 2012
[5] 1861 England Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com: Census Returns of England and Wales, 1861. Kew, Surrey, England: The National Archives of the UK (TNA): Public Record Office (PRO), 1861. Class: RG 9; Piece: 2513; Folio: 47; Page: 3; GSU roll: 542982. Doc # Thomas 10   April 27, 2012
[6] Birth, Marriage and Death Index for England and Wales for Mary Haslam, District: Belper, County: Derbyshire, Year: 1842, Quarter: July-Sep, Vol 19, page 307,  Findmypast.co.uk Doc # Thomas 4
[7] Bishop's transcipts for Alfreton, 1668-1848, Church of England, Parish Church of Alfreton, Derbyshire, Marriages 1836-1844.  FHL British Film #0497371 item 1

[8] Thomas Litchfield death Index 1864, England and Wales Civil Registration Indexes, London, England: General Register Office, England & Wales, FreeBMD Death Index: 1837-1937, Vol. 7b, page 284, www.FreeBMD.org.uk,
Doc # Thomas 6         April 14, 2012
[9] Descendants of Godfrey Litchfield from Glenda Wright, glendaw@telusplanet.net  Doc# Thomas 7

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St Peter's Church, Belper, Derbyshire, England

St Peter's Church, Belper, Derbyshire, England
Godfrey Litchfield and Dorothy Jennison were married in this church on 16 March 1853