Nicholas Thorne's Family History Pages

I remember well my grandmother, Nellie Gertrude Thorne, née Stephens. When I was born in 1958 she lived in Paignton, Devon. I spent at least one year living with her and, as a boy, visited her from Jersey fairly regularly. I do recall that she moved to Leamington Spa, at one stage, but then she returned to live at Broadsands near Paignton.

As a small child, visiting her from Jersey, I was fascinated by the red sands on the beach that one reached by walking underneath the railway-viaduct. In Jersey the sand is silvery and there have not been trains since the 1930s, well before I was born.

The railway line, that went past the end of her garden to Dartmouth, was undergoing a revolution. It was in the 1960's and dark-green diesel locomotives were being phased in to replace the hissing and puffing steam engines. My childhood memory is that she disapproved of the new trains. I did too; mine was for a very practical reason. From her garden I would wave at the train; the steam-loco drivers, on their plates behind the fire box, would wave back. The diesel drivers, enclosed in their cabs, would not!

I never knew any of the rest of the Stephens family, except for Aunty Hilda, her sister.

Thank heaven, again, for the Internet!

Name and Surname of each person	RELATION to Head of Family	Condition as to marriage	Age last Birthday	PROFESSION OR OCCUPATION	Employer, Worker, or Own account	If Working at Home	WHERE BORN	If (1)Deaf and Dumb (2) Blind (3)Lunatic (4) Imbecile, feeble- minded
Edgar Stephens	Head.	M.	34	Gunsmith.	Worker.		Devon,Plymouth
Ellen Do	Wife	M	33				Do Do
George Do	Son	S	12				Do Do
Winnie Do	Daughter		10				Do Do
Nellie Do	Daughter		7				Do Do
Daisy Do	Daughter		4				Do Do
Dorothy Do	Daughter		1 mo				Do Do

There were, I am told, eight siblings in total, Henry, who died in infancy, Billy and Hilda who do not feature in the 1901 household because they were not yet born.

So who were the Stephens?

Going back ten years, into the previous century, I searched the 1891 Plymouth census.
Here I found Great-grandfather Edgar Stephens was aged 24 and was a "Cycle Agent". How very modern! He was married to 22 year old Ellen and together with their 2 year old son, George, and eight month old daughter Winnifred, they lived at 2 Densham Terrace, North Road, Plymouth. At this time it was the house of great-great-granmother Ellen's father, one George Colwill.

Image produced from the www.old-maps.co.uk service with permission of Landmark Information Group Ltd.
and Ordnance Survey

In this year, my great-great-grandfather George Colwill, aged 54, was a man of means. He is a widower and the only other person in the house on census night (Sunday/Monday 5/6th April 1891) was their servant, Minnie Langdon who was 18 and from Launceston in Cornwall.

George's occupation was given as "Living on his own means" and his birth place was Tavistock, Devon.

In the same civil parish of St.Andrew Plymouth is 3 Oxford Place. In 1891, it was here that lived my great-great-grandfather, Samuel. W. Stephens, who like George Colwill was also "Living on his own means" . At 46, to have achieved this status, there must be a story; but what it is I do not know. This is the father of Edgar Stephens and so, it would seem, he has both a father and a father-in-law who had become wealthy by this time.

Under Samuel's roof is Edgar's brother William T. Stephens, a 19 year old Coach Painter. There is also Edgar's 18 year old sister, Alice. M. Stephens and his maternal Aunt, Emma Westlake, 43, a Housekeeper and also Aunt Jane Westlake, 36, a Draper's Assistant.

Sadly, Samuel is also a widower.

So how did I make the connection from Edgar to Samuel? Well, I had found that in the 1881 census, ten years earlier, Edgar was a 14 year old scholar living at home, which was then at 47 York Street, Plymouth. The household was headed by Edgar's 37 year old father, a General Commissions Agent. Edgar's mother, my great-great-grandmother was alive and her name was Mary. A. Stephens aged 38. Also at this address was the head of the household's mother, Kezia Stephens, 75 and born in Bigbury, Devon.

So I now searched for Kezia Stephens in an earlier census. I was thrown off course by one Internet site offering a transcribed version of the 1861 census. In it Kezia's husband was called "Rovers Stephens" and was an "Expaman". By going to the 1871 census I found the correct name and occupation.

Now I have traced the line from Robert and Kezia Stephens, my great-great-great-grandparents, their son Samuel, his son Edgar and my grandmama (as she liked me to call her), Nellie.

But Samuel does not appear to be, in any of the census, living with his parents and so if it was not for the fact that Kezia went to live with him as an old lady, I would never have made the connection to Robert, the Extra Gent in H.M.Customs

So where was Samuel living as a teenager? A trawl of the 1861 census found him at 14 Torrington Place with three aged Aunts. Elizabeth Stephens, the wife of the head of the household, is listed as "Wife of Commercial Traveler". The head was not present on census night, perhaps he was off traveling? I assume him to be the brother of Samuel's father, Robert. Also in the house are two of Robert's spinster sisters: Catherine Stephens who is 63 and Ann Stephens who is 58. They are attended by their 27 year old servant called Maria Fewins and it looks like a prosperous neighbourhood with occupations such as Shareholders, Fundholders, Architects and retired Lt.Colonels being the norm.

Now to look back at the Colwill family, into which Edgar had married. As you may remember, Ellen Stephens was the daughter of George Colwill who, in the 1891 census, is "Living On His Own Means".

By looking at the1901 census I found him to be a "Retired Baker". Back in 1881 he was "Baker & Grocer" living at 133 King Street with wife Charlotte Colwill, from Reading, Berkshire. Ellen is 12 and is a schoolgirl but her two sisters, Alice Colwill and Annie Colwill are "Assistants in shop". I wonder if this is a family run establishment with the girls working in the parent's Grocer and Baker's shop?

Apart from giving me the name of great-great-grandmother Charlotte Colwill, this census also showed that the Colwills had lived at sometime in London. Alice had been born in Marylebone and Annie had been born in Camberwell, London.

George is from Tavistock and his parents, the 1851 census shows us, were William Colwill and Ann Colwill. In that year, as a 15 year old "Baker", George lived with his 42 year old father, a "Hat Manufacturer" born in Exeter and his 38 year old mother born in Tavistock.

Ten years on, 1861 and the Colwill seniors have moved to Plymouth. William is a "Hatter" but by the 1871 census he is now a "Grocer" and lives at 20 Whitecross Street just north of Sutton Pool. It is well documented what the mercury in hat manufacturing did to hatters. So, perhaps, before he became as mad as the proverbial, he changed occupations.

The Westlake's family of Samuel's wife Mary. A. Stephens, are interesting folk. While looking at a Trades Directory for 1864 I found a Thos. Westlake, of 4 Frankfort Street, Plumber & Brass Founder.

In 1851 he is down as Ironmonger & Founder and employer of one woman, six men and seven boys, Brassfounders. His wife is shown as Christine or Chrisk in this census. A conundrum because earlier census show her to be called Mary Westlake née Legg. Her mother was Rebecca Legg, a "Poulterer" from Morley Place, Plymouth who was born in St Germains, Cornwall. Rebecca, it would seem, is the only non Devonian in my grandmother's family - at least that I have traced so far!