A death – Thomas Burnett (William and Elizabeth’s elder brother) Although there is no baptismal record, there is strong evidence that William’s mother, Hannah may have had another illegitimate child called Thomas, who was born around 1829-30, before she moved to Busby near Stokesley where William and Elizabeth were born. This would make him one …
Read More 4b. Two funerals or rather deaths in 1858________________________________________________________________ William was nearly fourteen years old, apprenticed to the Stokesley Printer, William Braithwaite and still living in Stokesley when his sister, Elizabeth married John Campion, a farm hand from Castleton. The wedding took place on Tuesday, 19th September 1854 in St Hilda’s Church in Danby Dale. The service was officiated by John Christopher Atkinson[1] …
Read More 4a. William’s sister’s wedding to John Campion in 1854This is the fourth posting on the timeline of William’s life and is intended to serve as an introduction to some family events that took place from when he was apprenticed to the printer William Braithwaite in Stokesley at the age of thirteen through to his arrival in Middlesbrough in around 1855 to continue his …
Read More 4. Two weddings and two funerals…an introductionThis is the third posting on the timeline of William’s life. It describes further influences on his education and development during his early teenage years in Stokesley and before he moved to Middlesbrough in around 1855. _______________________________________________ Having gained some idea of William’s family and where he spent his early years, what do we know …
Read More 3. Indomitable pluck and perseverance & the ‘winged art’This is the second posting on the timeline of William’s life. It describes his immediate family and his antecedents, his illegitimacy and how he came adopt the middle name of Hall. __________________________________________________________________________ After the brief introduction to William’s birthplace of Stokesley (St Peter’s Bells and my native town) I return to an exploration of his …
Read More 2. Ah’s Yorkshire… William’s immediate familyThis is the first posting on the timeline of William’s life. He was born on the 10th November 1840 in Stokesley in the North Riding of Yorkshire and this posting describes his ‘native town’ around the time of his birth and some early influences on his life. [click on map to enlarge] ______________________________________________________________ In 1859 …
Read More 1. St Peter’s Bells and my native town…