Martha Nash - 3rd great-grandaunt

Martha Nash   1797–1874

Birth; 28^th May 1797 • Canterbury, Kent, England

Death; January 1874 • Mile End Town, Middlesex, England

3rd great-grandaunt

DNA Connection

Synopsis from my Ancestry Family Tree;

When Martha Nash was born on 28^th May 1797 in Canterbury, Kent, her father, Edward, was 37, and her mother, Elizabeth, was 37. She married Richard Eldridge on 25^th December 1816 in her hometown. They had 12 children in 23 years. She died in January 1874 in Middlesex having lived a long life of 76 years.

 Martha was a child of Edward Nash. There is an earlier article about a collection of Edward Nash named people, trying to identify the right one for my Tree. In this instance it is Edward Nash, 1760–1811, my 4^th great-grandfather. 

Burials Elizabeth Scott 19 Aug 1954; From Register of Burials at Victoria Park Cemetery, Hackney, Middlesex from 1853 to 1855

Edward Nash was born in 1760 in England. He married Elizabeth Hill on 14^th October 1776 in Canterbury, Kent. They had eleven children in 25 years. He died in 1811 in his hometown at the age of 51. Their first born was Ann Nash, but sadly passed away at about 2 years of age. Edward and Elizabeth had six girls and five boys, Of which three were believed to have died in infancy, including another Edward Nash. However, a year later the name was used again, and this time with more luck. Fortunately for me, as he was my 3^rd great-grandfather.

Tempting as it would be to follow that line, on this occasion we are exploring our 3^rd great-grandaunt, Martha Nash, the youngest but one of Edward's and Elizabeth's children.

Lets think again about the marriage of Edward Nash and Elisabeth Hill on 14^th October 1776. How do we know that? Read about the Holy Cross Book of records.

Baptism

Martha was Baptised on 28^th May 1797 at St. Dunstan's Church, St. Dunstan's Street, Canterbury, Kent, England.

Ann Nash, Martha's eldest sister was both baptised and buried at Holy Cross, Westgate, Canterbury, Kent, England. 

  Holy Cross Church has now been repurposed as council offices. It is only 6 minute walk between Holy Cross Church and St Dunstan's Church. John Nash, the third child, was baptised on 13^th March 1785 at St. Dunstan's Church, Canterbury, Kent, England, the fist of the Nash children so to do.

Daniel Nash and Edward Nash were buried on 14^th and 17^th May 1788 respectively, both by the parish. This was a poor family. Up until the time I am writing this Edward Nash was born and died in the year 1788. However, searching for baptism records, to validate other records, in part by proximity, I found an appropriate baptism record. Edward Nash baptised on 23rd November 1777 at Holy Cross, Canterbury, Kent, England. This makes him the first born. Thinking about that, first child born just over a year after being married, and named after his Father, which was not unusual at the time. This is a change, but not incongruous with other information.

The second child called Edward Nash was baptised on 18 Apr 1789 at St Dunstan's Church, Canterbury, Kent, England. All of the remaining children were baptised at St Dunstan's with the exception of John Hill Nash B 1790  and Esther Nash, who was born in 1803 according to Thelma141. Both of these two have limited substantiating records. Elizabeth would have been 43 years old at the time of Esther birth.

It seems therefore that the family stayed in the vicinity of the walls of Canterbury as they grew their family.

A review of the British Newspaper Archive, and in particular, the Kentish Gazette reveals there are a number of Nash families within Kent and of varying fortune, and occupations. I started the newspaper search  to see if I could find evidence of an epidemic of any sort, such as Scarlet Fever found in another article, which would help explain the two brothers being buried within three days of one another. Nothing to suggest that found so far. 

Marriage

The next piece of information about Martha Nash is her marriage to Richard Eldridge on 25^th December 1816 at St. Andrew's, Canterbury, Kent, England according to the England, Select Marriages, 1538–1973 record on Ancestry. Martha was under full age, being 19 years of age, at the date of the wedding and would therefore have needed the permission of her parents. Or in this instance, her mother as her father had died when she was just 14. 

Before their fathers death in 1811, Edward Nash, an elder brother of Martha worked at sea. According to the Preventive Boat Service Return to Parliament, Edward Nash on was with the Preventive Boat Service at the age of 28, with a date of Appointment, December 1817 and with an annual salary of £5. He was recommended for the post by the Treasury.  He had been at sea for 13 years 3 months.  Giving a start at sea date of September 1804.

Formed in 1809 as the "Preventive Waterguard" (also known as the Preventive Boat Service) to combat smuggling, the Waterguard was an independent arm of revenue enforcement and complemented the "riding officers" (stationed along the south coast of England) who patrolled the shore on horseback, and the offshore revenue cutters (which were owned and operated by both the Board of Customs and the Board of Excise). The Waterguard was initially based in watch houses around the coast, and boat crews patrolled inshore waters around the coast in small boats each night. It was placed under Admiralty control from 1816 to 1822, when it and the riding officers and cutters were amalgamated under the control of HM Customs and renamed the Coast Guard (itself placed under Admiralty control in 1856). With the Coast Guard having moved away from preventive work in the years that followed, the Waterguard was re-formed as part of HM Customs in 1891 and absorbed into the Customs and Excise department in 1909.

The Waterguard was a division of HM Customs and Excise (HMCE).

In the 1841 Census, where we find Richard and Martha Eldridge living in Western Street, Mile End Old Town, Middlesex, he was a Customs House Officer. Perhaps there was a connection between Richard and Edward Nash, Martha's brother, which led to Martha and Richard meeting.

According to some trees on Ancestry, Martha Eldridge nee Nash and Richard Eldridge had 11 children. Below we can try to fill in some gaps between their wedding on 25^th December 1816 at St. Andrew's Church, Canterbury, and the first surviving census record of them in 1841.

A map showing the civil parishes of the Metropolis districts of Whitechapel, Limehouse and Poplar as they appeared in 1870. Based on the Ordnance Survey Town Plan of London (1871-76) at 1:1056 scale.

Stepney Civil Parish Map 1870 -- By Doc77can - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=31418742

Richard Eldridge

Timeline

Richard Eldridge was born in 1817, his father, Richard, was 26 and his mother, Martha, was 20.

Richard was baptised on the 12th October 1817 in the parish church of Stokenham, in Devon. His parents were recorded as Richard and Martha Eldridge and the place of abode, Torcross, a short distance from Stokenham.

Richard was baptised 9 months and 18 days after his parents' were married.

Torcross is by the sea, and the father's profession is Custom House Officer. At a time of little mobility it is strange to see children baptised so far away from the place of their parents wedding, so soon afterwards. However, with the profession stated as being  Custom House Officer this makes it more creditable, as he could have been posted there shortly after his marriage to Martha.

There were two other Custom House Officer's whose children were baptised, recorded on the same page of the Parish Register.

 Richard Eldridge married Mary Ann Nicholas on 19th April 1846 at Bethnal Green parish church, St Matthew's, in the county of Middlesex. They were both of full age and both living at 61 Bethnal Green Road, and it was there first marriage, he being an bachelor and she a spinster. He was a General Dealer. Both could sign their name.

His father is stated as being Richard Eldridge a Custom House Officer, which matches other information about him.

Mary Ann's father was recorded as John Nicholas, a gardener. 

The wedding was recorded as being it the presence of Richard Eldridge and Elizabeth Eldridge, by her mark. It was conducted by the curate, Gibson.

Martha Baynes Eldridge

Timeline

Ancestry Synopsis

When Martha Baynes Eldridge was born on 7 March 1819 in Salcombe, Devon, her father, Richard, was 23, and her mother, Martha, was 21. She married Thomas Scott on 15 May 1844 in Bethnal Green, Middlesex. They had seven children in 14 years. She died on 19 September 1898 in Maldon, Essex, having lived a long life of 79 years.

Baptism

There are two possible baptism records for Martha, one in Devon and the other in Bethnal Green. Further research required.

Well, following the discovery in the 1851 census that Martha was born in Devon, it suggests that is where the baptism record may be found. There is a Martha Baines Eldridge, Birth date 7^th March 1819, with a place of abode of Salcombe Devon, baptised in Salcombe to parents Richard and Martha Eldridge, and Richard stated as a Mariner. The spelling of the second name does not match with an i instead of a y, but should that discount this record. 

The other interesting record is for Martha Baynes Eldridge, Baptised on 09 Mar 1819, in Bethnal Green, of father Richard Eldridge. However, no mother's name is recorded nor the father's profession.

Salcombe is only 7 miles from Torcross where Richard, her brother lived when he was baptised on the 12th October 1817 in the parish church of Stokenham, in Devon. 

The proximity in time and place to her brother's baptism and the family abode, together with the later information on place of birth, not in this county 1841 Census, and Born in Devonshire, 1851 Census suggest to me that the Devon person is the correct one despite the variation in the spelling of the second name. The link to Bethnal Green appears to be later in the storyline.

Marriage

Marriage of Matha Baynes Eldridge and Thomas Scott at Saint Matthew's Church, Bethnal Green, Middlesex, England

Martha Baynes Eldridge married Thomas Scott on 15^th May 1844. They are both of full age which suggests that they were born before 1823, which is correct for Martha. There appears to be a side affidavit which has been obscured.

He is a bachelor, a Cheesemonger residing at 1 Devonshire Buildings, presumably in Bethnal Green, and she is a spinster, residing at 13 Westover Street. Research suggests that this has also been known as Temple Street. Thomas's father is recorded as Joseph Scott, a shopkeeper. Martha's father is Richard Eldridge, a Custom House Officer. The name and profession correlate with other sources.

The witnesses are Richard Eldridge and Mary Ann Nicholas. It is not clear if this is Richard Eldridge the father or the brother. If it is the brother, he later married Mary Ann Nicholas, in 1846. The signatures on the two documents are not dissimilar.

Bethnal Green was new in 1844. Below is a extract from British History Online

The centre: principal estates 1 Turney, 2 Saffron Close, 3 Willett, 4 Great Haresmarsh, 5 Acres Land, 6 Burgoyn 7 Sebright, 8 Markham, 9 Thickness, 10 JarvisIn 1788 much of Willetts (George and Gravel fields) south of Bethnal Green Road was divided into lots, most of which were leased for 99 years to John May Evans, a Surrey builder, and William Timmins, a local brickmaker. They immediately built along the main road, including Shepherd's Place or Row, and in the streets running south from it, named from the estate's owners: White, Thomas, and Charles streets. Houses 'in the back ground' were probably in the narrow street parallel with Bethnal Green Road, called White's or Thomas Passage or Granby's Row. Abbey Street, at the west end of the development, existed as Benal Abbey Street in 1788. Part of the land was still a brickfield in 1803.

In 1794 Samuel Scott, owner of Thickness estate, had a house in a brickfield opposite a house in the Jewish burial ground at the southern end of the district, next to Ducking Pond Lane. Three houses had been built there by 1801 when he had leased ground to Isaac Bird, coachmaster of Whitechapel. By 1809, when he was 'builder' or 'brickmaster', Bird had built along North Street (formerly Ducking Pond Lane) and on a new side road, Pleasant Row.

Building began on Jarvis's, the estate to the east, in 1812 when two parallel streets were planned to run the length of the estate from Three Colts Lane: Hinton Street, to join the northern part of Collingwood Street, and Tapp Street to the west. Westover (Temple) Street was to link them in the middle of the estate. Sir George Ivison Tapps in 1812 agreed with Edward Bumford, engraver of Islington, for building south of Temple Street and thereafter granted several leases to Bumford and his brother (or son) John, who started from the south with Somerford Street and Trafalgar Place. Their sublessees William Miller and Richard Leavitt were the builders in Somerford Street. Building had reached Temple Street by 1826 and there were nearly 100 houses on the estate by 1836 although half of it, east of Hinton Street, was still open.

In 1818 Bumford agreed with the Pope family for ground to the west, where he built Winchester (or Market) Street as an extension from Hare Street and Carlisle, Great Manchester, Nottingham, and Arundel (or Albion) streets running south from it. In 1825 the Popes agreed to grant the rest of the estate (Great Haresmarsh) to the south and west, Bumford to spend £7,000 on 56 houses with frontages of 14-21 ft. Artillery (or Anglesea) Street was 'new intended' in 1826. The southern and eastern parts of the estate were leased to George Selby, who in 1828-9 was involved with Edward Bumford, by then a 'surveyor', in leasing houses in Albion, Anglesea, Wellington (the southern extension of Nottingham Street), and Selby (at the southern border) streets. The whole area was called Waterloo Town.

The map of the Principal Estates is not dated but it may be 1843, before the railways cut the area in half.

The above map, an OS 25" from the National Library of Scotland collection was revised in 1893. The blue marker is the approximate location of Westover Street (Temple Street), the residence of Martha Baynes Eldridge according to her Marriage Record. The home did not last very long before being cut down, almost before the plaster had dried, to make way for the Great Eastern Railway, well probably it's predecessor, Eastern Counties Railway.

The OS map has been rotated such that North is towards the left so that it approximately aligns with the orientation of the Principal Estates Map, Tent Street is shown on both maps, which aids correlation. The normal north to the Top of the page can be found on the National Library of Scotland Map. The map on the link can also show current mapping. Tent Street is still there, as is Wilmot Street. The street if not the original homes.

Census and Voters