5

Monk Tree 

JOHN WOODMAN and REBECCA GREEN (8)

 

JOHN WOODMAN was married in the Buckinghamshire village of Waddesdon in 1761, giving him an expected birth date in the region of 1736. This matches the following baptism.

Baptism. St Michael and All Angels, Waddesdon.
1737 Mar 6  John son of John Woodman. Residence: Blackgrove.

Blackgrove Farm is to the NE of Waddesdon village. It had formerly been the home of John’s mother’s family, the Terrys.

This baptismal entry does not give his mother’s name, but we have a marriage in 1736 in nearby Fleet Marston between John Woodman and Ann Terry, both of Fleet Marston. They do not appear to have raised children in Fleet Marston, and the subsequent baptisms in Waddesdon for children of John Woodman name the mother as Ann.

John was the oldest of five children, but three of his siblings died in infancy.

We do not have certain information about his father’s occupation, but his grandfather, and John himself, were yeomen. So, it is highly likely that John grew up in a farming family.

Waddesdon was an agricultural settlement with milling, silk weaving and lace making as other occupations.

 

REBECCA GREEN. We know from her burial record, that Rebecca was born around 1738. This gives us the following baptism in Waddesdon, where she married.

Baptism. St Michael and All Angels, Waddesdon.
1737 May 16  Rebekah daughter of John Green and his wife Mary of Westcott.

Westcott is a mile west of Waddesdon village. It is now a separate parish, but was then part of Waddesdon. It is given as the residence in most of the family baptisms.

Her mother was Mary Parkins.

Rebecca was the fourth of nine children. Two of her younger sisters died in infancy.

She was a yeoman’s daughter.

 

By the time of their marriage, both the couple were living in Upton cum Chalvey, but the wedding took place in Waddesdon.

Marriage. St Michael and All Angels, Waddesdon.
1761 Feb 9  John Woodman and Rebecca Green, both of Upton cum Chalvey, by licence. Witnesses: James Acorn and William Green.

Upton cum Chalvey now forms part of Slough in Berkshire, 20 miles south of Waddesdon, It is not known what John and Rebecca were doing there, but they returned to their birthplace of Waddesdon for the wedding.

 

They set up home first in the neighbouring village of Upper Winchendon, where their first child was baptised.

Baptisms. St Mary Magdalene, Upper Winchendon
1761 Aug 17  Elizabeth

From there they moved to Waddesdon.

Baptisms. St Michael and All Angels, Waddesdon
1763 Sep 23  Rebecca
1764 Mar 8  Ann
Ann was buried in Fleet Marston on 6 Feb 1766, aged nearly 2. John’s parents had also used the churchyard in Fleet Marston for burials.
1766 Apr 18  Mary
1767 Nov 3  John

Their third and final move was to Stone, four miles SE of Waddesdon.

The move was marked by an application for the tenancy of a farm at Stone, which Mr Plomer was to vacate the following Lady Day. The application was dated 4 Nov 1770.[1]

Another three children were born in Stone.

Baptisms. St John the Baptist, Stone.
1770 Feb 26  Ann
1772 Jan 24  Thomas
Thomas was buried in Fleet Marston on 14 Jan 1773, shortly before his first birthday.
1774 Mar 30  Penelope

The following year, on 17 April, 1775, John Woodman of Stone and Richard Green of Waddesdon took out a lease from the Rev Jonathan Butler of Waddesdon for a third portion of Waddesdon.[2] The Rectory house and the Parsonage closes, with other parcels of land, were allotted to the Rev Butler under the Waddesdon inclosure act. This was a time when the countryside was being enclosed into smaller fields, and the poorer people were losing their rights to the commons for pasture and fuel.
The lease was for 20 years and the rental was £150.
Richard Green is probably Rebecca’s younger brother.

The following year, 1776, we have and account of Mr John Woodman’s rent due at Michaelmas.[3] This is significant, since the title “Mr” was only given to gentry at this time. But there was more than one John Woodman, so the identification is uncertain,

Their family continued to grow, with the birth of a second Thomas.

Baptisms. St John the Baptist, Stone.
1777 Mar 3  Thomas
1779 Sep 27  William

On 1 Jan 1790 we have the record of insurance for John Woodman, Stone, farmer.[4] Other properties named are Chilberry Farm, and Hill Farm, Waddesdon. The inclusion of Waddesdon makes it fairly certain that this is our John Woodman.

As well as properties in the villages of Stone and Waddesdon, John had an interest in the larger town of Aylesbury nearby.

1 July 1801 saw a lease and release of a messuage in Aylesbury “in a certain street or place there formerly called Castle Fee but now more generally known by the name of Pitches Hill”. It included part of the back yard, divided from the other part by a brick wall. The Revd Robert Kirby, who occupied the other part, had the right of “bringing wood and water and all other necessaries etc. through the entry and backside or yard belonging to the messuage hereby granted and also at all times to go to the well in said yard for water”.
The lease also included some of the common fields of Bierton, a village on the outskirts of Aylesbury.[5]
This lease was granted by Joanna Edmonds of Chepping Wycombe, widow, relict of Thos. Edmonds, and Thos. Chandler of Guildford, Surrey, & wife Rebecca, late Rebecca Edmonds, spinster, to John Woodman of Stone, yeoman.
For this, John Woodman paid them £150.

The counterpart to this document, dated 2 July 1801, adds the additional information that the land in Bierton had recently been enclosed, and allotted to Thomas Edmonds, deceased, the late husband of said Joanna Edmonds and father of said Rebecca Chandler. [6]

A covenant by the same two to levy a fine to John Woodman of the property, together with the messuage in Cobblers Row.
A consideration of £77 was  paid to Joanna Edwards and £78 to Thomas Chandler by John Woodman.

Two further documents are dated 1802.

One is an appeal by John Woodman against the same Joanna Edmonds and Thomas Chandler and Rebecca his wife concerning 2 messuages, 2 barns, 2 stables, 2 gardens, 2a. land in Aylesbury and Bierton.[7]

The second is a final concord between the parties concerning the same properties.[8]

In 1785, John and Rebecca’s eldest daughter, Elizabeth, married Henry Monk. On 26 May 1804, we have a document relating to the property in Aylesbury mentioned above.
A covenant was taken out between John Woodman of Stone, yeoman, and his son-in-law, Henry Monk, also a yeoman of Stone.[9]
This property was to be for the use of Elizabeth, and later, for her son Charles.
It included the same right of the Revd Robert Kirby, or the occupier of the second part of these premises, to bring wood, etc. through the entry and backside of said messuage and to go to well for water.
Consideration: natural affection for his daughter Elizabeth, wife of Henry Monk, and for Charles Monk her son.
To the use of Elizabeth Monk for life, then for Chas. Monk.

Elizabeth’s father lived another two years.

John Woodman Farmer was buried in Stone on 10 Sep 1806. He was 69.
This was the year after the Battle of Trafalgar.

Rebecca outlived him. She too was buried in Ston on 12 Feb 1827, aged 89, having seen the end of the Napoleonic Wars, and the French defeat at Waterloo.

They lived their entire lives under a succession of Hanoverian kings.

[1] National Archives. D-LE/D/11/60
[2] National Archives. D-X163/8
[3] National Archives. D-LE/8/69
[4] National Archives. MS 11936/365/564388
[5] National Archives. D-X68/14, 15
[6] National Archives. D-PC/42/6
[7] National Archives. D-X68/16
[8] National Archives. D-PC/42/7
[9] National Archives. D-X68/17

 

 NEXT GENERATION: 7. MONK-WOODMAN

PREVIOUS GENERATIONS: 9. WOODMAN-TERRY

9. GREEN-PARKINS

Monk Tree