Hi Mo we have a Connection my grandfather George Henry Bullen also had roots in Stow Bedon , I have looked at your family on many occasions and I have a theory, (NOT YET PROVEN) however if you look at the family as a whole, many if not all of them gained money around the same time, Dan had enough money to become a tenant farmer, other members bought shops etc, including your own family, my mother told me how my grandfather inherited a farm, however he was cheated out of his inheritance by another family member. My theory is did the family inherit money from someone,?
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Back to your question, how much was the payout for an injury and could it buy a shop, I suppose it all depends on the price of shops compared to the price paid out. I think your Bullen’s went on to buy more than one shop going off memory only here I remember a grocery store too.
As for my grandfather, after a long military history taking part in many campaigns he returned to the Durham mines only to die in a mining accident at Lambton D pit, as did his uncle and his cousin.
My grandmother bought a small holding and a pony and trap with his compensation and the family were fairly well provided for until my grandmother remarried. From then on their standards went downhill as her new husband spent all he could on drink. Eventually the small holding had to be sold off, likewise the pony and trap. She died shortly after, and my mother and her sister were young and were left as orphans, they both went into service at a local hospital, and then during the 2nd world war both served in the NAAFI.
I hope this helps Mo best regards Ashley
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