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Helen

My late wife died in 2002 but I know her mother, Sheila, her half sister, Claudia, and knew Michael (he died last year) and his children.

David

Hi Lou he was my wife's maternal ggrandfather

Thank you - very informative and many new lines to pursue.

David

Hi

I think I might be asking too much but we'll see!

I've been researching the Burgoyne family of Cambs/Herts and came across George Burgoyne of Quickswood Manor, Cothall which led me on to this:

The 6th Earl (1713-1780) was a spendthrift rake who was satirized by Pope and Hogarth for acting as coachman on the public coach between London and Hatfield.

Although the Earls of Salisbury had their main residence at Hatfield House, they also owned a substantial mansion at Quickswood just outside Baldock. The sixth Earl, known as "the wicked Earl", lived there as a recluse with his mistress, Mary Grave, and their seven illegitimate children.

This relationship had begun before his marriage in 1745 and, within a few years, he had separated from his wife who went to live in London with their legitimate son and daughters. A visitor described the Earl: "he lives upstairs surrounded by old trunks and boxes and scattered books. Well or ill, he never quits his chamber, never sees or converses with any but his old Dame as he calls her and his physician who occasionally visits him. The servants are old and rusty like the dwelling".

In 1780 the Earl died and his only legitimate son inherited the title. He demolished Quickswood and disposed of the land presumably because it was such an unpleasant reminder of his father's scandalous behaviour. Mary Grave came to reside at the Manor House in Baldock. She was well provided for as she received £50,000 plus jewellery, silver and furniture from Hatfield House. Their children received a further £43,000. These bequests were unsuccessfully contested by the seventh Earl.

Mary Grave had purchased the Manor House in Baldock for £800 back in 1769 and expanded the grounds by buying land through to Clothall Road. We can catch a glimpse of her lifestyle through the items she left in her will. There was the silver chocolate pot from which she would have poured her drinking chocolate as she sat on the yellow damask settee. The clock, which stood in an alcove on the staircase, was precious enough to be mentioned specifically.

Mary Grave lived there until her death in 1789. The Gentleman's Magazine recorded it as follows: "GRAVE: At Baldock, after a lingering illness, Mrs Grave, the well known favourite of the late Lord Salisbury and mother of the late rector of Hatfield and Clothall".

The public openness of Mary Grave's relationship extended to giving their children the Earl's family name, Cecil, as a middle name. In addition, he bestowed the livings of two churches on his sons: William Cecil Grave was rector of Hatfield and Thomas Cecil Grave was rector of Clothall.

James Cecil Grave inherited the Manor House from his mother and lived there until his death in 1820. A memorial in Clothall church commemorates the three brothers.

A further memorial in Baldock church commemorates James, his wife Elizabeth, daughter Mary Cecil Cowell and her husband John Cowell. It was Mary who inherited the Manor House and lived there until just before her death in 1832.

I am also related to James Cecil but can only find limited information about his children by Mary Grave ie James Cecil Grave on IGI and his marriage and baptism of Mary Cecil Grave, his daughter.

Does anyone know anything more about James & Mary Grave?

David

This might be a little long but:

 In 1841 George Starkins owned 613 acres in the parish of High Laver; of this he then occupied 426 acres.
 
Between 1841 and 1843 John and Thomas Inkersole came into possession of the manor. In 1848 the manor farm consisted of 68 acres and was occupied by Thomas Inkersole. The Inkersoles also owned an estate of 155 acres which had previously been in the possession of George Starkins. They were still lords of the manor in 1860 when the last recorded court was held.

Thomas and John Inkersole were great nephews of George Starkins and I'm trying to find them and other connections namely Wedd of Cambridgeshire and Chaplin of Bishop's Stortford all of whom seem to have disappeared in the mists of time.

Also:

Dunmow and Stanstead Observer December 10, 2009

Chantry House, one of the oldest former residences remaining in Bishop's Stortford, was built by George Starkins, now unremembered but in his day a highly successful businessman and farmer. It became his principal home in 1824.

In April 1823, Cockett & Nash, of Royston, designed the house for him at Chantry. It was a handsome residence with large windows just inside the present day gateway; its appearance is identical with today's building, now used as offices.

Inside it has been modernised, but downstairs much of the decorative pargetting to the beams remains; upstairs there are large rooms and a finely panelled dressing room.

George's father died in 1785 and left him a farm and the windmill in Henham. His interests expanded; in 1796 he was a currier (dressing, finishing and colouring tanned hide) and in 1811 a tanner - the business probably deriving from John Jones, his father-in-law. Property in Elsenham came to him after his mother died in 1821 at the age of 92.

In around 1826 George formed a tannery business partnership with Frederick Chaplin, 26, son of George's Congregational Church minister, the Rev William Chaplin. Most likely Frederick learned this trade from George at the Water Lane tannery. An 1837 field plan maps his 1,000 acre farmland in Matching and High Laver.

George's death at the age of 77 on January 23, 1843, was recorded in The Times.

He left 1,300 acres of Essex farmland, £7,500 of cash legacies (worth about £725,00 today), a beer house in Elsenham and 290 gallons of ale in his cellar.

His will caused some drama. Firstly, the map: it indicated how his holdings should be divided to provide income for his relatives and their descendants. Sworn testimony records that on January 24 his Royston solicitors transmitted the will to Frederick (an executor) who read it over; he knew of the map's importance and so locked the door to the Chantry House dressing room where it lay in a japanned deed box.

The Map lists the following properties:

The Reversion
The Readings
Househam One Farm or Clarkes
Tadgets Farm
Logters Farm
Fagotters
Manor of Oates
Hog Farm
Monters Farm
High Laver Farm

All in or around High Laver and Matching, Essex and in total worth £10257.17 in 1837 which equates to £4,5,2371.19 today (2010).

After the funeral on February 1, the door was unlocked by the executors, the map was fetched downstairs and examined by those gathered and the will was read.

More dramas occurred when it turned out that George's birth was unrecorded (his mother's Bible contained the necessary family detail) and the Elsenham property had no deeds of ownership!

Frederick Chaplin inherited the Chantry estate. The house contents were mostly sold, but not, it seems, the ale.