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| Church in Beaminster |
In the past I had thought about searching for the father for
my forebearer 3x great grandfather, William Stickland (Strickland) Milverton. I
knew the name of William’s father might not be the easiest to research
especially since I had little information to go on other than his name through
the 1846 birth registers in Beaminster, England. I have written about the court
case in 1861 involving his mother, Wilhelmina Milverton who took the man
William Stickland to court for breaking the promise that he would marry her,
but never did. I have classed the search as being not easy for many years with
only just a name to go on and nothing else. Thinking I could look into the man
to see what I could find would be interesting.
Finding a detailed article about the case, I learned some
valuable clues that would aid in my research and discovery. The two clues I had
after searching for newspapers were that the farm William Stickland worked on
or leased was called Axnoller Farm near Beaminster. In another article, the
farm was called Axe-Noller. The farm surprisingly enough still exists and is
used for weddings. The other clue was that his brother was located at the same
farm so it helped to find the right Stickland. I began to suspect William was
wealthy in some way as it was mentioned the Milverton family sold the Swan Inn
within Beaminster to pay back a debt owed to William Stickland. I have found
through Electoral registers William Stickland being an Occupier of Axnoller
farm so those are helpful in tracking people down. Apparently, there was a
lease on the farm, but I know nothing about it. The main thing I have found is
that I do know the man exists and isn’t made up in any other way.
Since the court case takes place around 1861, William
Stickland seems to fall from the face of the earth. There were several records
through the 1861 census that made me question, which Stickland I was meant to
follow as he had apparently married. My best guess was that he was living with
his brother James in Beaminster as retired farmers. The best clue I had the
right person was their servant, Susan. She appeared in the newspaper article. I
am satisfied for the time being that there was a William Stickland from
Axnoller Farm. This will be a partial mystery that I will solve one day or even
find through another newspaper article. The right record might not even be
online. Birth locations vary from Shertle in Dorset to Shipton George, Dorset with a birth between 1817 to 1823. There was also a
brother on the same farm, but nothing to say if the brother was married.
The time line that I know of is as
follows
Within the 1840 Electoral for Bridport,
William was listed as being an Occupier of farm within Axnoller.
1841 Census he was listed as being
with his father William (60), brothers John and Janes, Sister Frances.
1851 census he was living with John
and James in an area called Axnoller. John was apparently on an adjoining farm
James was the head of the household employing 4 men and 3 boys
1857 electoral roll he was listed as
being on Axnoller, Beaminster
1861 Census was a retired farmer near
Beaminster in an area called Whaleley? James was head of the house and someone
who appeared in the census was servant Susan Bartlett was also in the court
case. Both men were now in their mid 40s if you believe the records. This is
the last record that I know of where William appears.
The only real question I do have is
had his illegitimate son, William meet up with William Stickland once he was an
adult or even when he got married in 1867 in Middlesex. Newspapers are a little
bit of a hit and miss through online searching for the UK. With a little bit of
information, you can find more info on people than you do realise. I know they
are there within the records or someone who is related, but shocked their
family member had an illegitimate child in the 1800s.
Sources
Electoral register 1839 – 1922, Dorset
Electoral Registers and Poll Books. Dorchester, Dorset, England:
Dorset History Centre.
William Stickland, Ancestry.com. 1861
England Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com
Operations Inc, 2005.
Dorset Summer Assizes, Salisbury and
Winchester Journal (Salisbury, England), Saturday, July 27, 1861, Vol.
CXLI, p.7. From British Library Newspapers
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