16 October 2009

John Wickham of Mere, Wiltshire – 1790-1875

john-wigham john-wigham-back

        • Subject: John Wickham
        • Date: 1 April 1873
        • Photographer: Stanley, 32 Hertford St, Coventry
        • Found: UK

It took me awhile to work out what John’s surname was, at first it looked like ‘Wigham’ or ‘Wiigham’ or ‘Wugham’ or ‘Wicgham’. I had no luck finding any of those names in a census or FreeBMD or the IGI except for a few ‘Wighams’ but none of the right age. In the end I realised the G should have been a K – Wickham – and there he was!

Deaths Jun 1875
WICKHAM  John  84  Mere  5a 156

I haven’t been able to ascertain who his parents were but I did find him in the various census with his wife and two children, he probably had more who had left home by the 1841 census so it’s hard to say if any of the other Wickhams born in Mere in the various census are his or not.

John was a Gardener by trade and in 1841 he is living with wife Mary, son John and daughter Eliza in Mere.

Source Citation: Class: HO107; Piece 1183; Book: 4; Civil Parish: Mere; County: Wiltshire; Enumeration District: 13; Folio: 29; Page: 2; Line: 4; GSU roll: 464201.

1841 Census
Castle St, Mere, Wiltshire
Jno Wickham 50 gardener yes
Mary Wickham 50 yes
Jno Wickham 20 shoem. yes
Eliza Wickham 20 dressm. yes

Source Citation: Class: HO107; Piece: 1850; Folio:  ; Page: 1; GSU roll: 220997.

1851 Census (indexed under Wiehliam)
Castle St, Mere, Wiltshire
John Wickham head mar 60 gardener born Mere, Wilts
Mary Wickham wife mar 60 born Iwerne Minster, Dorset
Eliza Wickham daur unm 30 born Mere, Wilts

Son John had married Anna Perfect in 1844 and in 1861 they were living elsewhere in Mere with their seven children – Wm John, Jane, Julia, Edgar, Alick, Mary Harvey & Maria Kate. I took a stab that Mary’s middle name of Harvey was John’s mother’s maiden name & I found Mary Harvey on the IGI, she was the daughter of Bennet & Betty (née Applin) Harvey, baptised in Iwerne Minster on 21 Oct 1790, she died in 1870. I found no marriage for John Wickham to Mary Harvey on the IGI, that doesn’t mean to say there wasn’t one, just that the parish they were married at hasn’t been extracted to the IGI.

John & Mary Wickham were also living in Castle St, Mere in 1861 (indexed under Wahham) and John was still there in 1871 aged 80.

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If anyone knows anything about or is connected to the Wickham family please do contact me, I would love to pass these photos onto a family member. Contact by email is preferable but if you are going to leave a comment please don’t forget to include your email address.

All the information I have found on this family may also be seen on the next update at WorldConnect here.

Dawn Scotting
pandora@kc.net.nz

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