Nancy Bramwell

1843 - 1908

Nancy was born in Cressbrook on 27th August 1843 ⁽¹⁾, the daughter of George and Amelia, and baptised in Tideswell a week later ⁽²⁾. I believe her parents seperated when she was fairly young, and she and her mother went to live with her mother's parents in Cressbrook, while her father went back to live with his parents in Tideswell ⁽³⁾. She and her mother were certainly living with her maternal grandparents by the time of the census of March 1851 ⁽⁴⁾, along with her aunt Margaret Flint, and her aunt and uncle Ann and Edward Heathcote.

Her grandfather (that she was living with) died in 1856 ⁽⁵⁾. Her (possibly half-) sister ⁽³⁾ Hannah was born in 1857 ⁽⁶⁾, and her estranged father died in Tideswell in May 1859 ⁽⁷⁾. By the census of April 1861, Nancy was working as a power loom weaver, and still living with her mother at her grandmother's ⁽⁸⁾. Three of her nieces, Mary, Hannah and Sarah Robinson were also living there.

She married John Sheldon from Ashford on 22nd August 1864, at the Independent Wesleyan Methodist Chapel in Bakewell ⁽⁹⁾. Neither her nor John's family had any prior connection to the Methodists, so this was probably something of a rebelious act for the two 20 year olds, and could possibly be the reason that neither of the witnesses at their wedding were relatives.

They presumably set up home in Cressbrook straight after their marriage, as they were certainly living there by the time their first child George was born a year or so later, towards the end of 1865 ⁽¹⁰⁾. Their next two sons, Edward (early 1868 ⁽¹¹⁾) and William (1870 ⁽¹²⁾) were also born in Cressbrook, when her husband John was described as a general labourer ⁽¹²⁾. However by the time of the census of April 1871, John was working as a gamekeeper ⁽¹³⁾. Her maternal grandmother, Hannah Flint, with whom she'd lived most of her life, died the following month ⁽¹⁴⁾. Sometime fairly soon after this the family went to live in Ashford, as they were there by the time Nancy's last child, and only daughter, Elizabeth, was born in 1874 ⁽¹⁶⁾.

They didn't stay in Ashford for too long though, as by the census of April 1881 they were back in Cressbrook ⁽¹⁷⁾, next door to Nancy's mother, where their eldest son George was living. (He may never have moved back in with his parents, as sometime between then and the next census he moved to Cleator in Cumberland). Their next oldest son, Edward, died aged 18 in 1886 ⁽¹⁸⁾ . Hence by the next census in April 1891, just their two youngest children, William and Elizabeth, were still living with Nancy and John at Middle Cottage in Cressbrook⁽¹⁹⁾. The following November her husband John died of perforated bowels aged 48. ⁽²⁰⁾. A few months later in June 1892, her son William got married ⁽²¹⁾, leaving just Nancy and her youngest daughter Elizabeth at home. Elizabeth probably had an illegitimate daughter in 1896 ⁽²²⁾. Nancy's mother died in the summer of 1897 ⁽²⁵⁾. By the census of 1901, Nancy had Elizabeth and her daughter Hannah, and a boarder called Martha Walker from Tideswell, living with her ⁽²³⁾.

Nancy died of heart disease on 13th July 1908 in Cressbrook ⁽²⁴⁾ and was buried in Tideswell two days later ⁽²⁶⁾.

• George was born in Cressbrook in the second half of 1865. Sometime in the 1880s he moved to Cleator in Cumberland, where he worked as a gardener at St Mary's Priory. In 1892 he married Margaret Wright, who already had an illegitimate son Frederick. They had a son Edward in 1894 and a daughter Maud in 1896. Nothing more is known of him after the 1901 census, when he was still living in Cleator working as a gardener.
• Edward was born in Cressbrook in 1868. He died in 1886.
• William has his own page
• Elizabeth was born in Ashford in 1874 but moved to Cressbrook as a child. She had an illegitimate daughter, Hannah Mary Carr Sheldon in 1896. She was still in Cressbrook in 1901, but nothing more is known of her.

1. Birth Certificate from Registration District of Bakewell states:

   When and where born	Name	Sex	Name and surname of father	Name, surname and maiden surname of mother	Occupation of father	Signature, description and residence of informant	When registered
   Twenty seventh of August 1843 at Cressbrook, Township of Litton	Nancy	Girl	George Bramwell	Amelia Bramwell, formerly Flint	Joiner	George Bramwell, Father, Cressbrook	Fifteenth of September 1843

2. Parish Register of St John the Baptist, Tideswell includes the entry:
   

   When baptized	Child's Christian Name	Parents Name		Abode	Quality, Trade or Profession
   		Christian	Surname
   Sept 3rd [1843]	Nancy	George & Amelia	Bramwell	Tideswell	Joiner

3. For a fuller discussion of this see her parents' pages.
4. Census of 30th March 1851 reads:
   Place: Cressbrook
   

   John Flint	Head	Mar	60	Power Loom Weaver Cotton & Wool	[Derbyshe], [Tideswell]
   Hannah Do	Wife	Mar	60	Weaver's wife at home	Lancashshe, Moseley
   Edward Heathcote	Son in law	Mar	27	Ag lab	Derbyshe, Longstone
   Ann Do	Daur	Mar	31	Power Loom Weaver (Cotton & Wool)	Do, Tideswell
   Amelia Bramwell	Daur	Mar	27	Do                     Do	Do, Do
   Nancy Do	G. Daur		7	Scholar	Do, Litton
   Margaret Flint	Daur	U	21	Power Loom Weaver (Cotton & Wool)	Do, Do
   Susan Farmer	Lodger	U	35	Do                     Do	Middlesex, London

5. Death Certificate from Registration District of Bakewell states:

   When and where died	Name	Sex	Age	Occupation	Cause of death	Signature, description and residence of informant	When registered
   Sixteenth August 1856 Cressbrook, Litton	John Flint	Male	66 years	Hand Loom Cotton Weaver	Cancer on the face, Not Certified	Philip Heaton Flint present at the death Cressbrook, Litton	Seventeenth August 1856

6. Parish Register of St John the Baptist, Tideswell includes the entry:
   

   When baptized	Child's Christian Name	Parents Name		Abode	Quality, Trade or Profession
   		Christian	Surname
   August 16 [1857]	Hannah Mary Flint	George & Amelia	Bramwell	Tideswell	Joiner

7. Death Certificate from Registration District of Bakewell states:

   When and where died	Name	Sex	Age	Occupation	Cause of death	Signature, description and residence of informant	When registered
   Second May 1859, Tideswell	George Bramwell	Male	35 years	Joiner	Consumption, Certified	Thomas Moseley, present at the death. Tideswell	Third May 1859

8. Census of 7th April 1861 (page 1, page 2) reads:
   Place: Middle Row, [Cressbrook], Litton
   

   Hannah Flint	Head	W	69	Charwoman	[Derbyshire], Cressbrook
   Amelia Bramwell	Daur	W	37	Cotton & Worst power loom Weaver	do, Tideswell
   Nancy do	Granddaur	Un	16	do                                 do	do, Cressbrook
   Hannah M F Bramwell	Granddaur		3	[Scholar]	Derbysh, Cressbrook
   Mary J Robinson	Granddaur		6	Scholar	do, Cressbrook
   Hannah do	Granddaur		4	do	do, Wardlow
   Sarah A do	Granddaur		2		do, do

9. Marriage Certificate from Registration District of Bakewell states:

   1864 Marriage solemnized in the Independent Chapel, Bakewell in the District of Bakewell

   When married	Name and Surname	Age	Condition	Rank or Profession	Residence at the time of marriage	Father's name and Surname	Rank or Profession of father
   Twenty Second August 1864	John Sheldon	20 years	Bachelor	Labourer	Ashford	Joseph Sheldon	Gardener
   	Nancy Bramwell	20 years	Spinster		Cressbrook Litton	George Bramwell (deceased)	Joiner

   Married in the Independent Chapel Bakewell according to the Rites and Ceremonies of the Wesleyan Methodists

   in the presence of William Harrison, Ann Jackson

10. No baptism for George has been found yet, but his age on future censuses indicate that the birth of a George Sheldon registered in Bakewell in the 4th quarter of 1865 was probably him.
11. No baptism for Edward has been found yet, but his age on future censuses indicate that the birth of an Edward Sheldon registered in Bakewell in the 1st quarter of 1868 was probably him.
12. Birth Certificate from Registration District of Bakewell states:

    When and where born	Name	Sex	Name and surname of father	Name, surname and maiden surname of mother	Occupation of father	Signature, description and residence of informant	When registered
    Fifth July 1870, Cressbrook, Litton	William	Boy	John Sheldon	Nancy Sheldon, formerly Bramwell	General Labourer	Nancy Sheldon, Mother, Cressbrook, Litton	Twentieth July 1870

13. Census of 2nd April 1871 reads:
    Place: Bottom Row, Cressbrook
    

    John Sheldon	Head	Mar	27	Game Keeper	[Derbyshire], Ashford
    Nancy do	Wife	Mar	27	Cotton Power Loom Weaver	do, Cressbrook
    George do	Son	.	5	Scholar	do, do
    Edward do	Son	.	3	.	do, do
    William do	Son	.	9 mo	.	do, do

14. Death Certificate from Registration District of Bakewell states:

    When and where died	Name	Sex	Age	Occupation	Cause of death	Signature, description and residence of informant	When registered
    Eleventh May 1871, Cressbrook, Litton	Hannah Flint	Female	81 years	Widow of John Flint, a handloom weaver	Old Age, Not Certified	P.H. Flint. In attendance, Tideswell	Thirteenth May 1871

15. N/A
16. Baptism entry in parish register of Holy Trinity, Ashford reads:
    

    When baptized	Child's Christian Name	Parent's Christian Name	Parent's Surname	Abode	Quality, Trade or Profession
    August 12 [1874]	Elizabeth	John & Nancy	Sheldon	Ashford	Game keeper

17. Census of 3rd April 1881 reads:
    Place: Cressbrook
    

    John Sheldon	Head	Mar	37	General Labourer	Ashford, Derbyshire
    Nancy do	Wife	do	37	Cotton Weaver	Cressbrook, do
    Edward do	Son	-	13	Errand Boy	do, do
    William do	Son	-	10	Scholar	do, do
    Elizabeth do	Daughter	-	6	do	Ashford, do

18. Edward doesn't appear in any later censuses, so he is probably the Edward Sheldon whose death at age 18 was registered in Bakewell in the 2nd quarter of 1886.
19. Census of 5th April 1891 reads:
    Place: Middle Cottages, Cressbrook, Litton
    

    John Sheldon	Head	M	47	General Labourer	Derbyshire, Ashford	Employed
    Nancy Do	Wife	M	47	Powerloom Calico Worker	Do, Litton	Employed
    William Do	Son	S	20	Masons Labourer	Do, Do	Employed
    Elizabeth Do	Daur	S	16	Powerloom Calico Worker	Do, Ashford Do	Employed

20. Death Certificate from Registration District of Bakewell states:

    When and where died	Name	Sex	Age	Occupation	Cause of death	Signature, description and residence of informant	When registered
    Thirteenth November 1891, Cressbrook, Litton	John Sheldon	Male	48 years	Gardener, Domestic	Abcess leading to Perforation of bowels Certified by Fentern	Nancy Sheldon, Widow of deceased, present at the death, Cressbrook, Litton	Fourteenth November 1891

21. Marriage Certificate from Registration District of Bakewell states:

    1892 Marriage solemnized at the Parish Church in the Parish of Tideswell in the County of Derby

    When married	Name and Surname	Age	Condition	Rank or Profession	Residence at the time of marriage	Father's name and Surname	Rank or Profession of father
    1892 June 27th	William Sheldon	21	Bachelor	Labourer	Cressbrook	the late John Sheldon	Gamekeeper
    	Mary Jane Bingham	24	Spinster	-	Cressbrook	Robert Bingham	Weaver

    Married in the Parish Church according to the Rites and Ceremonies of the Established Church after banns

    in the presence of Fred Dawson, Charlotte Jackson

22. Hannah Mary Carr Sheldon's birth was registered in Bakewell in the second quarter of 1896. She was living with Nancy and Elizabeth at the time of the 1901 census, where she is described as granddaugter to Nancy, so even though I haven't found her baptism yet, it seems more than likely that she was Elizabeth's illegitimate daughter, possibly with a father by the surname of Carr.
23. Census of 31st March 1901 reads:
    Place: Bottom Row, Cressbrook
    

    Nancy Sheldon	Head	Wid	57			Derby, Cressbrook
    Elizabeth Sheldon	Dau	s	26	Cotton Weaver	Worker	"             "
    Hannah Mary Carr Do	G Dau	s	4			"             "
    Martha Walker	Boarder	M	42	Cop Winder	Worker	"       Tideswell

24. Death Certificate from Registration District of Bakewell states:

    When and where died	Name	Sex	Age	Occupation	Cause of death	Signature, description and residence of informant	When registered
    Thirteenth July 1908, Cressbrook, Litton	Nancy Sheldon	Female	65 years	Widow of John Sheldon a Gamekeeper	Valvular disease of Heart. General Anasanca. Certified by J H Parke MRCS	William Sheldon, Son, in attendance, Cressbrook, Litton	Thirteenth July 1908

25. Death Certificate from Registration District of Bakewell states:

    When and where died	Name	Sex	Age	Occupation	Cause of death	Signature, description and residence of informant	When registered
    Thirteenth June 1897, Cressbrook, Litton	Amelia Bramwell	Female	74 years	Widow of George Bramwell a Joiner Journeyman	Cardiac Degeneration. General Dropsy. Bronchitis. Certified by J H Parke MRCS	P.H. Flint, Brother, in attendance, Tideswell	Fourteenth June 1897

26. Parish Register of St John the Baptist, Tideswell includes the entry:
    

    Name	Abode	When buried	Age
    Nancy Sheldon	Cressbrook	July 15th	65 years
    Died July 13th 1908