Sunday, October 4, 2009
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Children of Joseph Bishop & Sarah Barnes. 1. Joseph Bishop
Joseph Bishop was the first child born to Joseph Bishop and his wife Sarah Barnes. He was born in Whittlesey, Cambridgeshire, in 1805.
Joseph remains a conundrum to me...his life story is a fascinating one of highs and lows, and certain events which occurred in his life require opinions to be made as to his character and moral fibre.I have the "facts" before me as presented to a court of law in one of these situations, but still find it impossible to make a decision as to what sort of a man Joseph Bishop was. That he was a proud, well-educated man is beyond doubt. He was also ambitious and took risks and chances in his financial life that generally succeeded but which let him down at the very end.He found love and happiness in his first brief marriage, and must have regretted his second marriage right up until his last breath on earth.
I have no details about the schooling and education of Joseph Bishop and his brothers, but Joseph in particular was a very well educated man. I have evidence of letters written by him, and his turn of phrase was certainly one of a man who had been well-schooled.
There is an entry in a 1839 Cambridgeshire Directory for "Joseph Bishop, Market Place, Whittlesey, Ironmonger, Tallow Chandler and Grocer". There is also a separate entry for J. Bishop, Market Place,agent to York and London Insurance.
I haven't been able to locate Joseph Bishop in the U.K 1841 census, but in the 1851 Census he has established himself as a Master Ironmonger at Market Place, Whittlesey.
Sarah Barnes Bishop-life after the death of her husband Joseph.
Above:Another photo of Sarah Barnes Bishop taken by Elizabeth Higgins of Maiden lane, Stamford, c. 1860-61.
After the death of her husband Joseph in 1845, Sarah remained in Whittlesey for some years.When the 1851 census was taken six years later Sarah Bishop was still living on her own at Whittlesey.
By the 1861 census, however, she had joined her daughter-in-law Eliza Bishop in St. Pauls Street, Stamford, living in the same street but not the same house. A date of between 1851 and 1855 has been set for Sarah’s move from Whittlesey to Stamford. She was the sole executrix and beneficiary of her son Henry Bishop’s will, and when the will was proved on April 14, 1855, Sarah’s address was given as Stamford.
In 1861,Sarah Bishop was 78 years old, and her occupation was "Lady". With her was 17 year old servant Frances Broughton.
The 1871 census found her living by herself at 42 St. Paul's Street, Stamford, aged 87. Her occupation was "Living on annuity from husband".
Sarah Barnes Bishop died in early 1872, aged 87. I have applied for her death certificate, and will post it online when it arrives.
Photograph of Sarah Barnes Bishop, taken c. 1860
Above: My great-great-great-great grandmother, Sarah Barnes Bishop. This photo was taken by Stamford photographer Mrs Elizabeth Higgins. Elizabeth was the daughter of James and Hannah Goond. She was born in Saint Michael, Stamford, Lincolnshire, in 1828.On January 8, 1854, at Brentford, Middlesex, 23 year old Elizabeth married Henry Augustus Higgins, a 28 year old Chemist's assistant.
The 1861 Census for St. Michael, Stamford, found Henry and Elizabeth living with Hannah Goond, Elizabeth's widowed mother, who was earning a living as an inn keeper. Henry was still a Chemist's assistant, but Elizabeth's occupation was stated as being "Photographic Artist". Each census return for the next twenty years showed Elizabeth's occupation as 'Artist' or 'Photographer, until 1891 when it was given as 'Living On Her Own means'. The 1871 census showed that Elizabeth Higgins had taken on her 22 year old niece Annie B Hopgood as an assistant, and by 1881 Annie had been joined in this position by her younger sister Mary Hopgood.
Henry Augustus Higgins died in 1890 and despite Elizabeth no longer stating her occupation as 'photographer' in the 1891 census, her two Hopgood nieces who were still living with her were both listed as photographers.
All of the photographs that my great-great grandfather Henry Bishop carried with him to Australia from Stamford were taken by Elizabeth Higgins in the very early 1860s.
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