Hello there,

I have a brickwall in my family history. All I know is that a Richard Harwood and his wife Anne, baptized three of their children in Hewelsfield. Joseph (my 4th great grandfather) in 1794, Susannah in 1801 and Richard in 1802. I want to know if Richard and Anne were married there, and whether Richard was born there (I know there are other Harwoods from the area 100 years prior) and also, if possible, who Anne's father was. Just wondering if anyone had access to looking these things up for me. Joseph left the area and married in Warwickshire. It's quite frustrating trying to find this information in Australia :)

~ Jo

there is a previous thread which 'could' be of interest

http://www.forum.forest-of-dean.net/index.php?mode=thread&id=8009#p8085

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Looking at the 1841 census on this thread - there is a Joseph HARWOOD c1761 - with a Sarah SYNOR c1839 living with them. Gloucestershire BDM - gives Sarah SYNOR's mother's maiden name as PARRY - FOD records, John SYNER married Louisa PARRY - St Briavels - 15 October 1834.

John & Louisa SYNER (transcribed as LYNES on Ancestry) - are on the 1861 census in Wales - Newport St Woollos - John aged 47 - is a Master Mariner - both place of birth transcribed as Brockway, (assume Brockweir) - Glos.

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(one of Richard's son's was named JOSEPH - so probably a family name.

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Using the Advance Search for a Richard HARWOOD as a witness - there is one at Hewlesfield - 13 june 1826 - of a Henry WRIGHT and Eleanor WORGAN - another witness was Margaret SYNER.

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If the family were Waterman (as some of them where) - they could have been married anywhere along the waterways.

Thanks for responding :)

That other thread was actually the one that helped me find this forum :)

The unfortunate thing I seem to have with this family is the same names are used over and over again, and it appears they may have had three or four Josephs in a similar age group, from the same family - around at the same time... same with Richards and other names. I just can't seem to find a Richard born around the time my Richard was born. I did find a Richard who married an Ann at Chapel Hill but I have a feeling they would be too old to be the parents of the children that I have listed...

~ Jo

there is always a previous thread re HARE/HAYWARD/HARWOOD

http://www.forum.forest-of-dean.net/index.php?id=33198

There is a burial on FOD records at Hewlesfield

25 November 1826 (c1770)

Ann WOOD

residence: Brockwear

age: 56

Notes: Written as (Har)wood

and also at Hewlesfield - 13 July 1823

Richard HARWOOD

residence: Brockwear

age 58 c1765

Is this of any help: John Harwood of Hewelsfield, Glos. married
Jane Gilbert of Tintern by Banns on 10th July 1790 at Tintern.

Peter Preece

Fabulous! This one fits, I just wish I could find a marriage for them! Or either of their births...

Hi John,

I've come across this family quite a few times in my search, I'm guessing that this John is my Richard's brother. John and Jane had a LOT of children! The family seem to use the same names quite a lot too :)

~ Jo

Joseph HARWOOD committed to 6 months hard labour for larcency - 18 March 1851 Glos. England

1851 Glos North Hamlet, District County Jail

Joseph HARWOOD - 57 - married - Boatman - born Glos. Brockweir

Ancestry

UK Poll Books & Electoral Rolls Hundred of St Briavels (1833)

Hewlesfield - No. 4932

HARWOOD Richard - in Brockweir, freehold land, Brockweir Common

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As your family moved to Warwickshire.... was there already Warwick connections???

Assume your tree on Ancestry:

Joseph HARWOOD married Mary WEST - Warwickshire St Mary 19 July 1825 + 1841 census St Mary Warwickshire

Joseph HARWOOD 45, Susannah 35, Charles 14 and Henry 4.

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There are births at Warwick : John - 6 December 1786, Richard & Ann, - Elizabeth - 27 January 1788 - Richard & Ann all Warwick St Mary - before the births at Hewlesfield??

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eg. Marriage at St Nicholas, Warwick 6 November 1785, Richard HARWOOD married Ann ALLEN

* your tree has Joseph HARWOOD and Susannah HARWOOD 1861 in St Nicholas, Warwick.

? District of St Nicholas looking at the map is very close to the River Avon

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_Avon_(Warwickshire)

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If they were Waterman - they were probably up and down the canal system i.e. Avon & Gloucester Canal - which went up to Warwick

http://www.avonnavigationtrust.org/
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Hi Jo,
you may already know but sometimes the Glos Archives site can help out, as a pointer to their collection.
http://ww3.gloucestershire.gov.uk/genealogy/Results.aspx

Searching "Harwood" gives abt 100 hits including some Richards & Josephs as per MPG's post earlier, this site can reward carefull searching.

1851 harwood joseph U Brockweir Q/Gc6/2 waterman Gaol
1876 harwood joseph U Not quoted Q/Gc6/6 259 Gaol

1827 harwood richard U st. briavels 1827/155 Wills 1801 - 1858
1851 harwood richard U Brockweir Q/Gc6/2 waterman Gaol

For general history of Hewelsfield, Brockweir area this is pretty definitive, just in case you've not already seen it.
http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=23257

Hope this is of some help, good luck.

Wow!!

You're amazing!! There is so much information here for me to piece together - perhaps they already had family in Warwick yes!... I seem to have quite a few boatmen/canal men/watermen/boat or ship builders along the canal systems in the UK on both sides of my family tree... Thank you so much for all your information :))

~ Jo

Thank you so much for those links Jeff! I haven't seen them, I have pretty much used Ancestry.com, the IGI, britgen and a few Genuki pages thus far!

~ Jo

You're most welcome !
Heres the other Glos Archives site/portal, can be a very usefull backup to the FoDFH site as also lists Registry Office (ie non PR) marriages etc. The results are displayed in easily sorted lists, eg can order them chronologically, or by area, etc.
Hope it helps, entering "Harwood" gave 1400 hits, altho of course these are often duplicates from other sites such as FreeBMD etc, and likewise are sadly limited to post 1837.

http://ww3.gloucestershire.gov.uk/bmd/MainMenu.aspx

Boatbuilding would have been one of those closely prized crafts that were passed down father to son, similarly ownership of a canal narrowboat would be a family affair. I'm sure you know in the pre-railway days when canals were the country's main arteries, whole families would live on their barges. I live only 100yards from the Grand Union canal where it enters the edge of Greater London coming from Birmingham aka Warwickshire, then on into central London and the old Docklands & beyond. Near us is a wharf where they used to have a narrowboat fitted-out as a schoolhouse for the children off narrowboats that would moorup and stay for the winter months "break". The canal near us is quite wide, the wharfs were important for this timberyard that is still there albeit using lorries now of course (see pic). Not far down the canal from this are local brickfields, gravel pits where clay was dug & made into bricks to be barged into London during it's huge expansion in the 1800s. Ironically the first railway locos on Brunel's new Great Western Railway between Bristol & London were placed on the rails near here, after being shipped by sea from Liverpool to London then canal to here, where the canal was/is adjacent to the new railways, so the canal helped ensure it's own demise....
By complete coincidence my wife is from Banbury, North Oxfordshire, linked to us by this same canal and not far south of Warwick. Banbury owes it's growth to the canal, her mother still lives at Britannia Wharf. But no we're not bargees.

http://www.francisfrith.com/uxbridge/photos/grand-union-canal-c1955_u52006/

Hmmm What I think I can work out from this is that Richard Harwood married Ann Allen in Warwickshire and then had a couple of babies there before moving back to Hewelsfield and having at least two more. Makes sense why I can't find a marriage for Richard and Ann in Hewelsfield or the surrounding areas. But obviously the family is originally from the Hewelsfield area and I guess being watermen, they were - as you said - up and down the river quite a bit :)

Thank you Jeff!! This is so interesting :))

I think you miust be right, certainly (and as posted above) searching Richard Harwood and Ann Allen on LDS all the pointers suggest this marriage and subsequent baptisms to be valid and in the Warwick area.

"England, Warwickshire Parish Registers, 1538-1900,"
Name: Richard Harwood
Event: Marriage
Event Date: 06 Nov 1785
Event Place: St Nicholas, Warwick, Warwickshire, England
Gender: Male
Age:
Marital Status:
Father:
Mother:
Spouse: Ann Allen
Spouse's Marital Status:
Spouse's Father:
Spouse's Mother:
Film Number: 554733
Digital Folder Number: 4098774
Image Number: 00120

Reading ever-reliable Genuki gives this Gazetteer description which emphasises the importance of the River Avon & later the Canal which opened in 1800, conveniently fitting our families timescales.

"WARWICK, comprises the parishes of St. Nicholas and St. Mary, and is a post and market town, municipal and parliamentary borough, and county town of South Warwickshire, locally situated in the Warwick division of Kington hundred, county Warwick, 90 miles N.W. of London by road, 100 by the London and North-Western, and 107½ by the Great Western railway. It is situated on the banks of the river Avon, near the junction of the Birmingham and Napton canals, and closely adjoining the town of Leamington."
[Description(s) from The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland (1868)

Click on the link for a much more detailed description.
http://www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/WAR/Warwick/index.html

Also of possible interest re the history of the Birmingham/Warwick & Napton Canal.
http://www.jim-shead.com/waterways/History.php?wpage=WKNC

This Map shows how the Wye & Severn near the Forest were easily navigable from Warwick, see Newnham marked at base of map.
http://www.ampltd.co.uk/digital_guides/industrial_revolution_series_one_parts_4_and_5/i...

Hi Jeff,

I found all that and added it to my tree yesterday thanks to you guys :) I also found the births and deaths of a few Susannah's so I think Richard and his first wife Susannah had at least two babies they called Susannah and lost possibly both of them and her, before he married Ann... I'm just trying to join them all together and figure out which is which...

~ Jo

Ancestry fortunately, as you know has the actual Warwickshire Parish Registers transcribed - which has been a great help.

When Richard HARWOOD married Ann ALLEN - 6 Day November 1785 - (witnesses: Henry ALLEN and Martha HILL) this was by Licence.

On FOD Miscellaneous Documents (I have contributed - listed under Marriage banns/bonds) - 3 examples from my family. The one in 1777 - gives ages and occupations.

http://www.forest-of-dean.net/downloads/Miscellaneous/Marriage_Bann_Sample_2.pdf

'Banns had to be called on three separate Sundays before the marriage. A Licence obviated the need for a wait of three weeks'

When Joseph HARWOOD (Widower) married Susannah OWEN (Spinster) at St Mary's Warwick - 19 July 1825 - this was by Banns.

Perhaps Warwickshire Records Office also has a copy of the above Marriage Licence (Ancestry has transcribed (some) of the Banns for Warwickshire 1754-1910, but not the Licences)

Actually, it says Banns for the second marriage, but when you look at the actual image, it says Licence! So there's a problem in the transcription somewhere :)