Richard Tummey/Toomey ....Sheep Stealing (General)

by stephaniejr , Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, UK, Friday, October 30, 2015, 23:00 (3312 days ago) @ sidtoomey01

Hello Sid
I live in the area of Churcham parish which was once called Birdwood Common, in a house which was once owned by Toomeys. The title deeds tell us that John Toomey died in about March 1832 leaving his land to be shared by his two sons, John Toomey and Benjamin Toomey. We live in Benjamin’s house. It was lived in by Toomeys until 1979 and we bought it in 1984.

I have researched the Toomeys but have not as yet managed to get any further back that John who died in 1832. He was probably born c1775 or a little earlier, as he married in 1795. I don’t know if there is any link to the Richard Toomey you mention in your post.

I do have a copy of the inclosure map for Churcham, dated 1803, which shows that a Richard Toomey rented two small plots of land from the Dean and Chapter of Gloucester Cathedral. At this date the tenant of the plot where I live was unnamed. I obtained this map about 20 years ago and played around with it on the photocopier so that I could compare it with a modern map. It is interesting to see that many field boundaries are still the same. However, the small plots owned by Richard Toomey (and any buildings there may have been) appear no longer to exist, judging by modern maps. Richard’s plots were very close to the road leading to Solomon’s Tump, which I think has been mentioned in one of your posts. (As is ours, sometimes we are referred to as being in Birdwood and sometimes as Huntley, as people don’t know that the parish boundary runs down the middle of Solomon’s Tump Lane. I think our plot is about half a mile at most from where Richard’s were and I do wonder if there is a link there to be discovered.)

I often visit Gloucestershire Archives so will see what I can find out about the Toomey criminal records – not just a Richard in 1786, but also a John in 1865, a Benjamin in 1827 and a William in 1825 and 1832. The records for Gloucester Goal have a lot of interesting information, including a written description of the prisoner’s appearance. (I have an ancestor who spent a year in Gloucester Goal from 1866-67 – I found his prison record and the record of the court proceedings, including witness statements and his statement in his own words!) I will also have a look for Toomeys in the Churcham parish records pre-1800.

I will get back to you if I find anything about Richard Toomey, particularly his family.

Stephanie