Post by jo on Jan 3, 2021 17:03:15 GMT
By J.K. Payne
The census returns of 1851 give much interesting information about the inhabitants of the Basildon area at that time.
On the whole, they were Essex people with a few from neighbouring counties, but not many adults lived in the parish where they were born; one or two did not know their birthplace.
Thomas Pocklington, the farmer of Vange Hall came from Kinoulton in Nottinghamshire and another Vange inhabitant’s birthplace, was given as ‘Swanetch, Dorsetshire’, the enumerator’s spelling being somewhat imperfect at times. The Vange rector came from Norfolk. A visitor at Vange Wharf (now Riverside) Farm, Emily A Wool came from ‘Mary le Bone’. The shepherd’s wife at Pitsea Hall came from ‘London, Middlesex’ and so did Alexander P Birrell, the Laindon curate. His wife came from Devonshire. A foreigner lodged at Pitsea Bull, Gerson Ganter, ‘a traveller in clocks’ who was born in the Grand Duchy of Baden.
On the night the census was taken, 30th March 1851, a travelling van was at Vange, occupied by 26 year old Henry Freeman, born in London and his 30 year old wife, Sarah, born at Winchester.
The most common occupation was that of farmer or farm labourer. Pitsea had a baker, a wheelwright, a carrier, a carpenter living at White House (opposite Howards Park), a barge owner employing three men, a bargeman and a miller. There was a shoemaker at Vange, and a woman who was a staymaker. Vange and Laindon had blacksmiths.
The Laindon curate, 48, had a wife, 40, a year old son, a nurse 16, and a cook 18.
John Pocklington of Vange Wharf Farm, came from Nottinghamshire, but his wife was born at Rayleigh. Their three daughters, aged 9, 7 and 6 were educated at home by a governess from Burnham, who was 19.
Children worked from an early age. One farm labourer in Basildon was only 11, and the ostler at Vange Bells, 13.
There were 159 persons in Vange, 92 males and 67 females, 49 were children under 16, but only four people were over 70, and two over 80, who were both paupers.
WE tend to think that in the 1800s paupers in country parishes died at an early age. Poor living conditions, lack of food etc but as the Vange Census of1851 shows two villagers over 80 were paupers. Could this have been that they had outlived their families and they had little or no income
In the 1830s Union workhouses were built to take in all the poor of the surrounding parishes. The regime in these could be hard. Vange would come under Billericay Workhouse. A search of the census for inmates from Vange shows only one person, a child of six. So Vange when able managed their poor with out-relief. Help with food rent and clothes when necessary