William Chapman

This page describes the new information I have for William Chapman, his parents, and his siblings. The information is mostly from online indexes and censuses (some is actual source images), but I have to verify it with church registers. I have no reason to doubt the accuracy though, so it should just be a matter of verifying the data. I have not seen the church registers yet, so I’m hoping the birth dates are recorded along with the baptism dates. These church records are only on microfilm though, and the particular film with these Chapmans is not at the local FHC, so I need to order it for loan. I’m going to gather all the information I can find, then order the film and go look at it when it gets here, so it will be a long process.

Will be updating this page when I get the time…. stay tuned.

William Chapman was born in Reepham in Lincolnshire (some old records say Repham). The county of Lincoln is almost all rural agricultural, and probably had little in the way of work opportunities for young people. It seems that most of our ancestors from Europe who came to the USA were farmers, and that’s probably why they came here, for work opportunities. I’m thinking that if our ancestors were born in big cities where it was easier to find jobs, they would be more content to stay, and not make that long journey to the new world.

If you search for information on the Internet for Reepham, make sure you are looking at the Reepham in Lincolnshire, not the one in Norfolk. The Reepham in Norfolk is about twice as big as the one in Lincoln, so you will probably find more web sites about that one, although neither one is very big. Reepham in Lincoln is about 1250 people, and Reepham in Norfolk is about 2500 people. Also, in the county of Lincoln is a town also called Lincoln, so to avoid confusion I have tried to remember to put Lincolnshire when talking about the county, even though it is correct to say just Lincoln for the county.

Anyway, the index says William’s baptism/christening date is 25 Jun 1826. I need to do a bit of research on the baptism vs. christening thing. In other old church records I’ve seen, like in Hungary/Slovakia, it’s called a baptism and occurs on the day the baby is born or only one day later, or at the most two days later. It seems like the English church records usually call it a christening, and it can happen months after the baby is born. I need to find out more about this though. I have not found Sarah Harvey in the baptism index yet.

William Chapman married Sarah Harvey 15 May 1848 in South Carlton, Lincolnshire, when he was 21 and she was about 19. This information is from an online index transcription of Lincolnshire marriages at mi.lincolnshiremarriages.org.uk.

William and Sarah had 14 children, if the census records are accurate, which is a large family even for that time. The relationship just says son or daughter, and I don’t know if they would actually spell out any different relationship like step-daughter or adopted son. If these are really all their children, then Sarah had the first child at about age 20, and the last at about age 43, which may be a bit unusual but certainly possible. On the 1911 census for William, it says he has had 8 children, with 4 still living. That information was only supposed to be entered for women though. But William’s son Joseph is also living there, and the form says he has had 2 children, which as far as I know is true. The form was filled out by William’s daughter Clara, so who knows, but I would imagine she would know how many siblings she has.

The Children

  • Jane, born about 1848 in South Carlton, according to the 1851 census. I believe she died young because she is not listed on the 1861 census. I have found two possibilities for Jane’s death date, one is buried 26 Oct 1852, the other is a death registered in the first quarter of 1854.
  • Charlotte, born about 1850 in South Carlton, again according to the 1851 census. In about 1877, she married Edmund Goldingay, and they had two children, Alice Annie and James William. I believe hers is the death registered in the third quarter of 1910 in Nottinghamshire, when she would be about 60.

In the 1851 census, the family is living in Reepham, and all the rest of the children were born there.

  • Betsy, born about 1852. She is listed on the 1861 census, but not after that. She might have died before the 1871 census, but at that time she would have been about 19 and could also have married by then and moved out of her parents’ house.
  • Ann, baptised 14 May 1854. She is listed on the 1861 census, but not after that. Like Betsy, it’s possible she could be married by the time of the 1871 census.
  • John, baptised 30 Dec 1855. He is listed on the 1861 and 1881 census, but not 1871. Don’t know where he would have been on census night in 1871 though. I haven’t tracked him after the 1881 census, at which time he was about 25 and so would have soon left his parents and gone off on his own.
  • Joseph, baptised 06 Dec 1857. I have found a Joseph Chapman I think is him listed at the Lincolnshire County Asylum in the 1881 census, and then in the 1891 census he is living with his parents and his two children (Ethel and Harry), and is listed as a widow. He is also living in the same place in 1901, with his father William (his mother Sarah died in 1893).
  • Mary, baptised 17 May 1860. She is still living in her parents house in the 1891 census, when she was about 30, but not in the 1901 census.
  • William, born 20 Dec 1861. This is our ancestor William who married Sarah Jane Allen. You will see the next two children born of his parents are named George and Harry, both names that William gave to two of his own sons later.
  • George, baptised 01 Nov 1863. The National Probate Index says he died 14 Feb 1941. It appears that about 1888 he married Fanny Elizabeth Hought, and they had three children, Sidney George, Frederick John, and William Leonard.
  • Harry, baptised 06 Jan 1867. He appears in his parents’ household in the 1871 and 1881 census, but I have not found him after that yet. For 1891, he would be about 21, so old enough to be on his own.
  • Sarah, baptised 23 Dec 1867. She is living in her parents’ household in the 1871, 1881, and 1901 census. I don’t know where she was in 1891 though, when she would be about 23.
  • James, baptised 04 Apr 1869. He does not appear on any census, and there is a James Chapman buried 09 Jun 1869 in Reepham, age 0, so that is probably him.
  • Clara, born about Jun 1870, based on her age of 10 months on the census date of 02 Apr 1871. However, it appears she was baptised 14 Feb 1872, so I’m not sure that is the right one. She is living in her parents household on the census for 1871, 1881, 1891, and 1901.
  • Cassie, born about 1872. She is listed in the 1881 census, but none thereafter. There is a death registered for a Cassie Chapman in the third quarter (Jul-Aug-Sep) of 1890, that I think might be her. Cassie is not a common name thereabouts, but Cassie sounds like it could be a nickname too.

Locations

It appears that William Chapman and Sarah Harvey were both born in Reepham, but they married in South Carlton, and stayed there long enough for their first two children to be born in South Carlton. Then they moved to Reepham, where the rest of their children were born.

For each census:

  • In 1851, they are living in Reepham.
  • In 1861, they are living in Reepham.
  • In 1871, they are living in Reepham.
  • In 1881, they are living in St. Botolph parish or township, in the town of Lincoln.
  • In 1891, they are living in St. Swithin parish in Lincoln.
  • In 1901, they are living in St. Swithin parish in Lincoln, but there is a different street address.

So there are enough clues to keep going, but I think I have found just about all I can from the indexes. I need to look at the church records to verify these 14 children first, then I can start expanding beyond this immediate family into spouses, their children, and ancestors of William Chapman and Sarah Harvey.