After a very long break, I’m back blogging with the next ancestor on my list: my 4g-grandmother Alice Maria Hardy.
Alice Maria was baptized on December 29, 1782 at St Stephen’s Church in Norwich, Norfolk County, England. Her parents were James Hardy (1744-1817) and Eleanor Le Bas (1751/52-1846).
Alice’s father had been married previously and Alice had two older half-sisters, Mary (abt. 1774-1789) and Frances (abt. 1775-1776), from her father’s first marriage to Mary Bird. James and Eleanor had George Le Bas Hardy (abt. 1778-abt. 1818) followed by Charles (abt. 1780-1829). Alice was next, followed by James (abt. 1784-1814), Harriett (abt. 1786-unknown), William (abt. 1787-unknown), Frances (1790-unknown), and Henry Leaverock (abt. 1792-abt. 1793).
Alice next appears in the historical record at the time of her marriage. On May 25, 1813, Alice, a single woman of the Parish of Hethersett, Norfolk, married Thomas Burton, a single man of the Parish of Langley, by licence. I assume the wedding took place in the St. Remigius church in Hethersett. The witnesses appear to be Alice’s brother George Le Bas Hardy and Thomas’ mother (Elizabeth Burton). Alice was 30 at the time of her marriage, which seems relatively old for a bride in that era.
Alice and Thomas’ first child, Emily Maria, was born within a year of their marriage, on May 20, 1814, and was baptized on June 12 of that year. As with all their children, the baptism took place in St. Michael’s church in Langley, Norfolk. Their first son, my 3g-grandfather Thomas, was born on May 28, 1816 and baptized on June 28 of that year. Henry Burton was born on July 11, 1817 and baptized two days later. In November 1818, a son Charles was born but he, sadly, passed away in May 1819. Another son, Charles Hardy Burton was baptized on May 7, 1820. Harriett Elizabeth was baptized on December 17, 1821. Son William was baptized on August 2, 1823 and Alfred was baptized on October 24, 1824. George Edward was baptized on July 23, 1827 and, at the age of 46, Alice gave birth to her last child, Anne Mary, who was baptized on January 19, 1829. In total, Alice and Thomas had ten children, nine of whom survived their young childhood.
St. Michael and All Saints, Langley, Norfolk
In 1841, Thomas was not found in the home on the day of the census. I believe he was in London at the time, but have not conclusively proven that theory. Alice was listed as ‘farmer’ along with her children Emily (27), Thomas (25), Harriett (19), William (17), Anne (12) and several servants. Henry, Charles, Alfred and George also do not appear on the census and I have yet to find them elsewhere.
Alice’s son George Edward passed away on June 5, 1843 at 16 years of age. Her daughter Harriet married John Ansted in 1847 and my 3g-grandparents, Thomas and Dionysia Ansted, married in 1848.
By the 1851 census Alice is shown as the 65-year-old wife of Thomas Burton (a farmer of 540 acres employing 20 labourers and 5 boys). Also at home are William (26) and Anne Mary (21), along with a 10-year-old visitor named Harriett and three servants. They are living in Langley Grange.
Langley Grange, Langley, Norfolk
Eldest daughter Emily married Stephen Leeds in 1856. And, sometime between the 1851 and 1861 censuses, William married Maria. I have yet to find a record for their marriage or her last name.
In the 1861 census, 77-year-old Alice is found with Thomas (farmer of 450 acres) along with their daughter Annie (30) and three servants. They continue to reside in the Grange.
The October 21, 1865, Norfolk News newspaper contained two notices of bankruptcy, one for Thomas and one for son William. Apparently Thomas was not quite as prosperous as one might have assumed looking at the home they lived in and the number of acres he farmed. He died on August 10, 1867, and likely left Alice in somewhat reduced circumstances.
And, indeed, Alice (89) was found living on Chapel Field Road in Norwich with her 63-year-old housekeeper in the 1871 census, no longer in the stately Langley Grange. She passed away on October 12, 1874 in Norwich and was buried on October 16, 1874 in the Parish of Chedgrave.
Many of her children outlived her. Thomas passed away in Quebec in 1898. Harriett died in 1901, followed by Emily in 1906 and William in 1909. Alfred was quite an accomplished surgeon and left a substantial fortune to his nephews, Harriett’s sons, when he died in 1907. Anne Mary died a spinster in 1918, having spent much of her adult life living with her sisters Harriett and Emily and then with her nephew Edward Ansted. Census records indicate Henry may have lived and married in Madras, India, but by 1881 he was back in England and died sometime after 1891. Charles is the only child for which I have yet to find any indication of what his adult life may have looked like.
