Great Great Grandfather George Mutters

My Great Great Grandfather George (1865 - 1918) was an agricultural labourer, mason, bricklayer and brick maker, and father of seven.

George Mutters was born in 1865 in Exton, Devon, to George Mutters (40), a farm labourer and sexton, and Anna Maria Mutters (nee Havill) (39), a lacemaker.

George was baptised on Christmas Day 1865 in Woodbury, Devon.

George was the youngest of six children (three daughters and three sons):

• Mary Jane  1852 - after 1871  (at least 19 years old)
• Elizabeth Ann  1854 - 1856  (18 months old)
• Sarah Ann  1857 - 1928  (70 years old)
• John Thomas  1859 - after 1871  (at least 11 years old)
• William George  1862 - 1864  (15 - 18 months old)
• George  1868 - 1918  (52 years old)

All six were born in Exton, but baptised in neighbouring Woodbury. The family moved to Woodbury in the late 1860s, when George was young.

Two of George's older siblings, Elizabeth Ann and William George, passed away in infancy, before George's birth.

1871 Census:

In May 1874, when George was eight, his father was accused of stealing the shawl of a Mrs Sarah Street, who had left the shawl at the church where he was sexton. Though the shawl was later found at his home, he was found not guilty. George's mother claimed she had taken the shawl away to look after it until the owner could be found.

1881 Census:

As a teenager, George worked as an agricultural labourer.

In the 1880s, George moved from Woodbury about six miles north west to Holy Trinity, Exeter.

George and his future wife Emma Brealey had their first daughter, Charlotte Irene Mutters Brealey, in 1888, about three months before they married.

On 2nd December 1888, George (23), a mason, married Emma Brealey (33), in Holy Trinity Church, Exeter. At the time of their marriage, the couple were living in Centre Street, Exeter.

Both George and Emma were able to sign their name on their marriage certificate. Here are their signatures:

Signatures of George Mutters (23) and Emma Brealey (33), 1888

George's signature changed over time. Here it is twenty-three years later on the 1911 Census:

George Mutters' Signature, 1911

George and Emma had seven children (three sons and four daughters):

• Charlotte Irene  1888 - 1890 (1 year)
• Henry George  1889 - 1889 (0 - 3 months)
• Lily Emmeline  1890 - 1970 (79 years)
• Charles 'Charlie' George  1892 - 1970 (77/78 years)
• Violet Grace  1894 - 1953 (58 years)
• Anna/Anne  1896 - 1896 (0 - 3 months)
• William 'Willie' George  1898 - 1910 (11 years)

Alas four of their seven children passed away in childhood.

Around 1889, George and his family moved about twelve miles north east from Exeter to Cullompton.

1891 Census:

Times were tough. The couple's first two children passed away young. Their third child Lily was very small. George was a patient at Exeter Hospital, an institution for the sick poor. Whilst Emma lived in Cullompton, away from any family support.

1891 Census:

Thankfully their situation improved. George returned to his family, and they moved around 1892 about sixteen miles south west to George's native Woodbury. The couple had more children who survived infancy.

When George was thirty, his father George passed away, aged seventy, in 1896, in Woodbury. He was buried on 13th February 1896, in Woodbury.

When George was thirty-one, his mother Anna Maria passed away, aged seventy or seventy-one, in 1897, in Woodbury. She was buried on 13th November 1897, in Woodbury.

In 1899, George was caught trespassing in pursuit of game and fined. From the Western Times on 29th August 1899:

1901 Census:

Photograph of Globe Hill, Woodbury, 1904

George and his family lived on Globe Hill in the early 1900s.

On 12th March 1910, when George was forty-five, his youngest son Willie passed away, aged only eleven years old.

1911 Census:

Photograph of Globe Hill, Woodbury, 1914

George was in his late forties, when the First World War began. Sadly George passed away before the war's end. He passed away, aged fifty-two, on 20th April 1918 in the district of Neath, Glamorganshire, Wales. Though he died in Wales, he was buried in Woodbury.

George's wife Emma passed away six years later, aged sixty-nine, in Woodbury. George and Emma are buried together.

Great Great Grandmother Annie Sandford (nee Yeo)

My Great Great Grandmother Annie (1868 - 1948) was a domestic servant, charwoman, and mother of eight.

Annie Yeo was born on 4th February 1868 in Meldon, near Okehampton, Devon, to George Yeo (33), an agricultural and quarry labourer, and Ann Yeo (nee Gliddon) (29). Annie does not appear to have been baptised, though all her siblings were.

Annie was the fourth of six children (one son and five daughters):

• Thomas 'Tom'  1863 - 1904  (40 or 41 years old)
• Mary 'Mary Anne' Gliddon  1864 - 1941  (76 years old)
• Emily Ann  1867 - 1872  (5 years old)
• Annie  1868 - 1948  (80 years old)
• Ellen  1869 - 1937  (68 years old)
• Harriet  1872 - 1893 (21 years old)

Annie also had an older half brother, Joseph Gliddon (1860 - 1928) (67 years old), her mother Ann's illegitimate son born before her marriage. Joseph lived with his maternal grandparents.

Annie and her siblings grew up just outside Okehampton.

1871 Census:

In October or November 1872, when Annie was four, her older sister Emily Ann passed away aged only five years old. Emily Ann was buried on 8th November 1872, in Okehampton. About three months later, Annie's father George passed away, aged thirty-nine, in 1873, in Okehampton. He was buried on 30th January 1873, in Okehampton. And about three months after that, Annie's mother Ann also passed away, aged thirty-three or thirty-four. She was buried on 30th April 1873 also in Okehampton. I wonder if they all succumbed to the same disease. 

Unless relatives took them in, Annie and her five remaining siblings (aged zero to nine) would likely have ended up in the workhouse. Indeed, in the next census (1881 Census), Annie's younger sisters Ellen (11) and Harriet (9) can be found living in the Union Workhouse in Okehampton. I wonder if Annie and the other older siblings also entered the workhouse after their parents' early deaths, but by thirteen years old were deemed old enough to go out and work, as Annie can be found to be in the 1881 Census, living and working at Clarkestown Farm in Broadwoodkelly as a domestic servant.

1881 Census:

In 1886, aged seventeen or eighteen, a pregnant Annie was back in the workhouse. There she gave birth to an illegitimate daughter called Beatrice Mary Victoria Yeo or Beatrice Florence Victoria Yeo. Beatrice 'Beattie' was baptised on 15th January 1886 in Okehampton.

A report in the British Medical Journal on the conditions of Okehampton Workhouse in the 1890s noted the female ward, which held "fourteen beds", where Annie herself likely gave birth in 1886 and 1888, and its adjoining dayroom appeared "comfortless and bare". The dayroom "was warmed by an oven stove, which smoked persistently". The report continued:

"the walls are whitewashed, and without any attempt at decoration, unless the dado of matchboarding in the dayroom may be considered such; the roofs are pitched, with transverse beams, and from these are suspended some temporary bed-pulls made with cord and a bit of wood. We were struck by the absence of armchairs; there might have been one or two, but many of the patients were seated on a bench against the wall. There were no pictures, no plants, nothing to relieve the weary monotony.

The bedsteads are narrow (33 inches) and low; the bedding is chaff, changed twice a year, or oftener if necessary. It was sufficient, and quite clean.

The ward is heated by an open fireplace at one end. The ventilation is by means of the windows, which are swung sashes, and there are some apertures in the roof, but we suspected that these were blocked by an accumulation of dust and dirt."

Photograph of Okehampton Workhouse

Another Photograph of Okehampton Workhouse

In 1888, aged nineteen or twenty, a pregnant Annie was back again in the workhouse. There she gave birth to another illegitimate daughter called Alberta 'Florrie' Florence W Yeo. Florrie was baptised on 23rd July 1888 in Okehampton. Florrie's father appears to have been a labourer called John Worth. I wonder if the W in Florrie's name stands for Worth. John Worth was summoned by Annie to the petty sessions and ordered to pay 2s a week to Annie until Florrie reached thirteen years old. This was reported in the Western Times on 10th August 1888:

The report shows that, though Annie went to Okehampton workhouse to give birth, she lived in the late 1880s in Northlew, seven miles north of Okehampton.

In the early 1890s, in her early twenties, Annie was back working as a servant. She worked for the Webber family at Yeo Farm in North Tawton, about eleven miles west of Northlew.

1891 Census:

Whilst Annie was working, where were her young daughters, Beattie (5) and Florrie (2 or 3)? At the time, Beattie and Florrie lived with an Elizabeth Stratford and her daughters in Okehampton. Elizabeth's maid name was Yeo, so she may have been related to Annie.

1891 Census:

In 1893, twenty-five year old Annie gave birth to a third illegitimate child, a son called Archibald John Weedon Yeo, in Okehampton. Archibald was baptised on 15th September 1893 in Okehampton. Annie is once more described as living in Okehampton. Sadly in 1899, Archibald passed away, aged only six, in North Tawton. Archibald was buried on 14th December 1899, in North Tawton.

Sometime in the 1890's, Annie moved from North Tawton to Colebrooke.

1901 Census:

Annie's future husband Mark Sandford appears on the next page of the 1910 Census, meaning they lived close to each other. Mark is described as a horseman on a farm. I wonder if he worked as a horseman on the same farm where Annie worked as a servant.

In late 1901, Annie (33) married Mark (29) in the Crediton district. Annie would have been between five and eight months pregnant when she married.

In the 1900s, Annie and her family moved about three miles west from Colebrooke to Bow.

Annie and Mark had five children (three sons and two daughters):

• George 'Len' Leonard Yeo  1902 - 1976 (74 years)
• Archibald Arthur Yeo  1903 - 1904 (15 - 21 months)
• Archibald Arthur Yeo  1906 - 1906 (0 - 3 months)
• Pearl May Yeo  1909 - 1909 (0 - 3 months)
• Barbara May Yeo  1912 - 1927 (15 years)

Sadly four out of five of their children passed away young.

Times were tough. To get by, Annie attempted to steal wood; whilst her husband Mark may have turned to drink.

From the Western Times on 14th April 1905:

From the Western Times on 13th May 1909:

1911 Census:

Two of Mary's nephews, as well as her brother-in-law, served and died/were killed in the First World War.

Her half nephew James Henry Gliddon (the eldest son of her older half brother Joseph Gliddon) served as a seaman in the Royal Navy. He had enlisted before the war, in 1910, serving on many ships. He passed away in 1916, aged twenty-six, of cirrhosis of the liver, on board the hospital ship Somali.

Her nephew William Wallace Yeo (the son of her older brother Tom) served as private in the 2nd Royal Marine Battalion of the Royal Marine Light Infantry Plymouth Division. He had also enlisted before the war, in 1913. He served for two and half years on board the H.M.S Donegal, from late 1914 to early 1917; he also served with the Victory Brigade (or RM Brigade) in Belgium. He was killed in action in 1917, aged twenty-three, in Belgium.

Her brother-in-law Harry Sandford (the younger brother of her husband Mark) served as a corporal in the 8th Battalion of the Devonshire Regiment. He was re-conscripted, having previously served as a private in the early 1900's. Harry served on the Western Front. He was killed in action in 1917, aged about thirty-three, in France.

Sometime in the 1910s or 1920s, the family moved about two miles north from Bow to Zeal Monachorum.

When Annie was fifty-nine, her youngest daughter Barbara passed away, aged only fifteen, on 8th August 1927. Barbara's death was reported in local newspapers.

From the Exeter and Plymouth Gazette on 19th August 1927:

From the Exeter and Plymouth Gazette on 19th August 1928:

Annie's surviving son, Len (28), became a widower in 1930, when his young wife Rhoda passed away in childbirth. Their baby son, Frederick, also passed away shortly after birth. Len's older son Archie (2 or 3 years old) - named for Len's younger brothers Archibald, who passed away as babies - went to live with Annie and Mark. The couple brought Archie up.

Sometime in the 1930s, Annie, Mark and Archie moved back to Bow.

1939 Census:

In 1945, when Annie was seventy-seven, her husband Mark passed away, aged seventy-three.

In 1948, Annie herself passed away, aged about eighty.

Great Great Grandfather Mark Sandford

My Great Great Grandfather Mark (1872 - 1945) was a horseman on a farm, a farm labourer, soldier, and father of five.

Mark Sandford was born on 31st January 1872 in Colyton, Devon, to George Anley Sandford (about 29), a farm labourer, and Sarah Ann Sandford (nee Willis) (31), a lacemaker.

Mark was baptised on 10th March 1872 in Colyton.

Mark had two older half siblings, his mother's illegitimate children born before her marriage:

• William Willis  1864 - 1922  (58 years old)
• Mary Willis  1868 - 1937  (69 years old)

William and Mary lived with their maternal grandparents.

Mark was the eldest of five children born to George and Sarah Ann (two sons and three daughters):

• Mark  1872 - 1945  (73 years old)
• Jane Mary  1873 - after 1911  (at least 38 years old)
• Alice  1877 - 1943  (65 years old)
• Susan  1882 - after 1939  (at least 57 years old)
• Henry 'Harry'  1884 - 1917  (32 or 33 years old)

Mark and his family seem to have moved around a lot, likely as Mark's father George found work as a labour on different farms...

In the late 1870s, when Mark was about six, they moved about eleven miles north west from Colyton to Feniton.

Around 1880, when Mark was about eight, Mark and his family moved again about two miles north from Feniton to Payhembury.

1881 Census:

In the early 1880s, when Mark was nine or ten, they moved again about twenty-six miles west from Payhembury to Zeal Monachorum.

They moved again in the late 1880s, when Mark was in his teens from Zeal Monachorum east five miles to Morchard Bishop.

1891 Census:

In 1893, aged twenty-one, Mark worked as a farm labourer for a Mr White at Thorn Farm, Bow.

In 1896, aged twenty-four, Mark joined the 4th Battalion Regiment as a private.

Mark's physical appearance is described on his service records. As a young man he had a fresh complexion, fair hair and blue eyes. He was 5'5'' and 9 st 4 lbs. He also had a scar on his forehead.

Mark had formerly been rejected as unfit to serve because he was underweight; however, he was considered fit to serve on 31st July 1896 in Exeter. He did a 49 days drill on enlistment.

He was dismissed from training as temporarily unfit on 25th June 1897. Around this time, when Mark was twenty-five, his mother Sarah Ann passed away, aged fifty-six, in 1897, in the district of South Molton.

Mark was again deemed temporarily unfit in 1898. And was absent in 1899. This seems to have marked the end of Mark's time in the army.

Mark's Army Service Record shows his signature:

Signature of Mark Sandford (24), 1896

Mark's signature changed over time. Here it is fifteen years later on the 1911 Census:

Signature of Mark Sandford (39), 1911

Mark's younger brother, Harry, followed him into the army. Harry joined the 4th Battalion Devonshire Regiment as a private in 1901, when he was eighteen years old. It seems Mark and Harry looked alike. Harry also had a fresh complexion, fair hair and blue eyes. He was 5'4'' and 8 st 6 lbs. He also had a large scar on his left forearm.

The below photographs show the 4th Battalion Devonshire Regiment in 1889 and 1890, a few years before Mark and Harry joined; however, they give an impression of what Mark and Harry may have looked like as young men in their army uniform.

Photograph of the 4th Battalion Devonshire Regiment, 1889

Photograph of the 4th Battalion Devonshire Regiment, 1890

By 1901, Mark, aged twenty-nine, had returned to farm work in Devon. He worked as a horsemen on a farm in Colebrooke. He lived with his younger sister Jane and her husband Edward Pyke.

1901 Census:

Mark's future wife Annie Yeo appeared on the next page on the 1901 Census, meaning they lived close to each other. I wonder if Mark worked as a horseman on the same farm where Annie worked as a domestic servant.

In late 1901, Mark (29) married Annie (33) in the Crediton district. At the time of their wedding, Annie was around five to eight months pregnant.

Annie had two surviving illegitimate daughters, Beattie and Florrie, before she married Mark. As well as a son, Archibald, who passed away, in 1899, aged only six.

In the 1900s, Mark and his family moved about three miles west from Colebrooke to Bow.

Mark and Annie had five children (three sons and two daughters):

• George 'Len' Leonard Yeo  1902 - 1976 (74 years)
• Archibald Arthur Yeo  1903 - 1904 (15 - 21 months)
• Archibald Arthur Yeo  1906 - 1906 (0 - 3 months)
• Pearl May Yeo  1909 - 1909 (0 - 3 months)
• Barbara May Yeo  1912 - 1927 (15 years)

Sadly four out of five of their children passed away young.

Times were tough. To get by, Annie attempted to steal wood; whilst Mark may have turned to drink.

From the Western Times on 14th April 1905:

From the Western Times on 13th May 1909:

1911 Census:

Mark was just too old to fight in the First World War and was in a reserved rural occupation; however, his younger brother Harry was re-conscripted. Sadly he was killed in action in France, in 1917.

Sometime in the 1910 or 1920s, Mark and his family moved about two miles borth from Bow to Zeal Monachorum.

In 1917, when Mark was forty-five, his father George passed away, aged seventy-four.

Ten years later, when Mark was fifty-five, his youngest daughter Barbara passed away, aged only fifteen, on 8th August 1927. Barbara's short life had been marred by illness. Her death was reported in local newspapers.

From the Exeter and Plymouth Gazette on 19th August 1927:

From the Exeter and Plymouth Gazette on 19th August 1928:

Mark's surviving son, Len (28), became a widower in 1930, when his young wife Rhoda passed away in childbirth. Their baby son, Frederick, also passed away shortly after birth. Len's older son Archie (2 or 3 years old) - named for Len's younger brothers Archibald, who passed away as babies - went to live with Mark and Annie. The couple brought Archie up.

Sometime in the 1930s, Mark, Annie and Archie moved back to Bow.

1939 Census:

Mark is remembered as a nice old man by his grandson George, now an old man himself. George can still picture Mark sat by the fire, chewing his tobacco, pealing potatoes for his wife. 

In 1945, Mark passed away aged seventy-three.

Great Grandmother Dinah Bessie Sandford (formerly Luxton; formerly Batchelor; nee Easterbrook)

My Great Grandmother Dinah (1902 - 1976) was a domestic servant, housekeeper, housewife, and mother of six.

Dinah Bessie Easterbrook was born on 21st July 1902 in Holsworthy, Devon, to Ezekiel Herd Easterbrook (63), a blacksmith and farrier, and Alice Brownscombe Easterbrook (nee Fisher) (33), a housewife and former housekeeper.

Dinah was one of two daughters:

• Dinah Bessie 1902 - 1976  (73 years old)
• Alice Brownscombe 1904 - 1981  (76 years old)

Dinah was baptised on 6th December 1903 in Black Torrington. It seems she was named after both her grandmothers, Ezekiel's mother Dinah Herd (nee Coombe/Bennett) and Alice's mother Elizabeth 'Bessie/Betsy' Fisher (nee Brownscombe).

By 1907, Dinah and her family had moved to Henwood Cottage in Broadwoodkelly.

By 1909, they had moved to Park View, also in Broadwoodkelly.

1911 Census:

Dinah would have been a teenager during the First World War.

As a young woman, Dinah worked as a domestic servant in Exbourne.

In Apr/May/Jun 1920, when Dinah was seventeen, her father Ezekiel passed away, aged eighty. Dinah, unmarried, was between three and five months pregnant at the time with her first child. Family legend says Dinah had been kicked out by her parents for falling pregnant before marriage.

In the early 1920s, Dinah lived in 1 Castle Walk, Okehampton. She gave birth to her first two children (both illegitimate) there:

• Evelyn Mary  1920 - 2009
• Donald Jasper  1924 - 2002

Dinah was forced to give her first child, Evelyn (later known as Eva Annie Huxtable), up for adoption. Family legend tells that about five years later, Dinah, with her life more settled, tried to take Evelyn back, but the young girl didn't recognise the stranger to be her mother.

Dinah's future first husband, William Batchelor, came to work in the that area of North West Devon in January 1923, constructing railway lines. He was based in and around Hatherleigh, just a few miles from Stockleigh Farm in Highampton, where Dinah, by 1924 was working as housekeeper. The farmer, John Isaac, was rumoured to be the father of Dinah's second chid, Donald. Dinah was able to keep Donald with her. It seems Dinah at some point started living at Stockleigh Farm. Sometime soon William also found work and a home at Stockleigh Farm.

On 8th April 1924, Stockleigh Farm was burgled in the night.

From the Western Times on 11th April 1924:

Also on 18th April 1924, the Shepton Mallet added that the keys, which unlocked the drawers where the money and bonds were kept, were taken from John Isaac's trouser pocket.

Neighbouring Blackhele Farm was burgled too in the July.

From the Western Times on 11th July 1924:

The daringness of the burglary at Stockleigh Farm and the modesty of the burglary at Blackhele Farm is intriguing. The burglar/s appeared to know precisely where the money was kept and how to get to it. Was John Isaac in his bedroom when it was burgled? Or, if indeed the father of Dinah's four month old son, was he with Dinah? With a baby now to look after, was Dinah in need of money? Were Dinah and William suspects? If not, they would certainly at least have known about the burglaries.

On 1st May 1928, farmer John Isaac passed away. Soon his funeral took place and principle mourners included Dinah and William. Days after John Isaac's funeral, Dinah (25) married William (about 46) on 10th May 1928.

Their wedding was reported in the Western Times on 18th May 1928:

That summer, John Isaac's brother sold Stockleigh Farm, meaning Dinah and William had to find work else. Five years earlier, William had alas been badly injured in a road accident; consequently he found it hard to work. The pair, with their young children, moved around mid Devon following work.

In his will, John Isaac had left Dinah "a legacy of two hundred pounds... [and] for her absolute use my freehold cottage known as 'Legge Cottage' in the parish of Highampton with the land attached". He also left Donald "a legacy of five pounds". Despite this inheritance, Dinah and her family did not stay in Highampton. Family legend says Dinah had to sell Legge Cottage to get money to get by.

In Apr/May/Jun 1929, when Dinah was twenty-seven, her mother Alice passed away, aged sixty.

William unofficially adopted Dinah's young son Donald. Dinah and William also had four more children:

• Victor William John  1929 - 2016  (87 years old)
• Bessie 'Bette' Anne  1930 - 2010  (79 years old)
• Stillborn twin (or died shortly after birth)  1930 - 1930  (0 years old)
• Audrey Dinah  1934 - 2001  (66/67 years old)

Alas William grew ill and by the start of the Second World War in September 1939 was incapacitated.

1939 Census:

In December 1939, when Dinah was thirty-seven, William passed away, aged about fifty-seven.

After William's death, their young daughter Bette was distraught. Dinah, not knowing what to do, sent Bette to live with an 'Aunt Braund' in a cottage near Meldon Quarry, near Okehampton. Bette didn't known if 'Aunt Braund' was a blood relation or family friend. It seems likely 'Aunt Braund' was a family friend, and likely a relation of the Walter Braund who was William's best man in 1928.

Dinah's eldest son, Donald, then only fifteen, became the breadwinner. He worked as a farm labourer, and found cottage homes for his mother and young siblings on or near the farms where he worked. Within a few years, Dinah's second son, Victor, was also working as a farm labour.

Still the family struggled to get by. Dinah's daughter, Bette, remembered that because of their poverty, they often had to accept help from the church.

In 1945, just as the war was ending, Dinah found work for Bette, then only fifteen, as a nanny to young children. Bette would sent her earnings home to her mother.

In late 1947, when Bette, seventeen, asked her mother if she could marry Desmond Sandry, Dinah's first response was to ask if Bette was pregnant. Bette was not, though Dinah herself had been at that young age.

In Apr/May/Jun 1948, Dinah, forty-five, married for the second time to widower George Luxton, whom she had also been housekeeper for. Dinah's daughter, Bette, did not like her step-father, believing he had mistreated his first wife. George passed away in the mid 1950s.

In the summer of 1959, Dinah, aged fifty-six or fifty-seven, married for the third time to widower George 'Len' Leonard Yeo Sandford, aged fifty-seven. A few years later, Dinah's daughter Bette, then a young widow, married Len's son George.

Photograph of Dinah (59) at her daughter Bette's wedding, 1962

Dinah and Len lived in Crediton. Bette would daily visit them to cook and clean.

Dinah passed away, aged seventy-three, in 1976, in Crediton.