The following children were born in Wendron to parents named Samuel and Elizabeth Eva, and baptized on the dates indicated:
I have no idea why Cherry was not baptized until she was two years old.
Josiah's birth was registered in the Helston district (which includes Wendron) in the December quarter of 1840. From census information (see below) it seems likely that Eliza was born before civil registration of births began (in the second half of 1837); nevertheless, the birth of an Eliza Eva was registered in the Helston district in the December quarter of 1837.
Some time between 1841 and 1845 the family moved to Altarnun, where another child was born:
Richard Caddy Eva also shows up in the civil registrations in the December quarter of 1845, in the Launceston district.
The fact that the youngest son of Samuel and Elizabeth was named Richard Caddy Eva strongly suggests that his mother was the Elizabeth Caddy who was baptized on 22/8/1802 at Wendron, the daughter of Richard and Elizabeth Caddy. Confirming this conjecture, a search at Family History Online found a marriage of Samuel Eva and Elizabeth Caddy at Wendron on 19/1/1824.
Samuel Eva was baptized on 10/6/1800 in Wendron; he was the son of Joseph and Ann Eva.
The 1841 census information relating to the household of Samuel and Elizabeth Eva is as follows.
| Carthew, Wendron Parish: | |||||
| Name | Sex | Age | Occupation | Birthplace | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Samuel Eva | M | 40 | Copper Miner | Cornwall | |
| Elizabeth Eva | F | 35 | Cornwall | ||
| Samuel Eva | M | 15 | Copper Miner | Cornwall | |
| Mary Eva | F | 10 | Cornwall | ||
| Ann Eva | F | 5 | Cornwall | ||
| Eliza Eva | F | 4 | Cornwall | ||
| Josiah Eva | M | 10m | Cornwall | ||
| Mathew Simon | M | 12 | Lodger | Cornwall | |
It is my guess that son Joseph had died before 1841. At first I thought that the same must also have been true for Cherry, because I could not find her in the 1841 census. But I was fooled by the name: "Cherry" is really "Charity". At the 1841 census 13 year old Charity Eva was a servant at Breage in the household of shopkeeper named Cecilia Symons and her three children. Moreover, on 1/5/1847 a minor named Charity Eva, daughter of Samuel, married Thomas French at Altarnun. The marriage record says that Thomas resided at Davidstow and was the son of William French, a farmer. Charity's residence is given as Joll's Ground, which provides additional confirmation that she is who I think she is, since the 1851 census record for her father's household (see below) shows that the family were indeed living at Joll's Ground, Altarnun Parish. Moreover, the 1851 census return for the household of Thomas and Charity French gives Charity's age as 22 and her birthplace as Gwendron, which also ties in.
At the 1851 census Thomas French's age is 26, his occupation is farm labourer, and the French's have a three year old daughter named Mary. Their address is Starra Park House, Boscastle. At the 1861 census the family is found at Camelford, and there are four children in the house: Mary (15), Thomas (7), Eliza A. E. (5) and Caroline (8 weeks). There are Davidstow baptism records for three of these children: Mary (30/4/1848), Thomas (24/6/1858), Eliza Ann Eva (24/6/1858). In fact Thomas and Charity also had a daughter named Elizabeth who was born in the December quarter of 1858, and who on census night 1856 is in the house of her uncle and aunt Daniel and Jane Heard at Minster. By the 1871 census they have three more children: Louisa (born March quarter of 1864), Margretta (June quarter of 1867) and William (December quarter of 1869). By this stage the oldest children, Mary and Thomas, have left home. By the 1881 census there are two more children: Edward (June quarter of 1873) and Earnest. I cannot find Earnest in FreeBMD, but he was 4 in 1881, meaning that his mother was close to 50 when he was born.
Elizabeth Eva, the daughter of Samuel and Elizabeth born in 1826, was also missing from her parents' household in 1841. Apparently she too was working as a servant somewhere. In fact there are three 15 year old house servants named Elizabeth Eva that can be found in the 1841 Cornwall census data: one in the household of Stephen Lean, a mine agent of Camborne; one in the household of William Coombe, a miller of Camborne; one in the household of Richard Rosewarne, a farmer of Phillack. Rosewarne's household also includes a 20 year old servant called Mary Eva, who may have been a sister of his Elizabeth Eva, in which case our Elizabeth Eva would have to be one of the ones in Camborne. Maybe the Lean household is the most likely, because of the mining connection.
Elizabeth Eva married Joseph Phillips at Altarnun on 29/1/1848. The marriage record confirms that Elizabeth's father's name was Samuel and that her residence before marriage was Joll's Ground. We also find that Joseph was a miner, and his father – another Joseph Phillips – a mine agent. The witnesses to the marriage were Thomas French – Elizabeth's brother-in-law, no doubt – and Samuel Eva. At the time of the 1861 census Joseph and Elizabeth are living in St Ive, Joseph is a 41 year old lead miner, and there are six children, as follows: Joseph Eva Phillips, 12, Agricultural Labourer; James P Phillips, 9, Post Boy; William H Phillips, 6; Eliza A Phillips, 4; Samuel E Phillips, 2; Mary A Phillips, 5m. The first five children were born in Altarnun, the last in St Ive.
The 1851 census information for the household of Samuel and Elizabeth Eva is as follows.
| Jolls Ground, Altarnun Parish: | |||||
| Name | Rel | Status | Age | Occupation | Birthplace |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Samuel Eva | Head | M | 50 | Miner | Wendron, Cornwall |
| Betsy Eva | Wife | M | 48 | Wendron, Cornwall | |
| Mary Eva | Dau | U | 20 | Wendron, Cornwall | |
| Eliza Eva | Dau | 13 | Wendron, Cornwall | ||
| Josiah Eva | Son | 10 | Scholar | Wendron, Cornwall | |
| Richard C Eva | Son | 5 | Altarnun, Cornwall | ||
At the time of the 1851 census the daughter Ann was a house servant at Higher Scarsick, Trenegloss Parish, in the employ of a farmer named George Chapman. I cannot find an 1851 census record for Samuel Eva the younger.
I am told that Samuel the younger married Jane Read in Wendron in September 1852, and that they had children named Mary Eva (b. 1853 in Redruth), Samuel Eva (b. 1855 in Wendron), Josiah Eva (b. 1857 in Wendron), and Eliza Ann Eva (b. 1861 in Wendron). This family can be found in the 1861 and 1871 census records for Wendron. I am told that they subsequently went to Lancashire.
I believe that Ann born 1835 is the Ann Eva who married Thomas Worden in Linkinhorne on 19/12/1854 and went to Australia. The evidence – which I admit is well short of proof – is as follows: the parish record of the marriage says that the Ann who married Thomas Worden was the daughter of a Samuel Eva and was 19 years old; moreover, I can find no other Ann Eva daughter of Samuel born in 1835.
I have no further information relating to Mary Eva (born 1830).
Eliza Eva (born 1837) married Nicholas Williams in the Helston district in the June quarter of 1858. In the 1871 census we find that Nicholas is a 47 year old stone mason, and they have seven children: Elizabeth (12), Mary H (11), Susan A (7), Nicholas (5), Richard E (4), Eliza (2) and Josiah (6m). Nicholas' 68 year old mother-in-law Elizabeth Eva is also in the household.
In the 1861 census one can find (according to FreeCEN) a Wendron household consisting of a 65 year old widow named Elizabeth Eva and her two tin miner sons Josiah (age 22) and Richard (age 16). I think that these must be the right people, even though Richard's birthplace is given as Wendron rather than Altarnun and Elizabeth's age would really have been 58 rather than 65. It is hard to see how a transcription error can change 58 into 65, but it must have happened! Note that the 1861 census records also show a 17 year old tin miner named Richard Eva living in Breage with his 53 year old mother Eliza. The Cornwall Online Census Project transcription has incorrectly called this Breage person Richard C Eva, although there is absolutely no C there in the original record. These Breage Eva's are not mine!
Since Elizabeth was a widow in 1861, Samuel must have died some time between 1851 and 1861. There are two deaths of Samuel Evas registered in that period: Samuel Minnett Eva died in Liskeard in the June quarter of 1858, and Samuel Eva died in Helston in the September quarter of 1860. It is my guess that our Samuel was the latter since his widow and two sons are in Wendron in 1861, and Wendron was his original home town. Moreover, Samuel Minnett Eva was probably the Samuel Menhennett Eva born in Liskeard in 1856. Unfortunately, there does not seem to be any Wendron burial record for a Samuel Eva in the the years from 1851 to 1861.
Josiah Eva (born last quarter of 1840) died in Wendron in 1866 and was buried there on 13/8/1866. The Wendron burial record gives his age as 24, but the official death registration record gives it correctly as 25.
Richard Caddy Eva married Catherine Jane Tressider in the Helston district in the December quarter of 1867. In the 1871 census data we find Richard and Catherine living in Wendron, Richard is a stonemason, and they have a 3 year old son named Josiah. They are also to be found in the 1881 census, by which time Josiah is an apprentice and Richard is a tin miner. There are no more children.
Richard Caddy Eva must have died some time between 1881 and 1891, becauce in the 1891 census Catherine is a widow living in Wendron with her 20 year old son Josiah (who is a granite mason employee) and her 88 year old mother-in-law Elizabeth Eva. Unfortunately, I cannot find a death registration record for Richard.
The death of a 91 year old Elizabeth Eva was registered in the Helston district in the March quarter of 1894. She was buried in Wendron on 4/1/1894.
If you have any corrections, complaints, criticisms, suggestions or additional information, please email bobhow@tpg.com.au.