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| Outside of St. Agnes, Cornwall, England |
Thomas Davey and Mary Nicholas, my husband’s 2x-great-grandparents, lived first in Cornwall, England, then in London, and finally emigrated to the United States.
They had fourteen children born in England and their last
child was born in Pennsylvania. Of the fifteen children born to them, only six
lived to adulthood.
Fourteen children came to them like clockwork,
every year or so. The first three children, Elizabeth, Susan Nicholas, and
Thomas Nicholas lived to adulthood. There was probably great joy when they were
born.
However, in 1837, their fourth child, Edward Nicholas was
born and I have no idea how long he lived. Another Edward was born in 1838 and
he, too, died. Two sons, named Edward, and both died as infants.
Two daughters were born next, Mary Jane in 1839 and Lydia
Nicholas in 1841. More joy as they survived to adulthood.
Next was a very low point in their family. Six children were
born and six died as infants. Another Edward N., was born in 1842. After three
tries to name a son Edward, they did not use that name for another child. Edward
was the name of Mary’s father and I’m sure they were trying to honor him. A
son, James, born in 1843; a son, Charles, born in 1844; two daughters Julia and
Emma, born in 1845; and Samuel Henry, born in 1848.
The last two children also survived to adulthood. Catherine Rose
was born in 1851 in London before they moved to America. Frederick Henry was
born in 1853 in Reading, Pennsylvania.
I cannot imagine the highs of the births and the lows of the
death that this family endured. Infant mortality was high. Thomas was a
blacksmith and likely had a decent income and didn’t work in the mines in Cornwall.
It is very sad to see the entries in their family bible of
the children born and the children who died.
#52Ancestors-Week 37: High and Low
This is my fifth year working on this year-long prompt,
hosted by Amy Johnson Crow (https://www.amyjohnsoncrow.com/)
at Generations Cafe. I write each week on one of my two blogs, either Mam-ma’s
Southern Family or My
Trails into the Past. I have enjoyed writing about my children’s
ancestors in new and exciting ways.
Always sad to see how many children never lived to become adults.
ReplyDeleteSad indeed. My 2nd great-grandparents were from Cornwall, so the family stories say, but I have yet to verify where they were in Cornwall. Hoping to figure that out one of these days.
ReplyDelete