Family of William KEETCH and Phoebe WEBSTER

transcribed by www.chardstockweb museum.org, Will : William Keetch 1837, (Will dated 3 Aug 1836 proved at Sarum 26 May 1837). Wiltshire Record Office.

I give and devise unto my son William all that newly built Dwelling House and Offices with the Garden thereto adjoining situate at or called Lower Churchill within the Parish of Chardstock aforesaid my son William allowing my son Samuel to dig a small well under the hedge in pathway between my son Williams garden and my son Samuels house. To hold the said Dwelling House offices garden and premises to my son William his heirs Executors Administrators and assigns according to the nature thereof for him and their own use and benefit with full liberty of Ingress Egress and Regress to and for the person or persons for the time being entitled to the same.

And I give and devise all that newly built Dwelling House with the Garden adjoining the front thereof and the Linhay at the lower end of the said Gardens situate in Lower Churchill aforesaid to my son Samuel now in his possession together with all rights and appurtenances thereunto belonging. To hold the same unto him to my son Samuel his heirs Executors Administrators and assigns according to the nature thereof for his and their own use and benefit.

And I give and devise unto my son Thomas all that newly built Dwelling House with the Garden behind and front of the said Dwelling House adjoining the same situate in Lower Churchill and now in his possession Also a Right of foot path way at all times and as now used by him thorough my orchard adjoining the said last mentioned premises together with all tights and appurtenances to the said premises belonging. To hold the same unto him to my son Thomas his heirs Executors Administrators and assigns according to the nature thereof for his and their own use and benefit.

the same unto him to my son Thomas his heirs Executors Administrators and assigns according to the nature thereof for his and their own use and benefit.

And I give and devise all those two Dwelling Houses and Offices together with the Gardens adjoining the lower or Westem side and the orchard adjoining the Southern end thereof and the hedge which parts my son Williams Garden and my orchard also Twelve feet of the hedge turning the comer of my son Williams Garden all of which said last mentioned premises are situate in Lower Churchill aforesaid one of which is in my own possession and the other in the occupation of James Create as tenant thereof also all the Rest and remainder of the messuages tenements lands and hereditaments if any not hereinbefore given or devised or which I shall or may die siezed or possessed of or entitled to whether Freehold Copyhold Leasehold or otherwise to James Wescott of Lyme Regis in the County of Dorset Cordwainer in Trust for my Daughter Mary Keetch during her natural life for her own use and benefit without any impreachment of waste and should my daughter Mary hereafter be lawfully married and her husband survive her I give the aforesaid Two dwellings gardens and orchards and appurtenances thereunto belonging to James Wescott aforesaid in Trust for the surviving husband for his use and benefit during his natural life and after his decease should he die without issue by my daughter Mary I give it to James Wescott aforesaid in Trust to be divided equally between my said sons aforesaid and my daughter Hanah Clarke wife of George Clarke her share for the use and benefit of my three Grand Children by her former husband namely Ann Apsey, William Apsey and Mary Apsey their executors administrators and assigns according to the nature thereof.

Item The pathway between my son William and my son Samuel shall always remain the width it now is being at the Entrance Gate Ten feet and half between the garden hedge of my son William and the wall of the house of my son Samuel had at the end of my son Williams garden and opposite the right hand side of the door post of the out house adjoining the House occupied by James Create the width of it now is sixteen feet and my will is that my son William shall always keep the hedge well shared so as not to hang over the Pathway also my Daughter Mary shall keep the hedge well shared so as not to hang over my son William Garden.

Source: Wiltshire Record Office

Executor: James Wescott of Lyme Regis in the County of Dorset, Cordwainer

Witnesses: Charles Symes and William Langford

Effects sworn £200

1841 Census England. district 10,. Cit. Date: 6 June 1841.

John Baker Gunnell 57 Half Pay Officer Not-Dorset

William Keetch 55 Carpenter Dorset

Phebe Keetch 50 Not-Dorset

James Keetch 23 carpenter Dorset

Phebe Keetch 15 Dorset

Ibid.

Death Certificate Phebe Keetch, (No.368 1850 Deaths Axminster- Chardstock).

25th January 1850 at Chardstock

Phebe Keetch,62,wife of William Keetch Carpenter

CoD: Apoplexy not certified

inf: XMary Turner, present at the death, Chardstock

reg.27/1/1850

1851 Census England. HO 107/1862 f.391 p.2. Cit. Date: 30 March 1851.

Census 1851 Chardstock, Dorset

HO 107/1862 f.391 p.2

Mount Cottage, Churchill

William Keetch Head Wid 63 Carpenter Chardstock

Will: William Keetch 1856, (Wiltshire Record Office). Ancestry.com.

In the name of God Amen

I William Keetch of Churchill in

the parish of Chardstock in the

County of Dorset Carpenter do

make and ordain this my last

Will and Testament in manner

and form following. First I

give and bequeath unto my

son James Keetch the sum

of Twenty pounds. Also I give

and bequeath unto my son

John Keetch the sum of Ten

pounds which legacies I will

shall be paid by my Executrise at

the expireation of one year after

my decease my two dwelling houses

situate at Churchill in the aforesaid

parish and all other of my monies

and property of every denomination

soever I give and bequeath to my

daughter Sarah Keetch and my

daughter Phebe Keetch jointly

to be equally divided between

them and I constitute and

appoint my aforesaid daughters

Sarah Keetch and Phebe Keetch

my whoile and sole joint

executrix of this my last Will

and Testament I witness

whereof I have set my

hand and seal

William Keetch ʘ

Thomas Bently [who dates will as Jan or Feb 1852]

Henrietta Bently [his sister]

Marriage Certificate Emanuel Scherzinger/Phoebe Keetch, (No.123 RC chapel Axminster - Devon).

Roman Catholic Chapel in Axminster 7th March 1859

Emanuel Scherzinger, 28,Bachelor,Clock Maker, Axminster

f.Silvester? Scherzinger, Farmer

Phebe Keech,28,Spinster,Servant, Axminster

f.William Keech, Carpenter

Wits: Thomas Roberts & Anne Clarke

Birth Certificate Albert H W Keetch, (No.5 1843 births Taunton-St.James).

16th April 1843 at Staplegrove

Albert Henry Webster

f.James Keetch

m.Mary Keetch nee Chick

f.occ.Carpenter

Mary Keetch mother Staplegrove

reg.18/5/1843

Birth Certificate Sarah Ann Keetch, (N0.184 1845 births Taunton-St.James).

6th July 1845 Staplegrove

Sarah Ann

f.James Keetch

m.Mary Keetch nee Chick

f.occ.carpenter

inf: Mary Keetch mother Staplegrove

reg.14th Aug 1845

Birth Certificate Mary Jane Keetch, (No.206 1848 Births Thetford-Methwold).

23rd January 1848 at Brandon

Mary Jane

f.James Keetch

m.Mary Keetch nee Chick

f.occ.Fireman

inf.Mary Keetch mother Brandon

reg.10/2/1848

1851 Census England. HO 107/1768 f168. Cit. Date: 30 March 1851.

Ibid.

James Keetch head mar 31 Carpenter, Axminster

Mary Keetch wife mar 33 Staplegrove

Albert Keetch son 7 Staplegrove

Sarah A Keetch 5 Staplegrove

Mary J Keetch 3 Brandon

Inquest Mary Keetch, (Essex Chronicle 7th May 1852). Essex Record Office, Chelmsford.

"On Friday, an adjourned inquest was held at the Blue

Boar inn, Stratford, before C.C.Lewis,Esq. on the body of Mary

Keech, (better known as Mary Catch), aged 33. The inquest was

adjourned from the previous day in order to allow a post mortem

examination of the body. It was supposed deceased had met her

death under circumstances of an aggravated character - It appeared

that a person named Nebborn, who lived near deceased,

was called in by her children, and he found her in bed, and quite

dead; he raised an alarm, and a medical gentleman attended, and

found death had taken place several hours previous. - Evidence

was also adduced to show deceased was jealous of her husband,

whom she supposed was on terms of improper intimacy with

another female in the neighbourhood, and it also appeared that

she and her husband frequently quarrelled, - and even so late as

on the Monday previous, when he left home and did not return

till after his wife's death. - Mr Kennedy, surgeon, of Stratford

deposed to making a post mortem examination, when he found

the lungs in a diseased state, and no doubt death ensued from

that cause, although excitement might have hastened the event.

Keech had been seen to slap his wife's face, but no evidence was

adduced to show that death ensued from the treatment she re?

ceived from his hands. The coroner summed up the evidence,

and the jury found that "Death ensued from natural causes".

The coroner, at the request of the jury, had James Keech called

in, and gave him a severe reprimand, which he appeared to treat

with perfect indifference."

Witness payments

Mr. Angus Kennedy (for post mortem) £2..2s..0d

Mrs.Cobb 2s..0d

Mrs.Bloomfield 2s..0d

Her 2 sons2s..0d ea

Mrs.Woods2s..0d

Mrs.Lambrook2s..0d

Colchester Union Legal Action, (Essex Standard, 9 March 1855, p3). British Library Newspaper Archive.

Colchester Town Hall, 5 March [1855]

James Webster Keetch, a stoker on the Norfolk branch of the Eastern Counties’ Railway, was brought up for leaving his children chargeable to the Colchester Union. - Mr ABELL supported the complaint. – It appeared that defendant had been absent from Colchester since October, during which time his three children had been under the keeping of a woman named Scaborn, at the Mariners’ Arms; but she becoming tired of her trust forwarded them to their father at London, who, however, immediately returned them, and they have since the 19thof February been in the union. – Defendant said he had sent £6. 10 for their maintenance since October, and if Seaborn, instead of putting them in the union, had given him notice that she was tired of keeping them he would have made other provision for them. – THE BENCH thought the children being sent to him at London was a sufficient proof that she wished to give up her charge. – Defendant was ultimately released upon the understanding that he would take his children away with him and not allow them to become chargeable again.

Marriage Certificate James Keetch/Mary Damant, (No.162 Parish of St.Anne Limehouse).

Parish Church 2nd March 1856 after banns

James Webster Keetch,full,Bachelor,Carpenter,West India Road

f.William Keetch, Carpenter

Mary Ann Damant,full,Spinster, West India Road

f.William Damant, Carrriage Trimmer

Wits: John Goringe & Catherine Hewitt

1861 Census England. RG 9/357 f.174 p.9. Cit. Date: 7 April 1861.

Census 1861 Lambeth, Surrey

RG 9/357 f.174 p.9

7 Belmont Place

-------------------------------------

James Peetch Head Mar 36 Engine Driver Ry Axminster

Mary A Peetch Wife Mar 24 Woodbridge

Sarah A Peetch Dau 13 Brandon

[for "Peetch" read "Keetch" and for "Sarah A" read "Mary J"]

1871 Census England. RG10/ 670 f80. Cit. Date: 2 April 1871.

Ibid.

James Keetch head mar 49 Railway Engine Driver, Axminster

Mary Ann Keetch wife mar 32, Suffolk Woodbridge

Death Certificate James Keetch, (No.436 1880 Deaths London City - Saint Botolph).

5th November 1880 at 147 Minories

James Webster Keetch 63 Engineer

CoD.Apoplexy natural death 7 minutes

inf. cert from Samuel Langham Dep Coroner for London, inquest held 8/11/1880

reg 9/11/1880

1861 Census England. RG 9/1371 f.40 p.7. Cit. Date: 7 April 1861.

Census 1861 Axminster, Devon

RG 9/1371 f.40 p.7

---------------------------------------

John B Gunnell Head W 78 Retired Paymaster R.N. Margate

Phoebe Scherzinger Serv Mar 30 House Servant Chardstock

Emma Scherzinger Serv Dau 1 Axminster