James Wyatt

[Jenoco]

Name - "official" name and what they were known as
James Wyatt
Date and place of birth
West Lavington, Wiltshire
Names of parents
Thomas Wyatt and Martha Maslen
Date and place of baptism - if applicable
20 January 1811, West Lavington
Details of each of his or her marriages - if any
8 Nov 1830 to Mary Daniel, at St. Giles Church, Imber, Wiltshire
Occupation(s) - if any
shoemaker / cordwainer
Addresses where they lived (including county if in UK) - and please list which censuses you have or haven't found him/her on (if s/he lived in census times!).
1841 and 1851 – Imber village, Wiltshire
1861 – unable to find
1871 Sambourne Union Workhouse, Warminster, Wiltshire
Date, place and cause of death
Date and place of burial.
14 June 1879 Imber, Wiltshire
Details of will / administration of their estate - if applicable

[Val in Oz]

Hello Jenny - I have been having a look at the 1861 census but have been unable to come up with James I'm afraid.
I did a 'virtual' walk through the village of Imber and found that son John was married and had his two brother's Joseph and Walter living with them.

I also found Mary Wyatt, working as a house servant on a farm. Her age was given as 58 and was born in Trowbridge, which ties in with the 1851 census - but it does say she was unmarried. I wonder if this was the Mary who was married to James.

Another interesting point is that in the 1861 census there was another shoemaker living in the village - an Elijah Meaden aged 36 and his wife Caroline. I wonder if a small village would be able to support two shoemakers.

I found a death for a Mary Wyatt in 1870 - is this your one?

I wondered if James and Mary had separated by that census, the marital home broken up - hence the boys living with their older brother, and maybe James went 'walkabout'.
This is pure speculation on my part Jenny, but it was the fact there was another shoemaker on the scene that prompted this scenario.

[Jenoco]

Thanks for checking Val. I think that's probably my Mary and she did die in 1870 (buried 11 May in Imber). Imber was a very small village and as you said, probably wouldn't have been able to support two shoemakers (I hadn't thought of that before). I've tried looking for him using initials only, in case he was in jail or an institution, and have also looked at all the James who were shoemakers/cordwainers born in Wiltshire, but haven't had luck there either. In 1871, he was in the workhouse in nearby Warminster.