I am surprised that I have not blogged about most of this before. These are not direct ancestors, being connected by the wedding in 1863 of Ellen Cowley to Thomas Dennis, long-time licensee of the Railway Inn / Tavern, Ogley Hay. I thought Ellen’s father, also Thomas, would be interesting to research. At one time I was in correspondence with Glennys, a descendant of Ellen’s sister, Ann Jane, so my interest was partly to help her. Attached to my tree on Ancestry is a story, which I reproduce below with some modification to reflect more recent discovery. For sure, it was no easy life.
Thomas Cowley (the man and the name)
Posted 08 Nov 2011 by AndrewsAncestors
I considered what might have had an impact on the Cowleys in Gloucestershire to see if there was some event that might have forced or encouraged Thomas and his family to move; first from Slimbridge and then to Ogley Hay. Children Ellen and John were born in 1846 and 1848 in Cheltenham and Walsall (this could have been Ogley Hay or nearby) respectively, so it’s likely they moved from Gloucestershire in about 1847-48. From the Census it is clear that Thomas had no settled occupation or trade and was, perhaps, more susceptible to the upheavals of the Agricultural and Industrial Revolutions than some other folk. His occupation is given as: 1841 Labourer; 1851 Ag[ricultural] Lab[ourer]; 1861 Excavator; 1871 Labourer; 1881 Canal Lab[ourer].
The Gloucester & Sharpness Canal opened in 1827. This would have opened up various employment opportunities and the Census and IGI record a George Cowley, born / christened 1806 Slimbridge, who was a bridge keeper at Saul, a short distance north of Slimbridge. This would have been a swing bridge. It seems likely that George lived in a house like (if not identical to) the one pictured at Frampton (1). He may even have lived in that particular house, which is on the Saul side of the canal and may not have been included in Frampton on Severn, as there are other bridges nearby.
There were other Cowleys ranging from William b1798 through George b1806 to Sarah b1810 children of John Cowley and Mary Bick. I have not found a compelling record of Thomas being christened: could these have been siblings? Even if not it seems very likely that he would have known them. There are records of Cowleys in Slimbridge going back to the early 1600s, but I can’t make sense of the various generations and branches. The censuses only serve to confuse; implying birth anywhere between 1812 and 1821. Others have traced a Thomas born 1812 to another family, so I have, for now, changed to 1815, which is consistent with the 1851 and 1861 censuses. The references to baptism at Quinton, Gloucestershire in 1819, now Upper / Lower Quinton, Warwickshire (Genuki) are not relevant.
Update: Ancestry now has an image of baptism Thomas 20 May 1815 son of John and Mary Cowley of Slimbridge. I have therefore concluded, in the absence of any alternatives, that they were John Cowley and Mary Bick.
Further update: A recent hint from Ancestry has added one more piece to the puzzle. When Thomas’s brother William married Elizabeth Bendall in 1850 his name was given as “William Bick Cowley”, which helps to confirm the Bick connection. (9 Sep 2018)
By 1841 Thomas had left Slimbridge and was a labourer at Aston-upon-Carrant. The Bristol-Birmingham railway opened in 1840. Perhaps Thomas found employment in its construction? An Enclosure Act for Frampton and Slimbridge was passed in 1815 and this could, with more modern work practices, have led to fewer jobs being available for farm hands. There were also Enclosure Acts for Ashchurch in 1808, 1814 and 1816, including Aston-upon-Carrant.
By 1861 the family was at Ogley Hay, Burntwood Road Square (the notorious Ogley Square of later times?) and were still there in 1871, though by then Ellen had married Thomas Dennis and Ann Jane had married George Cox. Anglesey Bridge is dated 1850 and the Anglesey Branch Canal opened in the same year. Work began in 1848. Is this what lured Thomas to the area? It seems likely that as agricultural labouring declined he would have been seeking alternative employment and may have travelled in 1848 (prior to son John’s birth in the last quarter of 1848) to find work excavating this branch canal, which had previously been simply a channel for carrying water from Chasewater (2). The 1851 Census records his occupation as “Ag Lab”, which suggests he went back to the land after the canal was completed.
In 1861, however, he was once again an excavator. This would have coincided with construction of the Cannock Extension Canal in 1858-1863 (3).
In 1871 he was a labourer at “Cannock Chase” and in 1881 a canal labourer at Norton Forge, still working at 69. This was probably the same place. I believe the forge was off Wharf Lane, near Anglesey Wharf (my father told me there was once a forge there). The site is under the motorway now.
Ann Jane
Like many children of the time it seems likely that Ann Jane’s childhood was punctuated with various moves as her father sought employment and there would have been little money available for treats or playthings. What did this mean for her education? (In 1851 she was a scholar age 7; but, oddly, no occupation at age 17 in 1861.) Could she read and write? Did she sign her name when she was married?
The name
I also thought about the origin of the Cowley family name. This is probably associated with a place named Cowley (4). There is a Cowley in Gloucestershire today a few miles south of Cheltenham, which could be the ancient origin of the name, though the IGI has no Cowley christenings between 1595 and 1812. However, if the family lived at Slimbridge since the early 1600s a more likely candidate would be Coaley, about 3 or 4 miles east of Slimbridge. Although its modern name is Coaley, it was known as Cowley in “ye time of Samuel Winney, who had possession of ye Vicaridge of Cowley, January 1st, 1654/5” (5), though there are no Cowley baptisms listed there either. Nonetheless, there were also many baptisms in places near to Slimbridge, including Fretherne, Eastington and Frampton all going back to the 1600s, so Coaley looks the more likely origin. There are other places named Cowley, of course, but even in Cowley, Oxfordshire the IGI 1689-1854 records no Cowley baptisms and only one Cawley marriage in 1835.
AD
November 2011
1 For example http://www.gloucesterdocks.me.uk/canal/canal.htm
2 For example http://members.lycos.co.uk/brownhillspast/anglesey.html.
3 http://www.jim-shead.com/waterways/Chronology.php?dt=1861 – at 1863. See also Navvy Army.
4 Reaney and Wilson, 2005, Oxford Dictionary of English Surnames, Oxford University Press, p114.
5 http://www.glosgen.co.uk/coaley.htm
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