At the beginning of the 19th century, Great Ellingham had around 655 inhabitants. These villagers were housed in some 97 dwellings. That’s an average of 6.75 persons per household! However, some dwellings will be occupied by one or two persons, with others accommodating much larger households.
Dwellings
The main clusters of houses were in Church Street, Town Green, Long Street, Bow Street and along the road to Rocklands. Other houses were scattered around the village, including those along the eastern side of Hingham Road, from its junction with Bow Street to the Little Ellingham/Deopham crossroads.
Extract from 1802 Map of Great Ellingham. Russell James Colman Plans. Norfolk Record Office Cat. Ref. C/Ca 1/84.
All rights reserved Norfolk Record Office. With kind permission of NRO
Hingham Road
The red colouring on the above extract from the Great Ellingham Inclosure Map identifies the location of some of the dwellings along the Hingham Road (from Bow Street to the crossroads). It also shows some of the dwellings in Bow Street itself.
Looking at the position of the dwellings along the Hingham Road:
Thomas
Towards the top and numbered 188 is a house with a barn, stable and yard. The property is owned by the Reverend George Andrew Thomas, but let to a tenant, Mary Pollington.
Mendham
Next (coming towards Bow Street) and numbered 190 is a farmhouse with outbuildings, barn, stables, yard and garden with a homestall. This is owned by Robert Mendham Esq., but occupied by John Mann. Much later, this property became known as ‘Ellingham Farm’ and then ‘Manor Farm‘.
Eke
Moving further towards the junction with Bow Street, is the cottage with outbuildings and garden owned by Mary Eke.
Jessup
Finally, at the junction of Bow Street, and still on the eastern side of Hingham Road, is the cottage and garden owned by Alice Jessup (as trustee) but occupied by Stephen Houchen.
Extract from 18th Century Map. Stalland & Bush Green Commons in Great Ellingham. All rights reserved Norfolk Record Office. Cat. Ref. MC2213/116, 941X7 With kind permission of NRO.
These same properties with the same owners also appear on the above earlier 18th century map.
House owned by the Revd. G A Thomas
In this article, we will particularly look at the house and buildings owned by the Reverend George Andrew Thomas.
The ‘Statement of Claims’ prepared in connection with the Great Ellingham Inclosures, lists ‘George Andrew Thomas, clerk’ as owning one messuage and 22 acres of land which is occupied by Mary Pollington. Of the 22 acres, just over 2½ acres of the land is copyhold to the Manor of Ellingham Rectory.
Carbrooke Born
George Andrew Thomas, was a son of George and Mary Thomas. He was baptised at Carbrooke on the 18th April, 1767.
Ordination
George studied at St John’s College at Cambridge University and, on the 20th September, 1789, he was ordained as a Deacon at Norwich Cathedral.
Marriage & Sons
Whilst George was Rector of the Parish of St Mary Magdalene, Woolwich, he married Frances Sarah Ford. The marriage took place in the parish church on the 19th March, 1792.
The couple’s son, George John Thomas, was baptised at Greenwich in 1794. He was followed by Frances Emma who was baptised at Greenwich in early 1797.
On the 6th July, 1798, John George Thomas was baptised at St Nicholas, Greenwich. However by the time Mary was baptised on the 27th July, 1801, the Reverend George A Thomas had moved his family to Whitchurch, Hampshire. The couple’s youngest child, Alexander John Thomas, was baptised in Wickham, Hampshire on the 23rd February, 1803.
However as you will see later in this article, I wonder whether George John and John George are one and the same person.
Hingham Road Property
Unfortunately, I do not know when the Reverend Thomas acquired the Hingham Road property. He may have purchased it as an investment, or it may have come to him by inheritance or, perhaps, through his marriage to Sarah Frances Ford.
Nonetheless, I have no doubt that the property was tenanted throughout his period of ownership.
Death of the Revd. G A Thomas
The Reverend George Andrew Thomas, the Rector of the Parish of Wickham, Hampshire, died at the age of 37. He was buried at Wickham on the 29th October, 1804.
John Thomas inherits the ‘Norfolk Property’
In his will, the Reverend Thomas gave all his real estate ‘in Norfolk’ to his eldest son, John George Thomas and his heirs. This included the Hingham Road property. Probate of the will was granted on the 24th December, 1804.
The reference in the will to John George Thomas being the Reverend Thomas’s eldest son, raises an anomaly. It suggest that either the child ‘George John Thomas’ baptised in Greenwich in 1794 had predeceased his father or, that ‘George John Thomas’ and ‘John George Thomas’ are one and the same person. It is possible that the child was baptised twice – a fact that is not that unusual.
In any event, George Thomas’s eldest son would have been no more than the age of 10 when his father died. Therefore, the property was held in trust for him until he attained his majority.
Following the death of the Reverend George A. Thomas, the Hingham Road property continued to be owned by the trustees for the Reverend Thomas deceased and, consequently by his son, John George Thomas, on reaching the age of 21.
Again during this time, the property was tenanted.
Mary Pollington
Not long before the turn of the 19th century, Mary Pollington occupied the Reverend Thomas’s property in Hingham Road. Mary was born c.1765, but possibly not in Great Ellingham.
Even so, I wonder whether Mary is connected to the ‘William Pollington of Great Ellingham’ whose will appears in the Archdeaconry of Norfolk records in 1799. William Pollington is listed in the Land Tax Redemption records for 1798/1799 as being an occupier of land in the village which belonged to Lord Walsingham.
The ‘Statement of Claims’ relating to the Great Ellingham Inclosures c.1800 confirms that ‘Mary Pollington’ occupies a messuage and 22 acres of land belonging to the Reverend George Andrew Thomas. Most (if not all) of the land is near to the house with a barn, stable and yard.
Marriage & Children
Church of St James, Great Ellingham
The Statement of Claims is likely to have been put together prior to Mary’s marriage to Edward Palmer, which took place in St James’s Church, Great Ellingham on the 25th October, 1799. Both bride and groom were single. Mary is a resident of Great Ellingham but Edward Palmer is of East Harling.
The couple settled to married life in Mary Pollington’s home in Hingham Road. Edward and Mary Palmer had three known children – all sons. William was baptised in St James’s Church on the 31st August 1800 but, sadly, he was buried in the churchyard on the 6th January 1801.
George arrived in 1802 and was baptised (again in St James) on the 20th June, 1802. He was followed by Ellis in 1804. His baptism took place in St James on the 2nd December.
I have no doubt that all three boys were born in the house along the Hingham Road, which their parents continued to lease from the Reverend Thomas (and, later his estate).
1817-1819
A Survey of Great Ellingham 1817-1819 shows Edward Palmer as the occupier of the Reverend Thomas’s property. By this time, the Reverend George Andrew Thomas had died, but the property remained in the ownership of the Thomas family.
1830s
Edward and Mary Palmer continued to live at the property into the 1830s.
An ‘Estates & Occupations’ survey of the village (which dates from the 1830s), also confirms that the farmhouse with the barn, stable and yards then occupied by Edward and Mary Palmer was later purchased and occupied by Robert Large.
Deaths in East Harling
The Palmers moved to East Harling prior to Mary’s death at the age of 69 in 1835. She was buried in East Harling on the 18th April, 1835. Edward Palmer died at the age of 70, and was buried in East Harling on the 28th November, 1839.
Sadly, the couple’s youngest son, Ellis, died at the age of 21. However, the couple were survived by their ‘middle’ son George.
The 1851 census captures Great Ellingham born 48 year old retired farmer George Palmer with his 34 year old wife and three young children – twins, 4 year old George and Edward, and 8 month old Mary, in White Hart Street, East Harling.
Significant Changes
The house and farmland once occupied by Mary Pollington (and later by Mary and her husband, Edward Palmer), underwent significant changes (or demolition), either just before or during the ownership of Robert Large.
Substantial new building took place on some of the land. This included the construction of a brick kiln and the erection of two new houses. These ‘new houses’ are today known as Brick Kiln Farm (along the Hingham Road) and Owl Cottage at Stalland Common. I do not know if any evidence remains of the ‘old’ farmhouse.
Sources:
Norfolk Record Office; Norwich, Norfolk, England; Norfolk Church of England Registers; Reference: AT Carbrooke. Norfolk, England, Transcripts of Church of England Baptism, Marriage and Burial Registers, 1600-1935 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2018.Original data: Church of England Bishop and Archdeacon Transcripts of Parish Registers. Norfolk Record Office, Norwich, Norfolk, England.
George Andrew Thomas, England, Clergy of the Church of England Index 1540-1835. Arts and Humanities Research Council; England; The Clergy of the Church of England Database 1540-1835; URL: https://theclergydatabase.org.uk/ Ancestry.com. England, Clergy of the Church of England Index, 1540-1835 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2024.
Original data: The Clergy of the Church of England Database 1540-1835. England: Arts and Humanities Research Council. https://theclergydatabase.org.uk/ Accessed: Mar 2024
London England Church of England Marriages & Banns 1754-1940. London Metropolitan Archives; London, England, UK; London Church of England Parish Registers; Reference Number: P97/MRY/024 Ancestry.com. London, England, Church of England Marriages and Banns, 1754-1940 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Original data: Images produced by permission of The London Archives (City of London Corporation).
Baptism George John Thomas son of George Andrew Thomas & Sarah Frances Thomas 9th May 1794 St Alfege, Greenwich. London Metropolitan Archives; London, England, UK; London Church of England Parish Registers; Reference Number: P78/ALF/004. Ancestry.com. London, England, Church of England Baptisms, Marriages and Burials, 1538-1812 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Original data: Church of England Parish Registers, 1538-1812. London, England: London Metropolitan Archives. Images produced by permission of The London Archives (City of London Corporation).
Baptism John George Thomas son of George Andrew Thomas and Frances Sarah Thomas 6th July 1798. St Nicholas Greenwich. London Metropolitan Archives; London, England, UK; London Church of England Parish Registers; Reference Number: P97/NIC/006 Ancestry.com. London, England, Church of England Baptisms, Marriages and Burials, 1538-1812 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Original data: Church of England Parish Registers, 1538-1812. London, England: London Metropolitan Archives. Hampshire Archives and Local Studies; Winchester, England, UK; Anglican Parish Registers; Reference: 70087/1/3. Ancestry.com. Hampshire, England, Church of England Baptisms, Marriages and Burials, 1536-1812 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2023.
Original data: Anglican Parish Registers. Winchester, Hampshire, England: Hampshire Archives and Local Studies.
The Revd. George Andrew Thomas in England & Wales, Prerogative Court of Canterbury Wills 1384-1858. The National Archives; Kew, Surrey, England; Records of the Prerogative Court of Canterbury, Series PROB 11; Class: PROB 11; Piece: 1418 Ancestry.com. England & Wales, Prerogative Court of Canterbury Wills, 1384-1858 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013.Original data: Prerogative Court of Canterbury: Wills of Selected Famous Persons. Digitized images. Records of the Prerogative Court of Canterbury, Series PROB 1. The National Archives, Kew, England. Prerogative Court of Canterbury and Related Probate Jurisdictions: Will Registers. Digitized images. Records of the Prerogative Court of Canterbury, Series PROB 11. The National Archives, Kew, England.
Hampshire Archives and Local Studies; Winchester, England, UK; Anglican Bishops’ Transcripts; Reference: 21m65/F8/287/1 Ancestry.com. Hampshire, England, Church of England Baptisms, Marriages and Burials, 1536-1812 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2023. Original data: Anglican Parish Registers. Winchester, Hampshire, England: Hampshire Archives and Local Studies.
Pollington, William, of Great Ellingham. ANF will register 1799-1801 fo. 118 (1799 no. 82) Norfolk Record Office
The National Archives; Kew, Richmond; Surrey, Land Tax Redemption Office: Quotas and Assessments, IR23; Piece: 60. Ancestry.com. UK, Land Tax Redemption, 1798 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. Land Tax Redemption Office: Quotas and Assessments. IR23. Records of the Boards of Stamps, Taxes, Excise, Stamps and Taxes, and Inland Revenue. The National Archives, Kew, Richmond, Surrey, England.
Transcript of East Harling Monumental Inscriptions 1756-1980. Norfolk Family History Society
1851 census HO107/1822/356
1802 Russell James Colman Plans. Great Ellingham. Norfolk Record Office. Catalogue Ref. C/Ca 1/84.
1799-1842 F W Horner, Records of the Surveyors to Commissioners for Inclosure in Parishes in Norfolk and Suffolk. Great Ellingham (Act 1799). Norfolk Record Office. Catalogue Ref: NRO, BR 90/2
1800 Inclosure Commissioner’s Particulars and Valuation, Great Ellingham. Norfolk Record Office. Catalogue Ref: NRO, MC 2213/119
1799 Statement of Claims. Great Ellingham Inclosure. Norfolk Record Office. Catalogue Ref: MC 2213/118
Great Ellingham Tithe Map 1843. Tithe Apportionments, 1836-1929 [database online]. TheGenealogist.co.uk 2023. Original data: “IR29 Tithe Commission and successors: Tithe Apportionments” The National Archives
Great Ellingham Parish Registers. Norfolk Record Office PD 609. Also available at www.familysearch.org, www.ancestry.co.uk and other subscription sites.