The earliest BADHAM ancestor that I can positively identify is my Great Great Great Grandfather Thomas BADHAM who was married at Bosbury, Herefordshire, in 1802 and this is the first of three articles about his descendents which concentrates on my blood line. The second article gives details of the other descendents of my Grandfather, while the third gives information on other descendents of my Great Grandfather.
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The 1841 census gives Thomas age 65, Jane age 60, William age 35 and Thomas age 30 living at Catley, Bosbury, the information "fitting" with that for Thomas, Jane and two of their sons
Six baptisms have been found in the Bosbury records for children of Thomas and Jane with none in the surrounding parishes.
1. William BADHAM baptised 24th May 1803, residence given as Bosbury.
In 1841 William is living at home aged 35 and is given as a shoemaker. In 1851 there is a William at Hagley, Lugwardine, born at Bosbury, age 47, shoemaker, presumably the same person. He is given as unmarried.
2. Elizabeth BADHAM baptised 30th July 1806, residence given as Bosbury.
3. Thomas BADHAM baptised 14th December 1808, residence given as Bosbury.
In 1841 Thomas is living at home aged 30 and his occupation is given as a Tailor.
4. John BADHAM baptised 24th January 1811, residence given as Catley (about a mile north of Bosbury). This is my Great Great Grandfather.
5. Richard BADHAM baptised 8th August 1814, residence given as Catley.
In the 1871 census there is a Richard BADHAM, agricultural labourer, aged 57, born at Bosbury, lodging in Blackwell street Kidderminster. There is nothing to indicate his marital status.
6. Robert BADHAM baptised 8th July 1816, residence given as Briars Croft.
In the 1851 census there is a Robert BADHAM, labourer, age 35, born
Bosbury, lodging at High Hills in the Leominster area with his wife Elizabeth;
no children are given. They are lodging with a father and son who's occupations
are given as carpenters.
In 1841 they were living at Tarrington with their eldest child, by 1851 they have moved to Bishops Frome and have three children with them and in 1861 they are at Bosbury with no other person listed in the household. In each census John's occupation is given as an agricultural labourer.
Three baptisms have been found for children of John and Sarah, these corresponding to the children listed in the 1851 census.
1. William BADHAM born 12th March 1841 and baptised 4th April 1841, at Tarrington. This is my Great Grandfather.
2. John BADHAM baptised March 1843 at Bosbury; father John who's occupation is given as a labourer of Foxhill, about a mile north of Bosbury.
3. Mary BADHAM baptised 22nd December 1845 at Bosbury, father
John who's occupation is given as a labourer of Foxhill.
William died on 1st March 1895 at Stanley Hill Bosbury. After his death Eliza had to go out to work to support herself and eventually moved to Evesbatch. Eliza died on 29th August 1932 when I was 6. I think I was her first great grandchild and have an early picture taken with Eliza.
William and Eliza had eight children although only six baptisms have been found, all at Bosbury. With the exception of the first baptism Eliza's name is given as Elizabeth but the birth certificates seen give Eliza.
1. William BADHAM born on 1st November 1866, less than two months after his parents marriage, baptised 9th November 1866 and buried 26th April 1870 at Bosbury.
2. John BADHAM born 3rd April 1868, baptised 4 Jun 1868, residence given as Castle Frome. This is my Grandfather.
3. Thomas William BADHAM born 16th April 1870 at Bosbury and for whom no baptism has been found.
4. Edwin BADHAM born 4th November 1871 and for whom no baptism has been found.
5. Sarah Ann BADHAM born 20th May 1873, baptised 5th June 1873 and buried 10th March 1879, also at Bosbury.
6. James BADHAM baptised 15 March 1875 at Bosbury.
7. Robert BADHAM born 15th July 1876.
8. Elizabeth BADHAM baptised 26 Nov 1879.
John BADHAM married Elizabeth DANIELS at Holy Trinity church, Old Hill on 22nd November 1891. I understand that John and Elizabeth met when Elizabeth was hop picking. At that time Staffordshire wives became casual workers in the autumn and went hop picking in Herefordshire. School holidays were arranged for this time and the children accompanied their parents, this being their holiday. This practise continued until after the second World War.
Elizabeth was born on 22nd March 1866 in Rowley Regis, Staffordshire, the daughter of William and Sarah DANIELS. William and Sarah were nail makers a very common "cottage industry" in the Rowley area carried out in buildings behind the houses. Nail making was a very poorly paid job and Elizabeth was not allowed to go to school (schooling was not yet compulsory) as the extra pair of hands was too useful at home. This lack of education made Elizabeth afraid to meet people for the rest of her life.
According to daughter Gladys she made all the daughters dresses and coats and the boys trousers although she could not have had any formal training She had a heart of gold and would never turn a beggar away without something although the family were poor themselves.
As a family they moved frequently, Dad could remember about eight different addresses before they settled about 1920 but all in the Rowley Regis or Blackheath area.
John was an active member of the Plymouth Brethren and as such was strict about the observance of the Sabbath. But he never pushed the doctrine at home, Elizabeth and the children attending a Methodist Chapel. His membership of the Plymouth brethren possibly goes back to Herefordshire as his brother Thomas William was also a member.
John died on 12th January 1943 and Elizabeth passed away 9th February 1949.
John and Elizabeth had nine children all born in Rowley Regis STS:
1. May BADHAM born 16th May 1892
2. Bert BADHAM born 23rd November 1893 This is my Father.
3. William BADHAM born 18th August 1895
4. Gladys BADHAM born 22nd October 1897
5. Bertha BADHAM born 31st May 1899
6. John BADHAM born 4th Feb 1901
7. Ruth BADHAM born 16th November 1902
8. David BADHAM born 1st January 1904
9. Joseph Robert BADHAM born 30th July 1905.
He was a "PBI" serving in France where he was wounded twice. The first was a minor wound, being hit in the cheek by a 10 mm ball. The second time was in January 1917 when he was hit in the right leg with shrapnel and was lucky not to lose his leg. He had a number of operations and convalesced at Cheltenham race course. As a result he was invalided out of the Army in January 1918. Like most men who were in the trenches he hardly ever talked about his experiences in France although he would talk about his time in hospital.
After leaving the army he worked as a driver until he retired. During the second world war he was away some days for up to 16 hours delivering equipment to the docks. He joined the LDV, later the Home Guard, and took his share of the duty roster.
He enjoyed playing billiards and snooker, although he did not play much after he married. He also enjoyed water colour painting, just copying pictures but had the ability to put colour into a black and white print when copying. He was self taught but used water colours in the same way as oil colours are used rather than using washes. He was also a keen gardener, something that has never appealed to me.
On 16th June 1923 he married Norah WINDSOR, also of Blackheath, the daughter of Noah and Priscilla WINDSOR, at Blackheath parish church, WOR. (I have traced the Windsor family back to about 1700 in the Rowley Regis area, so they predate the Royal family by over 200 years.)
Norah worked as a jewellery polisher in the jewellery quarter of Birmingham becoming a forewoman, although during the first world war she had worked a lathe on munition manufacture.
She was a very methodical person and a good cook providing us with good if plain food particularly during the war years. Her needlework was very neat. When younger she did a lot of crochet, occupying her time on the train travelling to and from work.
Bert died suddenly of a heart attack in 1971. Norah had heart problems in the last 10 years of her life and died in 1976.
Bert and Norah only had one child, myself, Harold BADHAM born 26th July 1926 in Rowley Regis (STS).