The Sainsbury Family

William & Hannah Sainsbury

This particular branch of the Sainsbury family can be traced back to William and Hannah Sainsbury, farmers of Kington.   William was born in Tilsbury, Wiltshire between 1773 and 1780 (his age was given as 67 in 1841 census and 70 in 1851 census).  Hannah was born in Berkeley about 1785.  Her maiden name might have been Longman because a Celia Longman born about 1760 was living with them in the 1841 census.

William and Hannah had several children: Anise was baptised on 16 November 1820, Edwin on January 31 1825, and four children were baptised on the same day on 2nd January 1828 - these were Jonathan aged 9, Joseph aged 8, Thomas aged 6 and Frederick who was presumably an infant.  The 1841 census shows there were other children:  William born about 1815 and Hannah born about 1817

The 1851 census shows William was a farmer of 13 acres and beer shop keeper in Kington.  Three of their sons were helping them on the farm: William, Edwin, and Fred. 

Of their children,

William married Maria Cook in 1855.  In 1861 William was shown as an agricultural labourer. He and Maria were living in Bulls Lane Thornbury with children Ann aged 7, Robert aged 3 and Hannah aged 2.  In 1871 they were living in Grovesend with children: Robert aged 14, Henry aged 6, Laura aged 4 and Mary Ann aged 2.

Jonathan became a carpenter.  In 1844 he married Priscilla Young and by 1851 they were living in Lower Hazel with children: Henry born about 1844 and Rupert born in 1850 and a servant Amelia Millard aged 16.  They had at least one more child, Frederick born about 1856. 

Joseph Sainsbury moved to Brinkworth in Wiltshire where he married Ann Norton in 1855.  In 1861 he was a farmer at Rookery Farm (250 acres) with their children Amelia aged 6 and William aged 4.

Annis married Jacob Smith, a farmer from Kington in 1843.

Thomas died in 1849 aged 22 years and is buried in his parents grave in the Congregational Chapel.

Edwin was living with his widowed mother in 1861 in which he is described as an idiot.  There could be any number of explanations for this cruel description, which was typical of Nineteenth Century England, but whatever Edwin's condition, the outcome seems to be a sad one.  The census shows that he was in the Union Workhouse as a a lunatic in 1871.  He died  there in 1874 aged 47.

Frederick became an agricultural labourer.  In 1851 he married Ellen Webb from Thornbury.  Click here to read more about Frederick and Ellen's family.

This page was last updated: 26/03/2008