Northfleet in Essex
(last updated 8 September 2025)
Samuel Hickmott and his first wife, Harriet Hartridge, had three sons Edward, James and Henry who were all born at Pembury in Kent. The boys lived at Pembury until late in 1830 first with their father and mother and then, following Harriet's death in 1827, with their father and stepmother, Eliza Tester. Eliza died while giving birth to their first child, William Hickmott, and was buried in Pembury on 14 August 1830. Samuel and his three older boys went to live at the nearby village of Lamberhurst (Samuel's place of birth). He left the infant William at Pembury in the care of Eliza's family. The 1841 census shows William, then aged 10 years, at the dwelling of Samuel and Mercy Anscomb (probably Eliza's sister) at 'Rensfort' at Pembury. I have not yet been able to locate him in any subsequent censuses.
Just prior to Christmas 1833 Samuel's boys were placed by their father into Lamberhurst's Poor House. They remained there for 18 months when they were released and went to live with Samuel at Windmill Field on the outskirts of Tunbridge Wells. Sometime in 1837 Samuel and his older brother, Thomas, were indicted for stealing three lambs from the property of a Sussex farmer, Samuel Pix. On hearing the news Samuel and Thomas took off. They remained at large until Christmas 1839 when they were arrested at the 'Brighton Railway'. The two brothers were tried at the Maidstone Assizes in January 1840, found guilty and transported to Australia in April the same year.
By this time Samuel's sons were working as apprentice brick makers and brick layers at Pembury and near the River Thames in northwest Kent. Their modest beginnings and circumstances did not constrain their future lives however. Like hundreds of thousands of their countrymen they were able to take advantage of the opportunities and prospects offered by the golden age of the British Empire. The oldest boy, Edward Hickmott, and his family tried their luck in India. As we will see many of them are buried there while the remainder eventually returned home in the wake of moves toward Indian independence. We can only wonder whether and how well they were able to readjust from the sights, sounds and sheer tumult of the 'Far East' to a more tranquil and constrained English lifestyle and set of sensibilities. They may have been helped by the fact that the second brother, James Hickmott, and his family spent their lives in England albeit in and around the bustling metropolis of London. The youngest brother, Henry Hickmott meanwhile, had emigrated to colonial Australia where he and his descendants would help establish the latest and most distant outpost of British Emperialism. We don't know whether the three brothers and their wives (two of whom were sisters) wrote to each but would think it likely. While dealing with family matters and everyday happenings their correspondence would have provided a fascinating insight into a long-gone age.
Described below is what we have been able to discover to date about the lives and times of Samuel and Harriet's second son James Hickmott and his family and descendants. Those wishing to read about their other sons should click here for Edward and here for Henry. The research findings supporting these various stories are contained on the Rootsweb site for the Hickmott and Owen families.
We will see that James, who worked as a labourer and journeyman brickmaker, and his wife Mary Ann had eleven children and at least 29 grandchildren we are aware of. Most of their children lived and worked all their lives in Essex in greater London. All but one son married and all but two of the remainder had children. Like many others from this time, the family was significantly affected by the First World War. Two of the grandsons of James and Mary Ann died while serving. Another served and survived to spend two years in Britain's peacetime Army. Another may have emigrated to Canada and served in France with the Canadian expeditionary force. One of their granddaughters, who married one of her Hickmott cousins, was widowed by the war and never re-married. Another married a sergeant in the 11th Hussars and probably went with him to live in Ireland. To date we have been unable to trace with any certainty the whereabouts of six of the 27 grandchildren who survived the war. We believe that five of the remainder never married and have determined that those who did marry have produced at least 21 great grandchildren, some of whom are alive today. Unfortunately we have yet to be be contacted by any of James and Mary Ann's living descendants.
Northfleet in Essex
Born in Pembury in 1823 James was probably living at Tunbridge Wells when his father was arrested for sheep stealing and transported to Australia in 1840. The Catherine House records show that a James Hickmott was married in the Milton registration district of Kent in the April quarter of 1844. Although still to be confirmed, we think his wife was Mary Ann Couchman, the daughter of Thomas and Mary Couchman, who was born at Marden in Kent in 1823. The 1851 census shows a James Hickmott (a 28 year-old journeyman brickmaker who was born at Pembury) living in Milton near Gravesend in Kent. With him were his wife Mary A. (25 and born at Marden) and children William (6, Marden), Daniel C. (4, 'Perry St Kent'), Richard (2, 'Perry St Kent') and Mary A. (2m, Gravesend).
Some time after this the family moved to Buckhurst Hill in Chigwell in Essex. The 1861 census shows them living at 21 Brick Fields. In 1871 they and six of their children were at 261 Alfred Road in Chigwell. They and a number of their children and grandchildren were still there at the time of the 1881 and 1891 cenuses. The 1901 census showed that James (aged 78 and described as a 'labourer out of work') and his family had moved to Cambridge Villas (the others present were Mary Ann (a 76 year-old needlewoman), their son 'Dick' Hickmott (52 and 'too ill to work') and granddaughter Gerty Hickmott (13 and born in London). While still to be confirmed, we think that James died at Buckhurst Hill in 1908 (the Catherine House Index gives his name as William James) and his wife Mary Ann there in 1906.
Parish records and the UK censuses show that James and Mary Ann had at least eleven children between 1845 and 1868. We know that one of these, Richard Hickmott (1849-c1902), never married. We think that another, Henry Samuel Hickmott (1863-1925), married in around 1899 but had no children (the 1911 census indicates that his wife's name was Sarah who was born at Barking in Essex in around 1860). One of their sisters, Mary Ann Hickmott (born at Gravesend in 1851), was still single in 1891 when she was working as a cook at the farm of James Norris of Castle Hill in Bletchingley in Surrey (we have not been able to trace her with any certainty after that). Another sister, Emma Hickmott (born at Ilford in 1856), was probably married but we don't as yet know who to. We have had a little more success in tracing the lives and families of the remaining seven children as follows:
William James Hickmott. Born in Marden in Kent in 1846, William (then 26 and unmarried) was working as an attendant at the Kent County Lunatic Asylum at Maidstone in 1871. Also on the staff there were Charles William Hickmott, 23, from Maidstone (Charles was the eldest son of Charles Thomas and Hannah Lawrence Hickmott nee Jupe) and William Hickmott, a 31 year-old baker from Detling in Kent, together his wife Mary (23, Islington) and daughters Clara Emily (2, Maidstone) and Alice (2m, Maidstone). The 1881 census had William James as the superintendent of the House of Industry at Douglas on the Isle of Man. With him was his wife Alice Hickmott (aged 34 and born at Marylebone in London) who was the matron of the same establishment. The Catherine House records indicate that Alice was Alice Higginson who William married in the Maidstone district of Kent in 1872 (we don't think William and Alice had any children). The same source shows that William died in the Epping registration district of Essex in 1885, and that Alice re-married (in the Milton registartion district of Kent in 1888 - prospective spouses were Frederick George Bridge and Charles Lamb).
Daniel Charles Hickmott. Born in Northfleet (pictured above) in 1847, Daniel, or Charles as he was sometimes described, was twice married. We have yet to determine the name of his first wife who died around 1880 and with whom we think he had three children: Mary Ann, William (possibly John William) and Emma Hickmott (who we think died in 1895). His second wife was Ellen Eliza Frances Pittman who he married at Bermondsey in London on 28 September 1884. Ellen was born at Woodford in Essex in 1857 and worked as a dressmaker before their marriage (the 1881 census shows her living with her widowed father, William Pittman, and married sister Matilda Gresham on Albert Road North in Chigwell). Daniel and Ellen's wedding certificate, obtained from Ancestry's London parishes database, informs us they were married at St James' Church in Bermondsey. Daniel was said to be a widower and bricklayer who resided at 79 Willow Walk. Ellen, a spinster, was 27 years old and lived next door. Her father was William Henry Pittman, a boat maker. The wedding was witnessed by Caroline Setter (Daniel's sister).
The 1891 census shows Daniel (a 44 year-old bricklayer) living at 35 Godense Road in West Ham in London. With him were Ellen (34) and three children. The 1901 census shows the family residing at Ley Street in Ilford in Essex. The family was still at Ilford in 1911 (at 2 Tyne Villa, Tyne Road). Those present were: Daniel Charles (64), Ellen Eliza Frances (54), Charles Frederick (25 year-old carriage cleaner who was born at Buckhurst Hill), James William (24 year-old bricklayer, Buckhurst Hill), Ada (18 year-old shop assistant, Ilford), Herbert (16 year-old office boy, Ilford), Henry (14 year-old factory boy, Ilford) and Arthur Hickmott (12, Ilford). The census return states that Daniel and Ellen had had eight children two of whom had died. Although still to be confirmed, we think that Daniel Charles and Ellen Eliza Hickmott nee Pittman both died at Ilford, in 1919 and 1916 respectively. What of their children?
We haven't been able to trace with any certainty the whereabouts of Ada Hickmott beyond the 1911 census (which showed her living with her parents at Ilford). The censuses indicate that her sister, Ellen Hickmott, worked as a nurse for the Hunt family at St Hilda in Woodford in Essex in 1901, and as a cook for the Guthie family in Chelsea in London in 1911. We know she lived with her youngest brother Arthur Hickmott and his wife in London between 1946 and 1956 but nothing else. As indicated, her brother Arthur Hickmott did marry, to Annie Emma Walker in the Romford RD of Essex in 1918, and lived at 121 Coburg Road in Camberwell in London between 1946 and 1956. Although still to be confirmed, we think Arthur died in the Newcastle upon Tyne district of Northumberland in 1971. We don't know if he and Annie had any children.
According to the 'witherspoon merged 20jul09' family tree on Ancestry.com, Ellen and Arthur's brother, James William Hickmott (1887-prob 1939), married Elsie May Drake (1893-1986) in the Romford RD of Essex on 20 February 1920. It adds that Elsie was born at Tunsted and died at Norwich in Norfolk and that she and James had two children - probably Maud Hickmott who married Harry Witherspoon in 1952 and Gordon James Hickmott (1928-80).
Ancestry's records of 'UK Soldiers who died in the Great War, 1914-19' includes a Henry Hickmott, a private soldier in the 2/6th Battalion (Territorials) of the Gloucestershire Regiment who was born at Ilford and died at Aldershot on 19 July 1916. Ancestry's military records also show that Daniel and Ellen's eldest son, Charles Frederick Hickmott of 2 York Cottages, Wright's Yard on Ley Street in Ilford, enlisted in the 8th (Reserve) Cyclist Battalion of the Essex Regiment on 10 October 1914 but was discharged 12 days later after being found 'medically unfit'. His NOK at the time was given as his wife, Ethel Hickmott, of the same address. Undeterred, Charles was able to re-enlist on 6 April 1915 and serve as a private soldier in the 6th Battalion The Buffs (East Kent Regiment). According to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission he died of wounds at Bethune in France on 20 March 1916. The record adds that he was the husband of Ethel Smith (formerly Hickmott) of 2 Bell Yard, Ley Street in Ilford. The Catherine House records indicate the Ethel was Ethel Faulkner who married Charles in the West Ham registration district of Greater London in Essex in 1912. A statement provided by her in 1919 indicates that she and Charles had three children all born at Ilford: Charles Frederick Hickmott (born on 13 August 1913), James Daniel Hickmott (5 September 1914) and Harry Verdun Hickmott (1 May 1915). She added that Charles' father and mother were both deceased and that he had no brothers or sisters still living. What of Charles and Ethel's own children?
1. Charles Frederick Hickmott (1913-81) married Evangeline Amelia Ganderton (1914-92) in the Romford RD of Essex in 1939. They lived for a time in Ilford and later Colchester in Essex where Charles died in 1981 and Evangeline in 1992. We believe they had at least two children including, possibly, Malcolm S. Hickmott who was born in the Yorkshire West Riding RD of Yorkshire in 1944.
2. James Daniel Hickmott married Minnie Florence Pile (1911-93), the daughter of William James and Minnie Maria Pile nee Harvey in the West Ham RD of Essex in 1953. We don't know as yet whether they had any children.
3. Although still to be confirmed, we think that Harry Verdun Hickmott (1916-93) married Ethel M. Searing in the East Ham RD of Essex in 1940. The London Electoral rolls show a Harry V. and Ethel M. Hickmott living at 198 Dore Ave in East Ham in 1964 and 1965. We don't know whether they had any children.
The UK WWI records further show that Herbert Hickmott enlisted in the Territorial Army at Romford in Essex on 19 April 1912 at the age of 17. He was then working as a clerk for the Richmond Gas Stove Company and was living at 2 Tyne Villas on Tyne Rd in Ilford. His NOK was Daniel Charles Hickmott of 7 Tyne Rd. Herbert was assigned to the 2nd Essex Battery of the Royal Field Artillery. He was mobilised on 5 August 1914 and seems to have served in England until his discharge from the Army, at the rank of Acting Corporal, on 18 June 1919. The records further show that Herbert married Fannie Elizabeth Bills at Bethnal Green in 1917 and that he and Fannie had a daughter, Murial Grace Hickmott, who was born at Kensington on 24 November 1918. Herbert and Fannie's marriage certificate shows that he was then a 22 year-old bachelor and sergeant in the Royal Field Artillery who was living at Brentwood in Essex at the time of the wedding. She was a 23 year-old spinster and laundry maid, the daughter of Frederick Richard Bills a commission clerk (her mother was Mary Ann Norman). The wedding was witnessed by Grace Lilian Bills. Fannie was born at Chelsea in London in 1892 and died in Cornwall in 1977. We think that Herbert had died in Essex two years earlier. We don't know if they had any more children.
The Catheriine House Records indicates that Herbert and Fannie's daughter Muriel married Albert E. Fordham in the Brentford registration district of Middlesex in 1946. The Fordham Family Tree on Ancestry.com tells us that Murial died at Greenford in England on 29 December 2000. Her husband Albert Edward Fordham was born in Hammersmith on 19 April 1916 and died in Greenford on 20 December 1978. He and Murial were said to have had two children both still living.
Caroline Elizabeth Hickmott. Born in Gravesend in 1854, Caroline, then aged 17 years, was working as a servant at Wallwood House in Leyton in Essex in 1871. She married George Setter (1852- 1928) at Bermondsey in London on 28 March 1875. The couple's wedding certificate, obtained from Ancestry's London parishes database, shows that she and George, the son of Philip Setter a labourer, were married at Christ Church in the New Parish of Christchurch in Bermondsey and that the wedding was witnessed by James Webber and Sarah Richards (we think George's mother was Mary Vickery). The same database together with the UK census returns indicate that George and Caroline had at least nine children, all born at Bermondsey: Maud Elizabeth (1877), Herbert George (1880), Lawrence (1882), Nora Jessie (1884), Ernest William (1887), Ethel Mary Ann (1889), Caroline Gertrude (1891), George (1894) and Philip Setter (1897).
The UK censuses show that after their marriage George and Caroline and their growing family lived in Bermondsey and then Camberwell in London. In 1911 they were at 539 Old Kent Road in Camberwell where George, who was said to have been born at St Thomas in Devonshire, was working as a fruit porter. With them at the time were three of their children: Ethel Marion (a 22 year-old waitress), George (a 17 year-old clerk) and Philip Setter (14). Also present was Caroline's nephew, Philip George Hickmott (a 19 year-old clerk), who would marry their daughter, Nora Jessie Setter, the following year (see below). The 1911 census return indicated that George and Caroline had been married 36 years and had nine children, one of whom - Lawrence Setter - was no longer living.
The England 1921 census shows George Setter, a 69 year-old warehouseman born at St Thomas in Devon, and Caroline Elizabeth Setter, 66 and born at Gravesend in Kent, were living at 3 Eswyn Road Tooting in London. With them were two of their children both of whom were born at Bermondsey: Ethel Marion (a 32 year-old waitress) and Phillip Setter, a 24 year-old electric telegraph printer mechanic. The London electoral rolls maintained by Ancestry showed George and Caroline still at 3 Eswyn Road in Tooting in 1922 and 1925 (together with their sons George jnr and Philip Setter). They died there in 1927 and 1928 respectively. Probate from George's will was allocated to their son Philip who was then working as a mechanic and, together with his sisters Ethel Marion Setter and Nora Jessie Hickmott, continued to live in their parents' house until at least 1965. What of George and Caroline's four daughters and five sons?
The London parishes database shows that George and Caroline's eldest daughter, Maud Elizabeth Setter (1877-1958(, married Edwin James Young (1872-1949), a sergeant in the 11th Hussars, at the Church of St James in Bermondsey on 8 February 1903. Edwin's father was said to be James Edward Young, a tailor. The wedding was witnessed by Herbert George and Norah Jessie Setter. Edwin's normal residence was then Ireland. The 1911 England census has Sergeant Edwin Young, married and born at Camden Town in 1873, was a resident in the Royal Artillery Barracks on Butt Road in Colchester in Essex. By the time of the 1921 England census, Edwin had left the Army and was working as a bank messenger. He and Maud were living at 37 Dean Road in Hounslow in Middlesex where they remained until their respective deaths on 30 November 1949 and 19 Apil 1958. We don't think they had any children. The England and Wales National Probate Calendar shows Maud left their estate to her youngest brother, Philip Setter.
Their second daughter, Nora Jessie Setter (1884-1981), married her mother's cousin Philip George Hickmott (1889-1918) at St Philip's Church in Camberwell in London on 14 July 1912 (the wedding was witnessed by Nora's siblings Herbert George and Ethel Marion Setter). His medal card in the National Archives tells us that Philip enlisted in the British Army on 24 April 1915 and served in France before being sent to Italy. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission records show a 'P. Hickmott', a 27 year-old Corporal of the Royal Army Ordnance Corps, died on active service in Italy on 29 October 1918 and is buried in the Arquata Scrivia Communal Cemetery Extension (Grave IE6). The records note he was born at West Kensington in London, the son of Edward Richard and Elizabeth Margaret Hickmott and husband of N. J. Hickmott, of 3 Eswyn Road Tooting. Nora did not re-marry and lived with her parents and family members until her death in London's Wandsworth RD in 1981.
George and Caroline's third daughter, Ethel Marion Setter (1889-1975), seemed not to have married and lived all her life with her parents and, following their deaths in the 1920s, her siblings. The Catherine House index shows she died in the Wandsworth RD of Greater London on 30 October 1975.
Finally, banns for the marriage of George and Caroline's fourth daughter, Caroline Gertrude Setter (1891-1956) - pictured on the right - to Albert Arthur Perrin (both of whom belonged to the Holloway parish) were read at St James Church, Holloway in Islington in London on 18 September, 25 September and 2 October 1910. The marriage did not proceed and the 'Symonds family tree' on Ancestry tells us Caroline later married a Henry Williams (who was born in 1888) at the Camberwell Register Office in 1912. It adds that Caroline died in 1956 and she and Henry had three children: 1) Philip Ernest Williams (1915-2002); 2) Maud Marion Jessie Williams (1917-2009) who married Federick William Symonds (1912-70) at the Wandsworth Town Hall on 23 September 1939 and had three children (all male); and 3) Eveline Katherine Williams (1923-31).
George and Caroline's eldest son, Herbert George Setter (1880-1947), married Louisa Sarah Kempton (1876-1953) at St Mary Magdalene Church at Bermondsey on 6 September 1903. According to the 'Steve Whitby Family Tree' on Ancestry Louisa's parents were George Kempton (1848-92) and Sarah Maria Meredith (1857- ) who were married in Sussex in 1874 and had a second daughter, Rhoda Celia Elizabeth Kempton, in 1882. The census returns and electoral rolls for London show that Herbert and Louisa lived initially at Bermondsey, then Deptford and then Camberwell where Herbert worked as a fruit market porter. The 1911 census has them at 539 Old Kent Road and indicates they then had four children, all living. The 1939 England and Wales Register has Herbert G. Setter (born 17 June 1879 and working as a Covent Garden Porter), Louisa Setter (22 June 1876, home duties), Connie Setter/Smith (12 November 1906, hd), Grace Setter, (married and born on 4 December 1912) and Megan Setter/Whitby (married stationer born 10 December 1917) all living at 539 Old Kent Road Camberwell (there may be one more entry that had been officially closed). The 1945 roll has them at 59 St Mary's Road in Camberwell where Herbert and Louisa died in 1947 and 1953 respectively. They had at least eight children we are aware of all of whom were born at Bermondsey:
(1) Eva Rhoda Hilda Setter (1904-35) who married Victor Bernard Connell (1901-84), the son of William Hopkins Connell and Sarah Ann Palmer, at Camberwell in Surrey in 1928. The London electoral rolls show Victor and Eva living at 115 Grove Park in Camberwell in 1929. Sometime after this they moved to King's Lynn in Norfolk where Eva died in 1935. They appear to have had at least one child who is still living. According to the 'Pimmett Family Tree' on Ancestry, Victor re-married in 1935 and died at Ipswich in Norfolk in 1984.
(2) Constance (or 'Connie') Setter (1906-90) married George P. Smith in the Camberwell RDin 1929.
(3) Cecilia Getrude Setter (1909-97) who married George Curtis in the Camberwell RD in 1937.
(4) Lawrence Setter (1910-91) married a local girl, Grace Newing (1913- ) in in the Camberwell RD in 1935. The electoral roll for 1936 shows Lawrence and Grace living at 84 Delaford Road in Camberwell. They were registered at 75 Ilderton Road in Rotherhithe in 1938, 33 Dundalk Road in Deptford between 1945 and 1947, and 31 Knoyle Street between 1949 and 1964.
(5) George Setter (1911-91). Born at Bermondsey, George was working as a warehouseman when he enlisted in the British Army on 23 July 1919 and served in the Machine Gun Corps for four years rising to the rank of Sergeant. The England and Wales Civil Registration Marriage Index, 1916-2005 shows George married Queenie Ethel Eames (1907-83) in the Stoke Newington RD of London in 1938. Born at Shoreditch in London, Queenie's parents were Charles Federick and Lilian Ethel Eames. The 1939 England and Wales Register has George Setter, a bank messenger born on 19 October 1911, and Queenie E. Setter, viewer of aircraft components born on 30 April 1907, living at 41 Cecilia Road Hackney in London. Ancestry's Surrrey England Electoral Registers, 1832-1962 have them at 18 Caen Wood Road in Ashstead in Surrey in 1948 (a Hebert H. and Eileen Eves were registered at the same address). Queenie died at Ashstead on 22 April 1983 and George at Ramsgate in Kent on 5 September 1991. We don't think they had childen.
(6) In 1937 Cecelia Gertrude Setter (1909-97) married George Curtis. The London electoral rolls show Cecelia and George living at 65 Grandison Road in Battersea between 1954 and 1965.
(5) In 1941 Megan Setter (1917-2003) married George Edward Whitby (1916-79), the son of Arthur George Whitby and Emma Ellen Schmidt. According to the 'Steve Whitby Family Tree' on Ancestry, George and Megan had three children all still living.
(6) Finally Herbert Ernest Setter (1914-92) married Dorothy Edwards there in 1966.
From the 'Steve Whitby Family Tree' on Ancesty, (L/R): Megan Whitby nee Setter, George Whitby,
Louisa Setter (Megan's mother), brother Philip Setter, brother George Setter and his wife Queenie.
British military records obtained from Ancestry.com show that George Setter jnr enlisted in the Army on 10 September 1914 and was allocated to the East Surrey Regiment. He went to France with the British expeditionary Force on 30 August 1915, serving there for 45 days in the Ist Battalion Machine Gun Corps and reaching the rank of Cpl. He was then in England from 14 September until 10 December 1915 before returning to France where he served until 15 February 1919. He served as a corporal in Britain's post-war Army for two years and later lived with his parents and siblings. George died in the Brent RD of Greater London in 1973. Although still to be confirmed, we don't think he married.
Born at Bermondsey in 1891, Lawrence Setter was working as a private soldier at Tanshelf Barracks in Yorkshire at the time of the 1901 census (he was probably with the 3rd Battalion Yorkshire Rifles although that has to be confirmed). The 1931 electoral roll had him living at 539 Old Kent Road together with his brother Herbert George Setter and his family. The Catherine House index shows that a Lawrence Setter and Grace Newing were married in the Camberwell RD of London in 1935. The electoral rolls show them living in Camberwell before the Second World War and in Deptford after it (until at least the mid-1960s). We haven't been able to find either Lawrence or Grace in Ancestry's death records.
The London Electoral Rolls on Ancestry show that Philip Setter lived at home with his parents and siblings in Tooting in London for much of his life. Although still to be confirmed we think he might have married Dorothy Edwards there in 1966, and died in the Wandsworth RD of Greater London in 1983.
Edward George Hickmott was born at Ilford in Essex in around 1859. He married Alice Ellen Chapman at Bermondsey in London on 15 July 1894. Their wedding certificate shows they were married at St Mary Magdalen Church in Bermondsey. Edward was 35 years old and Alice, the daughter of John Chapman, a deceased labourer, 29. They were both living at 79 Willow Walk at the time of the wedding which was witnessed by a G. W. Treadwell and E. A. Gould. The censuses show that Alice's birthplace was Margaret Ruthing in Essex and that she and Edward lived all their married lives in Ilford, he dying there in 1941 and she in 1949.
According to the 1911 census, they had eight children, two of whom died before the census date. We have not been able to trace with any certainty the whereabouts of their two eldest daughters, Mary Ann and Emma Lucy Hickmott, beyond the 1901 census or their two eldest sons, Edward George and William James Hickmott, beyond the 1911 census (there is some evidence Edward may have gone to Canada although this has still to be confirmed). We think that their next daughter, Caroline Elizabeth Hickmott, died in 1904. Their youngest son, Nelson Hickmott, was in Canada between 1914 and 1916, but returned to England where he died, in Ilford in Essex, in 1943. We don't think he married.
Born at Buckhurst Hill in Essex in 1865, Harriet Alice Hickmott was living with her parents there in 1871. At the time of the 1881 census Alice (as she was then called) was working as a house servant at 17 Frant Road in Tunbridge Wells (Alice's older sister Mary Ann was the cook at the same house). The Catherine House Records show that Alice Harriett Hickmott married Fred Basden in the St Olave registration district of London in the October quarter of 1889. Their wedding certificate shows that Fred was aged 33 years and worked as a licensed victualler. His father was Thomas Basden, a gardener (deceased). Alice Harriet, as she was called, was 28 years old. Her father was said to be William James Hickmott gardener. The marriage was witnessed by George and Caroline Setter. The censuses show Fred and Alice were living at 3 St Stephen's Cottages in Buckhurst Hill in 1901. By the time of the 1911 census, Harriet was widowed and living at 1 Robert's Cottage Buckhurst Hill with her two daughters Lily Marion and Caroline Beatrice 'Beatie' Basden (both born at Buckhurst Hill). The Catherine House index shows that Harriet died at Ilford in 1946. Although still to be confirmed, we think that both Harriet and Fred's daughters married, Caroline to Frank Webber in 1934 and Lilian to an unknown Lews in 1921.
Frederick Herbert Hickmott. Born at Buckhurst Hill in 1867, Frederick was living with his parents in Chigwell in Essex in 1871 and 1881. The Catherine House records show that he married Amy Clark in the Edmonton registration district of Essex in the April quarter of 1890 (vol. 3a, page 529). Amy was born at King's Cross in London in 1872. The 1891 census shows Frederick and Amy as visitors at the house of Fred and Agnes M. Mills at 4 Adelaide Place in Hanwell in Middlesex. Frederick was than a painter and was said to be born at Maidstone in Kent. The 1901 census has Federick, a 35 year-old cabman and groom, living at 79 Upton Park Road in West Ham in London with his wife Amy and daughter Mabel who was eight years old and had been born at Buckhurst Hill. Although still to be confirmed, we think that Mabel married Philip Norman Glendinning in the West Ham RD of London in 1924.
Ellen Ada Hickmott. The 1881 and 1891 censuses have Ellen living with her parents at Chigwell in Essex. The Catherine House records show she married Harry Edmund Blott in the Epping registration district of Essex in 1900. Harry, a butcher, was the son of Jonathon and Eliza Blott who, along with Harry and his older sister Maud, were living in Bethnel Green in 1891. The 1901 census shows Harry and Ada at 69 Bridge Road Battersea in London. With them was a 24 year-old 'servant' and 'butcher's assistant', James Hughes from Bethnel Green. The 1911 census has Harry E. Blott, a 42 year-old market butcher who was born at Bethnal Green in London, and his wife Ellen Ada (41, Buckhurst Hill) living at 168 Church Road Manor Park in Essex. With them was their seven year-old niece, Doris Rose Hickmott, who had been born at Manor Park. The census indicates that Harry and Ellen had been married ten years and had no children. The Catherine House records shows a Harry E. and Ellen A. Blott, aged 66 and 72 years respectively, died in Essex in 1935 and 1943.
Last updated: 25 May 2013
Image sources:
'Northfleet 1834', engraving by Wallis from original drawing by William Tombleson as part of his 'Views of the Thames and Medway' series; from Richard Nicholson of Chester Antique Maps and Prints.
