KIRKHAM LINE NOTES by E. Kay Kirkham

VARIOUS HISTORICAL NOTES

ON KIRKHAM LINE

FROM BOOK BY E. KAY KIRKHAM

 

JOHN KIRKHAM

 

As early as the year 1611 when John Kirkham was Captain of the ship Salamander, out of the Port of Bristol, the Kirkham family has been identified with the Bristol/Bath area.  The earliest christening of any record for Kirkham’s was 11 June 1673 when George Kirkham was recorded as the son of John and Mrs. John Kirkham.  This event took place at the Bath Abbey, St. Peter-St. Paul Church.  This ancient church was the religious home of the Kirkham’s for three generations.

 

JAMES KIRKHAM (1762)

 

James Kirkham was baptized 21 March 1762 in the Abbey Church, St. Peter-St. Paul, Bath, Somersetshire, England, the son of Thomas Kirkham and his wife Mary.  We do not know how he spent his childhood or youth except to say that he was in an area of England where there was much sea-going activity through the port of Bristol nearby.  Undoubtedly he received his desire to go to sea because of his visits to Bristol and the activity of the port there.  For a hundred years before his birth, the Port of Bristol had been an important embarkation place for American and the New World.

 

James grew to be five feet three inches tall, of a swarthy complexion with grey eyes and dark hair. 

 

When he was thirty-one years of age he entered the service of the Royal Navy by going aboard the ship Dictator as an ordinary seaman, 23 November 1793.  He also served on the ships Hector, Tonnant, and Britton, from his enlistment in 1793 until his discharge 19 Aug 1815.  At one time during this enlistment he had an accident to lose the first joint of his middle finger on the right hand.  The official report from the Public Record Office in 1929 states also that he had a hurt leg. 

 

James Mercer Kirkham (researcher) in his correspondence with the Vicar of Charles Parish, Plymouth, received this certification:

 

“Marriage solemnized in the Parish of Charles, Plymouth, in the County of Devon in the year 1813; James Kirkham, mariner, a bachelor and Ann Jeatt, Spinster, were married in this church by banns, this seventh day of February in the year one thousand eight hundred and thirteen by me, Robert Hawker, Vicar.

 

This marriage was solemnized between us:

James Kirkham

The mark (x) of Ann Jeatt

 

In the presence of W. Osborne

      Jane Jeatt.”

 

The place of the marriage of James and Ann Jeatt was a remarkable building.  It had been built almost two hundred years before their marriage and was not really completed in its structure until the year 1857.   The bells, a tower, and remodeling took place until the year 1815 when two galleries were added to the structure.  At one time, before its destruction by bombs in World War II, it was accepted as one of the best existing structures of gothic architecture. 

James was about 51 years old when he first married.    From his marriage date and his official record on the high seas, James Kirkham came into the Port of Plymouth while attached to the ship Briton, and went to the well known gothic church of Charles Parish and there married Ann Jeatt whose ancestry is not known at this time.  (Many hundreds of hours have been spent in trying to learn more of this family. {according to E. Kay Kirkham}). 

 

Being a pensioner of the Royal Navy, James Kirkham was entitled to residence in the Greenwich Hospital (a huge complex of buildings and obviously not like our current hospitals).  Keep in mind that James Kirkham (because of having been in the Royal Navy for twenty years before he was married) was quite old when his children were admitted to the hospital school, and he was possibly in for    the “hurt leg” received in the Navy.

 

The children born to this couple  are listed on the family group sheet.   Some were born in one parish and baptized in another.  As all the children eventually attended (or lived at) the Greenwich school until they were old enough to get out and earn their own way or to marry.

 

Ebenezer was baptized in 1822 and at St. Leonard, Shoreditch, London.  The parents address was Hoxton.  The father’s trade was rope maker.  Ebenezer was admitted to Greenwich Hospital School on 31 July 1826 and discharged to H.M.S. Ganges when he was fifteen years old in 1831. This was a year before the death of his father, and he was at sea at the time.  It is not known where or when Ebenezer died or where he resided during his lifetime---possibly Australia.

 

Jemima was born in the parish of St. Leonard, Shoreditch, London when her parents were living at 86 Long Alley, Shoreditch.  At that time, her father was a bricklayer.  She was admitted to the Greenwich School in 1929 and was still there in 1831.   She married a shoemaker, Henry J. Cornell on 1 November 1842 when she was 24 years of age, at Lambeth, St. John’s Waterloo, Surrey, Engl.  It seems they left to go to Canada in 1845. 

 

George, (our direct ancestor) was baptized on 13 May 1931 in the parish of Charles, Plymouth, Devonshire, England.  His parents were living at 21 Tavistock Street, Old Town, Plymouth.  He was admitted to the school of his siblings in on 8 January 1834 at age 9.  At that time, he was declared a “real object of charity”.

 

Jane Kirkham was listed as 5 ½ year old in 1831, which means her birth year was about 1825-6.

 

Other addresses given for this couple from the Public Records Office were:

 

1824:

21 Mount Pleasant, East Row, City Road, Shoreditch, Middlesex.

 

1831:

5 Knight’s Court, Greenwalk, Holland Street, Blackfriar (near Waterloo Bridge) in London which was probably in Christ Church Parish.

 

While in the hospital at Greenwich, James Kirkham passed away on 25 Aug 1832 (age 70) within the Christ Church parish, Newgate, London.  His wife Ann was living as well as children, aged 16, 14, 10, 6, and 1 ½.  

GEORGE WILLIAM KIRKHAM (1822)

Born 18 March 1822 and went to the Greenwich school when he was 12 in January of 1834.n His elderly father died when George was 10 years of age.   He was a painter and bachelor at the time of his wedging on 17 December 18944.  The newlyweds kept a Green Front store in London.

 Ten years after their marriage, they joined the LDS church, with Mary Ann joining 2 months prior to George.   Five years later, Uncle Thomas Isom left Mary Ann “a neat sum of money” to permit them to emigrate to Zion in Utah.  This sum of money left to Mary Ann permitted her family to make the voyage without want or a lack of necessities upon arrival in the valley of the Great Salt Lake.  They were traveling with four sons, ages seven, five, and three year old twins.  Their actual departure took place on Monday, April 11, 1859, aboard the sailing ship William Tapscott.  There were 725 Saints on board and the Kirkham family was aboard in the bowery, between decks. 

 

The children of George William and Mary Ann were seven in number: the first son, Thomas James, died in London aged two; and the two youngest daughters, the only daughters, Mary Ann Eliza and Frances were born and died in the Salt Lake valley. 

GREGORYS

I recently received the following note from Lynn Taylor from Australia.  I am always glad to get comments on any information I have on this blog. 

"Hi Carolyn
My name is Lynn TAYLOR from BRIS QLD AUSTRALIA.

I visited your 'George KIRKHAM & Edward WRIGLEY family site and noted that my GREGORY family, and who married in that family, were listed there.

 My grt/grt/grt grandfather is Thomas GREGORY,  the grand nephew of Sir Thomas Masterman HARDY.  Tthat information is taken from a journal of my grt grt grandfather, Joshua Hamlet GREGORY.  His son, Eugene Arthur GREGORY, is my grt grandfather.  His son, Stanley Douglas GREGORY is my grandfather.

 I was thrilled to see so much of my family on these pages and to read the history of EYAM DERBYSHIRE, which I knew nothing about.  I have noted this family line on familysearch,org as well.

Thank you so much for your information that has allowed me to see my family history that far back.    from Lynn TAYLOR"

WRIGLEY GUM ADDITION

Since posting the materials I received from Jeanne Dunn concerning the Wrigley Gum Family, I have received the following  interesting e-mails with additional information from Jeanne.  I am always glad when anyone has any material that can be added to this blog.  Thank you, Jeanne.

Hi Carolyn,

I’ve done the William Wilkerson Wrigley line ....... I think I have his line back to Oldham, Lancashire to a Joel Wrigley and wife Hannah…probably doing the same thing you did, Ancestry and family search. There is another website you might be interested in although it isn’t Yorkshire…it’s Lancashire.  It’s called Lancashire Clerks Online.  They are putting all the extant church registers online….. St. Chad Rochdale is on it…and that’s where my Wrigleys went before the “new” St Chad in Saddleworth was built. 

Here’s the “gum” line:
                Edmund Wrigley and Jane Milnes  > Edward Wrigley came to Philadelphia 1826 and married and Susan Paxson > William Wrigley and Mary Ann Ladley -> William Wrigley (chewing gum)>  Edmund Wrigley > John Eveleth Wrigley >  Hugh Tamony Wrigley > Genevieve A. Wrigley > à moi (Jeanne Dunn)
An additional e-mail was sent from Jeanne.
          
"I just looked at what I sent you and I am not sure I was clear….
The William Wrigley who married Mary Ann Ladley and produced William the “gum king”  was brother to Edmund Wrigley who married Alma Eveleth Wrigley and was my ggfather.  Another fun fact is that William who eventually became very rich on gum  had been tossed out of Abington Friends School for bad behavior. According to an article I received from Bill Wrigley (my fourth cousin and the current owner who just sold the family business) William Wrigley was frequently in trouble in school and finally got expelled when the threw a pie at the school sign. His father, William Wrigley senior can’t have been happy and put his son to work in his soap factory probably doing the nastiest kinds of jobs. When he was old enough he became a traveling salesman for Wrigley Soap (his father’s product). He was somewhat of an advertizing genius. ….and the rest is history!"
Jeanne Dunn

I am a 1940 Indexer and Arbitrator.

155,000 of us finished indexing and arbitrating the 1940 Census in 3.5 months instead of the projected 6 months.  

Carolyn Christensen

Wrigley Gum Comments

I received the following email about the Wrigley Gum line.  I have added it as a comment on the material about Wrigley Gum, but wanted to add it here to make it more noticeable.  I love getting additional information.

Hi Carolyn,

I  am  a Wrigley researcher. I have done a lot on the Philadelphia Wrigleys  (my line) who include the Chicago (gum) Wrigleys. The current Bill Wrigley is my 4th cousin.

I ran across your blog when I was researching a Wrigley line that so far is not connected to my line.  I have been researching my family so long  (20+ years) that I now correspond  with a lot of Wrigley researchers all over the world. First, kudos on your extensive work. I have been thinking about doing a blog but have never gotten around to it. When I started, I depended on family stories and got side tracked a number of times. I am afraid your “Grandma Sarah” was mistaken about where the Philadelphia Wrigleys came from.   My 3 rd  great grandfather, Edward, came from Saddleworth, Yorkshire, England to Philadelphia and his grandson went to Chicago on business and founded the gum empire.  His line dates first to ould tame back in the mid 17th century (as far back as I could get) and gradually moved eastward to Broadhead and Knowl to the early 19th century.  This area is east of Manchester near the villages of Uppermill and Delph in Yorkshire. I have visited there several times

I am very interested in your Wrigley line and am going to read all your notes with great interest….as I have three different people whom I am helping. Maybe they are connected to you. (Probably you and I are connected too, although it would have to be back around the 1300’s I think.

I would be pleased to correspond!

Jeanne Dunn

HANNAH HARDY ECKERSLEY CROMPTON

Hannah Hardy Eckersly Crompton was born June 10, 1815 in the city of Oldham, Lancashire, England.  She was the daughter of James and Mally Hardy.  Her people were good, honest hard-working people.  All of them belonged to the Methodist Church and were very devout and sincere.  They persuaded her to go to church with them, but she came away unsatisfied with their way of teaching the gospel.  One night when she was returning home, she said, "Father, I am a stranger here."  About two weeks after, she heard a 'Mormon' elder preach and was soon converted as it appealed to her hungry soul that was seeking for the truth.  She was baptized in December, 1841 (age 26), when the ice had to be broken and steps made to go down into a pond of water.  She was very hoarse with a bad cold, but when she went home after being baptized, she said she was well and the cold had left her.  She was baptized by William Schofield.

They emigrated from England in 1845(age 30) on a sailing vessel known as "Palmyra".  They were six weeks crossing the sea.  She landed in St. Louis, with her husband and four little girls, leaving a mother, two brothers and five sisters in England.  They all felt very badly at parting with her and told her if she was not satisfied when she reached America, to let them know and they would help her to return.  She gave birth in 1846 to a little boy, who lived six weeks and was buried in St. Louis.  Her husband died there in 1847 (Hannah, age 32), leaving her to support herself and four girls.*(See below)   She worked at the Planter Hotel, which was up the river to Council Bluffs, where she met John Crompton, married him in Council Bluffs in 1850 (age 35).  In 1851, there was born to them a little girl who lived one year, and was buried there.

They began to prepare to follow the saints to Utah.  They left in the spring of 1853 in an independent company (age 38, 8 years after leaving England).  Their captain was Edward Pugh.  When they reached the North Platte River in the state of Nebraska, a baby girl was born.  They forded the Platte River the next morning.  The new baby was called Margaret Emma.  The mother was too sick to nurse her baby.  She was fed on milk from the cows that had to help pull the load.  This milk did not agree with the baby and she was not well until their arrival in Utah.  They arrived in Utah in September.  They picked up potatoes on shares and had enough to do them all winter. (See the attached story, In Covered Wagon Days.)

John and Hanna moved to Little Cottonwood, where they resided two years.  A baby girl was born to them in 1856 (Hannah age 41).  They moved to Cedar Valley in the spring of 1856.  On account of the Indians being on the war path, they moved to American Fork that same year. 

      They went through all the hardships of pioneer life.  Many times they were without bread and gathered weeds, berries, and thistle roots, until they could raise something.

Their first crop was barley, which matured a little earlier than the wheat.  This barley was ground in a coffee mill to make bread.  Their only sweets were beet and carrot molasses, which they made themselves.  Hannah sold feathers out of her bed for a shawl to make her two little girls some dresses.

Hannah made a trip to her native land when she was over 60 years old, to get genealogy of her people, so she could do temple work for them.  She found one brother and a sister alive.  None of them ever joined the 'Mormon' church, but have come to her in dreams for her to do their work for them, which she did willingly.  She did considerable work in the Logan, Manti, and Salt Lake Temple. 

She was a counselor to Sister Mary Handley in the American Fork Relief Society for seventeen years, and was  always faithful to every trust.  When she left American Fork, the President of the Relief Society and members made her a present of a $15.00 Bible.  She was Sunday School teacher under Brother William Paxman for a number of years.

Hannah and her husband left American Fork in 1890(age 65) and went to Sanpete County to live with her eldest daughter in part of her home; she, being left a widow, and they were getting too old to care for themselves.  Hannah Hardy Eckersley Crompton passed away in March, 1901 age 86) in Sanpete County and was buried there.  Her desire was to be buried in American Fork, where she had spent so many years and had so many true friends.  After she had been buried fourteen years, her daughter, Mrs. Warren B. Smith went down to Freedom, Sanpete County and had her remains removed to American Fork cemetery. 

Of her posterity, she left six daughters, eighty grand children and great grand children, and one great-great grandchild.  She died as she had always lived, a faithful Latter-day Saint and in the full hope of a glorious resurrection and her children called her blessed. 

IN COVERED WAGON DAYS

By Mrs. Mary E. Abel

(The story of the birth of Margaret Emma Crompton Rushton, daughter of Hannah and John Crompton)

After the Saints had been driven from Nauvoo, a brother by the name of Crompton went to St. Louis to secure an outfit to go to the land of Zion to be with the Saints of God.  The arduous journey across the plains was at length begun with one yoke of oxen and one of cows hitched to a covered wagon containing their few necessary valuables and provisions for the journey.

While in the state of Nebraska, they camped on the Platte River.  This night a terrible storm arose.  The lightning flashed, the thunder roared.  It seemed as though the elements were no longer under control.  The wind was so terrific that the wagons had to be chained to the ground. 

At twelve o'clock midnight, Mrs. Crompton gave birth to a little baby girl.  Every sister in the company was anxious to lend all the assistance they could to comfort this little mother, yet the care she and the baby should have had was out of the question on this terrible night.  As a result, she was very ill; so ill that she begged her husband to leave her by the wayside.  She had no nurse for her new-born babe and so its food was obtained by diluting the milk from one of the cows comprising their team.  This seemed to poison the baby.

For two months, the baby was carried on a pillow and her life was despaired of.  In September of that year, 1853 they neared the valley, the mother's health improved, and the baby began to thrive.

This little babe grew to womanhood and has lived a wonderful life of service in the communities in which she has lived, in her own home, and in her remembrance of her kindred dead.

Surely Father understood.

*Note:    In the book, Pioneer Women of Faith & Fortitude, Vol I, a biography of Hannah Hardy Eckersley Crompton states:

The following year (after the birth and death of baby James Henry) William went into town, and some say he was mugged and killed for the money he had hidden in his coat, because when he was found there was no money.  This left Hannah with four small girls and no support.  She took employment at the largest hotel in St. Louis and earned enough money to get the family to Council Bluffs, Iowa, the taking off place for Utah.

 Sarah’s mother left St. Louis in 1850 with family and went to Council Bluffs, Iowa.  There she met and married John Crompton.  This family, with the desire to come to Zion, began their trek west.  Upon their arrival in Platte River Nebraska, a daughter, Emma, was born to them on the 21^st of July 1853.  A few months later they arrived in Salt Lake.

PICTURE COLLECTION

I have added the following pictures to their Life Sketches thanks to Kathy Reed: 
Annie Kirkham Fox
Leah Kirkham Anderson
Daisy Kirkham Christensen
Alvin Kirkham
Ruby Kirkham Pack
George E. Kirkham

I am trying to collect as many pictures as possible.  If you have any that are applicable that are not on this blog, please contact me.  Carolyn