B R I T L A N D

As kindly pointed out to us by Mr. John J. Britland, of Derby, “There is a place named Britland edge hill in the very north of Derbyshire, so it [Britland] is a Derbyshire name.” The place is however so small that it is not listed in any gazetteer we have seen, and the name is so rare that it is not mentioned in Guppy’s Homes of Family Names in Great Britain (1890). Of the 43 entries in Boyd’s Marriage Index, 17 are for Derbyshire.

The following account is primarily a reconstruction based on John Palmer’s transcriptions of the parish registers of Wirksworth and Middleton-by-Wirksworth, Derbyshire, England, 1608-1899,^[1] and of Matlock, Derbyshire, 1637-1856.^[2] Other documentary sources include John Palmer’s transcriptions of the censuses of Wirksworth hundred, Derbyshire, for 1841,^[3] 1851,^[4] and 1861.^[5] We have shown the suspected ancestor of this family in a greyed-out box, as his identity is not proved.

In addition to John J. Britland, we should like to thank the following for assistance:

• Stuart Flint, for pointing out to us the marriage record of Elizabeth Britland, daughter of Jesse Britland, which we had unaccountably neglected to include in an earlier draft, and for supplying a record of her family;
• Sandra Ibbotson, for information on her husband’s branch of the family.

1.   Robert Britland, of Cromford, b. say 1715, living 1758 (when his youngest known child was baptized), was probably the one of this name buried 5 March 1782 in Wirksworth churchyard, the age at death being unstated. Aside from the good chronological fit, there are certain indications that he may have belonged to the family of John Britland, above, such as the facts of his (like two of John Britland’s proven sons) marrying a Holmes, and (like John Britland) naming a daughter Patience, a somewhat uncommon name. However, stronger proof is required. He m. 26 July 1739 in Wirksworth parish church, Mary Holmes, of Cromford at the time of their marriage, who as “Mary, wife of Robert Britland, of Cromford” was buried 26 Dec. 1783 in Wirksworth churchyard (her age at death not being stated in the record). She was perhaps the Mary Holmes, daughter of Samuel Holmes, of Cromford, who was bapt. 23 May 1712 at Wirksworth; it will be noted that she named a son Samuel. Known issue (all baptisms in the parish church of Wirksworth):^[7]

1. 2William Britland, bapt. 19 Oct. 1739.
2. Mary Britland, bapt. 10 Nov. 1742, d. July 1818 at Middleton-by-Wirksworth. She m. 18 Nov. 1762 at Wirksworth, John Brooks, and had issue:^[8]
   1. Mary Brooks, bapt. 11 April 1764.
   2. Lydia Brooks, bapt. 23 Sept. 1766, d. 31 Jan. 1768 at Middleton-by-Wirksworth.
   3. Alice Brooks, bapt. 3 Jan. 1770.
   4. Edward Brooks, bapt. 14 Dec. 1774.
   5. Thomas Brooks, bapt. 25 May 1775. He m. 22 Dec. 1791 at Wirksworth, Mary Hoades, and had issue.
   6. Elizabeth Brooks, bapt. Sept. 1778.
   7. Simeon Brooks, bapt. 16 June 1779.
   8. Lydia Brooks, b. 3 Sept. 1781 at Middleton-by-Wirksworth, d. there 20 Feb. 1782.
   9. William Brooks, bapt. 16 Jan. 1784.
3. Elizabeth Britland, bapt. 19 March 1745/6. According to Robinson, was the one of this name who m. 19 Oct. 1767 at Wirksworth, Benjamin Sterndale, cordwainer, the witnesses being Anthony “Wesson” and Joseph Britland. This would be consistent with the appearance of a Benjamin “Standall” as a witness to the marriage of Ann Britland, below. Because there was a contemporary Benjamin Sterndale who m. 16 July 1755 at Wirksworth, Sarah Roper,^[9] and as the baptismal records of this period do not provide the names of the mother, we are unable to say whether any of the children of a Benjamin Sterndale baptized at Wirksworth belong to the present couple.
4. Robert Britland, bapt. 13 May 1748, of whom no further record has been found, unless he is the one of this name who appeared as a witness at the marriage of Patience Britland in 1772.
5. Ann Britland, bapt. 7 Nov. 1750. According to Robinson, she was the one of this name who m. 16 Sept. 1769 at Wirksworth, Anthony Weston, possibly the Anthony Wesson, aged 71 years, who was buried 17 April 1816 at Cromford. The marriage record, which states that he was a minor, gives the names of the witnesses as Benjamin “Standall” and Robert Britland. This couple had issue:^[10]
   1. Anthony Weston, bapt. 29 Sept 1771 at Wirksworth as a son of Anthony and Ann Weston, of Cromford, buried 27 Jan. 1797 as a son of Anthony and Ann Weston, of Cromford.
   2. Joseph Weston, bapt. 7 May 1773 at Wirksworth as a son of Anthony and Ann Weston, of Cromford. He m. 2 Oct. 1800 at Wirksworth, Ann Fox, and had issue.^[11]
6. Patience Britland, bapt. 2 May 1753. According to Robinson, she was the one of this name who was buried 20 Sept. 1775 as Patience, wife of John Roper, of Cromford, having presumably died in childbirth as her short-lived daughter Patience was baptized the same day. She m. 23 April 1772 at Wirksworth, John Roper. The witnesses to the marriage were Paul Cotterill and Robert Britland. Only known child:
   1. Patience Roper, bapt. 20 Sept. 1775, buried 26 Sept. following.
7. John Britland, of Matlock, bapt. 2 April 1755, probably the John Britland “who departed this life January 11, 18— [illegible], aged 82 years,” who is buried in Wirksworth churchyard. If so, he m. 14 Sept. 1775 at Matlock, Elizabeth Fox, who as “Elizabeth, wife of John Britland, who departed this life October 4, 1829, aged 70 years,” was buried in the same place; she was a daughter of Samuel Fox (whose will is said to name John Britland) and Helen Walker.^[12] In any case, John Britland and Elizabeth ____ were parents of:
   1. Robert Britland, bapt. 3 March 1782 at Wirksworth as a child of John and Elizabeth Britland, of Cromford. We have not found a likely match for him in later records.
   2. Andrew Britland, bapt. 25 June 1786 in Cromford Independent Chapel, Matlock Bath; no further record found.
   3. John Britland, b. 2 May 1788, bapt. 29 June following in Cromford Independent Chapel, Matlock Bath. We have not found a likely match for him in later records.
   4. Jesse Britland, framework-knitter (as he is designated in the marriage records of three of his children), b. 7 Dec. 1789, bapt. 25 Dec. following in Cromford Independent Chapel, Matlock Bath, who as Jesse Britland, of Cromford, aged 58 years, was buried 22 Oct. 1847 at Wirksworth. He m. 31 Dec. 1810 in the parish church of Matlock,^[13] Mary Growcot. Issue (all baptisms in Cromford Independent Chapel, Matlock Bath):
      1. Sarah Britland, b. 4 Nov. 1811, bapt. 8 Dec. following, not living with her parents in 1841. As Sarah, daughter of Jesse Britland, framework-knitter, she m. 29 Oct. 1838 at Wirksworth, Edwin Wildgoose a.k.a. Wilkinson, of Cromford, book-keeper, illegitimate son of Dorothy Wildgoose, apparently by Joseph Wilkinson (and not of the fictitious “Joseph Wildgoose, joiner” named in his marriage record); his parents did not marry until two years after his birth. The witnesses to the marriage were Nathaniel Staley and Hannah Hinkinson (?). As pointed out to us by the wife of a descendant, Sandra Ibbotson, Edwin appears as Edwin Wilkinson in census records. Known issue:^[14]
         1. William Wilkinson, b. 1840 at Cromford.
         2. James Edwin Wilkinson, b. 28 March 1847 at Broughton Green, Salford, Lancashire, d. in 1906 at Rotherham, Yorkshire. He m. on 1869 at East Retford, Nottinghamshire, Jane Bowman, b. in 1848 at East Markham, Newark, Notinghamshire, alive in 1901, daughter of William Bowman and Sarah Moss. Issue:
            1. James Edwin Wilkinson, b. in 1874-75 Masborough, Rotherham.
            2. Emma Martha Wilkinson, b. 1877 at Masborough.
            3. John William Wilkinson, b. 1879 at Masborough.
            4. Isabella Jane Wilkinson, b. 1881 at Masborough.
            5. Helen Hannah Wilkinson, b. 1885-86 at Masborough.
            6. Bertha Alice Wilkinson, b. 28 July 1888 at Masborough, d. 28 Feb. 1977 at Bradgate, Rotherham. She m. 9 Sept. 1919 in Kimberworth, Rotherham, William Ibbotson, b. 5 Nov. 1891 at Kimberworth, Rotherham, d. there 26 March 1944, son of Arthur Ibbotson and Florence Hinchcliffe. Issue:
               1. Dennis Ibbotson, b. 4 Dec. 1920 at Bradgate, Rotherham, d. 6 Aug. 2002 at Moorgate, Rotherham. He m. 29 May 1945 at Thrybergh, Rotherham, Mary Manns, b. 14 Feb. 1920 at Rotherham, d. there 29 Sept. 1994, daughter of Thomas Manns and Ada Staniforth. They had four children.
               2. Bertha Ibbotson, b. 8 Nov. 1921 at no. 131 Wortley Road, Rotherham, d. in Oct. 1987 at Rotherham.
            7. Jennie Wilkinson, b. 1892-93 at Masborough.
         3. John Wilkinson, b. 1855 at Derby, Derbyshire.
         4. Emma Wilkinson, b. 1856 at Derby, Derbyshire.
      2. (probably) A son who d. by 1841, having m. Hannah ____, who as Hannah Britland, b. 1815-16 (aged 25 years in 1841), is found with Jesse and Mary Britland in the 1841 census, and was presumably the mother of Lydia Britland (aged 5 years) and Ellen Britland (aged 1 month), listed immediately after her.
      3. Mary Britland, b. 11 Jan. 1815, bapt. 8 Feb. following, buried as Mary Horobin, aged 23 years, 17 April 1838 at Wirksworth. As Mary Britland, cotton-spinner, daughter of Jesse Britland, framework-maker, she m. 27 Nov. 1837 at Wirksworth, Charles Horobin, of Cromford, ostler, b. 23 May 1798 at Under Whitle, Sheen, Staffordshire, who as Charles Horobin, of Cromford, aged 43 years, was buried 26 Jan. 1842 at Wirksworth; he was a son of John Horobin and Mary Wheeldon.^[15] The marriage record does not name his father; the witnesses were Nathaniel Staley and Sarah Britland. Considering the brevity of their marriage it is unlikely there was issue; and no child appears with Charles Horobin in the 1841 census, in which he appears in the household of his father-in-law.^[16]
      4. Elizabeth Britland, b. (or baptized?) 25 Jan. 1818. As Elizabeth daughter of Jesse Britland, framework-knitter, she m. 29 Oct. 1838 at Wirksworth, John Crofts, of Cromford, b. 15 Nov. 1814, son of David Crofts (a carpenter with Richard Arkwright & Co.) and Susannah Birch. The groom is described in the record as a foundry-worker, and his father as a wheelwright; the witnesses were William Britland and Hannah Crofts. According to Stuart Flint, “John Crofts was a Iron Founder in his early years, but by some good fortune, he gained a position as a School Teacher at Bonsall Free Grammar School. He and Elizabeth then removed to Tansley near Matlock, where he taught in an Elementary School and then removed again to Somercotes near Alfreton. By the 1850s he was Head Master at a Public School at Isleworth Middlesex. His sister (my great-grandmother Emily Crofts) married Henry Flint … son of Samuel and Mary Flint née Killer.” Further details are supplied by information published by Donna Saunders, who is our source for most of what follows:^[17] “John Crofts … was a school teacher in the village of Bonsall on the 1851, 1861 and 1871 census. As far as I know he ran the Parish School where the Bonsall History Society now resides. In 1851 he lived at Dale End and was a ‘Teacher of the Parish School.’ In 1861 he lived at 2 Dale End and was classified as ‘School Master’ on the census. In 1871 he lived at New Inn, Dale and was an Elementary School Teacher on the census. His youngest daughter Florence, who was 14 in 1871, was a teachers assistant…. John and Elizabeth Crofts moved to Isleworth, Middlesex by 1881, and their children moved away from Bonsall…. Their ten children were born in Tansley, Somercotes and Bonsall, and they all went on to become very successful individuals…. All of them married and had families except for Marianne who remained single.” Known issue:
         1. Henry Crofts became a C.S. Education Department Assistant and lived in Chiswick, Middlesex.
         2. Marianne Crofts lived with her youngest sister Florence at Battersea, Surrey, where they were both school teachers.
         3. James Crofts, Head Master at Sir Thomas Rich’s School, Longlevens, co. Gloucester, Gloucester, from 1869 to 1906.
         4. John Crofts moved to Stapenhill, Derbyshire and became a commercial brewer’s clerk.
         5. William Crofts moved to Alfreton, Derbyshire, in 1881, and then to Sutton-in-Ashfield, Nottingham, by 1901, and was a banksman, and then a draper.
         6. Charles Crofts moved to Hornsey, Middlesex and became a commercial railway clerk.
         7. Samuel Crofts moved to Ealing, London and became a railway clerk.
         8. Septimus Crofts moved to Sale, Cheshire and became a smallware-buyer and silk-dealer manager.
         9. Arthur Crofts moved to Nottingham and became a banker and clerk.
         10. Florence Crofts was living unmarried with her sister Marianne in 1881 and was a school teacher, but later married by 1901, ____ Mills.
      5. William Britland, b. (or baptized?) 4 May 1820, living unmarried with his parents in 1841, but not found in Wirksworth census records in 1851. As William Britland, of Cromford, miller, aged 20 years, son of Jesse Britland, stockinger [i.e. stocking-maker], he m. 6 Aug. 1840 at Wirksworth, Hannah Romford, of Wirksworth, daughter of George Romfort, farmer. The witnesses were James Hardy and Alice Mountenay. He and his wife, who do not appear to have had any children baptized at Wirksworth, emigrated to New York, where as William Britland, miller, aged 60 years, born in England, and Hannah, aged 63, they are found in the 1880 census of Harrisville, Lewis Co.^[18] A good account of their family is supplied by a local history:

         William Britland, a native of Derbyshire, Eng., located in the town of Carthage, at Great Bend, about 1842, and a few years later removed to Carthage, where he resided about 20 years, when he removed to Harrisville, Lewis County, where he died in 1884. He was a miller, and was well known in this county. He married Hannah Rumford, and they had four children, three of whom are living, namely: Emma (Mrs. Milton Osborn), in Harrisville; William, in Nevada City, Cal., and George J., in this town. George J. Britland was born September 7, 1843. September 11, 1862, he enlisted in Co. D, 10th Regt. N.Y.H.A., and was discharged July 5, 1865. In 1878 he married Elizabeth, daughter of Job Cudworth, and they have one son, William Herbert. Mr. Britland has been in the employ of M.P. Mason since 1865.^[19]

      6. Lydia Britland, b. 11 Feb. 1823, bapt. 6 March following, not found in her parents’ household in 1841.
      7. Emma Britland, b. 9 Nov. 1830, bapt. 25 Dec. 1831 (sic), living 1841.
8. Samuel Britland, bapt. 19 April 1758, buried 24 Sept. following at Wirksworth as a son of Robert Britland, of Cromford.

2.   William Britland, of Cromford, son of Robert Britland and Mary Holmes, was bapt. 19 Oct. 1739, and was still alive in 1784. He was probably one of the two men named William Britland, both of Cromford, who died in 1795, one being buried on 7 June and the other on 4 August of that year. As “William Britland, of Wirksworth, miner [i.e. minor, since he was under the age of 25],” he m. 16 Jan. 1764 in the parish church of Matlock, Lydia Limb,^[20] of Matlock at the time of their marriage, who as “Lydia, wife of William Britland, of Cromford,” was buried 18 Feb. 1810 (her age at death not being stated in the record). They doubtless had more children than we have indicated, but because of the failure of most of the pre-1780 Wirksworth baptismal records to give the names of the mothers, their issue — except for the first two children, born before 1767 — is difficult to distinguish from that of his contemporary, William Britland, of Cromford, who m. 30 Aug. 1767 at Wirksworth, Dorothy Loxly, also of Cromford (see below). The only children of the present couple for whom the baptismal records supply the name of the mother are Benjamin (1780), Charles (1782), and Samuel (1784), although burial records provide the mother’s name for a few of the others, and Mary (1764) and Lydia (1765) were born before the marriage of William Britland to Dorothy Loxly.
    Known issue (order partly inferential; all baptisms and burials at Wirksworth):

1. Mary Britland, bapt. 13 July 1764 as a daughter of William Britland, of Cromford (mother not named in record), buried 25 Jan. 1782 (mother’s first name given in burial record).
2. Lydia Britland, bapt. 22 Sept. 1765 as a dau. of William Britland, of Cromford (mother not named in record), and as “Lydia, wife of William Fogg of Cromford,” buried 29 April 1804 in Wirksworth churchyard. She (then of Wirksworth) m. 26 Dec. 1785, William Fogg, of Cromford, b. ca. 1762-63, d. May 1835, aged 72 years, and buried 27 May 1835 in Wirksworth churchyard. The witnesses at their marriage were Thomas Brown and George Salt.^[21]
3. William Britland, buried 11 Aug. 1800 as a child of William and Dorothy Britland. He was probably either the William, son of William Britland of Cromford, bapt. 13 Nov. 1767, or else the William, son of William Britland of Cromford, bapt. a Jan. 1768.
4. Samuel Britland bapt. 19 June 1774, buried 26 Aug. 1781 as a son of William and Dorothy Britland.
5. (possibly) Peter Britland, bapt. 7 April 1776 as a son of William Britland, of Cromford (mother not named in record), living 1861. We think it likely he was a son of the present couple because of his naming of a daughter Lydia, but we cannot consider the question proved.^[22] He (then of Cromford) m. 5 June 1808, Mary Waterfield, b. 1780-86, d. 1841-51. The witnesses at their marriage were Richard Gibson and W. Wilkinson. He is called a cotton-spinner in the baptismal records of his children Lydia (1814), Benjamin (1816), and Elizabeth (1819). He is found with his family in the 1841 census of Cromford, in which he is called a cotton-spinner. In 1851 he is found as a widower, living at North Street, Cromford, and is called a “pauper cotton-spinner.” In 1861 he was at the same street, and is called “formerly a cotton factory worker.” Known issue:
   1. James Britland, “son of Peter & Mary Britland, of Cromford,” buried 2 Sept. 1810.
   2. William Britland, “son of Peter & Mary Britland, of Cromford,” b. 19 Nov. 1808, bapt. 11 Dec. following in Cromford chapel, buried 5 Jan. 1812, aged 3 years.
   3. Peter Britland, Jr., b. 15 June 1811, bapt. 7 July following in Cromford chapel, living 1861. He was living unmarried with his parents in 1841. He m. by 1851, Mary Ann ____, b. 1818-19, living 1861. They are found very close (possibly next door) to his father in the 1851 census, in which he is called a laborer. In 1861 he was on Wirksworth Road, Cromford, and is still called a laborer. Known issue:
      1. Lydia Britland, b. 1848-49, living with her parents in 1851 but not in 1861.
      2. William Britland, b. 1849-50, living with his parents in 1861.
      3. Herbert Britland, b. 1856-57, living 1861.
   4. Mary Britland, b. 1812-13, living unmarried with her parents in 1841, but no longer living with her father in 1851.
   5. Lydia Britland, b. 1 May 1814, bapt. 22 May following in St. Mary’s parish church, Cromford, living unmarried with her parents in 1841, but no longer living with her father in 1851.
   6. Benjamin Britland, b. 11 Sept. 1816, bapt. 29 Sept. following, buried 30 Nov. 1824, aged 8 years.
   7. Elizabeth Britland, b. 2 Jan. 1819, bapt. 18 April following, buried 25 Dec. 1824, aged 5 years.
   8. Sara Britland, b. 1822-23, still living unmarried with her father in 1861. In 1851 she is called a cotton-spinner, and in 1851 a cotton-factory worker.
6. John Britland, bapt. 29 March 1778, buried 6 Nov. 1780 (mother’s first name given in burial record).
7. Benjamin Britland, b. 12 March 1780, bapt. 19 March following as a child of William and Lydia Britland, buried 13 April 1798.
8. Charles Britland as a child of William and Lydia Britland, b. 6 May 1782,^[23] bapt. 12 May following, living 1851. He (then of Wirksworth) m. 2 May 1802, Elizabeth “Stendall” (doubtless an error for Sterndale, a local name), b. ca. 1780 (aged 58 in 1841, 74 in 1851), living 1851. The witnesses at their marriage were Samuel Hanson and George Salt.^[24] He is called a cotton-spinner in the baptismal records of his daughters Mary (1815) and Elizabeth (1818). He and his family are found at North Street in the 1841 census of Wirksworth, in which he is called a cotton-spinner. In 1851 he is called a recipient of parish relief. We have not found him in the 1861 census. Known issue:
   1. Hannah Britland, b. 26 July 1802, bapt. 8 Aug. 1802 in Cromford chapel (only three months after her parents’ marriage), living unmarried with her parents in 1851, when she was working as a cotton-spinner. She had an illegitimate daughter:
      1. Fanny Britland, b. 1849-50, living 1851.
   2. William Britland, “son of Charles & Elizabeth Britland, of Cromford,” b. 18 Oct. 1803, bapt. 23 Oct. 1803 in Cromford chapel, buried 3 March 1805.
   3. Joseph Britland, b. 24 Oct. 1806, bapt. 23 Nov. 1806 in Cromford chapel, not found with his parents in the 1841 census.
   4. Charles Britland, Jr., b. 28 Feb. 1811, bapt. 24 March following in Cromford chapel, not found with his parents in the 1841 census.
   5. Mary Britland, b. 4 Sept. 1815, bapt. 1 Oct. following, living unmarried with her parents in 1841 but not in 1851.
   6. Elizabeth Britland, b. 16 Aug. 1818, bapt. 23 Aug. following, living with her parents in 1841 but not in 1851.
   7. Lydia Britland, b. 1825-31, living with her parents in 1841 but not in 1851.
9. Samuel Britland, b. 20 Dec. 1783 as a child of William and Lydia Britland, bapt. 18 April 1784, of whom no further record has been found.

Other children of a William Britland, some of whom probably belong to no. 2 above

The following were all baptized as children of a William Britland of Cromford, no mother named:

1. (perhaps) William Britland, Jr., bapt. 15 Nov. 1767.
2. William Britland, bapt. 1 Jan. 1768.
3. Robert Britland, bapt. 16 March 1770, buried 2 April 1771 as a son of William Britland, of Cromford (mother not named in either record).
4. Anthony Britland, bapt. 14 Feb. 1770. He m. 4 Oct. 1790 at Wirksworth, Dorothy Boden. The witnesses were George Salt and William Britland.
5. Joseph Britland, bapt. 24 June 1772.
6. Joseph Britland, bapt. 24 June 1774.

Notes

name                  age  gender  b. in county?  occupation
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Jesse      Britland    50[-54]   m   Y            frame work knitter
William    Britland    20        m   Y            lab
Mary       Britland    50[-55]   f   Y
Hannah     Britland    25[-30]   f   Y            ind
Ellen      Britland     1m       f   Y
Lidia      Britland     5        f   Y
Emma       Britland    11        f   -            ind
Charles    Horrobin    45[-50]   m   N            M.S.
William    Wilkason?    2        m   Y
Mary       Bamford     50[-55]   f   Y            ind

Some Sites of Related Interest

• Angela Robinson, Michael’s family, at http://worldconnect.genealogy.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?db=michaelrobinson. Use search box to find Robert Britland.
• Britland Family board at RootsWeb
  <http://boards.ancestry.com/mbexec?htx=board&r=rw&p=surnames.britland>
• Cromford Village in Derbyshire, at http://www.pandyweb.freeserve.co.uk/crom_his.html.

From the Genealogy Page of John Blythe Dobson
URL = cybrary.uwinnipeg.ca/people/Dobson/genealogy/ff/Britland.cfm
This page written 1 June 2002
Last revised 11 August 2009