Introduction
Elizabeth Catherine Smith spent much of her life surrounded by her close family. Although she briefly worked as an under-nurse in Dorchester and later earned a living as a dressmaker and needlewoman, she relied heavily on her relatives at Stratton and Hardington.
Early life
Elizabeth was born in 1863 at Stratton, near Dorchester, the youngest of three children born to John Smith and his wife, Martha (née Wildern).[1] She was privately baptised at Stratton church on 15 November 1863, suggesting concern for her survival in infancy.[2] Her father, John, worked as a farm bailiff, while her mother, Martha, was the daughter of Job Wildern, an innkeeper, farmer and grocer at South Perrott, who on his death in 1880 left an estate valued at “under £500.”[3] John’s widowed father, Samuel, lived with the family until his death in 1875.
Elizabeth and her sister, Susanna, entered domestic service in Dorchester.[4] In 1871, Susanna was employed by a travelling draper, while in 1881, Elizabeth worked as an under nurse at Southwalks House, one of three servants employed by Alfred Pope, a solicitor. Their brother, Samuel Philip, married in 1877 and moved to the Isle of Wight.
Later life
In May 1881, Susanna married Arthur Reynolds of Hardington Mandeville and initially lived at Ivy Cottage, Coker Hill. In June 1890, Martha died at the age of sixty-one. After her death, Elizabeth joined Susanna at Hardington for a time. The 1891 census listed her there and described her as a dressmaker working for herself.
Their father continued to live at Stratton, and by 1901, Elizabeth had returned to live with him in a four-room house situated between the Post Office and the Wesleyan Chapel. The census for that year recorded no occupation for her, suggesting she may have been keeping house for her father.
By 1909, Elizabeth and her father had moved to Hardington, settling in a cottage of their own at Coker Hill. After her father’s death in 1919 at the age of eighty-nine, Elizabeth moved in with Susanna, who was by then a widow living at Bulshay.
Elizabeth died on 14 January 1933 from carcinoma of the bladder at the age of sixty-nine. Her death certificate records that she died in the home of her nephew, Joseph Reynolds, in Partway Lane.[5]
Conclusion
Elizabeth’s life illustrates the importance of family ties. Although she spent time in domestic service and later earned her living as a dressmaker and needlewoman, much of her adult life was spent within the households of close relatives. Her experiences reflect how many unmarried women relied on family networks for economic security and companionship in rural communities.
References
[1] Civil registration birth index; family reconstitution.
[2] Stratton baptism register.
[3] National probate calendar.
[4] Susanna worked in the parish of Fordington, a suburb of Dorchester.
[5] Death certificate of Elizabeth Catherine Smith.
