Introduction
John Rendell lived at Hardington for his entire life. He married Elizabeth Park in 1825, and they had seven children. By March 1851, John, Elizabeth, and three of their children were weavers. Following Elizabeth’s death in 1860 and the collapse of the cottage weaving industry around the same time, John’s circumstances declined. By April 1871, he was a pauper boarding with his son’s father-in-law, Thomas Purchase, at Hardington Moor. His daughter, Hester, emigrated to Australia in 1854, and his son, Edward, lived with Mary Purchase before marrying her in 1864.
Birth
John was born at Hardington around 1803.[1]
Occupation
John was a weaver until the 1860s.
Marriage
On 3 February 1825, John married Elizabeth Park at Hardington. Elizabeth was the daughter of Phineas and Mary Park.
Residences
John and Elizabeth settled in Hardington. By June 1841, they lived in Barry Lane with their six children and Elizabeth’s niece, Ann Park. The tithe survey suggests that John occupied a house owned by William Reynolds (number 330).
John and his family probably lived in the same house ten years later. By this time, his daughter Harriet had married and left home, and his daughter Elizabeth had been born. His wife’s niece had also married and moved out.
The year 1851 may have marked the peak of the family’s household income, as John, Elizabeth, and three of their children—Edward, Hester, and Mercy—were all weavers, while their son Edwin was a farm labourer.
Hester’s emigration
Hester married Jonah Delamont in 1852, and they emigrated to Australia two years later.
Edward’s unconventional life
By April 1861, Edward was living in North Lane with Mary Purchase, whom the census enumerator identified as his “mistress” and five children, some or all of whom were his.
Elizabeth’s death
Elizabeth died in November or December 1860, at the age of 58 and was buried at Hardington on 9 December 1860.
John later life
In April 1861, John lived with his two youngest children, John Jr. and Elizabeth, in Moor Lane. In 1862, John Jr. married Harriet Purchase. By April 1871, John Sr. was living with John Jr. and Harriet in the household of Harriet’s father, Thomas Purchase. In April 1881, they all lived together as before, but John Jr. was head of the household.
The 1881 census recorded John’s occupation as a weaver, which was unlikely given that he was 78 and weaving at home had virtually died out.
Death
John Sr. died in late 1883/early 1884, at the age of 81. Thomas Purchase had died a month or two earlier.
Children
John and Elizabeth had three sons and four daughters:
Circa 1826- Edward (resided at Hardington; married Mary Purchase in 1864; died from a facial tumour and dropsy in 1872);
Circa 1827- Hester (married Jonah Delimont in 1852; emigrated to Australia in 1854);
Circa 1828- Harriet (resided at Hardington; married Benjamin Chester in 1849; died from tuberculosis in 1870);
Circa 1833- Mercy (resided at Hardington; married Charles Delamont, Jonah’s brother, in 1858; died in 1890);
Circa 1834- Edwin (left Hardington after March 1851);
Circa 1839- John (resided at Hardington; married Harriet Louisa Purchase in 1862; died in 1896);
Circa 1843- Elizabeth (left Hardington after April 1861).
References
[1] All the censuses recorded Hardington as John’s place of birth, except for the 1861 census, which recorded it as West Camel. He may be the John, son of John and Mary Rendell, baptised at East Chinnock on 24 April 1803.