Introduction

Ismael Cornick was a dairyman from the 1850s to the 1870s, running dairies at Seaborough and Bridge Close Farm, Hardington. Before becoming a dairyman, he was a farm labourer at Stoke Abbott. Through their dairying and other means, Ishmael and his wife were able to accumulate enough wealth to retire early and enjoy over twenty years of retirement together.

Early life

Ishmael was born in about 1817 at Wells, the son of John and Jane Cornick. His parents moved frequently and over a wide area, residing at Maiden Newton in 1812, Stoke Abbott in 1814, and Corfe Castle in 1820.[1] His father worked as a labourer before becoming a miller at Corfe Castle.

The family eventually settled at Stoke Abbott, where in June 1841, John was a miller while his sons, George, Ishmael and David, were employed as farm labourers.

Middle years

Ishmael was the last of the three sons to marry. On 3 August 1843, he married Mary Ann Warren at Marshwood. She was the daughter of John Warren, a thatcher.

For at least the first eight years of their marriage, Ishmael went on as before. The 1851 census shows them living at Stoke Naps, Stoke Abbott, where Ishmael worked as a farm labourer;

However, over the next ten years, Ishmael became a dairyman. By April 1861, he was a dairyman at Seaborough; by 1871, he was a dairyman at Bridge Close Farm, Hardington, his time there coinciding with Charles Hyde’s term as bailiff.

Ishmael and Mary Ann’s rise in social status invites enquiry. They may have received an inheritance when Mary Ann’s parents died in 1853. Alternatively, being childless may have enabled them to save money. Ishmael is unlikely to have inherited anything from his own father, who died in 1846, as his mother was a farm labourer by March 1851 and a pauper ten years later.

Retirement

Not only did Ishmael have the resources to become a dairyman, but he eventually had enough to retire relatively early. By the time he was 63, he and his wife had retired to Mosterton, where they lived together for over twenty years. Moreover, according to the voting lists, Ismael owned freehold houses in Mosterton.

In April 1881, Ishmael was appointed as an overseer at Mosterton.[2]

Death

Mary Ann died on 15 August 1902, aged 81. After her death, Ishmael moved to Hurley, Broadwindsor, where he died on 24 May 1907, aged 89. There is a memorial inscription to them at Broadwindsor.

Neither Ishmael nor Mary Ann left a will, nor did they have an estate that required an administration grant.

Children

Ishmael and Mary Ann had no children.

References

[1] Baptism registers

[2] Bridport News, 8 April 1881, p.4.