Introduction

Thomas Bodley Dawe farmed at Melbury Osmond, Batcombe and East Chinnock before retiring to Hardington to live with his son, Francis, at Marsh Farm. After the death of their parents, Francis and his sister, Elizabeth, continued to live at Marsh Farm; neither of them married. However, Thomas’s daughter, Isabella, married Walter Taylor of East Chinnock, and they had a large family, many of whom lived in the Hardington area. Notably, Edwin Francis Dawe Taylor was the grandfather of Basil Taylor, and William Dawe Taylor lived at Marsh Farm.

Birth

Thomas was born around 1782 at Corscombe, the second of eleven children born to Thomas and Grace Dawe. Among his siblings were Elizabeth, who married John Barrett, and Michael.

Marriage

On 21 April 1808, Thomas married Mary Priddle at Melbury Osmond. She was the daughter of Aaron Priddle, a yeoman.

Melbury Osmond

Thomas and Grace settled at Holt Farm, Melbury Osmond, where they lived until 1839. During their time there, they had ten children, all of whom reached adulthood except for Mary Anne, who died in 1824 at the age of seven.

Prior to leaving Melbury Osmond, Thomas held his farm sale on 7 August 1839.[1]

Batcombe

After the sale, Thomas and his family moved to Batcombe, where he continued to work as a farmer. By June 1841, five of his children had left home. Two of his daughters were living in the household of their cousin, Thomas Bartlett, a farmer at East Chinnock.

East Chinnock

In the early 1840s, the family moved to East Chinnock. During their time there, two of Thomas and Mary’s sons died. Theophilus Barlett died at Athelhampton at the age of 27 and was buried at East Chinnock on 19 February 1844. His oldest son, also named Thomas Bodley, died in January 1849 at the age of 39.

Two of Thomas and Mary’s daughters married at East Chinnock: Isabella Priddle married Walter Taylor in 1843, and Grace Clarke married Esau Bird in 1844.

Hardington

By March 1851, Thomas had retired from farming and was living at Hardington Marsh with their youngest son, Francis, who was the tenant of Marsh Farm.[2] Also living in the household were Mary, their daughter, Elizabeth, Mary’s niece, Mary Pitcher, and their six-year-old granddaughter, Mary Ann Dawe Bird, who died two years later.

Mary died in January 1852 at the age of 69. Thomas died in August 1858 at the age of 77.

Children

Thomas and Mary had six sons and four daughters.

References

[1] Sherborne Mercury, 7 August 1839, p.1.

[2] The 1851 census mistakenly recorded Francis as a female and listed him as a dairymaid.