Introduction

Walter Baker lived at Hardington Marsh for many years, working as a farm labourer. In the 1870s, three of his four children moved to South Wales. Around 1890, he and his wife followed them, joining their married daughter, Ellen, in Merthyr Tydfil. Their son, Mark, remained in the West Country, where he worked as a blacksmith for many years before becoming an aeroplane fitter at Westlands, Yeovil.

Childhood

Walter was born at Hardington around 1827, the third of seven children born to George and Anne Baker. His father was a weaver and labourer. The 1841 census recorded the family living at Hardington Marsh.

When Walter was 21 years old, his father succumbed to chronic bronchitis, which had afflicted him for many years. He was only 48 years old at the time of his death.[1]

Marriage

In 1850, Walter married Hester Park, who also lived at Hardington Marsh.[2] She was the daughter of Edward Park, a carpenter.

Married life at Hardington Marsh

Walter and Hester lived at Hardington Marsh until about 1890.[3] Walter worked as a farm labourer during this time, and the 1881 census listed him specifically as a carter. The 1851 census recorded Hester as a sailcloth weaver.

Sued for debt

In July 1871, John Yeandle, a baker of Yeovil, sued Walter to recover £11 9s 4d, a debt incurred before 1863. Yeandle claimed that when the village club “broke” in 1867, Walter paid £2 10s and gave a “note-of-hand” for the balance. Walter, however, claimed that the £2 10s was a settlement for the entire debt and denied owing any more. The judge accepted the accuracy of Yeandle’s account books and ordered Walter to pay off the debt in monthly instalments.[4]

Move to South Wales

By April 1881, all of Walter and Hester’s children had left home, with three living in South Wales and the fourth working as a journeyman blacksmith at Tarrant Monkton, Dorset.

Their eldest son, Francis Robert, may have been working in South Wales as a railway platelayer as early as 1871. On 22 October 1873, he married Frances Dowell at Gelligaer. She was the daughter of John Dowell, who was a blacksmith at Hardington Marsh during the 1850s and 1860s.

Their eldest daughter, Caroline, moved to Gelligaer after her marriage at St. John’s Church, Yeovil, on 19 August 1875. By April 1881, Caroline’s sister, Ellen, lived with her. On 3 April 1884, Ellen married Joseph Wood, a railway platelayer, at Hardington and settled at Merthyr Tydfil.

In about 1890, Walter and Hester moved to Merthyr Tydfil to live with their daughter, Ellen, at 122 Twyn-yr-Odyn. Walter earned a living there as a labourer.

Death

Walter and Hester both died in Merthyr: Walter in 1900, at the age of 73, and Hester in 1903, at the age of 77.

Children

Walter and Hester had two sons and two daughters. All their children migrated to South Wales except for Mark, who chose to stay in the West Country. He worked as a blacksmith at Haselbury, Tarrant Monkton, Preston Plucknett, and Wincanton, before eventually becoming an aeroplane fitter at Westlands in Yeovil.

References

[1] Death certificate of George Baker.

[2] Registered Yeovil Q3 1850.

[3] Hardington voters’ lists.

[4] Western Gazette, 14 July 1871, p.5.