Summary
Yet to be summarised.
Parents and family
Elizabeth Jordan of
Burford
was probably the
daughter of one John Jordan (for more discussion on this see
Who was Elizabeth Jordan's
father?)
Birth
A birth date of about 1722 may be inferred from the age at death given on the HATTON Tomb at Swinbrook
Childhood and education
Unknown.
Employment
Unknown prior to marriage.
Marriage to Thomas Hatton
In 1748 Elizabeth married Thomas HATTON of Widford, a widower. The account of their life together may be found in the
biography of Thomas HATTON.
Last Will and Testament
She outlived her husband Thomas Hatton
and also left a Will, of which her son John
Hatton was the
main beneficiary.
The will mentions little about her business affairs or property but it
does mention a range of family members. The following is a summary:
To her Son John Hatton -
various
anonymous property in
Burford,
a share in sheets & table linen, all the residue [the only property
in Burford that John is on record as disposing of was in Sheep Street
and mentioned in his Will]
To her Daughter Mary Worrell (wife of Stephen Worrell of Hertford,
Grocer) - £400 within two years with 4% interest (or should
her Daughter Mary Die within two years, to her Granddaughter Mary
Worrell at age 21) , a share in sheets & table linen, first
pick of the wearing apparel
To her Granddaughter Mary Worrell - £100 at age 21, a share
in sheets & table linen, share of residual wearing apparel
To her Nephew Jordan Kempster of Kennington Lane, Lambeth - £10
within 12 months
To her Nephew Thomas Kempster of
Burford
- £10
within 12 months
To her Niece Mary the wife of William Monk of
Burford -
£10
within 12 months
To her Grandson Thomas Hatton - £20
To her Granddaughter Elizabeth Hatton - A share in sheets &
table
linen, share of residual wearing apparel
To her Granddaughter Sarah Hatton - Share of residual wearing apparel
Executor named as her son John Hatton
Signed – 11 Jun 1796, proved – 26 Jul 1799
(based on Public Records Office: prob 11/1327 Pgs 115-117)
Death
Burial
On 22 Jun 1799 the parish registers for Swinbrook,
Oxfordshire record the burial of HATTON, Elizabeth widow of
Burford, formerly Widford
Descendants and notable relations
I
have come across some unconfirmed evidence (anonymous entry
on
www.curiousfox.com)
of a Jordan
KEMPSTER b
1764 who resided in
Lambeth.
He was apparently the son of John KEMPSTER b.1725
in Fairford (on the river Coln between Quenington &
Lechlade) who married a Mary JORDAN at
Burford
in 1758. This
Jordan KEMPSTER therefore appears to be the Nephew
Jordan KEMPSTER of
Kennington
Lane, Lambeth that is mentioned on Elizabeth's Will. John KEMPSTER is
mentioned as being
a soliciter. I have found an article, quoted from
the Times
of Tuesday August 19th, 1851, page 12, that mentions one
'J. Kempster Esq.,
solicitor, 1 Portsmouth Place, Kennington lane, Lambeth' (see G. J.
Gollin 1997). This is a bit late to be Elizabeth's Nephew but
strengthens the suggestions of a link.
It appears that a William MONK and Mary KEMPSTER
married in
Burford
in 1785 and that Mary's Father John KEMPSTER married
Mary JORDAN in 1758. William MONK left a Will in which he mentioned
several children including a John Kempster MONK and a Mary Jordan MONK.
The following is a summary of William's Will:
William Monk , Wheelwright
of
Burford,
Oxfordshire
Son James Monk to receive £10 for mourning
His wife Mary Monk is to get
All the household goods and furniture
Half the timber and stock of his Wheelwright trade (the other half
belonging to James)
All the iron and stock of his Blacksmiths trade
Property in the High Street in
Burford,
Oxfordshire (in
William’s occupation and bought from Burns & Beasley)
Three cottages in Guildenford Lane (occupied respectively by Thomas
Taylor, Ryland, and nobody)
A piece of Garden ground in Guildenford Lane purchased (from
Oriel College, Oxford and occupied by William)
Four cottages in Guildenford Lane (bought from Burns & Smith,
two
empty, the other occupied by William Pastor and the Widow Goodrichard
respectively)
After his Wife Mary’s death this property is to be placed in the
trust of John Willis of Westhall Hill in the
Parish of Fulbrook in the County of Oxford Nurseryman. To be sold and
divided amongst a list of William’s Children, or should they be
dead, then their children (John Kempster Monk, Mary Jordon Hewer the
Wife of Jasper Hewer, William Monk, Elizabeth Baker the wife
of John Baker, and George Monk)
Witnessed by Margaret Arkill, Robert Durham & Thomas Lee
Sole executrix is his wife Mary Monk
Signed – 14 June 1823
Proved – 17 Aug 1825
KEMPSTER means 'wool comber' and, as Burford a 14th-17th C
centre for the wool trade, hint at the reason for the family being
there. The Burford KEMPSTER family rose to fame and fortune on
the back of the achievements of a
17th-century Christopher KEMPSTER. St John the Baptists Church
in
Burford contains a memorial to Burford's famous son Christopher. He
made his fortune selling the stone from the Taynton quarries to rebuild
London after the 1666 great fire. He was also Christopher Wren's master
mason on the rebuilding of St Pauls Cathedral in London. His town house
in Abingdon is now the Town Hall. His quarries also supplied the stone
for Oxford Colleges, Blenheim Palace, and Windsor Castle.
There was extensive quarrying around Upton and the family name most
associated with this activity is KEMPSTER . However, the most
famous KEMPSTER quarries were at Taynton, on the opposite side
of
the river
Windrush. One is left to conjecture whether there was a bridge by the
HATTON's Upton papermill which allowed the KEMPSTER's managers
(and
workers?) easier access between the two quarries. In the 17th-century
the stone was taken south to Lechlade, from whence it was shipped out
by barge. It would be lovely to get hold of a tithe map to
see
what the land actually looked like in the 18th C.
References
G. J. Gollin, M.a., C.ENG., The Manor of Little Ashtead 1671-1851,
Leatherhead & District Local History Society, Occasional Paper
No.2, 14th April, 1997, Reproduced online in , DACKOMBE The Dame, the
Prison and the Pewterer, September 21, 2005,
http://web.ukonline.co.uk/the.nook/dacinfo/ashapp4.htm
(accessed 14 Jan 2006)