Ann (Laundon) Roberts (1838 - 1912)

Born 5 Apr 1838 in Great Wigston, Leicestershire, England

Ancestors

Daughter of William Laundon and Mary (Lee) Laundon

Wife of Thomas Baker — married 19 Jan 1857 in Glenfield, Leicestershire, England

Wife of Edmund Dye — married 1868 in Never validly married

Wife of Edward Roberts — married 22 Apr 1878 in Croydon, Surrey, England

Descendants

Died 21 Nov 1912 at age 74 in Sevenoaks, Kent, England

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Veronica Williams [send private message]

Biography

Ann (Laundon) Roberts was born in Leicestershire, England.

Ann LAUNDON.^[1]

Ann was the eldest child of William LAUNDON from Wigston Magna Leicestershire and Mary LEE from Northampton hire, they had five children. The Parish of Wigston Magna is located in the South/Southeast of Leicestershire about 3.9 miles from Leicester and includes the village(s) of Wigston Magna & East Wigston. Ann was born on 5th April 1838 in Great Wigston, Leicestershire. The birth was registered at Blaby. The Parish of Blaby is located in the South/Southwest of Leicestershire about 4.5 miles from Leicester and includes the village(s) of Blaby & Countesthorpe.

Her siblings were:

1. Sarah (Laundon) Lee (~1840 - ~1917)
2. William Laundon (1847 - 1920)
3. Mary Ann (Laundon) Smith (~1855 - )
4. Benjamin Laundon (1856 - )

In 1841 Ann is living with her parents and her sister Sarah, aged 9 months at the Leicester Road, in Wigston Magna, Leicestershire. Her father is listed as an Agricultural labourer.

By 1851 the family is living at Glenfield, with Ann listed as a servant. By this time, her brother William has been born and is aged 3. The Parish of Glenfield is located in the West/Northwest of Leicestershire about 2.6 miles from Leicester and includes the village(s) of Glenfield Braunstone & Kirby Muxloe.

First Marriage and Issue

On 19 Jan 1857 Ann marries Thomas Baker (~1823 - ~1878) in Glenfield, Leicestershire, both signed their names. The marriage was solemnized by banns. Thomas is listed as a corporal in the Rifle, Brighton, 2nd Battalion. Witnesses to the marriage are George STEVENSON and Sarah LAUNDON (Ann's younger sister).

Their children were:

1. Alma Mary (Baker) Corder (1858 - 1897)
2. Arthur Frederick Baker (1861 - )
3. Eldred Laundon Baker (1865 - 1886).

At the time of the 1861 census Ann and Thomas are residing at the Barracks at Winchester in Hampshire. Thomas is now listed as a sergeant in the army and they have two children. Alma Mary aged 3 and Thomas listed as being 1 week old. It would appear that Ann had two further children to Thomas. Arthur Frederick BAKER was born on 1st April 1861 and Eldred Laundon BAKER was born on 28 Jul 1865.

The birth of Arthur Frederick was registered at Winchester on 4th April 1861, by his father Thomas. The census that year was taken that year on the night of 6th June. That would make Arthur 9 weeks old on census night. He and Thomas could be the same person. Arthur Frederick does not appear in 1861 census, but Thomas snr does.

Anne is living in Westerham when her son Eldred Laundon BAKER was born in 28 Jul 1865. The birth was registered at Sevenoaks Kent. Thomas Baker is listed as the father, however it is unclear where he is living at this time, he is listed as an agricultural labourer on the birth certificate. Eldred is later referred to as Laundon Roberts. His death registration however in 1886, is listed as Eldred Laundon BAKER.

Second Marriage and Issue

By 1871 Anne appears to have taken up with Edward Roberts and describes herself as Annie Roberts, wife and laundress in the 1871 census, living with her 3 sons Arthur, Eldred and Edward at house number 22, Croydon, Surrey. Her husband Edward is not at home, but is residing as a lodger at Lodge Lane, Westerham Kent, described as a clerk in the seed trade. Anne has presumably been with Edward since at least 1867, having had his son Edward in abt 1868. Her first husband Thomas Baker however is still alive in 1871, visiting people by the name of BARNES or GROOMBRIDGE in Canterbury, Kent, St Paul Northgate. With him is their daughter Alma now aged 13, he describes himself as married. Did Edward and Anne meet in Westerham and move to Croydon when they got together? It is unclear where they lived at the time of Edwards birth in 1868 as no birth record can be found. Most census records suggest Westerham Kent, although one does state he was born in India. Edward junior b1868 did own a beautifully carved box, which was believed to have come from India, so there could be some credence to this suggestion. Or, did Edward and Ann continue to live apart whilst her husband Thomas was still alive?

On the 22nd April 1878 Anne married Edward ROBERTS after the calling of banns in the Church of the Saints in Surrey. Anne is listed as a widow; it is assumed Thomas must have died by this time. They are both listed as residing in Norwood Surrey at the time of the marriage. Witnesses to the marriage were William THORNTON (is he a relative?) and Amy LETTS (Amy appears to work at the church. She was b1814 and is listed as a church pew opener in the 1881 census). Norwood was part of the county of Surrey and the County Borough of Croydon until 1965. The All Saints' Church dates from the 13th century but was extensively altered in later periods.

By the time of the 1881 census Ann and Edward are residing at London Road, Westerham, Kent where they resided for many years. In 1881 Laundon and Edward are living with their parents, with Edward senior listed as a gardener. The 1901 census suggests they were living in the nursery cottages at that address. It is unclear whether this was the same place throughout the 1881-1901 period. Arthur Frederick appears to have left home by this time, some family stories suggest he may have gone to Canada.

In 1891 Ann's granddaughter Eva GRAY is living with Ann and Edward (daughter of Alma), her father Tom GRAY had died died in 1888. Her mother Alma married again in late 1888, to a Henry CORDER and had 2 children. She died soon afterwards in 1897 at aged 33.

Later life

By 1911, Ann is living in the union workhouse at Sevenoaks in Kent; listed as a widow. It is assumed she may have moved to the workhouse after Edward died (no record). With the 1834 POOR LAW AMENDMENT ACT people receiving help from the parish had to live in a workhouse & could no longer live at home. In return for parish relief, they would be made to work hard in the workhouse; which is how the term originated. The Act also allowed parishes to club together into unions responsible for building workhouses & for running them. In the next few years hundreds of workhouses were built at a typical cost to the union of 5,000 pounds.

The workhouse records suggest she came into the workhouse on several occasions, from about 1903. Mr ROBERTS is listed as her nearest relative who states his address as 2 Ashford Terrace, Fordingbridge at the time of her admission in 1906. This address is where Ann's granddaughter Eva was living after her marriage to William THOMPSON in 1905, perhaps Edward may have been living there at the time of Ann's admission. Her husband is not residing with them at the time of the 1911 census. There are other inmates at the workhouse by the ROBERTS name at the workhouse, but they appear unrelated, having come from ^[2]

Death and Burial

Ann died on 21st November 1912 from a cerebral hemorrhage whilst still residing at the Sevenoaks union workhouse in Sundridge Road. The death certificate was issued in the name of Annie Roberts.^[3] It is possible that she was only survived by her son Edward, but he had emigrated to Australia in 1910 with his wife Abigail COURTNEY and their 2 sons Edward Arthur and James. It is unknown what became of Arthur Frederick and whether he had also survived his mother. It is not known where she is buried.

Family Stories

It is said that the LAUNDON's were believed to have been 'de Laundon' originally. The 'de' considered to be aristocratic. They are believed to be of French origin originally, although this may indicate they arrived in Britain with the Normans, which is often mistaken for being of French origin. I cannot find any historical references as to the origins of the name of LAUNDON. This could indicate that the name has been anglicised from the original French name. The timing of the LAUNDON's arrival in England could also indicate the possibly that they were French Huguenots.

DNA

• The maternal line is confirmed back to the relationship John Lee and Elizabeth Higgs. ^[4] It has subsequently been confirmed that an additional segment on Chromosome 7 belongs to John Lee. ^[5]

• It is highly likely that the paternal line can also be confirmed by DNA given multiple matches at AncestryDNA, back to the ancestral couple of William LAUNDON and Hannah SMITH, but it has not yet been confirmed via chromosome analysis. Plus, two family groups match at GEDmatch but we need one more to confirm a distant cousin relationship via triangulation on Chromosome 14. Please contact Veronica WIlliams if you are related and have been DNA tested. ^[6]

Sources

1. ↑ Veronica Williams created WikiTree profile Laundon-3 through the import of Roberts_2013-08-13_2013-08-17.ged on Aug 16, 2013.
2. ↑ Creed Registers, Sevenoaks Workhouse. Research Request RefNo CKS-G/SE. 22 July 2016.
3. ↑ BDM - Certificates, ROBERTS Annie - Death - GRO Sevenoaks 441/1912.
4. ↑ Gedmatch triangulated group confirmation of relationships on ROBERTS/MALE/SMITH/LEE lines between distant cousins Private Male GEDmatch T820240, Joan Roberts GEDmatch T485376 and Private Smith GEDmatch T414267; resulting in shared segment match of about 10cMs on chromosome 7 from 76,816,843 - 87,928,886 www.gedmatch.com, 29 July 2016. Private Male's privacy level has subsequently changed but you can view her family connection from the profile of her grandfather.
5. ↑ Gedmatch triangulated group confirmation of relationships between distant cousins Private Male GEDmatch T820240, Joan Roberts GEDmatch T485376 and Private Priest GEDmatch A245815; resulting in shared segment match of about 26cMs on chromosome 7 from 44.2 - 78.9. www.gedmatch.com, Sep 2016.
6. ↑ GEDmatch one to one comparison confirmation of fourth cousin relationship between Joan Coates GEDmatch T485376 and Private Jenkins GEDmatch A437014; resulting in match on chromosome 14, shared segments 19.3cMs from locations 53.4 - 75.0, 2016.

• 1841 England Census, ROBERTS Edward. Database online.

• BDM - Certificates, ROBERTS Edward - Birth - GRO 190/1841.

• FreeBMD, England & Wales, FreeBMD Birth Index, 1837-1915 (Online publication - Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2006.Original data - General Register Office. England and Wales Civil Registration Indexes. London, England: General Register Office. © Crown copyright. Published by permission of the Contro), Ancestry.com.au, http://www.Ancestry.com.au, Database online.

• 1861 England Census (Provo, UT, USA, The Generations Network, Inc., 2005), www.ancestry.com, ROBERTS Edward (1841). Database online.

• 1851 England Census (Provo, UT, USA, Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005), www.ancestry.com.au, ROBERTS Edward. Database online.

• 1871 England Census (Provo, UT, USA, The Generations Network, Inc., 2004), www.ancestry.com, ROBERTS Edward (1841). Database online.
• Free BMD, Civil registrations, ROBERTS to Baker marriage Jun 1878, Croydon 2a 266.

• BDM - Certificates, ROBERTS to Baker (formerly LAUNDON) marriage - GRO 2a 266/1878.

• BDM - Certificates, ROBERTS to COURTNEY Marriage - GRO 362/1892.

• 1881 England Census (Provo, UT, USA, Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004), www.ancestry.com.au, ROBERTS Edward (1841). Database online.

• 1891 England Census (Provo, UT, USA, The Generations Network, Inc., 2005), www.ancestry.com, ROBERTS Edward (1841). Database online.

• 1901 England Census (Provo, UT, USA, The Generations Network, Inc., 2005), www.ancestry.com, ROBERTS Edward (1841). Database online.

• 1911 England Census - Find my past, www.findmypast.com, ROBERT Anne.