Joseph Clark

Descendants

Contents 1 Biography 1.1 Joseph CLARK: The Earliest Known CLARK Ancestor in a Village of Saxon Origin 1.2 Both A Bricklayer and Brick Manufacturer 1.3 Joseph CLARK and A Thriving Brick Industry 2 Notes 3 Sources

Biography

Joseph CLARK: The Earliest Known CLARK Ancestor in a Village of Saxon Origin

1695 Map Showing Tring and Wilstone, or 'Wilstern', from Chris Reynold's Website Genealogy in Hertfordshire, http://www.hertfordshire-genealogy.co.uk/data/places/places-t/tring/!-tring-frame.htm

. This CLARK family history begins with Joseph CLARK, a mid-18th century brick manufacturer^[1] who has yet to be linked to his past. Joseph and his wife Ann first appear in the parish of Wilstone, Hertfordshire with the baptism of their son Joseph on the 14th of November 1756^[2]. Before this date, the origins of Joseph remain undiscovered, for neither a record of his birth nor marriage could be found in the parish registers of Tring, which hold records for the hamlet of Wilstone^[3], suggesting that both events took place in a parish not yet researched. Joseph’s roots might one day discovered in the hamlet of Buckland Common in Buckinghamshire, for it was here that Joseph’s brick manufacturing business was situated^[4]. This tentative link to Buckland Common, however, does not preclude the possibility that the CLARK family's attachment to Wilstone was in fact rooted further in the past. In addition to his holdings in Buckland Common, Joseph held property and buildings in Wilstone which he may have inherited from his father; if so, the properties may have been in the CLARK family for generations^[5]. The CLARK surname is known to have existed in the village of Wilstone as early as 1626^[6], if not earlier. Frustratingly, the registers of Tring do not always specify where a baptism, marriage or burial took place, making it difficult to distinguish Wilstone families from those who lived in the larger town of Tring. And, following the 1680s, not a single CLARK event is specified to have taken place in Wilstone from 1693 until 1756, the year in which Joseph and the CLARK family become unmistakably woven into the history of Wilstone, an ancient village with early Saxon origins^[7].

A. R. Gomm presents a very early date of settlement for the village in A Short History of Wilstone^[8]:

"Archaeologists and historians give the date of our village as being established in its present position during the 6th century, the village greens being V-shaped and of pure Saxon origin… By 1088 it is known that a small settlement was well established, coming under the entry for Tring reads as follows: 'In this Village (Tring) is another Berewic^[9]where eight villagers reside who have two ploughs and a third possible.

Illustration of a Thatched Barn

Joseph established himself in this historic village, where centuries-old thatched barns and half-timbered cottages silently hinted at the village's ancient past, and where residents might be lucky to unearth a Roman coin dating from yet earlier times. Here, four of Joseph and his wife Ann's children were born: Joseph in 1756^[10], William in 1759^[11], Samuel in 1762^[12], and Ann in 1764^[13]. Their births had been preceded by Joseph and Ann's eldest son Thomas, whose record of baptism has not yet been found^[14]. The births of their children followed closely on the heels of the 1751 tragedy of Ruth Osborne, hunted as a witch in a misguided and persistent conviction that her alleged sorcery had been the cause of a local farmer's misfortune. Although the custom had been outlawed in England sixteen years earlier, Ruth was subject to trial by ducking in a local pond, and subsequently drowned. An inquest into Ruth's death was held at the Half Moon Ale House, which Joseph's son Joseph would one day be the landlord of^[15][16]. The trial declared Thomas Colley, a chimney sweep, to have been the chief perpetrator, and sentenced him to hang on Wilstone Green. Local legend whispered that the site of Ruth's lamentable drowning was haunted, leading to fears of passing the scene near midnight. Perhaps Joseph and his family were among those who shirked walking through 'Watery Lane' during evening hours to avoid crossing paths with Ruth's ghost. 'Hertfordshire's Last Witch Hunt' can be read online ^[17]

^[18][19].

Illustration of the Ducking of Ruth Osborne

Both A Bricklayer and Brick Manufacturer

Joseph’s work as a bricklayer was not strictly engaged with a trowel, mortar and pile of bricks, for he was also the manufacturer of that pile of bricks. Joseph owned a brick kiln with property and buildings surrounding it in the hamlet of nearby Buckland Common in the parish of Buckland, Buckinghamshire^[20]. Buckland Common is located in the Chilterns region of England, known for its richly scattered clay deposits from which Joseph would have procured the raw materials for his bricks. The clay was dug in late fall for stockpiling outdoors to be ‘soured’, or washed by the rains and frosts throughout winter to be ready for brickmaking by spring^[21].

Historical Reconstruction of a Traditional 18th Century Wood-Fired Brick Kiln at H.G. Matthews Brickworks, Cholesbury, England, constructed with Dr. Gerard Lynch, Historic Brickwork Consultant, Milton Keynes

Joseph’s bricks were likely handmade, following a process common in England at that time, the first stages of which involved the use of a horse-drawn tempering wheel to mix clay, water and Joseph’s chosen additives in a large pit. Sand was next dusted into brick molds, and the mixture packed in by hand, ready for a few days drying-out in the sun followed by their final firing in a wood-burning kiln^[22][23]. Many brickmakers identified themselves by stamping their name or initials and location in the ‘frog’, or central indent of their bricks^[22]; perhaps Joseph did as well, and somewhere in the numerous still-standing historic buildings of Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire exists some of his brickwork.

Joseph CLARK and A Thriving Brick Industry

As a brick manufacturer and bricklayer in the mid-18th century, prospects for Joseph may have been plentiful. In the 1700s, brick homes were increasingly favoured over homes built of stone, or wood and clay^[24]. Faced with high demand, Joseph would have had to work quickly. Brickmakers adept in their trade could swiftly make over 1,500 bricks a day^[25], and a skilled bricklayer with an assistant could lay roughly a thousand bricks a day in the construction of a wall^[26].

18th Century Brickwork

The 18th century preference for brick buildings suggested a ready supply of revenue for Great Britain, and taking advantage of the opportunity, a brick tax was introduced in 1784 to fund Britain's wars in the American Colonies^[27]. To offset the tax, Joseph, along with the country's bricklayers, quietly increased the size of their bricks, and today, those larger bricks can be sometimes be used to date post-1784 buildings^[27][28]. Joseph’s role in the once thriving brick industry of Buckinghamshire, and in the village of Wilstone in Hertfordshire, came to an end with his passing in 1792^[29]. In his will written on the 9th of September 1791^[30][31], Joseph bequeathed the following to his wife Ann and son Thomas:

…All that Brick kiln with the Ground thereto belonging situate at Buckland Common in the Parish of Buckland in the County of Bucks together with all Sheds, Buildings Fences, Trees, Ways Waters rights privileges and appurtenances…

Joseph further directed that the kiln be sold, specifying that his funeral costs and debts be covered by the money generated from the sale, and any remainder be left to Ann and all of his children:

…and by the Money arising from the sale of the said Brick kiln to discharge all my just debts and Funeral Expenses and after the Payment thereof That my said wife shall use and enjoy such part of my Household Goods and Stock in trade as shall not be applied in paying my debts for her life and immediately after her death that the whole thereof shall be equally divided between all my said Children share and share alike…

Ann was also specifically bestowed “…the rest and residue of my Messuages Cottages Lands Tenements and Hereditaments with the appurtenances whatsoever and wheresoever...” and his son Thomas “…All that Cottage or Tenement situate at Wilstone aforesaid … with the appurtenances…” Finally, Joseph’s remaining properties at Wilstone, the specific locations of which are unknown, were divided equally amongst all his children:

Also I give and devise unto my sons the said Thomas Joseph and Samuel Clark and to my Daughter Ann Clark All my other Messuages Cottages Lands Tenements and Hereditaments with the appurtenances and real Estate whatsoever situate at Wilston aforesaid not herein before disposed of…

Joseph was buried on the 1st of June 1792 in Tring^[29], his brickmaking business soon to be silenced following the final proving of his will on the 16th of May 1793 and subsequent sale of the brick kiln^[32]. However, all of Joseph’s knowledge and years of experience in the brick trade had been cultivated in and absorbed by his son Joseph, who would retain that knowledge and carry on as a bricklayer in Wilstone.

Joseph CLARK's Signature, 1791

Notes

Joseph, son of John Clarke & Mary, was baptised on 12 April 1747 in Much Hadham, Hertford, England.^[33]

Joseph married Hannah Bowyer in 1771 in All Saints, Edmonton, Enfield, England.^[34]

1. ↑ Source: #LWT Joseph's will identifies him as as a bricklayer who was also the owner of a brick kiln, confirming he manufactured his own bricks.
2. ↑ Source: #PRT ...'1756 ― Joseph son of Jos CLARKE of Willstone And Ann his wife, Bricklaer, Baptized Nov ye 14th 1756'…
3. ↑ Source: #PRT
4. ↑ Source: #LWT Joseph's will specifies the location of his brick kiln.
5. ↑ Source: #LWT "...Messuages Cottages Lands Tenements and Hereditaments with the appurtenances and real Estate whatsoever situate at Wilston…"
6. ↑ Source: #PRT …'1626 ― Francis CLARKE of Wilstone bur : July 16'...
7. ↑ See the profiles for Joseph's descendants Joseph CLARK, Thomas CLARK, William CLARK and Job CLARK.
8. ↑ Source: #ARG
9. ↑ The glossary for the Domesday Book Online gives this explanation for the word 'berewic': "Derived from the Old English word for corn farm, berewic in Domesday refers to an outlying holding within a manor, separate but taxed as a part of that manor".
10. ↑ Source: #PRT ...'1756 ― Joseph son of Jos CLARKE of Willstone And Ann his wife, Bricklaer, Baptized Nov ye 14th 1756'…
11. ↑ Source: #PRT …'1759 ― William ye son of Joseph CLARKE Bricklaer born Dec ye 5th Baptized 9th of Wilstone'…
12. ↑ Source: #PRT ...'1762 Feb 21 ― Samuel son of Joseph CLARK'…
13. ↑ Source: #PRT ...'1764 Jan 22 ― Ann daughter of Joseph & Ann CLARK'…
14. ↑ Source: #LWT "... my son Thomas CLARK ...' Joseph's will clearly identifies Thomas as his son, and considering the bulk of Joseph's property was bequeathed to Thomas, it it reasonable to conclude that Thomas was his eldest son.
15. ↑ Source: #ARG ..."Later during the 19th century with the change of landlords was added: 'The tenure and occupation formally of Joseph Clark or Widow Lyon — James Reeves (and near the turn of the century) James Thomas Reeves.' From this document taken from the Enclosure Awards we know that the Clark family were landlords of the inn during all the many changes that were taking place during the latter years of the 18th century"…
16. ↑ Source: #PD ...'TAVERNS & PUBLIC HOUSES... Half Moon, Jos & Jas CLARK, Willstone'... The identity of 'Jas', or 'James' remains unknown.
17. ↑ Tring Rural History: Hertfordshire's Last Witch Hunt
18. ↑ Chris Reynolds discusses the tragedy at his site Genealogy in Hertfordshire.
19. ↑ Further details about the ducking can be read at Welcome to Wilstone Village.
20. ↑ Source: #LWT
21. ↑ Source: #CHIL Chilterns Buildings Design Guide: Chilterns Brick, pages 10 - 11.
22. ↑ ^{22.0 22.1} The Brick Directory: The History of Bricks. Web site. http://www.brickdirectory.co.uk/html/brick_history.html. Accessed November 2015
23. ↑ Source: #CHIL Chilterns Buildings Design Guide: Chilterns Brick, pages 10 - 11.
24. ↑ Bricks & Brass: Bricks and Brickwork in the Period Home
25. ↑ Source: #CHIL Chilterns Buildings Design Guide: Chilterns Brick, page 11.
26. ↑ A detailed account of bricklayer's occupation is available online at The Rise and Decline of Guilds, with particular reference to the Guilds of Tylers and Bricklayers in Great Britain and Ireland, Guildhall Historical Association
27. ↑ ^{27.0 27.1} Brick Tax
28. ↑ The Wikipedia page at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brick_tax discusses the Brick Tax and presents images of the contrast between pre- and post-1784 bricks.
29. ↑ ^{29.0 29.1} Hertfordshire Burials, database online at FindMyPast, …'Burials — 1792 June 1, Joseph 
Clarke, Wilstone'…
30. ↑ Source: #LWT
31. ↑ Source: #CFH
32. ↑ Source: #LWTA Although no records for the sale have been found, the will of Joseph's wife Ann makes no reference to the kiln or properties in Buckland Common, and only to the remaining CLARK family properties in Wilstone which had not been disposed of: '...All those two Messuages Cottages or Tenements situate standing and being at Wilston aforesaid...'
33. ↑ Baptism: "England, Select Births and Christenings, 1538-1975"
    England, Births and Christenings, 1538-1975. Salt Lake City, Utah: FamilySearch, 2013; FHL Film Number: 991376
    Ancestry Record 9841 #141641385 (accessed 9 October 2022)
    Joseph Clarke baptism on 12 Apr 1747, son of John Clarke & Mary, in Much Hadham, Hertford, England.
34. ↑ Marriage: "London, England, Church of England Marriages and Banns, 1754-1938"
    London Metropolitan Archives; London, England; London Church of England Parish Registers; Reference Number: Dro/040/A/01/010
    Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 1623 #1717236 (accessed 9 October 2022)
    Joseph Clark marriage to Hannah Bowyer in 1771 in All Saints, Edmonton, Enfield, England.

Sources

• Source: [ARG] Gomm, A.R., A Short History of Wilstone, which can be read online at A Short History of Wilstone.

• Source: [CFH] 'The CLARKE families of area around Shenley and Ridge in Hertfordshire', index of wills compiled by Rosemary Reynolds, ...'1793 ― Joseph CLARKE bricklayer of Wilston, Tring ― Huntingdon Will...1803 ― Ann CLARKE wid of Wilston, Tring ― Huntingdon Will'...

• Source: [CHIL] Chilterns Buildings Design Guide: The Chilterns Conservation Board, February 2010. Digitally formatted pamphlet. http://www.chilternsaonb.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/CBDGChilternsBuildingsDesignGuide2010.pdf. Accessed June 2023.

• Source: [DB] Discovering Britain — Water in Reserve: A self guided walk around the Tring Reservoirs in Hertfordshire. The Royal Geographical Society with the Institute of British Geographers, London, 2013. Document downloaded from Discovering Britain January 2015. The guide discusses the history of the Grand Union Canal and the Wilstone Reservoir, and the changes brought to Wilstone by their construction.

• Source: LWT Original image of the Last Will and Testament of 'CLARK Joseph of Tring', written 9 September 1791 and proved 16 May 1793 at Little Gaddesden, privately donated.

• Source: LWTA Original image of the Last Will and Testament of 'Ann CLARK of Wilston in the Parish of Tring', written 17 January 1800 and proved 7 February 1803 at Hemel Hempstead, privately donated.

• Source: PD Pigot & Co.'s Royal National & Commercial Directory and Topography, September 1839, Tring, transcription accessed 2010 from This is Tring, website discontinued when accessed 27 January 2015.

• Source: PRT Parish Registers of Tring, 1566 — 1971, Church of England, Parish Church of Tring, Hertfordshire, Family History Library Film 991338, microfilm of the original register, transcribed by the author.

• Source: PRT2 Parish Registers of Tring, 1566 — 1971, Church of England, Parish Church of Tring, Hertfordshire, Family History Library Film 991339, microfilm of the original register, transcribed by the author.