John Coe 1816 - 1874
I have deduced that John was born in 1816 from his age on the various census records. We know from these that he was born in Canewdon. However as we do not have birth records available online before 1837 it is not possible yet to say where he was actually born. Canewdon is only 3.8 miles from his home in Paglesham and so he may in fact have been born and lived anywhere between the two hamlets. The enumeration districts of Canewdon cover the village itself and also the island of Wallasea and the road between the two. So the closest property in the district is less than a mile from Stannets in Paglesham.
The census record of 1841 for Paglesham has the following details. Census records in 1841 did not indicate marital status, and relationships. The size of the farm is not known for this record. Also it would appear that the age has been entered incorrectly for John, who from subsequent records is the oldest son and would at this time have been about 25 years old.
The census record of 1841 for Paglesham has the following details. Census records in 1841 did not indicate marital status, and relationships. The size of the farm is not known for this record. Also it would appear that the age has been entered incorrectly for John, who from subsequent records is the oldest son and would at this time have been about 25 years old.
In the years 1849 and 1850 John Coe is recorded in the Chelmsford Chronicle Game Lists as being issued a General Game Certificate which permitted him to hunt game for the following twelve months.
In 1851 the census records show that the farm was slightly larger and by this date John Coe has succeeded his father Henry as Head of the family.
Albert E Coe’s birth certificate provides confirmation of his father John Coe and that at the time of Albert’s birth he was a farmer. It also tells us that his mother’s name prior to her marriage was Browning. A search of the Marriage records shows that John Coe married Maria Elizabeth Browning in Islington Q2 1854 vol 1b page 295. Why the marriage should take place away from Paglesham is unclear at the moment but researches into the Browning family has revealed connections with Islington.
The marriage certificate shows that at the time of their marriage both John Coe and Maria Elizabeth Browning were staying at 12 Noel Street Islington. Henry’s father is shown as being a farmer and Maria’s father Henry Browning a merchant. There were three witnesses to the ceremony all from the Browning family. None of them are shown with forenames but only initials which appear to be J G Browning, S A Browning, E Browning. I believe these to all be Maria’s younger sisters Jane, Sarah Ann and Eliza who would at the time have been 14, 22 and 18 respectively. Maria’s father Henry would have been only 54 at the time so he was not too old to have been able to attend as a witness. It is interesting that there is no witness from the Coe family. There are still no indications why the wedding did not take place in Paglesham. The following entry appeared in the Chelmsford Chronicle on 2nd June 1854.
The marriage certificate shows that at the time of their marriage both John Coe and Maria Elizabeth Browning were staying at 12 Noel Street Islington. Henry’s father is shown as being a farmer and Maria’s father Henry Browning a merchant. There were three witnesses to the ceremony all from the Browning family. None of them are shown with forenames but only initials which appear to be J G Browning, S A Browning, E Browning. I believe these to all be Maria’s younger sisters Jane, Sarah Ann and Eliza who would at the time have been 14, 22 and 18 respectively. Maria’s father Henry would have been only 54 at the time so he was not too old to have been able to attend as a witness. It is interesting that there is no witness from the Coe family. There are still no indications why the wedding did not take place in Paglesham. The following entry appeared in the Chelmsford Chronicle on 2nd June 1854.
Maria Browning was born in Paglesham 22/04/1831, she was the daughter of an Oyster Dredger and Merchant.
In 1841 she and her family are living in Brick Wall House Paglesham.
In 1841 she and her family are living in Brick Wall House Paglesham.
In 1851 she was living with her cousin George Fuller Browning in the capacity of House Servant.
In 1859 John Coe voted in the General Election where Thomas Bramston was returned as Member of Parliament for South Essex. Interestingly the votes of eligibl;e persons are recorded in the local newspaper The Chelmsford Chronicle. At this time not everyone was eligible to vote and it seems that John recorded a vote for Thomas Bramston and J Waltlington on behalf of his residence Stannets.
In the 1861 census of Paglesham John Coe is shown as a farmer of some significant estates. (400 acres) and employing 14 labourers and 2 boys on the land as well as house servants.
The Chelmsford Chronicle of Friday August 28th 1863 gives as an indication of the tenancy of Stannets. The freehold of South Hall and Stannets farms were sold for a total of £9500. The record shows that John Coe leased Stannets for a period of 20 years which would expire in 1883 for £430. This leasehold is referred to later in a Bankruptcy hearing involving John's widow Maria.
Two entries in the Chelmsford Chronicle and the Halfpenny Newsman record that John Coe and his neighbour James Wiseman were appointed as Overseers for the parish of Paglesham in April 1871 at a sitting of the Special Petty Sessions on April 6th at Rochford.
Later the same year The Halfpenny Newsman reported the proceedings of the September Petty Sessions at Rochford where a Hawker named John Bibbey of Chelmsford was accused and found guilty of encamping illegally on the highway at both Paglesham and Eastwood. John Coe gave evidence at the hearing of the Paglesham infirngement.
The census for 1871 is shown under Albert Edward Coe 1869 - 1931. In April 1872 John Coe was again appointed a joint overseer of the parish of Paglesham with James Wiseman
The census record for 1881 is shown under Albert Edward Coe 1869 – 1931
John Coe died in Rochford aged 58 Q4 1874 vol 4a page 162. His death certificate confirms that he died in Paglesham on 20th November 1874 from Dropsy. His occupation at the time is given as ‘Farmer’. The following entry from the Eastern Counties Advertiser also records his passing.
John Coe died in Rochford aged 58 Q4 1874 vol 4a page 162. His death certificate confirms that he died in Paglesham on 20th November 1874 from Dropsy. His occupation at the time is given as ‘Farmer’. The following entry from the Eastern Counties Advertiser also records his passing.
It is interesting that on his son Albert's marriage certificate in 1888 the occupation of John Coe is given as Cab Proprietor. We know that Maria did not remarry so why this should be the case is unclear. It is of course possible that Albert gave this as the occupation of his deceased father to add more weight to his current occupation of Coachman. It is usual but not mandatory for the marriage certificate to show that the father is deceased if his death predates the wedding although in discussion with other researchers this is by no means always the case. The Probate Register shows that John Coe did indeed leave his estate to his widow Maria Elizabeth Coe. He is still recorded as a Farmer and his effects amounted to less than £3000 which in 1874 would be the equivalent today of about £206,000.00 using the retail price index. I have managed to find reference elswhere to estates at this time being less than other values up to £2000. I have not located any higher than this so how much less than £3000 is open to debate. In view of this we can probably assume that Maria was beneficiary of an estate worh between £130,000 and £200,000. Certainly enough to set up a new business. Surprisingly John Coe died intestate and the letters of administration show that the property was held Leasehold at the date of death. Maria would almost certainly have had to leave the farm and hence her subsequent occupation of Lodging House Keeper in Prittlewell in 1881.
I have discovered the following documents in the Essex archives that seem to show that John Coe had received significant moneys as a result of his wife’s inheritance on the death of her mother.Although the farm was Leasehold the family were still reasonably well to do at that time.
In the archive of ‘Deeds and Probate Documents relating to South Essex’ are the following items.
Reference code D/DU 777/17/1,2
dated 16/17th April 1834 which refers to the Lease and Release of a mortgage for £200
Hen. Browning of Paglesham, oyster dredger, and w. Eliz. to Susannah Turner of Hockley, spr
3 messuages, formerly 1 messuage, with yard (1 r.) at East End in Paglesham, in occupation formerly of Elijah Wiseman, then of Tho. Browning, Robert Allen and Samuel Lingwood or one of them, and of Edward Child and w. Mary in 1806
This appears to show the leasing on mortgage and subsequent release of the freehold of 3 properties in Paglesham to Susannah Turner of Hockley, spinster. The previous occupants were variously
Elijah Wiseman
Who seems to be the occupant when the 3 properties were only one dwelling house
Thomas Browning
Robert Allen and/or Samuel Lingwood
Edward Child and Mary Child.
These last ‘families’ occupying what is now three dwelling houses in 1806
Reference code D/DU 777/19/2
dated 3rd April 1871
Accounts (six) of the Succession in Real property of Sarah Ann w. of Edward Beaumont Jeffries, Jane w. of Thomas Trigg Hull, Eliza w. of Charles Broad, Maria Elizabeth w. of John Coe, Henry Browning and Theodore Browning on d. of their mother Elizabeth Browning, 22 September 1870
Property including 3 messuages, formerly 1 in Paglesham and oyster layings called Varletts in Lt. Wakering and Barling Nass in Barling
This appears to itemise the transfer of ownership of 3 properties in shares to Sarah Ann Beaumont nee Browning, Jane Trigg Hull nee Browning, Eliza Broad nee Browning, Maria Elizabeth Coe nee Browning, Henry Browning and Theodore Browning following the death of their mother Elizabeth Browning. The property comprised 3 messuages or houses with their related lands and outbuildings. It does not identify which properties are affected by this transfer of ownership. It also includes two oyster beds at Little Wakering and Barling.
Reference code D/DU 777/17/6
dated 26th June 1871 which refers to a conveyance for £600.
Hen. Browning, Theodore Browning, John Coe and w. Maria Eliz., Charles Broad and w. Eliza, Thomas Trigg Hull and w. Jane, all as in D/DU 777/17/5, and Edward Beaumont Jeffreys of 17 New Street, Newington Park Road (co. Surrey), Custom House clerk, and w. Sar. Ann to James Forster Turner Wiseman of Paglesham, oyster merchant.
Property as in D/DU 777/17/1, 2, now in occupation of John Kemp, Theodore Browning and John Hutley or one of them
This document seems to refer to the sale of the properties inherited by the Browning children in 1871 to John Forster Turner Wiseman for a significant sum of money.
So what was £600 worth in 1871 compared to today. I have attempted to discover this and it appears there is no such thing as a definitive method for comparing money values over time. There is a value of money converter on the National Archive website which shows that the spending value of £600 in 1871 would now be worth about £27000. However given the relative poverty of the populace in the mid 1800’s I think it is fair to assume that £600 represented a significant sum even when shared between the six beneficiaries. It is interesting that the inheritance named the female children as beneficiaries but when the properties are sold then the recipients of the moneys are jointly named so the inherited property had passed into joint ownership.
It appears that the three messuages referred to in these documents were inherited by Henry Browning and subsequently his wife Elizabeth following the death of Henry’s father Thomas in 1833.
Thomas’s will specified that Henry should receive
3 freehold messuages,
£50
a silver pint
A number of oyster layings were offered firstly to Fuller Browning and then Henry Browning. It appears that Henry purchased the Barling Ness and Varlet Layings as they appear in the above documents.
Barling Ness and Varlett Laying £600
After several other bequests to his other children, the remainder of Thomas’s estate was sold to provide a trust fund for his wife and children. It is known that there were 13 lots in the sale and lots 1 – 5 raised £3495. The money raised from the sale of the remaining lots is not known but they comprised two pieces of arable land, two valuable pieces of old meadow, six cottages in Paglesham, three timber built messuages in Paglesham, 3 brick and tile built messuages in Canewdon, five freehold messuages in Rochford. These must have raised at least as much as the first five lots.
On the death of Henry Browning in 1859 his estate passed to his wife Elizabeth and as we know on her death all she owned including the two oyster layings passed in equal shares to their children
Regarding the value of the property inherited by John Coe the following information has been taken from a document prepared by Charles Eldridge concerning the Browning family.
“Various rateable valuations of owners of property were made in Paglesham in the 1800s of which the following records have been found. In 1842, George Fuller Browning owned property with a rateable value of £16 17s 11d which rose to £20 for a house and its land by 1863. His younger brother Charles who was a farmer rather than oyster merchant had a rateable value of £39 15s 2d in 1842 but the most prominent landowner of this time was Mr Henry Coe of South Hall with a rateable value of £393 3s 6d. He was also George Fuller Browning’s father-in-law but his land passed to his son John Coe on his death in 1846.”
When John Coe died in 1874 his wife inherited the money but not the farm as that was leased. At the time she had three small children aged 14, 7 and 4. She would have had to provide for her family and so she decided to move the few miles to the coast and set up as a Lodging House Keeper, a suitable occupation for a widow in the 1880’s, in Prittlewell which at this time is a suburb of Southend and is only some seven miles from Paglesham.
Recently released newspaper records show that there was a dispute over part of Maria's inheritence. The details are shown on the following page Maria Coe Liquidation Hearing
The census records for 1891 show Maria Coe having moved from Southend and living in Lambeth with her daughter Winifred and others.
Recently released newspaper records show that there was a dispute over part of Maria's inheritence. The details are shown on the following page Maria Coe Liquidation Hearing
The census records for 1891 show Maria Coe having moved from Southend and living in Lambeth with her daughter Winifred and others.
In 1901 Maria has returned to Alexandra Street in Prittlewell where she is a visitor in the home of Journalist/Author William H Barker. She is at no 51 Alexandra Road which is next door to the Alexandra Hotel. Looking at the street in 2010 there is now a hotel The Alex which occupies the position of several properties. It is likely that in 1901 the Alexandra Hotel was only a single building where the main entrance to the Alex is now. In this case no 51 would have been the door to the left of the bay window in the picture below. The Alex is on the same side of the road and only 3 minutes walk from the property at No 7 where Maria ran a Lodging House in 1881.
There is no record of William living in the area when Maria was there in 1881 so it is unlikely that we will be able to discover anything about how well she knew the Barker family.
There is no record of William living in the area when Maria was there in 1881 so it is unlikely that we will be able to discover anything about how well she knew the Barker family.
In 1911 Maria is lodging with the Brown family at 30 Whitegate Road Prittlewell. Her granddaughter Winifred is also staying in the house.
Maria E Coe died age 88 in Rochford Q2 1919 vol 4a page 554. The death certificate shows she died on the 23rd April 1919 at Nazareth House Southend on Sea. Her occupation is given as ‘Widow of John Coe, Farmer’. The death was registered by her son Horace J Coe who was with her when she died. Nazareth House is now a Residential Care Home on London Road Southend. In the early 1900’s it was a home for the aged, poor and destitute run by the Sisters of Nazareth. I have not managed to find out when she went into the home but it was obviously between 1911 and 1919.