Battens of Brislington, Somerset

 

 

 The BROWN family of Brislington, near Bristol, UK
& of Australia

and especially the descendants of
William BROWN and his wives - Sarah HORT and Deborah WORGAN

 

Searching for information about Sarah BROWN (1745-1824) and her husband James BATTEN (?-?)

I am stuck with "our" Battens and would love to hear from anyone who may have a connection or may be able to advise on further research.

On 16 February 1785 at Saint George, East Bristol, Gloucester, England, Sarah Brown, spinster of Brislington, married James Batten/s. I am fairly sure that this is "my Sarah Brown". She was the daughter of William Brown (1705-1783) and Deborah Worgan (1711-1777) and would have been born about 1745.

Sarah died on 11 November 1824 (aged 79) and was buried on 20 November 1824 at the Parish Church of St Luke, Brislington, England. Monumental Inscriptions indicate that a Sarah Brown, wife of James Batten and daughter of William and Deborah of the Parish Church of St Luke, Brislington, England died on 11 Nov 1821, aged 79. The dates fit so this is assumed to be our Sarah. However the MI, or transcription of it, must be incorrect as Sarah was buried on 20 November 1824. I don't know whether Sarah and James had any children. I'd love to discover some more about them, or about James's family and would be delighted to find that they had descendants. Do you think there may be a connection? Or could you suggest any way that I might be able to research this family further?


The Batten/Brown graves in St Luke's Churchyard, Brislington, Somerset, near Bristol

In the Batten/Brown section of the Churchyard at St Luke's are the following graves:

BATTEN Sarah wife of James Batten and dau. of William & Deborah Brown of this parish d. 11.11.1821 a.79 also Julia Clarissa dau. of John Brown d. 20.2. 1831 a.13 also Edwin John son of John Brown d. 8.11.1832 a.25 Francis son of John Brown d. 2.3.1845 a.19 Amelia Elizabeth Brown wife of Walter Brown M.D. d. 12.12.1852 a.24, Henry s.of William & Deborah Brown d. 23.12.1834 a.85, William s.of Henry Brown d. 11.44.1839 a.56, John s.of Henry Brown d. 16.7.1851 a.67 also Mary Ann Brown 2nd dau.of abv. Henry Brown b. 3.4.1788 d. 9.6.1875

I am not sure why this is called the Batten section as there is just one Batten buried there, Sarah Batten nee Brown. However I will continue searching to see what connection the Batten family had with St Luke's.

Brislington was at this time part of Someset but is now in Gloucestershire and has become a "suburb" of Bristol city.

Many of the Brown graves are shaded by a huge yew tree. On another website, not related to our family, I discovered that these trees are planted in graveyards because they symbolise longevity and reincarnation. It is thought that the oldest yew tree in the United Kingdom, at Fortingall, Scotland, is 1500 years old. The yew is hollow, the centre decays and new growth comes away from this part of the tree. The wood is very elastic, was excellent for the long bow and this gave the English superiority over the French at the Battle of Agincourt. The Latin name of the tree is taxus baccata.

Links

For more photos of the gravestones at St Lukes
Deborah Worgan's grave

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