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The History of
'The Vickers Family'
At 'The Fisheries' Vickers Pond
By Colin Vickers
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William Vickers, my Great-Great-Grand Father was born in 1792 at Wyham,
a small village situated to the north west of Louth.
I know nothing of his early life, but in 1835 he married Miss Sarah
Featherby a girl some twenty-four years his junior.
Around this time they must have moved to Tetford where their only son,
George was born in 1836.
Fifteen years on in 1851, and the census for that year recorded that
William farmed sixty-eight acres of land at Saltfleetby, and his son
George helped on the farm.
I’m not sure what happened to this farming venture but in later years
Billy Paddison, a local diarist, recorded that William was head
ploughman for Mr Oldham of Saltfleetby House, and lived at Thornham
Farm. William died in March 1871, and some time later, his widow, Sarah,
married William Ayscough, and they lived in the small cottage opposite
the village shop, known today as “ Bart’s Cottage”.
George, the son of William and Sarah, married Sarah Howell in March
1856, and shortly after that, their daughter, Angelina was born. In the
late 1850’s they moved to the Spalding area, together with Sarah’s
parents, Mr and Mrs John Cannon, and here John Cannon and George both
worked in the brickyards
Whilst they were in the Spalding area they had two more children,
Eunice, who was born in 1860, and John William born in March 1861.
In January 1864 they decided to leave the area and return to Saltfleetby
and as a leaving present their friends presented them with a Bible. The
inscriptions on the inside of the front cover reads, Mr. John Cannon Jan
25th 1864. “A subscription testimonial presented to him by his Holbeach
friends on the occasion of his leaving the town, as a token of the
universal esteem in which he and his beloved wife are held.”
On their return to Saltfleetby John Cannon took over the local brickyard
which eventually closed down in the 1880’s, became a fishing venue and
was known for many years as “Vickers Pond”. The pond is still there
today, situated behind the property known as “The Fisheries” and has
been re-named “Saltfleetby Fisheries”. A short time later he built the
property now known as “Southholm”. Not at all sure what his son-in-law
did when they returned to Saltfleetby, but I assume that he worked in
the brickyard.
In Kelly’s Directories of 1872 and 1876 George is listed as a farmer,
and in the Directory of 1881 as a land surveyor. In the 1889 edition he
is listed as “Land Surveyor and Collector of Taxes for Saltfleetby” His
daughter, Eunice, said that he was very fond of “The Demon Drink” and
this could well have been his undoing because he died on the 27th July
1890 when only fifty three years old. His widow, Sarah, passed away in
September the following year.
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George
and Sarah had three children, Angelina, Eunice and John William.
Angelina married Tom Donner in 1875, moved to Scunthorpe and opened
a butchers shop and died there in Feb.1929.
In 1881 Eunice married Tom Flear, they built and ran the village
shop at Saltfleetby for a couple of years.
Nothing is known of their whereabouts until 1916 when Eunice
returned alone to the village, and once again took over the running
of the village shop, a position she held until her retirement in
1928.
She
continued to live behind the shop, first with her nephew Bill and
his wife Peggy, and then with her nieces, Sarah and Mary, until she
passed away in 1948. |
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John William
worked with his grandfather, John Cannon, in the brickyard
in his youth, had a spell farming, and then went into the
business of well digging and land drainage.
In
1884 he married a local girl Annie Bradley, and they had one
child Annie Eunice, born in 1885. Unfortunately, Annie died in
childbirth, and I assume that John William returned home to live
with his Mother and Father.
In
1891 he re-married, this time to a Miss Lois Hurt, a girl from
Ossington, a small village just outside Newark, and soon after
this they took over the village shop, which had been vacated by
John Williams sister and her husband Tom Flear. Here they stayed
until 1916 when they moved to “Woodbine Cottage” and John
William expanded his business of well-boring and land drainage.
John William's second marriage produced nine children. The first
child, George, born in June 1892, only lived for a short time,
was christened on June 21st and buried on June 25th 1892. |
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SARAH, the second child was born in 1894, and for
some time was a teacher at Saltfleetby school.
She was married in 1920 to Jessie Kidd, an ex- serviceman
who had been severely gassed in the 1914–18 war. Sadly he
died in 1924, and after his death Sarah moved to Mablethorpe, and with the help of her sister Mary, opened
a boarding house. One of their first paying guests was Mr
Billy Butlin when he was in the area trying to find a site
for his holiday camp.
After a few years, Sarah and Mary moved to Scunthorpe, and
once again opened a boarding house. Here they stayed until
March 1939, and then, when their brother Jack's wife died
suddenly they returned to Saltfleetby to look after his
three children, and run the village shop.
Sarah took an active part in village life and regularly
attended the Wesleyan Chapel. She was instrumental in
organising the Methodist Circuit Garden Fete, which raised
over one hundred pounds for circuit funds, a considerable
amount in the early 1940’s.
Sarah retired in 1958 and moved back to Scunthorpe where
she stayed until 1984. At this time she was taken ill, and
being unable to look after herself, moved to live with her
sister in Nottingham, where she died on the 24th Sept.1984 |
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MARY, the third child was born at Saltfleetby on the
17th July 1896, went to school in the village and during the
1914–18 war went to work in Scunthorpe in the pork butchers
shop owned by her aunt and uncle, Angelina and Thomas Donnner.
After the war she joined forces with her sister Sarah, and
together they ran a boarding house, first at Mablethorpe,
then they moved to Scunthorpe and set up a similar venture
there.
In 1939 she moved back to Saltfleetby, and helped her sister
to run the village shop. On retirement in 1958 she moved
back to Scunthorpe. Sadly, she was taken ill in 1981 and
spent the last years of her life in various nursing homes,
and passed away on the 14th January 1989 aged 92. |
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LOIS, the fourth child was born at Saltfleetby on the 20th
January 1897 and after schooling, she also went to work in the
butchers shop at Scunthorpe. It was whilst working here that she met
her future husband Gerald Crelling.
They were married on 1st June 1925. Their only son Gordon Allan was
born on the 24th September 1927 but sadly he died on the 11th March
1929. Gerald spent practically all his working life with The
Southern Oil Company whose premises were alongside Keadby Bridge.
Lois died suddenly on July 4th 1962 whilst sitting in her chair.
Gerald stayed on in Scunthorpe for several years after her death,
but eventually moved to Warrington to be near his relations, and it
was here that he died in 1970. |
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JACK, the fifth child, was born at Saltfleetby on the 3rd
February 1899, and in 1915 at the age of sixteen, he volunteered,
and joined the Lincolnshire Yeomanry.
In
September of that year he had embarked on the troopship “Mercian”
together with other members of the Yeomanry, and as they crossed the
Mediterranean they were shelled by a German U-boat., Several men
and horses were killed, but Jack survived, and went on to see active
service in Egypt and Palestine.
It was
here that he received a head wound which almost cost him his life,
the bullet hitting him on the side of the forehead and coming out
just behind his ear.
A very
close shave! |
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