There are DEMACKS in my family tree.
On 6 April 1840 one Henry DEMACK married Ann COOME (my 1st cousin 3x removed) in Bristol. They subsequently moved to Locking and had 3 children, Oliver (b. 1840 - registered in Q3!), Joseph (b. 1844) and Henry (b. 1847). All three baptisms are recorded in the church records for Locking.
The 1841 census shows a family of Demacks in Locking. That consists of Samuel (a farmer) and Hannah who are Henry's parents, Henry and Ann, a male possibly aged 19, a female possibly aged 15 and a male child. The census transcription on Ancestry.co.uk is very poor so it is difficult to be more certain about the latter names or ages, although the name of the infant does not appear to be Oliver.
The 1851 census, however, is much easier to read.Henry, Anne, who has now acquired an 'e' in her name, and the three boys are living as one family, and Henry is described as "Clark of the Church".
The family is still together in the 1861 census; Henry is now described as a "Farmer of 84 acres" (possibly having taken over the farm run by his father in 1841) and they have acquired a 24 year old domestic servant.
Oliver married Harriet MARSHALL (whose maiden name may be CLARK), a 37 year old widow, on 8 March 1871 in St. John's, W-s-M. I have found 2 children, Oliver and Ada Beatrice.
Joseph is a bit of a mystery (to me at least). In the 1891 census he is living with his widowed mother and his brother Joseph in Locking. Along with them is a 28 year old woman named Mary HEAL (b. in Cheddar) and a 1 year old boy named Fred HEAL (b. in Locking). Mary is described as a "Dairywoman" and she and Fred are listed as Boarders. In the 1901 census I found a Mary A DEMOCK (sic), aged 36, b. Cheddar and a son Fred, aged 11, b. Locking, living in W-s-M. Interestingly, the baptism records for Locking have an entry on 8 December 1895 for Frederick HALE, son of Mary, a single woman.
I have made the small step of thinking that these are the same people: however, there is no record af any marriage entered into between Mary and Joseph (!) so I may be mistaken. I have not ruled out that Joseph was in fact the father of Frederick and, subsequent to his death in October 1895, Mary moved away to W-s-M and simply changed their surnames to imply that they had been married.
I am still investigating Henry jnr. and descendants of Oliver and Joseph, who will be my cousins of a distant sort.
Henry snr. died in 1885 and Ann(e) in 1897. Oliver died in 1893 and Joseph in 1895. All four are buried at the church at Locking, along with a few others, presumably of the same family.
As ever, I am very grateful for all the transcription work put in by the Society. Without that, my records would be more sparse and less accurate so my thanks go to all concerned.
Jill - if you would like to know more, feel free to contact me via the Society.
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