Thomas Ginn of Fyfield d. 1707

Tom here was the last of the Ginn family in Fyfield, they had lived there continuously for over a hundred years. 

 
Most people's lives are a mixture of light and dark, and for Thomas unfortunately it was mostly dark.

His mother died when he was nine and his father at ten and he was the eldest of five little orphans.  His dad had not had any siblings and so the five of them had their great uncle Arthur Ginn, Estate Manager at Bower Hall in distant Steeple Bumpstead and then a bachelor of 64, appointed as their guardian.

Arthur Ginn had a dfficult time of it as we know, having to deal with the creditors of his nephew and fighting to maintain the inheritence of his great nephews and niece in 1691.  The struggle was not over.

When Arthur died in 1693 we know from a later court case (see below) that the orphans were passed into the care of a Stephen Blewett of Fyfield, a Blacksmith who died in 1694 (will ERO).  At this point Tom junior was still only 17 and thus underage.  A certain John Stracey, yeoman of Fyfield, seized his opportunity and took up the guardianship with a view to making a profit from the power it gave him it is alleged - "he appointed himself"  said Tom when he came of age.

Tom achieved his majority in 1698 and he set about trying to take control of his life. He first married Rebecca Upshire in 1699.  I finally tracked down a marriage licence (see D/AEL 1699 at ERO) the original of which with Tom's signature is shown below..   The Upshire family are likely related to the Upshaw family of Virginia in the USA who were established there by a Capt John Upshaw of Essex in the mid 1600s.  Apparently there is a website devoted to them and the Upshire family of Essex. 

Thomas Ginn, Yeoman, was to marry Rebecca Upshire of Felstead “between the hours of 8 and 12 o’clock in the forenoon” at Great Leighs or Leighs Chapel.  They duly married at the Leighs Chapel on November 28^th 1699 and the entry is registered at Little Leighs. 

Thomas was the litigant in 1702 - suing Stracey for what Tom perceived was the loss of part of his inheritence.  To be fair, it was difficult for the guardians to manage these lands without dispute, they looked after them for some fifteen years, taking the income as their payment and to pay for the upkeep of the kids.  They leased them out and mortgaged them and, obviously, some of what took place did not meet with the approval of Thomas.  The result of the case is not known.  There were allegations that Stracey was holding up delivery of all of the lands that were due to Tom (reputed of the yearly value of £100 and upwards – probably about 120 acres) until such time as Thomas paid Stracey money the latter claimed was owed him.  It was also said that Thomas Snr (who died in 1687) left an estate of some £500 in addition in chattels, bonds, money etc etc and where was a chunk of it ?  It was all very messy

It was discovered in 2006 and 2007 that there are two sets of deeds and related papers at the ERO that are crucial to an understanding of this family.  These are DDHf/T66 and  D/DO T965.

It is clear from these and the court case of the same year that Thomas was desperate for money in 1701/2.  He had married and his brother Arthur was now of age and expecting the money left him in his father’s will.  His brother Henry would shortly also be asking for his inheritance.  Tom needed cash.

In 1701 he mortgaged all of his lands in Fyfield for nearly £300 to a chap called Boosey.  This was not enough.  In 1702 he sold everything – Clarks, Gibbs and all the rest to a man called Fenwick for some £500.  The only stipulation was that the sale was subject to Rebecca’s jointure in Clarks (probably a lifetime income  from it) and the mortgage to Boosey.  Fenwick had to pay that off.  There were also negotiations as to how to pay off Tom’s brothers .  No wonder Tom sued in 1702 to see what he could get off of Stracey !!  

Whether all this affected his health I know not , but the deeds tell us that Thomas endured the curse of many of his ancestors and died young.   The Fyfield Vestry Minutes tell us that this was in 1707 - he  was 30. 

Poor Rebecca was left with three children and no man to run the lands.  She doubtless had some cash but only her life interest in Clarks and in 1710 she mortgaged that interest (in only the house and 17 acres) for £100. There is at least one surviving deed with her signature, a renewal of the mortgage of 1715 being shown below.  She kept up the interest payments for many years and appears to have leased Clarks out to obtain income as well as capital.  

It is clear from these same deeds that Rebecca later remarried Henry West.  They married at Shelley in 1720.   Henry also died soon after.

Two of Tom and Rebecca’s three children died at Fyfield:  Mary in 1723 aged 21 and Thomas jnr in 1724 aged 24.   This was the era of major smallpox epidemics and it seems likely that it was that which carried them away.  It is also obvious that their daughter Sarah survived, but died without issue.

Rebecca later charged her interest in Clarks with a £20 annuity and it is known to have died at High Easter, Essex in 1762 as Rebecca West, widow with a quoted age of 93 and leaving a will (ERO).  It is sadly apparent from the will that none of her children survived her and there were no grandchildren.