Events
Date of Baptism: 12 October 1740.
Place of Baptism: Padiham, Lancashire (St Leonard).
The baptism is recorded in the parish register.
Date of Burial: 29 March 1775.
Place of Burial: Wheatley Lane Inghamite Chapel, Fence in Pendle, Lancashire.
The burial is given by Lancashire Online Parish Clerks, citing the original registers.
Relationships
Father: Christopher Hargreaves.
Mother: Martha Whittaker.
See the Commentary section.
Spouse: Richard Stuttard (1742 - 1780). Married 1 August 1767 in Newchurch-in-Pendle (St. Mary).
The marriage is recorded in the parish register.
Children:
(Complete source citations for facts about the children on this page are currently outside of the scope of this project.)
James Stuttard (baptized 5 June 1768 in Colne - buried 24 June 1796 in Blackburn) married Isabel Spencer 22 July 1790 in Whalley, Lancashire (St Mary and All Saints).
Betty Stuttard (baptized 7 April 1771 in Colne).
Evidence
Marriage from the parish registers of St Mary, Newchurch in Pendle:
Banns of Marriage between Rich.d. Stuttard of Barley (Weaver) & Alice Hargreaves of Watermeetings in the Chapelry of Colne (spinster) were pub.d Ap.l 19.th 26.th & May 3.d
Richard Stuttard of the Chapelry of New Church Weaver and Alice Hargreaves of the Chapelry of Colne were Married in this Chapel by Banns this twelfth Day of May in the Year One Thousand Seven Hundred and sixty seven by me W: Burton Curate
This Marriage was solemnized between Us
Richard Stuttard
Alice her + mark Hargreaves
In the Presence of
W Scott
Thomas Stuttard
Burial from Wheatley Lane Inghamite Chapel, taken from Lancashire Online Parish Clerks:
Burial: 29 Mar 1775 Wheatley Lane Inghamite Chapel, Fence in Pendle, Lancashire, England
Alice Stutard - Wife of Richd. Stutard
Register: Burials 1750 - 1837, Page 12
Source: Original Register
Commentary
Alice’s parentage:
Based on the information that Alice’s husband Richard Stuttard was born in 1742, and Alice was of Watermeetings at the time of her 1767 marriage in Newchurch in Pendle, there appear to be four candidates for Alice’s baptism:
(1) Alice, daughter of Dionysius Hargreaves was baptized in Newchurch in Pendle in 1739. She died in 1740.
(2) Alice the daughter of John Hargreaves of Barrowford was baptized in Colne in 1746/7. She died in 1747.
(3) Alice the daughter of Christopher Hargreaves, weaver of Pendle, and his wife Martha was baptized in Padiham in 1740.
(4) Alice the daughter of James Hargreaves was baptized in Newchurch in Pendle in 1744.
Thus, after ruling out candidates who died as infants, two baptisms remain. This implies Alice’s father was likely either James Hargreaves of Newchurch in Pendle or Christopher Hargreaves, weaver of Pendle.
The main reason to prefer James as Alice’s father is that Newchurch in Pendle is where Alice was married in 1767.
The reasons to prefer Christopher are more compelling. Christopher was living in Higham at the time of his marriage, and his residence is recorded as Higham in the baptism records of most of his children Starting in 1742, the residence of Christopher is recorded as Higham in the baptism records of his children. The surviving Inghamite Conference Books show that Christopher Hargreaves of Higham had joined that small religious group by the 1750s and played a role in its governance. He had a child buried at the Wheatley Lane Inghamite chapel in 1755, and three children were later baptized there. Christopher himself and his wife Martha were buried there in the early 1790s. Several of Christopher’s children were members.
Among the other Inghamites named in the Conference Books were John Hargraves and Mally Hargreaves of Higham. John was Christopher’s brother. He left a will in 1776/7 which shows that he seems to have held the reversion of the land the Wheatley Lane chapel was situated on.
Now the Alice of this page married Richard Stuttard, who came from an Inghamite family. Richard and Alice’s children were baptized at the Wheatley Lane Inghamite chapel, and Richard and Alice were buried there.
Finally, there is a connection to Watermeetings. A John Hargreaves, almost certainly either Christopher’s son or nephew, married a Grace Tattersall of Higham in Padiham in 1764, and their residence was recorded as Watermeetings in the baptism record of their first child.
I believe the religious affiliation and the tie to Watermeetings are good enough evidence to establish the 1740 baptism to Christopher and Martha as the correct one.
Christopher Hargreaves of Higham married Martha Whittaker of the chapelry of Burnley in Burnley 1 December 1739, not long before Christopher and Martha’s eldest child, Alice, was born.
References
Lancashire Anglican Parish Registers. Preston, England: Lancashire Archives. [Digital images at Ancestry.com accessed 19 January 2016.]
Lancashire Online Parish Clerks. URL: http://www.lan-opc.org.uk/ (accessed 27 March 2014).
Oates, P.J. My Ancestors Were Inghamites. (Society of Genealogists Enterprises Ltd., 2003)
Will of John Hargreaves (the elder) of Higham in the Forest of Pendle and County of Lancaster, yeoman. Proved 1777 in the Consistory Court of Chester. [Digital images on FamilySearch.org Film #04422446, images 144-149 of 569.]