shaw

THE SHAWS OF LODGE HILL EGTON GRANGE

The Shaws entered the recusant lists in 1755 when out of one hundred and thirty names submitted to Archbishop Blackburne for the parish of Egton, Thomas and Jane his wife and two children, Ralph and Mary were presented. A word difficult to decipher after his name, the only Shaw out of thirty nine presented in 1745 could look like 'executed' but there is nothing to support this interpretation.This was the year that Fr.Hervey was arrested at Ugthorpe ending missionary work upon his subsequent exile. The very last entry in his valuable records is the baptism on August 25th of Thomas' grandson the child of Ralph and Ann from 'Lodge Hill upon Egton Bridge' when Thomas and Mary White both of Egton Bridge were godparents.

The list of 1755 compiled by the Egton vicar Rev. Jonathan Robinson because of the complaint made by the new owner of the Egton Estate had seven names, seven Shaws out of all the papists therein. So great a calamity as one third of his tenants adhering to the pope could not be endured and suppression was called for. However, the complaint notwithstanding, the suppression did not follow. The names actually were only two being entered as Benjamin Shaw, wife and four children and Thomas father.The curious word therefore, must have been something else. Although Ralph's child bore the name of his grandfather, none of Benjamin's have been identified, with any certainty.

The extent of Fr. Hervey's ministrations can be judged by the fact that he baptised Ann Shaw the daughter of James and Jane from Yarm. This was on August 29th 1758. A George Simpson and Ann Horsley were godparents.

The Egton parish records add confusion rather than light to the story for in the first place Thomas son of Ralph, Householder, 'Grains' was baptised in June 1753, while John son of Benjamin, householder, 'Grains', was christened on October 14th 1734, and a sister to John followed in 1757. Grains by the way is the churchwarderns rendering of the name given to the upper reaches of Butterbeck now mapped as Egton Grange. To make matters worse, a marriage of Ralph and Mary Child took place at Egton on April 31st 1740. The Benjamin in this paragraph died in 1742 so he was not the one presented for recusancy in 1753. Jane from the 1735 list died in 1749. The domicile 'Grains' given in these registers is evidence of being papists although only Ralph and Ann with two children appear on the next Egton list in 1780. Other Shaw occurences are assumed for the time being, to be non-papists, such being those of John who died a servant in 1758, John and Elizabeth Day who married, both of Egton on October 22nd 1765 and John of Helmsley and Hannah Holing of Egton who married on May 5th 1774. The marriage of Ralph and Mary Fletcher both of Egton could be of Papists as there are papists with the bride's name, but that of Thomas and Elizabeth White is more likely since the Whites were a strong recusant family. This wedding took place at Egton on July 28th 1782 and that of Ralph on November 11th 1778. The death of Thomas son of Ralph of the Delves in 1780 is a possible child. Ralph of Egton Grains predeceased his wife Ann by exactly three months on March 14th 1786 but no ages were given. John and Eleanor Barker both of Egton were married there on September 16th 1788, possibly papists. The only entry of baptism for 53 years took place on August 29th 1790 and was of the son of Thomas of Grains farmer. There are between 1700 and 1850 only four baptisms, eight marriages and nine burials relating to the Shaw family.

They were of course being born all the time and baptised as the Ugthorpe registers show. From this source it is learned that there were two recusant families living at Egton village, Benedict b. November 11th 1788 and Matthew b. December 18th following. Using both it is found that the burial of George son of John of Egton staymaker, would be the infant baptised in the Ugthorpe books on March 4th 1791. He was fifteen months old. Another marriage shows that Thomas wed Mary Harrison on November 27th 1794 both from Egton parish. From later burials it is found that Mary Shaw from the Grains reported the death of Agnes Child nee Shaw, widow of William Child aged 87 on October 25th 1842 so that she was born in 1755 very likely a daughter of Ralph and Ann. In that same way Bridget Barker nee Shaw was born in 1788. From godparents is discovered that John Shaw sponsored Elizabeth Readman daughter of Thomas and Ann nee Shaw in 1805; Thomas Shaw sponsored Ann the daughter of Matthew in 1825; Thomas sponsored John, Bridget's son in 1820 and Matthew performed that office for Ann Roe, Dorothy Shaw's daughter in 1820 as well. Elizabeth Shaw was 25 when she married Luke Harrison at Ugthorpe on May 14th 1816, born therefore in 1791. John. Shaw died at Whitby aged 39 on December 30th 1825, born therefore in 1786 {rest of line illedgible)

A patchy picture is now possible.

Egton Grange Lodge Hill family.

Egton Village