B14 - Robert Walker Jr. Family, 1622

Robert Walker Jr. was born in 1622 in Liversedge, Yorkshire, England and was baptised on 28 May, 1622 in the Birstall Parish Church of St. Peter (Church of England) son of Robert Sr. and Anne (born Peele) Walker.

On 8 May, 1654 Robert married Elizabeth Walker (non-related) of Batley, at All Saints Parish Church of Batley, Yorkshire. Elizabeth was born in 1624 in Birstall Parish, the daughter of Richard & Isabel Walker and was baptised on 12 Oct. 1624 in the Church of St. Peter.

Robert and Elizabeth had 8 children, all born at Staincliffe and baptised in Batley Parish Church of All Saints:-

Joshua b 31-1-1657 d

Unnamed Son bap bur 14-12-1661

Anne bap 14-3-1662 bur 19 -9-1662

Alice bap -c1664 bur

Elizabeth bap 19-2-1667 bur

Robert bap 25-9-1668 bur 10 -8-1670

John bap bur 11 -6-1670

Samuell bap 23-2-1673 bur -1727

See separate biographies for Joshua and Samuell. Little is known of the remaining children except that Alice married Samuel Carr and they resided in the township of Deusbury, and Elizabeth married Benjamin Walker (non-related) and they resided in the township of Liversedge. Benjamin signed, as a witness to John (1689) and Sarah Walker's marriage certificate in 1714.

Robert Walker died at Staincliffe on 25 Jun. 1689 at age 67 and Elizabeth died there some 21 years later at age 86, which means she must have died in 1710. In the "Testamentary Documents of Yorkshire Peculiars" the record of Robert's Will reads as follows:-

1. 25 Jun. 1689 - Robert Walker of Woodowsome in the Townshipe of Batly, yeom. My body to the earth, from whence it was taken, in a decent and Christian buriall at Batley church. After payment of debtes and funerall expenses, Elizabeth, my wife, (yo) have all that messuage house called Woodowsome wherein wee now live with all laths, barnes, etc., and all those three closes of land called the Ing, the Wood close, and ye long lands untill Samuel, my son, attaine the age of twenty and one yeares; and all the rest of my land I do order to be letten dureing my sons nonage for ye raiseing of certaine somes of money to use of my executors for ye dischargeing of certaine debtes as they come due and payable. And then my will is that Samuell, my son, enter to my whole estate of housing and land, alloweing to Elizabeth Walker, his mother, dureing her life a third part of my houseing and land, to witt, the west part of the house called ye over parlour, ye milke house and butterie, and two chambers over them. Further I do order that Samuell, my son, do out of my lands pay what debts are undischarged by ye rentes and profittes afore in his non age sett appart. Item, my mind is that my said son shall pay to my two daughters, viz., Alice, wife of Samuell Carr of the townshipe of Deusbury, and Elizabeth, wife of Benjamin Walker of the township of Liversedge, the summe of twenty poundes a peece within four yeares next after he come to age, to either of my said daughters the summe of five pounds per annum dureing ye said four years. It.(item) all ye rest of my goods I give to Elizabeth, my deare and loving wife, and Samuell, my son, whome I appoint sole exors of this my last will. Robert Walker X. Witness, Henry Briggs, Mar: Shepley.

2. Inventory, 14 Nov. 1689.

3. Bond, 15 May, 1690.

Note:

1. The spelling and punctuation here are exact as copied from theTestamentary document

2. Woodowsome was later known as Staincliffe and also as Chapel Ford.

3. A “Lath” was a barn with a large door to take loaded hay carts through.

In Robert’s time Wills were usually “Proved” in the Courts of either York or Canterbury, but in a few cases they were dealt with elsewhere, in this case in the Manor Court of Batley. The Lord of the Manor, or his representative, called a meeting of all the tenants and land owners once a year to witness all new laws, requirements, rulings and decisions etc. and following deaths, to prove a Will and register the new tenant (in this case Robert’s son Samuell) and to extract a “Fealty”. This was a pledge of loyalty and a one time payment to the Lord of the Manor. This payment often consisted of the tenant’s “best beast” though it could, by custom, be a weight of grain, a volume of hay or a length of cloth. The tenants were required to attend these hearings, and if they did not a fine was imposed. The 1690 Manor Court Hearing states:- “We find Robert Walker of Staincliffe, deceased, and Samuel Walker his son, found heir, hath done fealty and the Will proven in Court”.

Upon marriage it was usual for sons, where possible, to inherit their share of land, money and /or goods. It would seem that Joshua had received his share some 2 to 3 years previously, after he married in 1687 and had chosen to live in Heaton, leaving Samuell to register his father’s death and give fealty to the Lord of the Manor.

Church of All Saints, Batley.

1635 – 1649. Roger Awdsley M.A. (Ejected by the Commonwealth)

1649 – 1660. Thomas Smallwood of Oxford University was minister, born Cheshire and sometime chaplain to Lord Fairfax, and afterwards to Lambert in the Army. He was turned out of Batley in 1660 (the end of the Commonwealth period) and preached in Idle Chapel, Leeds until 1662. Roger Awdsley was restored until he died 11-June 1666 and was interred in the church. RBW. 2007.

Note:

bap - baptised

bur - buried

b - born

d - died

Sources:

• Church of All Saints Parish Records

• Testamentary Documents of Yorkshire Peculiars

Associated Records:

• Link Art. 1-Page-A

By:- R. B. Walker, Eng. & H. L. Walker, Can. – 15 Jan, 2007