Martha Cleobury

Martha Cleobury

Martha lived in Chapel Street Marlow by 1831 until her death at the age of 91 in 1848.

She was the widow of Stephen Cleobury who died in 1818. Presumably he was a relative of the Revd John Cleobury (d 1801) of Great Marlow and his wife Elizabeth who herself lived as a widow in Chapel Street in 1833.

Martha's 1848 death notice in the Oxford Chronicle calls her "highly respected and deeply lamented" while the Reading Mercury said that her death was "a cause of deep and universal regret" as her long life had been spent in piety, benevolence and other Christian values. Sounds like quite a lady!

Martha left a will in which the main beneficiaries were a host nieces and friends in Marlow. There is no mention of any children for Martha. Her death notice and census entries suggest a birth date for her for the 1760s. She married Stephen in 1802 at St Sepulchre's Newgate London. She was then Martha Beckett.

One of the nieces left a legacy was Susanna A'Bear who lived with Martha in 1841. She received a half share of Martha's table linen and sheets. Susannah was the daughter of Martha's sister Mary who had married Thomas A'Bear of Wargrave.

Two Marlow shopkeepers John Morris Senior the draper of the High Street [all about him and his family here]and James Bird Brooks of the Causeway were appointed executors of the will. John's son John Junior received a legacy of £19 19 shillings while James's daughter Amelia got £5.

The biggest legacy went to niece Ann Aveling wife of Edward who got £50 invested in stocks.

More Chapel Street related posts can be found listed on this menu

Post researched and written by Charlotte Day.

Sources:

Will of Martha Cleobury. PCC. Held at the National Archives and transcribed by me.

England Deaths and Burials, 1538-1991", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:J8XF-G3T : 17 March 2020), Stephen Cleoburey, 1818.

1841 census England and Wales, transcribed from microfilm.

Pigotts Directory 1831 and 1844.

Oxford Chronicle and Reading Gazette 29th April 1848 and Reading Mercury 22nd April 1848. Copies held in the British Library Archives. Accessed via the BNA March 2021.

Parish registers, London Metropolitan Archives.

©Marlow Ancestors. You are welcome to reuse this research for family or local history purposes with credit to this blog and a link here so that the sources I list above remain credited for their input. Thanks.