I have been working hard on my Ancestry family tree input this week, and the last day or so concentrating on the Hobbs. Normally all you find are names and dates - trying to find stories about folk is more difficult, though you can get the gist of some stories from the census listings and parish births (some vicars kindly put "b.b." - base born - others though go for the jugular and write "bastard" or "illegitimate" - when your parishioners are illiterate, it matters not if they are judgemental.) Or you can tell from the time between the marriage and the first baby's birth that the couple "had" to get married, but not much more from parish records than that, unless the vicar has given a specific house when they aren't just "village".
Anyway, some time ago I came across a snippit which related to a relative of mine - not direct ancestry as he was the nephew of my 4 x g. grandfather, but let's say perhaps his horsey genes were in the family and that's where I got them from!
From Raffaty's Chats (I have High Wycombe Society org.uk written beside it but can't find the internal link now)
"At No.64 resided quaint Sam Hobbs, horse dealer, dairyman and a noted hunting man, a shrewd original witty character, who would rise at 3 o'clock to milk his cows so as to turn out for the meet at 11 o'clock. Describing his noted cream, he recommended it as an excellent substitute for skim milk (!)"
In the 1841 census he was noted as being a Baker, and his son George was a Sawyer. Both names appear as family names in my family tree and the Victorian ones all seem to be Sawyers, so a family trade. Another son of Sam's, Frank, worked as a Job Master at the Three Tuns pub in the town, which hired out horses for carriage and riding, and he clearly had plenty of experience of horses from his dad's dealer's yard.
Our neighbouring farmer kindly offered to take down a diseased and half-dead Sycamore tree for us this afternoon - he gets plenty of firewood in return. The neighbours are very kind.
Unfortunately, he confirmed that the alternative but less desirable Pylon route is even closer than I feared - barely 50 yards away and in front of the stables. Whilst the bungalow next door and a period house down the hill will be closer, I don't know how they can plan it so close to properties, especially when they could avoid them entirely (especially if they went across the edge of the Eppynts). Praying a) they won't use this route and b) they will be forced to bury it anyway.
