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Family 6: Family of George Rodney Chettle
Born - 6 January 1809
Baptism - 9 January 1809, George Rodney Chettle Son of Samuel & Mary (All Saints)
Marriage - 24 Feb 1829, George Rodney Chettle & Ann Thorpe at St Mary de Castro
Death - Ann Chettle was buried on December 17th 1867 Welford Road Cemetery
Death - George Rodney Chettle died in 1882 at 35 Burgess Street Leicester.
2nd Marriage - 25th April 1870, George Rodney Chettle aged 61 & Mary Dexter aged 51 at St Margarets Church Leicester. It should also be noted that George Rodney Chettle, son of George Rodney and Ann married Eliza the daughter of Mary Dexter on May 22nd 1866.
Trade - Hairdresser
Home - Leicester, then London and returning to Leicester
Freeman - 16 July 1832 George Rodney Chettle, Hairdresser. 1st Son of Samuel (F.W.K.)
Children of George Rodney & Ann
Baptism - 21 Oct 1829* - Frederick Chettle (living in York Street Leicester)
Baptism - 22 Sept 1831 - Ann Jane Chettle (St Nicholas)
Born - 1832 / 33 Catherine Chettle - Buried Sept 24 1833 (Infant)
Born - 1835 / 6 Eliza Chettle (London)
Born - 24 April 1840 George Rodney Chettle, Lambeth London.
Born - 1842 Matilda Chettle, St Andrews, Holborn, London
Born - 1844 Robert Chettle
Born - 1845/ 46 Alfred Chettle, Islington, London
Born - Dec 4 1847 Mary Ann Chettle, Islington, London.
Born - Oct 1849 William Chettle, St Martin in the Fields Workhouse, London.
George Rodney Chettle was buried June 1st 1882. Ann Chettle was buried December 17th 1867.
We have learned more about the Children of George Rodney and Ann and the details appear
on the following pages.
*Our direct line continues with Frederick Chettle.
George Rodney Married and went to live in York Street (off of Granby Street in Leicester)
and later in Bridge Street (West Bridge, Leicester).
But after the birth of his two eldest children he moved the Family to London, sometime
between 1833 and 1836 at this time there was considerable political upheaval in
Leicester and a great deal of unemployment especially amongst the hosiery workers. We have
found George Rodney on the Old Bailey website as a witness in 1865 and he gives his address as
Liverpool Street. On the 1841 census George Rodney is living at Eyre Street Hill in London
with 3 Children his Wife Ann and newborn Son, also George Rodney are found in a tiny
village called Catisfield in Fareham. This at the moment is a total mystery.
We have also found
links with other Chettle Families in London who lived very close to George Rodney whilst in
London, as yet we have not discovered the precise link. His last child, William was born in the
St Martins in the Fields Workhouse, this we have discovered was probably due to complications
with the pregnancy and the fact that free midwife care was available in the Workhouse
(albeit primitive).
Ann Chettle entered the workhouse on Sept 20th 1849 as "temporarily disabled"
and was discharged with child 16th Oct 1849. He lived in London for around 15 years and as can
be seen he moved around the Lambeth, Holborn area eventually moving further North to Islington.
Nevertheless he managed to return to Leicester where he recovered to get a fair living at various
addresses in Belgrave Gate, Leicester (Nos 35,49,51,62,65 &105) and at 3 Halford Street, Leicester.
Finally going to live with his Daughter, Ann at 35 Burgess Street (Sanvey Gate, Leicester)
He died here in 1882, he was also the last Freeman in our direct line.
The Marriage of George Rodney Chettle to Ann Thorpe: 24 February 1829
St Mary de Castro, Leicester:
The Baptism Of Frederick Chettle 25th October 1829:
George Rodney Chettle has left us with invaluable history of his life and times. There is also a tale in his name "George Rodney" being after the famous Admiral (George) Rodney victor of the Battle of the Saintes in April 1782. There are also other George Rodney's in the Chettle Family History.
The first Chettle to be named George Rodney, was the Uncle to my George Rodney and he was born Dec 18th 1782, coincidentally when news reached Leicester of the great victory by Admiral Rodney over the French at the Battle of the Saintes and the Chettle family lived close to the Admiral Rodney pub so a great name came to be. It should also be noted that the first George Rodney Chettle fought with distinction with the 15th Hussars at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815.
Over recent years we have found out many more details about George Rodney Chettle born 1809 and more recently I stumbled across the British Newspaper Archive and found out a great deal more about him.
His early life must have been very difficult as we know that his Father Samuel Chettle was transported to Australia in 1817 when George Rodney would have been only 8 years old.
In 1834 we now know the George Rodney Chettle sold his Hair Dressing Shop with furniture and fixings by Auction. The advert for the sale appeared in the Leicester Journal on the 20th June 1834:
After leaving Leicester for London we know from looking at the records from the Old Bailey from 2nd March 1835 that George Rodney was a witness in a trial regarding counterfeit coins.
 
Then in 1836 George Rodney turns up in a Debtors Prison in the City of London. Sadly no official records survive to show who paid for George Rodney to be freed.
We also know from Census Records that George Rodney and his family lived in London at Eyre Street Hill. Below is the only known photograph of Eyre Street Hill taken in the late 1800's. Today the only original part of Eyre Street Hill that survives is a pub that was originally a house that is now known as the Gunmakers. It is named the Gunmakers as Ernest Maxim the inventor the machine Gun lived close by in Leather Lane.
George Rodney is freed from the Debtors Prison on 3rd October 1836
Our George Rodney Chettle returns back to Leicester and in 1859 he appears in the Leicester Mercury on Saturday October 8th 1859 complaining that his vote regarding an important decision with the Leicester freemen's Allotments was objected to. Also in the Leicester Mercury on Saturday June 25th 1859 George Rodney appears in an article relating the Leicester Board of Guardians so we know that he was still involved in the welfare of other Leicester tradesmen. In being on the Leicester Board of Guardian George Rodney would have been overseeing, the administration of poor relief, as it rested not upon the council but upon the board of guardians. At Leicester this was the first of the bodies set up in the 19th century to perform a specialized function of local government. Under the Poor Law Amendment Act of 1834 (fn. 77) a board of guardians was set up in 1836 to administer poor relief throughout the Leicester Union, which originally comprised the parishes of St. Margaret, St. Martin, St. Mary, St. Leonard, and All Saints with the two small liberties of the Newarke and Castle View.
In the Leicester Mercury on Saturday September 7th 1864 there is an article regarding Sunday Trading and George Rodney Chettle gives a statement:
In 1866 George Rodney is bankrupt again this time in Leicester and his bankruptcy notice appears in the Leicester Mercury on September 15th 1866
In 1867 George Rodney appears in the Leicester Chronicle on June 1st having been assaulted by William Moxon and on in the Leicester Chronicle on June the 8th both William Moxon and George Rodney appear again over an issue of non payment of wages:
George Rodney Chettle had many address in and around Belgrave Gate, Leicester (Nos 35,49,51,62,65 &105) and recently an old photograph appeared showing 29 to 37 Belgrave Gate Leicester which is one of his know addresses No 35 Belgrave Gate Leicester. It is probably the house with the Swan Vesta advert on the front of it.
It is amazing to think that in 1981 all we knew of George Rodney and his family was a simple index card in the Leicester Records Office and now thanks to the internet we know so much more....and who knows what information that is yet to come? |
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