The children of William and Mary Ann CooperWilliam Wilkey (christened 15 May 1782) and Mary Ann Cooper (christened 27 January 1788, Bath Abbey) were married in the church of St. Swithin's in the parish of Walcot on the 19 April 1815 and lived in the Bathwick area of Bath. Mary Ann was the daughter of Joseph and Ann Cooper. Mary Ann Cooper is known to have had at least three brothers also christened in Bath Abbey, they were: John christened on the 6 November 1785; George christened on the 7 February 1789; and James, christened on the 20 May 1792. William and Mary Ann Cooper's children were Richard Cooper Wilkey (C.1819) whose middle name appears be named after the mother, William Tavenor Wilkey (C.1821), Ambrose Wilkey (C.1823) and Harriet Tozer Wilkey (C.1826) were all christened in the Parish Church of St Mary's, Bathwick. William and Mary Ann Wilkey lived at William Street in Bath by the time their first son Richard was born. Richard
remained in Bath with his family for the rest of his life (he died in 1896), whilst
his brothers William and Ambrose sought their fortunes in London. Harriet remained
a spinster throughout her life and her niece Louisa, also a spinster, lived with
her in the latter part. The parish records show that at the time of Richard Cooper Wilkey's christening, father William was a butcher, but at the christenings of his three other children his profession is recorded as a fishmonger. It is possible that later William helped with his son's book-keeping as on the death certificate he is recorded as a book-keeper, whilst in other quarters he has been called an accountant. Ann and Mary Wilkey - 1841 Census - Bath
Ann, according to the census was born in 1781, however it is more likely that this Ann was the daughter of Tavenor and Ruth Wilkey christened in 1777 and one of six daughters, three of whom never married, including Ann, whose profession was a governess. She died on the 13 March 1845. Mary Wilkey remains a bit of a mystery and it is possible that she may have been born out of wedlock. No parish record of her christening or life in Bath has been found. The is also no apparent register of her death in the Bath area of Civil Registers. Lucey Wilkey and her children - 1861 Census - Bath
Lucey, a widow, and her children have only been found in the one census so far. She is a widow at the time of the census and as this is the only census she appears in it is not known who her husband might have been or whether he was from the Bath area originally. We know from the census itself that Lucey came from a small village which appears to be called South Walton near Glastonbury in Somerset and that all three children are reported to have been born in Walcot, Bath. There is no record of the children's births in the Civil Registers. The earliest Wilkeys in the Civil RegistersBirths, Marriages and Deaths were recorded from the 1 July 1837, though marriages did not become compulsory until some time later. The earliest Wilkeys to be found in the Registers are the deaths of Sophia Wilkey (13 November, 1866), a Dress Maker, and Mary Ann Wilkey (14 October, 1868), the wife of William Wilkey (christened 5 May 1782 in Bath Abbey). William lived to the good age of 74 and died on the 8 May 1856 whilst his wife Mary Ann, who was six years younger than he, lived to the good age of 80. William's sister Anne Wilkey was a governess and appears not to have married. She died at Devonshire House in Widcombe on the 13 March 1845 and her sister-in-law Mary Ann Wilkey (b. c1788) who lived at 4, Barton Place, Bath with her husband William at the time was present at her death. The children of Richard Cooper Wilkey & Martha SimsRichard Wilkey and Martha Sims had five children but sadly Martha Wilkey was born prematurely on the 15 February 1855 and died two days later at 24 Cornwell Terrace in Walcot, Bath. It is interesting to note that when their other daughter, Mary Ann was born exactly two years earlier Richard and Martha lived next door at 23 Cornwell Terrace. Daughter Mary Ann Wilkey (b. 15 February 1853) married in the March qtr of 1881 at the age of 28 and therefore is not recorded with the family unit in the census below. The 1881 CensusThe 1881 Census tells us that there were only two families by the name of Wilkey living in Bath and they were father and son. These were Richard Cooper Wilkey (b.1821) and his son Thomas Wilkey (b.1848). Four out of five of Thomas's children are recorded in the census, the fifth child Agnes was not born until two years later in 1883. Richard Cooper Wilkey lived at 19, Holloway, Widcombe, Bath in 1848 before moving to Henrietta Buildings. Louisa Wilkey is believed to have remained unmarried until her death in the March qtr of 1933 when she lived to the good age of 82. After her parents died (1888/1896) she went to live with her Aunt Harriett (b.1826) at 4, Highbury Cottages Almshouses, Bath. A further two families, that of Ambrose and William Wilkey, moved to London sometime between 1855 and 1860. Here are the details of the two Bath families from the 1881 Census:
The 1891 CensusWilliam Wilkey (b.1871) was soon to start a family and the 1891 census tells us that by the age of 19 he had already married (in fact in the Jun qtr of 1890) and that their first son, William John was just 3 months old. It appears that his wife's older sister, Annie Gale (aged 24) who is stated as 'single' in the census was also staying with them along with her 2 month old child who appears to have been born out of wedlock. Here are the details from the 1891 census:
The 1901 CensusAccording the 1901 Census, there were only two generations of Wilkeys living in Bath still plus remnants of a third generation. A fourth family, that of Ambrose Wilkey (b. 1831) and his son James Ambrose Wilkey were still living in London in the Superintendent Registrar districts of St Pancras & Shoreditch. Ambrose's brother William also lived in London still. The 1901 Census, dated the 31 March reveals the following information:
Richard
Cooper Wilkey's eldest son Thomas William (b.1848) and Emma Wilkey had four children
and lived at 1 Regent Terrace in the ecclesiastical parish of St Thomas A Becket
in Bath. Thomas was employed as a groom at the time of his marriage. Emma Wilkey
was the informant at the death of her father-in-law, Richard in 1896 and at this
time it appears that Thomas William and Emma Wilkey lived at 1, Avon Bank Cottages.
It is interesting to note that William's brothers and sisters were in no rush to get married, brother John being 25 years of age and sister Harriet being 27 and still living at home. William and Elizabeth Wilkey are buried in Locksbrook Cemetery in Lower Weston, Bath. The
third remnant was that of Harriet Wilkey (b.1826) who was 75 years old at the
time and lived with her niece Louisa Wilkey at 4 Highbury Cottages, Almshouses
again in the ecclesiastical parish of St Saviours. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||