George Dimes

  General Notes:

In 1851, George (49,gardener) was living in Dippenhall Street, Crondall with his wife Elizabeth (47) and son Alfred (13, errand boy) and daughters Ann (11), Harriett (8), Emma (7) and Louisa (5).
In 1861, George (59, gardener) was living in Dippenhall Street, Crondall with his wife Elizabeth (57) and daughter Emma (17) and grandson George William (2).
In 1871, George (69, butcher) was living in Church Street/The Borough, Crondall with his wife Elizabeth (67) and daughter Harriett (28) and grandson George William (11).
In 1881, George (79. gardener) was now widowed and was living in Church Street, Crondall with his daughter Harriett (38), her husband Samuel (37, agriculture labourer) abd their son George (8) and daughters Lizzie (7), Thirza (5), Catharine (4) and Mabel (2). A visitor James Cranford (21), a soldier was also living with the family.

GEORGE DIMES 1802 \endash 1885

This George was the sixth son of Nathaniel Dimes and Elizabeth nee Cooper. He was baptised at Crondall church on 7th May 1802 when three days old.

In November 1822, aged twenty, he applied to the parish Overseers of the Poor for aid and was twice given the sum of 1s. 5d. - presumably he had no work.

On 1st November 1828 he married Elizabeth Cranstone at Crondall church. She had been born in Odiham about 1804 according to various censuses but no relevant baptism was found at Odiham. The following cannot be proved but it is possible that she was christened there as Betty Wooderson on 4th January 1804, the daughter of Philip and Anne. A Betsy Wooderson married James Cranstone on 2nd March 1822 at Crondall church and they went on to have four children, -Henry baptised in October 1822, buried in May 1827; Jane, baptised in August 1824, buried November 1826; Sarah, baptised in November 1825, buried in April 1827; and James, baptised in June 1827, buried in September 1827. Husband James also died and was buried in 1827, on 5th July. Within the space of one year Elizabeth had lost all her family. The Crondall marriage register states that Elizabeth was a spinster in 1828 which would contradict the above but 1st November 1828 was only a few days after the arrival of the new priest in Crondall, Parson White, and he would not have had time to get to know his parishioners so it would be easy for him to make a mistake especially as Elizabeth was not able to sign her name.

George and Elizabeth's first child, Eliza, was born in July 1829, followed in April 1930 by a second, David, but then three years of problems followed. In May and June 1831 the children were ill causing George to ask the Overseers for aid on three occasions. He was given 1s. each time he applied. Young David died in August, then George himself was ill in November and December and though his health improved by January, he found himself without work so was put to labouring by the Overseers. In May 1832, daughter Eliza died just six weeks before their next child, Charlotte, was born. She failed to thrive and died aged ten months in April 1833. Although they had borne three children, George and Elizabeth were now childless.

They started again, with more success. Jane came first, born probably in 1834, followed by Isaac in January 1836 and Alfred in October 1837. He was the only member of the family to hold one of the new government birth certificates. Five more girls followed; Elizabeth in 1839, Ann in 1840, Harriet in 1842, Emma in 1844 and Louise in 1845. Of these children only Elizabeth died young, aged six in December 1845.

When the census was taken in 1841, George was a gardener, probably working at Clare House as they lived in that area. In 1851 he was still gardening but the family had moved house to Dippenhall Street in the village, while Isaac had already left home and was in service as a page in London. Between 1851 and 1858, when Alfred got married, George changed his occupation and became a butcher, a trade he was still following in 1871. Alfred died of typhoid in January 1861 and his wife Julia brought their nineteen month old son George William back to Crondall to be raised by his grandparents while she earned a living as a housekeeper.

By 1871 all George and Elizabeth's daughters had married. Jane married first at Crondall in January 1861. Her husband, William Collins, was a widower and they were found on the census later that year living in Herriard village, Hampshire, where William was a coachman. Ann married next, in December 1863 at St. Mark, Old Street, London. She may have been working in that area. Two years earlier she was cook for Samuel Baker, a broker, and his family at Lansdown Road, Croydon. Felix Parrott, her husband was a warehouseman and they appear to have prospered as in 1901 Felix was a linen factor and they were living at Rectory Lodge, Uxbridge Road, Hampton, Middlesex, with four of their children who had all been born in Highbury. Louisa married John Kent, another widower, in March 1867 at Crondall. By 1881 they had moved to Alton where John was a gardener and later caretaker of the cemetery. October 1868 saw Emma's marriage to James Garnant, a labourer, also at Crondall, and finally, Harriett married Samuel Marlow, a thatcher, in August 1871 and they remained in Crondall bringing up a family of eight at a house called Elmes, more recently known as Elm Cottage. Her daughter Lizzie Marlow married Joseph Gale, Thirza married Albert Champion in 1899, Arthur married Mary Elizabeth Jane Frampton in 1904 and Edith married Luther Cox in 1905. Mabel remained unmarried but is said to have had six children. When Harriet was an old lady she was photographed with Mabel and four of Mabel's daughters, Nell, Lizzie, Evie and Grace.


Also by 1871, George and Elizabeth had moved to Church Street where Elizabeth died in 1875. George and George William were then cared for by Harriet and her husband Samuel Marlow until George William married in 1879 and George died in 1885, aged 83.

George married Elizabeth Wooderson, daughter of Philip Woodeson and Anne Sturt, on 1 Nov 1828 in Crondall, Hampshire, England. (Elizabeth Wooderson was born on 23 Nov 1803 in Odiham, , Hampshire, England, christened on 4 Jan 1804 in Odiham, , Hampshire, England, died in Jul 1875 in Crondall, Hampshire, England and was buried on 1 Aug 1875 in Crondall, Hampshire, England.)