William Dimes

  General Notes:

1710 Lease of land at Artington for 21 years from 27 September 1710 from Thomas Molyneux Esq. to Wm Dimes jnr of Guildford, Butcher, for £12 per annum. The fields listed were Symes Hills, Bishes Field, Cookes Corner Piece, Gyllions Piece, Sandy Hills, The Hurst, Lambs Bottom on West side of Berryfield Lane going from St Catherines Hill to Guildford, all in the parish of St Nicholas. Most of these fields can be identified on the Tithe Map of St Nicholas parish made in the 1840s. They were presumably used to pasture beasts prior to slaughter.
. In April 1713 William married Elizabeth Brookes at St. Nicholas church although both belonged to St. Mary's. Elizabeth had been baptised there in1689 and was the daughter of Thomas and Elizabeth Brookes. William and Elizabeth then raised a large family starting with Elizabeth in 1715, then Mary in 1716, William in 1718, who died two years later, Ann in 1720, Sarah in 1722, Jane in 1724, Thomas in 1726, Frances in 1727/8, and lastly another William in 1728/9. Once again the father of the family died in his early forties leaving his wife to raise the family, for William was buried on 27^th October 1729. He had possibly been failing in health for some time as he drew up his will a year earlier in October 1728. He left to his wife during her lifetime the house and garden where they lived in St. Mary's, another house known as the Ship at Artington and two more dwellings there so long as she remained a widow. On her death or re-marriage the Guildford house was to pass to his son Thomas, and the property in Artington was to go daughter Elizabeth. A further house and land in St. Mary's which had been bequeathed to him by his wife's uncle Richard Brooks which had a tenant, Mrs Pratt, a widow, was after Elizabeth's death to be divided among his daughters Mary, Ann, Sarah, Jane and Frances. All other assets were to be divided equally among his children after Elizabeth's death. Three silver items were valuable enough to be mentioned. A silver cup was given to Mary, William's tankard engraved with the letters W D was given to daughter Elizabeth, and another tankard engraved with letters H B was given to Thomas. These initials suggest that the tankard had come from the Brooks family, perhaps bequeathed to Elizabeth. The year between the writing of the will and William's death had been momentous, Frances had died and William had been born, so a codicil was added to the will. William had been in the process of selling the property in Artington and decided that the money from this should be for the new baby who would also benefit from the share that would have been for Frances. Shortly after her husband's death, Elizabeth gave birth to another son whom she called Richard, but he died in the following January. In 1740 when Thomas was fourteen Elizabeth apprenticed him to George Avenell, butcher of Godalming, for seven years for a premium of £15, again keeping the trade in the family. Three years later William was apprenticed to John Leech, coachman and citizen of London, but Elizabeth had to pay a much higher premium, £42. Some leases on properties on the north side of the High Street dated 1747 show that Elizabeth and family occupied a house in that area. The eldest daughter, Elizabeth, was the first to leave home when she married Robert Parkhurst, a basket maker in 1746. They were married by licence. The seconder for the licence was Henry Brooks, bargemaster, some relation of her mother. Ann left next when she wed Robert Carter, a barber, in 1751. In 1754 or 1755 Thomas died having made a short will confirming his mother's right to the property in St. Mary's which was then occupied by James Goddard, butcher, and he gave the silver tankard from the Brook family to sister Mary. The other three girls stayed at home with their mother until her death in December 1759, then Mary married Samuel Ossender, a butler, at Albury in August 1761 and Jane married Francis Walker of Amersham at St. George's, Hanover Square in June 1763. Mary was 47 and Jane was 39. Sarah remained a spinster.

William married Elizabeth Brookes, daughter of Thomas Brookes and Ann, on 17 Apr 1713 in Guildford, Surrey, England. (Elizabeth Brookes was christened on 4 Feb 1689 in Guildford, Surrey, England and was buried on 16 Dec 1759 in Guildford, Surrey, England.)