Dear Dave,
Superb, thankyou!
Most interesting - a carpenter and builder, who seems to have experience of
water wheels, things mechanical in general and a bit of mining experience.
I suppose one shouldn't be that surprised, given the locality, and in any
case, we don't know who he employed - they may have had some of the skills
he didn't.
There are quite a few letters by Knight in the miscellaneous letters section
of the Bedford Papers in the Devon Record Office. He was clearly literate
and the things he was carrying out condition reports on and offering to
build/rebuild include leaking canal banks, railways and wagons, haulage
machinery, water wheels, cranes and road surfacings. A man of all trades,
seemingly.
I'm sure Caroline is right - 'Division' is a typical C19 civil servant's
rendition of an unusual local name: Lower Dimson is still a discrete
settlement at the higher end of Gunnislake, all in Calstock parish (quite a
big one, even by Cornish standards) at that time.
Robert
-----Original Message-----
From: mining-history [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of
David Williams
Sent: 17 September 2010 10:15
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Thomas Knight
From the 1851 Census
Thomas Knight, Carpenter, aged 41, of Lower Division, Calstock, born in
Calstock
Ann, Wife, aged 39, born in Calstock
John, Son, aged 6, born in Calstock
Jane Ann, Daughter, aged 4, born in Calstock
Thomas H., Son, aged 2, born in Calstock
Henry Bowden, Apprentice, aged 21, born in Calstock
Mary Body, House Servant, aged 17, born in Calstock
From the 1861 Census.
Thomas Knight, Builder employs 5 men, aged 51, of Gunnislake, born in
Calstock
Ann, Wife, aged 49, born in Calstock
John, Son, aged 16, Carpenter, born in Calstock
Thomas, Son, Scholar, aged 12, born in Calstock
Emma Walters, Domestic Servant, aged 22, born in Mary Tavy, Devon
He disappears from sight thereafter.
Hope this helps
Cheers, Dave
-----Original Message-----
From: mining-history [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of
Robert Waterhouse
Sent: 17 September 2010 09:23
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Thomas Knight
Dear List,
I'm trying to research a Thomas Knight of Gunnislake, East Cornwall, who
between 1854 and 1861 was a consultant engineer to the Tavistock Canal
Company in West Devon. There is some correspondence of his with the canal
company in the Devon Record Office, which suggests that he was a civil
engineer rather than a mining engineer, though some of his work for the
canal company involved underground engineering, so the distinction may be a
little blurred.
Does anyone know anything about him, eg: where he lived, who else he worked
for, his lifespan, etc, etc.?
Robert Waterhouse
|