THESAURUS
Bond = sum of money (or insurance policy) offered to a third party (most often a government agency - a Court) to ensure expected actions will be taken. For instance, a person acting as an executor for a deceased person would put up a bond with the Probate Court. At the end of a given period of time, the executor would offer proof that all provisions of the will had been carried out, and the bond would then be returned. Many current wills contain the words "no bond required" to remove the obligation. Records of these bonds are held at the Cornwall Record Office, and have been indexed.
Bonds were also required in cases at local courts, to ensure people would not exhibit anti-social behaviour for certain lengths of time (most usually, that they would not disturb the peace for a year's time). Most could not afford to post the bond, and went to prison instead.
Bond of Indemnity (Bastardy Bonds) = A Bastardy Bond was a bond or agreement for the maintenance by the father of his illegitimate child in order that the mother and child didn't become a charge on the parish (ie she didn't claim parish relief). They don't exist for every illegitimate child for a variety of reasons; the mother didn't seek maintenance, the father had done a runner or had died before marrying the mother, or the man succeeded in defending himself in the suit. Some of these bonds indicate a second man; most often, this person was a guarantor, in case of a father not carrying through on his commitment.
An act of 1576 enabled Justices to imprison the parents of an illegitimate
child. A further Act of 1610 allowed the mother to be sent to prison unless
she could give securities for her future good behaviour. Usually the child would
receive the same settlement rights as the mother, but if the father was known
to be of another parish the child and mother would be settled in the father's
parish if the parents married.
An act of 1733 obliged the mother to declare that she was pregnant with an illegitimate
child and to reveal the fathers name. Parish officials would then attempt to
obtain a maintenance sum from him by way of a Bond of Indemnity (often referred
to as a Bastardy Bond) this could be either a lump sum or moneys paid over a
period. The Overseers of the Poor in any given parish were responsible for bringing
proceedings against fathers for maintenance of illegitimate children; however,
by the mid nineteenth century the Overseers were responsible for administering
the Poor Rate, and therefore their role in Bastardy cases diminished. Thereafter
Boards of Guardians dealt with Bastardy by admitting mothers and children to
workhouses (initiated in 1837); the onus was on the mother to bring proceedings
against the father.
The Poor Law Amendment Act of 1834 enabled the mother of an illegitimate child
to apply at Petty Sessions for maintenance from the father. These applications
were sent in the form of annual returns to the Clerk of the Peace. The records
of Petty Sessions can therefore sometimes be of value.(by Deborah O'Brien, Devon
OPC Co-ordinator)
Records of fathers may not be found at all. Not all mothers of illegitimate
children applied for maintenance from the father, nor did the Overseers of the
Poor/Poor Law Guardians on their behalf. Many mothers were either self supporting
or their families took care of them.
The Overseers/Guardians usually only stepped in if the mother was liable to
be a charge on the parish. If the father could be found and
he wasn't of the same parish as the mother and they could persuade the father
to marry the mother, then she would take her parish from her
husband. Thus the mother's parish wouldn't be responsible for her.
Sometimes, the incumbent would add the name of the reputed/alleged father to
the baptismal entry.
Any extant bastardy bonds and/or bastardy examinations would be held at the
Cornwall record office.
Briton = A person living in Britain;
a West Briton is a person living in the far west of Britain. "West Briton"
also denotes the section of the country including Cornwall and Devon.
Burthen = method of categorizing ships; derived from "burden". ie, new ship of 500 tons burthen.
Deodand = a sum of money charged to the instrument, whether animal or inanimate object, which caused the death of a human; mainly used at Coroner's Inquests. (In practical use, the owner of the animal or object paid the sum.) From the Latin Deo dandum - to be given to God; the money was used for charitable purposes.
Fortnight = two weeks previously.
Glebe = an portion of land allowed
the rector of the church, in which to grow food or rent out.
Instant or inst. = date occurring in the present month (ie, 5th inst. is the 5th of the present month).
Non-Conformist = a general term
referring to all religions that were not the Church of England, which was the
official, state-sanctioned church. Non-conformists were subjected to severe
laws and restrictions, such as having to marry in the Church of England for
it to be considered legal, as well as having to pay taxes to support the Church
of England, despite their not attending that church. (See Rate payer.) One common
practice was for the Sheriff, at the instigation of Churchwardens, to seize
goods of non-comformists and sell them at auction to pay the rates. At times
these sales yielded very, very low prices for expensivc goods. Non-conformists
kept records by circuits, which cover more than one parish.
Parish = a governmental/administrative
area, orignally based on the local churches. The link goes back to when the
church's principal officials, the 2 Churchwardens, were responsible for many
civil functions, eg poor relief. Churchwardens are elected at the annual Vestry
mettings, when any person living in the parish may attend and vote. There are
219 parishes in Cornwall, some of which have moved to Devon over the years.
Boundaries also moved, and new parishes were created as the population moved.
Parishes are important because records are kept by these parameters, particularly
before 1837.
Poor house = a system to give
aid to persons in particular parishes, which became standard (and legal) in
1837. Several parishes joined together to establish one poor house. Parishes
might also offer aid in other ways, but the poor house became primary, as it
was much less expensive and much easier to administer. They fell into disfavour
in the early 20th century.
Proximo or prox. = the next month from the current one.
Rate-payers = persons with enough
money (in 1845, any amount over GBP 5 per year) to vote, own property, etc.
Parishes set rates, as did the County, and so did the local churches, although
the rate-payers could appeal - or even refuse to pay (which then meant a court
case.) Also see "Non-Conformists", regarding penalties for not paying
the rate.
Registration district = a governmental
area, which includes several parishes into one administrative group. For instance,
the St. Austell Registration district encompasses nine parishes, which extend
from the Channel to the Atlantic.
Removal = legal action by one parish to move a person and their immediate family to a different parish, where they had established residence previously. Usually used when dealing with a pauper, because the parish did not want the family to be their legal responsibility. Was not established by birth, but by occupation or owning land for a period of time. In some cases, the residency of the grandparents established where the family belonged! (See residency.)
Residency = status attained by having a professional job for a specific period of time in a particular parish, or attained by having a parent with such a job. For instance, a person who had a contract and worked for 10 years as a journeyman shoemaker would establish residency in the parish where they worked; so might a person leasing farmland for a number of years. However, renting land might not count! Residency determined where one would receive parish aid, if needed, where one would vote, if one were to qualify as a voter, etc. (See removal.)
Seans = fishing nets; seines in current use.
Se'nnight = two weeks ago (or two weeks previous)
Settlement = Determination of which parish would legally have the responsibility to support a pauper, illegitimate child, etc., through the poor rates. Right of settlement varied greatly - see Bastardy Bonds, Removal, and Residency..
Ult, or "ultimo" = date occurring in the past month (ie, 21st ult. would be the 21st of the past month)
Will = legal document disposing of deceased person's possessions; until 1858, most were dealt with by the Church. CRO has over 80,000 Wills and Bonds in their holdings for rich and poor, most of which are from the 1600's. After 1858, wills are held by the Bodmin Probate Office.
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Legal Definition website available at http://www.lectlaw.com/def - The 'Lectric
Law Library, which has information from a book of legal terms 150 years ago
Last updated 20 November 2007 Back to Main Index page