James Richard Apps
Napier Terrace, West Street
Clifton Villa, St. Patricks Road
Occupation: Trinity Cinque Ports Pilot
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James Richard Apps was born in Ramsgate in 1824 and, like his father before him, he became a Mariner. According to the ‘UK, Apprentices Indentured in the Merchant Navy’ records, found on Ancestry, he was Indentured on 20 June 1840 and was serving on the Diadem. The Merchant Seamen’s Register dated 1844 confirms that he first went to sea as an apprentice and that he didn’t serve in the Royal Navy. These records give descriptions of the registered or ‘ticketed’ seamen and James Richard is described as 5 foot 4 1/2 inches tall, with light brown hair, light blue eyes and a ruddy complexion.
In 1850 he marries Elizabeth Hope in Stepney, the daughter of a Ramsgate Greengrocer and when the census was taken the following year she is staying with her parents in Addington Place in Ramsgate. James though, as a newly qualified Master Mariner, is more than likely at sea as there is no census record for him that year. It seems likely that the couple initially set up home in Ramsgate as James Edward William, their first child, was born there in 1855. Soon after they move to Napier Terrace, West Street, Deal, though in April 1856 the Freehold of their dwelling house is up for sale so this may have prompted them to move and eventually to settle in Clifton Villa on St. Patrick’s Road.
James Edward William Apps is also to be found in ‘UK, Apprentices Indentured in the Merchant Navy’ records in 1869, however, it also states that he deserted in 1871 by jumping ship at Launceston. A warrant was issued for his arrest though he does appear to have avoided the authorities and remained in Australia until his death in 1937. What his father thought of this we can only guess.
Elizabeth died in 1866 she was buried in Hamilton Road Cemetery where here gravestone reads
Two years later James married Martha Vincent the daughter of local Schoolmaster John Vincent and the granddaughter of John Vincent sen. who was the Minister of the Congregational Church.
The fact that there are no baptism records for any of James Richard’s children after his second child was born may suggest that he and his family had joined the Congregational Church. He would have attended services in the Old Church building, his children may even have gone to the Sunday School in the adjoining building. They all would have seen the Old Church buildings demolished and the building of the new Church on the same site.
Putting the wood of the old pulpit to good use James Richard Apps built this wonderfully detailed model of the old church building. This is now held at the Town Hall though it sadly is not on display. We are grateful to the Town hall for allowing us to take these photographs. Unfortunately the glass case decided it did not want to be removed, hence the poor quality of these images.
Martha died in 1903, followed four years later by James himself. They are both buried in the same grave as Elizabeth, James’ first wife. Their memorial inscriptions read.
We were lucky enough to make contact with the descendant of James who kindly let us publish the images of her ancestor. She also sent us these images of the much loved Doll’s House that Richard had also made.
Name | Born | Baptised | Married | Died | Buried |
James Richard | 1824 | 28 November 1824 | 1) Elizabeth Hope 7 October 1850 Stepney Born 1830 Died 1866 2) Martha Vincent 1868 Deal Born Died 1903 |
18 March 1907 Clifton Villas, St. Patrick’s Road |
22 March 1907 Hamilton Road Cemetery |
The Children of James Richard Apps & Elizabeth Hope
Name | Born | Baptised | Married | Died | Buried |
James Edward William | 1855 Ramsgate |
27 May 1855 St. Lawrence’s, Ramsgate |
1) Margaret Murray 1875 Victoria, Australia 2)Louisa Sarah Marie Holder 1909 Victoria, Australia |
1937 Victoria, Australia |
|
George Hope | 1858 Middle Deal |
6 January 1858 St. Andrew’s, Deal |
Annie Eliza Ouzman 4 June 1881 St. Mary’s, Lewisham |
13 March 1950 12 Elmsleigh Road, Weston-super-Mare, Somerset |
|
Herbert Alfred | 1861 Deal |
Unknown | Amelia Ding 13 April 1892 St. Andrews, Thorpe Episcopi, Norfolk |
1948 Norwich, Norfolk |
|
Florence Beatrice | 1863 Deal |
Unknown | James Samuel Blackett 1884 Deal |
19 March 1934 130a Adelaide Road, Brockley Kent |
|
Eleanor Gertrude | 1864 Deal |
Unknown | George Washington Van Abbott 1887 Lewisham |
18 March 1892 Lewisham |
1892 |
The Children of James Richard Apps & Martha Vincent
Name | Born | Baptised | Married | Died | Buried |
Ada Vincent | 1868 Deal |
Unknown | Unmarried | 29 June 1962 Coniston, Gun Green, Hawkhurst |
|
Mary Vincent | 1875 Deal |
Unknown | Unmarried | 26 September 1961 Kent and Sussex Hospital, Tunbridge Wells |
|
Ernest Robert | 1 December 1879 Deal |
Unknown | Elizabeth Rebecca A Tarry 11 February 1903 Princes Street Independent Chapel, Devonport, Devon |
1953 Essex |
Census
Year | Address | Name | Relationship | Occupation |
1841 | Possibly at Sea |
Census
Year | Address | Name | Relationship | Occupation |
1851 | Possibly at Sea |
Census
Year | Address | Name | Relationship | Occupation |
1861 | Clifton Villas, St. Patricks Road | James R | Head | Trinity Cinque Port Pilot |
Elizabeth | Wife | |||
James E W | Son | |||
George H | Son | |||
Herbert A | Son | |||
Elizabeth Hope | Mother-in-Law | Retired | ||
Mary A Philpot | Servant | House Maid |
Census
Year | Address | Name | Relationship | Occupation |
1871 | Clifton Villas, St. Patricks Road | James | Head | Trinity Pilot |
Martha V | Wife | |||
George H | Son | Scholar | ||
Herbert A | Son | Scholar | ||
Florence B | Daughter | Scholar | ||
Eleanor G | Daughter | Scholar | ||
Ada V | Daughter | |||
Harriet Solly | Servant | Domestic Servant |
Census
Year | Address | Name | Relationship | Occupation |
1881 | Milton Lodge, St. Patricks Road | James | Trinity Pilot | |
Martha | ||||
Florence | ||||
Ads | Scholar | |||
Mary | Scholar | |||
Ernest | ||||
Eliza Hayward | Servant | Domestic Servant | ||
Ellen Batly | Servant | Domestic Servant |
Census
Year | Address | Name | Relationship | Occupation |
1891 | Clifton Villa, St. Patricks Road | James (wrongly written as John R on census) | Head | Trinity Pilot |
Martha V | Wife | |||
Mary V | Daughter | Scholar | ||
Ernest R | Son | |||
Eliza Hayward | Servant | General Domestic Servant |
Census
Year | Address | Name | Relationship | Occupation |
1901 | Missing for Deal |
Trade and Street Directory
Directory and Year | Trade or Occupation | Address |
Melvilles Directory 1858 | Pilot | Clifton Villa, St. Patrick’s Road |
Post Office and Home Counties 1887 | Master Mariner – Pilot | Clifton Villa, St. Patrick’s Road |
Kelly’s Directory 1891 | Trinity Pilot | Clifton Villa, St. Patrick’s Road |
Poll Books (selected)
Year | Profession | Qualifying Residence’s |
1859 | Pilot | Deal |
1865-1904 | Clifton Villa, St. Patricks Road |