his history was written by Jack Gurnard Youatt (JGY) and prepared for distribution via the World Wide Web in 2002. The "author's comments" are those of JGY.

he Youatt Family History related below has been built up over a period of many years. Although much of the work is original, others interested in their Youatt ancestors have given considerable help. Where appropriate their findings have been incorporated in the main text and acknowledgement given in the form of an Appendix (Appendix A).

It is one of the unexpected pleasures of family history research to find previously unknown and distant relatives. Without exception, a welcome and help in exchange of knowledge has been the writer’s experience.

As the search for ancestors stretched ever further into the past, clues and associations became elusive and difficult to prove. At such times, intelligent guesses have been made in the hope that these may be realised by later found facts.

Experience has shown that not all such guesses are sustainable and revisions of previously held views have become necessary.

With this text a few tentative associations have been incorporated (and identified) on the understanding that this history will be revised if serious inaccuracy is later found.

It is often thought that a surname of the rarity of Youatt should be easy to trace, however the contrary is the case. Until the late 19th.century the name was recorded and spelt according to the ability of the recordist to accurately write down the name heard. Such spellings need careful investigation before being accepted as Youatt ancestors. Fortunately the ready availability of civil and ecclesiastical documents enable other checks to be made. Another pointer in cases of doubt has been the repeated use of the Christian name CALEB, a practice starting in the 17th.C. and carried on well into this century. Help also comes from the 19th.C practice of using a mother’s maiden surname as a middle christening name, not only are the mother’s family identified but where the name was carried by later generations, family groups may be readily grouped.

On the subject of records, nowadays most are copied and printed or viewed from microfilm, only occasionally is an original document produced for reference. It is a satisfying experience to not only see, but also handle, the handiwork of a distant ancestor.

The task facing a writer of family history is to know just what to include and what to omit. In presenting this history, bias is naturally given to the branch related to the author although an account of the achievements and relationships of other known branches is given.

Almost without exception it can be claimed that a YOUATT surnamed person can be directly related to a yeoman farmer family of the North Devon village of NEWTON TRACEY and with a lesser degree of certainty to sergemaking families of the name in 17th.C. Exeter.

The ensuing text describes our ancestors, their achievements, hardships, trades, and where they lived. Maps and copies of relevant documents accompany the text to form what is a most fascinating history.

Origins of the YOUATT Surname

efore embarking on the history of the Youatts it is of interest to review surname origins.

There are two standard reference sources for English surnames: these are the dictionaries compiled by Bardesley and Reaney. Professional genealogists view both sources with some scepticism principally on the basis of associating like sounding surnames and generalising their origin.

For analytical purposes, surnames are to be found in various sub-divisions. In the case of Youatt, four categories have some attribution to the Youatt surname, these are :

-PATRONYMIC- a surname arising from a fathers first or Christian name e.g. George
-OCCUPATIONAL - a surname arising from a trade e.g. Farmer or Carpenter
-TOPONYMIC- a surname arising from association with an area e.g. Castle or Greenwood
-LOCATIVE - a surname arising from association with a specific place e.g. Winchester

EWART is an example of a patronymic surname emerging from a corruption of the French EDWARD.

During research a Youatt association is only to be found in those reference sources grouping like sounding surnames such as Hewett, Huet, Heward and the like.

YOWART or EWEHARD is an example arising from an occupational surname with Saxon origins.

It is derived from ‘the keeper of ewes’ a role similar to that of a shepherd. The Ewe-hyrd looked after ewes also kept for their milk. Cheese produced from ewe milk was considered a prized delicacy, it is one of those specialist cheeses that can be found even today.

Such Yoward and Yowart names encountered during research are regionally grouped around Cumbria and the North East of Britain where ewes are pronounced ‘yows’.

YEOATTE is an example of a toponymic surname arising from roots meaning a dweller by the river Yeo.

John atte-Yeo in the course of time would become John Yeoatte. Whilst suggestive of a family with North Devon associations it has not been possible to link the Youatt surname with either the Devon family of Yeo or to find a connection with the river of that name. In North Devon, Yeo is pronounced locally ‘YOE’ as distinct from the ‘YOO’ the normal rendering of You.

JOUETTE is a locative root for the Youatt surname.

This is to be found in several regions of France the name in varying form is to be found in the Departments of Calvados, Lot-et-Garonne and Cher.

[A locative example in practice: the surname Venus has roots in the Normandy village of Venois, so Jean of Venois is later to be found as John Venus ]

A village with the name JOUETTE is to be found Calvados in Normandy, it is located some 12 km. south of the city of Caen in the valley of the river Vaize. This village name then yields the most likely source.

JOUETTE therefore the most likely origin of Youatt when the following factors developed in the ensuing text are considered :-
Madame Audin the late French Genealogist was asked for the likelihood of a French origin for the surname prior to the 17th.century. In reply it was suggested that Jouette in Calvados was the most likely - although there was no documentary support in an area with few extant records.

By complete coincidence a JOUETTE origin was reported to the author by Mary Youatt Steinbauer of New York, USA.

Mary is a descendant of William Youatt (1831 - 1883) a North Devon stonemason who emigrated to the States. Mary wrote that it was said in their family that the surname was originally JOUETTE from Normandy but that it had been anglicised to retain a similar sound. It was a saying passed from father to son over the centuries and last heard when Mary’s father Glen asked her, around 1976, to record the saying heard from his father, grandson of the Stonemason, in about 1910.

The Search for Early YouattS

ncestral research usually starts by questioning living relatives, however reminiscences soon become confused and inaccurate. Resort is then made to the wealth of preserved records both civil and ecclesiastical that enable a researcher to extend finds way back to Tudor times. One is of course lucky to get back so far, usually the mid seventeenth century is the norm - so it was with Youatt.

In the 18th. 19th. and early twentieth century, local Parish Registers, Taxation lists and Wills, if extant, help considerably. As the 20th.C. is approached the Census Returns taken every decade since 1841 give a glimpse of our ancestors, where they lived, their occupation, and the numbers and names of their children.

Compulsory registration of all births deaths and marriages has been required since 1837; access to these public records helps to check and cross-check details.

The author was fortunate in receiving a prepared but incomplete family history soon after embarking on his own. The history was incomplete but had been carried out professionally; it occurred thus :- The late Claude Septimus Youatt, a Chartered Engineer of some standing in the Manchester area, had been in correspondence, when during 1963 he received, from a relative, the copy of a letter from the College of Heralds.; Claude repeated this to the author.

It appeared that a relative of CSY, the late Mrs. Ethel Dunning, had commissioned the College to establish her antecedence from George Heanes Youatt a 19th.C. London Piano maker hailing from Great Torrington: -- George Heanes Youatt was the third son of John & Grace Youatt.

George Heanes and his wife Hephzibah formed a family in London; descendants of George and Hephzibah form one of the largest surviving Youatt branches conveniently called (by this author) ‘The Manchester Youatts’. (Claude Septimus, a grandson of George Heanes and Hephzibah was, like the rest of his family, born and lived in the Manchester area ).

The Heralds produced an interim report in which they showed a clear connection between the Manchester Youatts and an 18/19th.C.family of the same name living in the North Devon village of Newton Tracey. Also noted was the apparent connection with 17th.C. Exeter where families of similar name once lived in the parish of St.Sidwell.

It was intriguing that the authors family which had Wiltshire roots of the late 19th.C. could not then be linked into the pedigree produced by the Heralds, that there must be a link seemed obvious, but it took a few years of patient research before such a link was established.

Starting with a ready made, if incomplete, list of ancestors the first task was to independently check the Heralds findings and see whether additional material could be found that would extend the family even further back.

Next was the establishing of a link between Newton Tracey and the ‘Wiltshire branch’.

Our story starts with an examination of the Exeter claims, then consideration of pre-Exeter roots, next Chittlehampton, and finally Newton Tracey and beyond.

The Exeter Story

ithout doubt there were Youatts to be found in Exeter with the earliest recorded in 1663 and possibly in a corrupted spelling back to 1655; before then, nothing which could be connected.

The Heralds had implied the name was specific to Devon and so it turned out to be. Using Boyd’s Marriage Index and latterly the International Genealogical Index of the Church of the Latter Day Saints (The Mormons) it was confirmed that Devon and Exeter yielded the first Youatt in St.Sidwell Parish. Later, after a making a detailed search of other Exeter parishes, it was concluded they were not to be found elsewhere in the City.

It seemed curious that the family name died out in Exeter after the death of Caleb Youatt in 1759 but was to be found in NEWTON TRACEY from 1727 onward.

The College of Heralds suggested that the family moved to North Devon, but why ?

The answer was possibly found in a discovery that the earliest families were weavers or sergemakers and the demand for their fine cloth waned in the early 1700’s.

What of Pre-Exeter Youatt ?

ttempting to solve the problem of the whereabouts of pre 17th.C. Youatt is an ongoing effort but let us consider the apparent French origin, from Calvados.

An almost complete record of all males over the age of 18 exists for Devon in the form of the1642 PROTESTATION RETURNS.

(FIG.9 lists abstracted Youatt sounding names )

Intended to produce a list of subjects required to swear allegiance to the King and the Protestant faith, some viewed the ‘Protestation Return’ as a basis for future taxation !

A close check of the return shows no Youatt spelt thus, or even phonetically so, in the whole of Devon. With the St. Sidwell registers indicating a presence in the 1650’s, the question to be asked is that if the family was not to be found in 1642 could they have settled subsequently ?

As will be seen the Youatt connection with their Craft Guild started in 1663 with baptismal suggestions of a presence in St. Sidwell from at least 1656.

Export of the fine woollen cloths, particularly serges, took place mainly to the countries of Continental Europe. Spain and Italy.

Countries bordering the Mediterranean particularly valued the thinner serges Exeter was able to produce in the 17th. C.

When war allowed, trading took place between Exeter, Caen and St. Malo in Normandy as shown in Port Books listing shipping from the Exeter port of Topsham, - and other Devon ports.

Small boats took serges to France and returned with iron or wine and included in the return cargoes were cloth processing utilities such as woad, for dyeing, alum for fulling and teazles used for raising nap on wool cloth.

Such shipping could have provided passage for immigrants but no record of such immigration exists either in numbers or in detail. The late Madame Audin (a renowned French genealogist) noted in a private letter to the author that skilled craftsman moved freely from country to country in pursuit of their improvement so it would be normal for some to have arrived at the Devon ports.

It is also known that cloth making sustained many regional villages in Picardy, Normandy and Brittany. Furthermore fierce revolts took place around 1639 in these areas following years of bad harvest and plague which brought poverty to town and village alike.

Another upsurge in religious intolerance against the Protestant Huguenots also took place in the early 17th.C resulting in their resettlement in other countries.

Taking into account the factors, above there are ample reasons for justifying movement of the Youatt family from roots in France, but whether they were Huguenots, as so many skilled craftsmen, will now be examined.

The Huguenot Question

t has been suggested by certain members of the ‘Manchester Youatts’ that there was a Huguenot connection with the Youatt family.

Certainly the possible movement from France at a time of religious upheaval by known craftsmen lends credibility. A search for a like sounding Youatt surname by the Huguenot Society of London and a combing through the parish registers of Exeter St. Olave, a known Huguenot place of worship, produced negative results.

Perhaps the following influenced a suggestion of a Huguenot background :-

During 1935, historian Dr. Ransome Pickard, delivered a lecture to the Devon & Cornwall Record Society on the subject of ‘Huguenots in Exeter’. In an appendix Dr. Pickard listed names taken from Parish and other registers of the 16/17th.centuries and suggested they had Huguenot associations. John Youatt - made free in 1663 (taken from WT&S annuls) - was one such listing.

Some surnames Dr. Pickard quoted were easily recognised as having French origins such ‘White from ‘Le Blanc’, some others were explained such as ‘Buzzacott’, from the French ‘Bosenquet’, a surname encountered still in North Devon. Youatt, however was one of the many names chosen for inclusion but one with less obvious association. It can only be assumed that the selection was made on account of a skilled craft record and a failure to establish the surname in 16th.c. archives.

In recent times the criteria for Dr. Pickard’s listings have been called into question. It is claimed that many of the alien sounding names were already in Devon by the time Huguenots arrived on the basis that they were the result of Edward III bringing Flemings to the West Country to establish silk and lace making.

During investigation into Huguenot associations a finding from the French Mormon IG Index seemed of interest. The surname JOUET in France was found listed on the Île de Ré, an island off La Rochelle, famous in 1627 for a stand of Huguenots against the Catholic French of Cardinal Richelieu.

The Huguenots of Île de Ré, received English help in their struggle but nevertheless were defeated. Did some of the residents leave with their defenders and settle in England? We are not told. However the Mormon entry gives the earliest Jouet entries dated 1674/6 with first names such as Isaac and Jacques. However 1674/6 is too late to be in accord with a known Exeter presence in 1663. Unless earlier dates are subsequently established, then the Jouet families of Île de Ré would appear to have no connection with the Weavers of 17th.C.Exeter.

Before leaving Huguenots, it is of passing interest to note a reference given in the Craft Guild of Weavers Tuckers & Shearmen of Exeter. It concerned moneys given to Huguenot émigrés arriving in large numbers in 1660 - 1670 when a sum of £21 was allocated for the succour of ‘Indigent French Protestants’ but again it was a dating too late for serious consideration.

Given the Huguenot Society search with its negative result and no further supportive evidence it is doubtful Youatt had a Huguenot association.

Likely Exeter Youatt Families

he problem we immediately encounter when searching Youatt ancestors is that of deciding which spelling, if any, should be accepted, and what the family relationships actually were.

Not only is it necessary to examine Parish registers but all other archival material likely to confirm a selection. A judgement then made is a personal one, and the best that can be hoped for until contradicted by later discoveries.

Exeter is fortunate in having records going back to Tudor times. Most have been copied and printed, many by the Devon & Cornwall Record Society [DCRS], these are readily available for study.

Included are lists for taxation purposes such as those headed ‘Military Survey’, ‘Subsidy tax’, ‘Poll tax’, ‘Hearth tax’, and ‘Poor Rate rolls’. The earliest date back to 1522 others are of the 17th.century.

Adding to the sources of reference are a roll of ‘Exeter Freeman’ dating from the 13th.C. and a list of ‘Protestation returns’ dated 1642 - arguably the first census available after the Doomsday Book.

Particular helpful in our search for the Youatt name is a history of the Incorporation of Weavers Tuckers and Shearmen of Exeter [WT&S for short] entitled ‘Tuckers Hall - Exeter’ and written by Dr.JoyceYouings.

Fortunately the minutes of the WT&S were, until recently, also available for study, but now these have been withdrawn for preservation.

From the sources mentioned above entries thought to be relevant have been copied and shown as :

-FIG.3 Youatt Marriages and Marriage Allegations in the Exeter area

FIG.4 St. Sidwells Parish Register entries

FIG.5 WT&S Minutes showing Youatt entries

FIG.6 WT&S Minute page showing JOHN YOUATT made Free 1663

FIG.8 Youatt and similar entries from Exeter Archives

FIG.9 Youatt, and similar entries, from Exeter & Devon Archives.

Also found in a DCRS publication is an intriguing article by Dr. Joyce Youings entitled ‘Devon Monastic Lands - Detail of grants 1536 - 1588’, it shows a JOHN YEWET paying 20/- for property in the City of Exeter, late of St. Johns ( this referred to parish land sequestered following the Dissolution of the Monasteries ).

DCRS records also show similarly spelt names in locations contiguous with St. Johns. Those shown are, John HUYTTE of All Hallows parish in the Military Survey of 1522’ and

John HUWETT of St. Mary Arches parish in the ‘The Subsidy of 1544’

It would be satisfying to link these findings with the more readily recognisable surnames of 17th.C St. Sidwell however there are factors that mitigate against such a connection.

Firstly the Tudor findings are located in parishes within the city walls - although St. Mary Arches is only partly within - whereas All Hallows and St. Sidwell are both (diametrically opposed) outside. It is the authors feeling that the Tudor entries were of a separate family probably connected in later years with Tiverton since no St. Sidwell connection for these Youatts can be found.

Youatt Allegiance to the Protestant Church

he Exeter Youatts were Protestant in religion, this we conclude from an adherence to St.Sidwell Parish Church starting from when the name was first found through to Caleb Youatt who was appointed variously a Sidesman and Churchwarden - see (FIG 2).

An exception to Protestantism however is to be found in one St.Sidwell baptismal entry of 1696. The entry refers to a baptism ‘at James’s ‘ meaning ‘James Meeting’, a Dissenting (Presbyterian) meeting held at James Street Exeter . This was an alternative to a Church of England meeting allowed under the ‘Act of Uniformity - 1687’ - Dissenters were, it is thought, not allowed the rite of baptism at that time - hence the St. Sidwell entry.

Although the mid 17th.C. Was a time of movement away from the Established Church there is no evidence to support a lasting allegiance by the Youatt St. Sidwell family to the Dissenters.

Exception to the Youatts being firm Protestants was found from a William Youat recorded in 1706 as being adopted for training for the Dissenting Church at Hallett’s Exeter Academy. This William later became Presbyterian Minister at Colyton; his birth however cannot be distinguished amongst the St.Sidwell registers.

This WILLIAM YOUATT would appear to be related to a family YEWET with Tiverton connections, possibly the forebear of the famous Veterinary Reformer and author of the same name? Indeed, as earlier guessed by the author as relating back the Youatt sounding Tudor roots.

The discovery that early Youatts were weavers in Exeter led to an in depth study of their guild.

The following explores just what their association was and provides a detailed outline of the guild: -

17th C. Exeter Sergemaking and its Craft Guild

he chapel of the Fraternity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, alias the Gild of Weavers, Tuckers (or Fullers) and Shearmen had been in existence before 1459. It was the chapel for an association of those engaged in the manufacture of woollen cloth, a craft known to exist in Exeter from AD1200. The Guild grew in strength over the years and was given even greater provenance by a Royal Charter of 1620 allowing it powers to regulate the craft both through strictly maintaining standards and regulating admission. The 1620 charter named the guild: -

THE INCORPORATION or SOCIETY OF WEAVERS TUCKERS AND SHEARMEN OF EXETER

A title conveniently abbreviated to WT&S.

The body of the WT&S comprised a Master, Wardens, court of assistants all elected by members with proven craft skills themselves each having met the conditions of admission.

WT&S. Meetings were held at ‘Tuckers Hall’ a beautifully oak panelled meeting chamber within a stone building occupying the site of the old chapel. Such formal gatherings were known as ‘Hall Days’ and it was at these meetings that a candidate for election presented himself before the Master and Wardens having served the prerequisite seven year apprenticeship with a Master craftsman, a serving member of the WT&S.

After payment of a ‘fee’ to the Warden the candidate became a member and was said to ‘be free’ a term meaning he had received freedom of the Incorporation to set up a workshop, sell his labour or the products of his labour within the City of Exeter. Responsibilities entailed upon a member were to attend all meetings of the Guild and, if proposed, to accept office. By default, in either case, a fee was levied and paid to the warden.

It was a city ordinance for a craftsmen to apply for Freedom of the city of Exeter following Freedom of the WT&S. However examination of well documented lists of Freemen of Exeter shows that only a few WT&S members took up City Freedom, the remainder seem not to have bothered and, rather unaccountably, they were not fined or persecuted by the City Council.

Tuckers Hall, Exeter: looking towards the east end

Annually, on the occasion when a new Master was to be elected, the WT&S in their robes of office met precessed through the city and attended a church service, a continuation of the ancient practice of celebrating (their) patron saint’s day. The august body then attended ‘Tuckers Hall’ and once formal business had been dealt with, members sat down to a feast reported as having been lavishly provided with meats, fish and wine (Exeter was long known as a centre for the import of fine wines). Three members with the surname Youatt served the WT&S each progressing to the ultimate recognition within their sergemaking craft.

As MASTER they were addressed thus and Mr. appears before their name in WT&S documents when they acted as referees for the Guild. Mr. also appears in St. Sidwells parish registers.

FIGURE 5 charts the WT&S progression of JOHN, JOHN Junior, and CALEB YOUATT.

FIGURE 6 shows the election of JOHN YOUATT to the WT&S in 1663

Cloth Manufacturing Processes

anufacture of woollen fabrics today is largely a fully automatic process and one not involving the trade skills of the 17th.C. It will help our story to outline these old crafts so that the terms Weaver, Tucker and Shearman may be explained and so add to the picture of our likely Exeter forebears.

In the remotest areas of 17th.C. Devon sheep were kept to meet the insatiable demand for wool. A farmer could further augment his meagre income if his womenfolk sorted, carded and spun the wool, usually however, it was staples that were despatched for sale. The bales were collected by carriers that regularly traversed the county taking people and produce to nearby market towns.

As a major processing centre, Exeter was a prime market for wool, here the raw material was purchased on a piece-work basis for conversion into cloth.

It was very much a system in which money only changed hands when the clothier sold the finished cloth himself or passed on to a merchant for sale, certainly the processors were the last to receive their dues. Of course there was an advantage for the weaver to purchase either staples or skeins of wool weave these into cloth and sell on for further working in his own right, while that brought in money quicker it nevertheless required capital that few weavers had.

If the weaver had a woolcomber in his employ then stapled wool was bought by a weaver and prepared for the loom ‘in house’ ; the first stage of translating wool into fabric could then be started. Weaving took place usually on his own premises using a 12-shuttle loom. Finished fabric pieces were ½ to ¾ yard wide and up to 40 yards in length. One can imagine a heavy oily coarse cloth at this stage.

Usually the demand was for plain undyed cloth but if dyed finishes were required that process followed. The freshly woven fabric was immersed by the piece into boiling vats with vegetable products, were used for dyeing such as of Woad and madder together with alum for stability, or as said today ‘for colour fastness’.

Next came the tucking or fulling operation - an operation also known as ‘milling’.

Tucking or fullering was a process in which the fabric was firstly treated to alkaline mixtures such as soap, fullers-earth, or - as was quite normal - stale urine. Such treatment reduced the oil content of the fabric, which then allowed fulling to take place. For hours, and sometimes days on end, the Fuller who subjected the cloth to the pounding of a water-powered heavy wooden hammer would felt the cloth. Noise of, not one, but hundreds of these hammers thudding away was reported as to have been deafening throughout the Exe valley, fortunately here was some relief for a City ordnance forbade the process to be carried out on Sundays.

After fulling, the wet fabric was hung out on wooden racks to dry. Old Exeter town plans show large numbers of these racks in fields outside the city walls - see FIG.1. Tenterhooks were used to anchor and to stretch the newly fulled cloth to an acceptable shape. It was a process giving origin to the saying ‘being on tenterhooks’.

Next came ‘burling’, this was a process in which the still partially wet cloth was searched for knots and imperfections. The material was laid on flat ‘burling boards’ and knots extracted by the use of pincers known as ‘burling irons’.

Burling was a job for which the nimble fingers of womenfolk, were well suited although the use of female labour was frowned upon and brought fines from the craft guild.

After burling next came ‘rowing’, this was a process that raised a nap on a wool fabric by the use of teazles mounted in wooden handles. With the fabric vertically hung the material was stroked or rowed until the required nap was raised.

A very skilled process followed rowing. It was ‘shearing’ in which a fabric with its freshly raised nap surface was laid out on long sloping boards and a pair of very sharp shears - about 4 feet in length and some 28 pounds in weight was manipulated to trim the surface of the cloth.

Illustration shows SHEARS to be found at Tuckers Hall

Finally came pressing and packing, Fullers often-included pressing and packing in their activities. Finished cloth pressing used hot water rather than steam. After pressing the finished cloth was folded between paper and then passed to either to a Clothier or Merchant for sale.

Some cloth went to home markets, either inland, or to the London market but the bulk went overseas.

During the late 17th and early 18th.centuries, there arose a demand for serge - one of the ‘New Draperies’ that had superseded a coarser cloth of earlier times. ‘Perpetuana’, a lightweight serge cloth with hard wearing qualities was much in demand from the continent.. Serge however was a fabric that demanded long fibred wool, a variety which had to be imported from Ireland and elsewhere when demand overwhelmed local supplies.

Exeter was a natural location for clothmaking and had been since the 13th.C. It’s plentiful supply of water from the River Exe, distributed by tributaries and leats was well suited the wet processing so much essential or cloth manufacture. Open areas both within the City and outside were also well suited to drying and stretching bolts of cloth. That the city possessed it’s own port of Topsham was an important factor; for raw materials could be shipped in and the finished cloth dispatched to the continent - or to London, and so be independent of the seasonal impassability of English roads.

Wealth and Living Standards of the WT&S Members

few Weavers were thought to have dabbled in trade, probably those described as Sergemakers. In our case Caleb being the most notable. Enterprise by two Youatt Master’s of the WT&S, John and John junior , must have financed a few of their operations for WT&S Minutes show the two John’s made use of the £50/£60 available to a Master ‘without interest for 3 months but subject to 5% after’.

Not only was the money repaid but also the Interest - see FIG 5.

An indication of Youatt circumstances can be deduced from St.Sidwell’s registers, an entry recording the death of ‘ a woman of Christow - John Youatt’s nurse ‘can be found suggestive of at least one servant was employed.( Christow is a village just outside Exeter ).

Another pointer of apparent wealth is the wedding of Caleb and Rebecca in 1720 -it was an event that took place in Exeter Cathedral. It could be an indicator the social standing of a sergemaker and Master of the WT&S, but were circumstances such that a Cathedral wedding was normal at the time ?

On the other hand we have a generalised statement from an historian. When writing of cloth makers, ‘ the height of their ambition would have been to become householders, that is, each to become established in his own premises, with a workshop and to take apprentices and employ a man or two. Some however will have remained, perforce, servants or journeymen being employees for the whole of their working life. Very few would have become clothiers, that is, industrial entrepreneurs, organising and financing more than one of the processes of cloth manufacture. Probably rather more bought and sold on credit the cloths they finished and some sold their cloth on credit to the Merchants’.

So we have a confused picture of our ancestors in Exeter. Their environment was industrial, their wealth perhaps upper middle class with a few comforts. They were undoubtedly well respected by those in the ‘trade’ and shopkeepers. They did not however involve themselves in seeking City office but were of sufficient standing to be called upon as witnesses when documents were drawn up.

A study of the Marriage licences [FIG.3] shows the Youatt daughters married a Brewer, a Brazier, and a ‘Gent’ respectively, in other words there is no pattern here suggestive of great wealth. A description of a Weavers house adds to our picture of their apparent wealth.

Weavers Housing - 16th.C. Description

n indication of Weavers housing is taken from the following account ‘Exeter 1540-1640 - W.McCaffery’. It is a description likely to have been relevant in the 17th.C.

A Weavers house contained a Hall, which was used for sleeping as well as daytime activity. Two additional sleeping chambers and a kitchen were to be found along with a [work] shop. A semblance of decoration was provided by painted cloths that adorned the walls of the hall and one sleeping chamber. Cushions softened the hardness of a bench and two chairs in the hall.

That particular Weaver had a gross estate of £90, which was still higher in the social scale than a Joiner with £4 in goods. However the weavers estate included work in hand with a value not necessarily realisable in the short term.

17/18th C. Youatt - An interpretation of the Exeter Scene

ndeavouring to present Youatt relationships and roots in 17th.C. Exeter is an almost impossible task. Although a wealth of material has been found there exists considerable confusion as to how the data can be linked.

Unfortunately civic and parish records were not maintained in the early part of the 1600’s due to the Civil War and the resulting Commonwealth. A similar genealogical loss of records was sustained when all Devon Wills were lost during an air raid - a so-called Baedecker reprisal raid - during 1942.

Since the original text was written the last Will of a Rebecca Youatt of Exeter dated 1767 has been found the contents together with other finds suggest the following reappraisal.

A 1557/8 Exeter Subsidy Roll entry shows John the Brytan - an alien (from Brittany) living within the parish of St.Edmund Exeter, no further references are known until the 1642 Protestation Return entry of John Hewett in St.Edmund parish.

St.Edmund and St.Sidwell parishes are both outside the then city walls, both housed itinerants or aliens - taken to mean include not only foreigners from abroad.

Another mention of St.Edmund parish is to be found in the parish registers for the baptism of John Hewett son of John 1643.
Interestingly also was found a reference (Exeter Houses (1400-1700) by D.Portman, to a George Sandford (Sandfords Charity ?) holding 'a shopp and two chambers' in Frog Street St.Edmund parish in possession of John Huett which was relinquished after a tenancy of six and one half years - terminated September 1669.

An accompanying illustration showed a timber framed oversailing building comprising a ground floor room with fireplace a hall and first story reached by ladder - a typical Weavers workshop and living quarters.

Intriguing as the above is a linking with known St.Sidwell Youatt can only be conjectural.

What can we construe of Exeter Youatt family relationships ?

The following is an opinion based on available data but one that might not withstand rigid genealogical scrutiny.

St.Sidwell Youatt.

Allowing for spelling variations - very much in the hand of the recorder - the earliest likely parish entries start in 1655 but relationships here are hazy; the following construction is suggested.

- Mr.John Youatt - The Elder - Sergemaker

Once made a Freeman of the Weavers,Tuckers & Shearmen Guild in 1663 John became able to set up a workshop and take commissions within the city of Exeter. Once made Master in 1684 he became Mr.John.

It is certain that the lease on premises in High Street St.Martins parish taken on by Mr.John were his as were dwellings in St.Sidwell.

Mr.John was also the feofee of various WT&S lands also Sandfords Charity.

John married Elinor Roope a spinster of Exeter by licence in 1673. The couple most likely had 4 children, John, James and William in the male line.

Mr.John Youatt died 1703/4 at St.Sidwell and Eleanor in 1701 (ignore references to 'wife of Mr.John the Younger').

- Mr.John Youatt - The Younger - Sergemaker

Once made Free (1682) after a 7-year apprenticeship with his father and made Master (1700) John too followed his father as a sergemaker and became Mr.John.
References found indicate living in St.Sidwell and feoffee of WT&S lands together with leasing premises in St.Martins suggest he took over from his father the Elder Mr.John.
Marriage licences indicate John married firstly Mary Hooke of Exeter - a spinster - 1688 and later as Mr.John a widower, Rebecca Stokes of Broadclyst married at Pinhoe 1700.

Children of the first marriage were two sons and 3 daughters. One son John survived to marry Amy Elliot. John & Amy had two sons both named John but both died in infancy - thus the male line here was extinguished.

Children of the second marriage of Mr.John, to Rebecca comprised 3 sons, William, Samuel and Joseph all died in infancy. There were also three surviving daughters, Rebecca b.1702: Hannah b.1703/4: Johanna b.1706 and finally Susanna b.1710.

During early 2000 the extant last Will of Rebecca dated 1762 was found - it had been proved at the PC Court at Canterbury (unlike other Youatt Wills all lost in wartime Exeter).

Rebecca died a spinster in 1763 ( The hitherto missing but calandered Will had always been assumed that of her mother Mrs..Caleb Youatt - Rebecca Youatt, a widow, had married Caleb Youatt 1720).
Study of the 1763 Will reveals Rebecca was in fact the daughter of Mr.John the Younger and Rebecca as she refers to her sisters Joanna and Susanna both by their married names of Plumleigh and Bastard respectively. Bequests that wound up Youatt holdings in Exeter passed to nephews Anthony Plumleigh and Thomas Bastard respectively.

By inference by 1763 both Caleb and Rebecca had died leaving no other Youatt in Exeter - they had either died or moved elsewhere.

- James Youatt - Woolcomber ?

Assumed to be related to Mr.John the Elder as we have no baptismal detail.
James married sometime before 1700 to a Mary ? The couple had 3 daughters and sons Caleb b.1708 * and William b.1713 both at St.Sidwell.
Mary Youatt died in Nov 1713 and James a widower remarried by licence in 1714 to Widow Izrael How of Exeter who died at Exeter Hospital in 1727.

James and Susanna b.1703 are significant as to questionably Caleb to linking Exeter Youatt with Newton Tracey.

Susanna married Thomas Meare by licence at Newton Tracey 1727.
James was buried 1734 at Newton Tracey.

*Caleb b.1708 remains a questionable link between Exeter and Newton Tracey as if he were the Caleb who married Sibella Tamlyn at Newton Tracey in 1748 then his age at burial (1802) would be 94, an age at odds with life expectancy at that time.

[in fairness it should be noted that if the Chittlehampton born Caleb {details follow in main text} were the Newton Tracey one then he too would have died at a real old age - 89years !]

- Mr.Caleb Youatt of St.Sidwell - Sergemaker

Baptismal details for Caleb have not been found - however he is thought to be related to Mr.John the Elder.

Much of the life of Caleb is known from WT&S documents and church records he served a 7-year apprenticeship to meet his guilds admission and was Master during both 1728 and 1743.
Churchwarden and Sidesman at St.Sidwell Caleb was witness and guarantor to several Youatt weddings.

Caleb married the widowed wife of John the Younger Mrs.Rebecca Youatt in 1720 at St.Peters - Exeter Cathedral. A will is calandered for Caleb dated 1759 proved at Exeter PCC but is now missing. When Rebecca his wife died has not been found.

By inference from her daughters Will of 1763 for her daughter to be sole benefactor of Youatt inheritances Mrs.Rebecca Youatt must have died before Caleb as no missing Will was calandared for her.

- William Youatt - Worsted comber

Baptismal details are unknown but William was most likely a brother of James and Caleb and related to Mr.John the Elder. William was granted freedom of the WT&S in 1711 but did not advance to become Master.

William married by licence at St.Sidwell to Thomazine Turner a spinster of the parish during May 1705/6.

Apart from a daughter Mary b.1727 at St.Sidwell no other references to William have been found.

We must give up further conjecture of relationships and conclude that the overwhelming evidence is that Youatt was in Exeter in the 17th.C.

Meanwhile our story moves to Chittlehampton, but not before suggesting the reason for such a move.

A Move from Exeter?

arly in the 18th. Century the demand for fine Exeter serges was overtaken by cheaper products originating in Norwich. Many craftsmen went out of business so that the manufacture of textiles in Exeter all but disappeared by the mid 1700’s.

Hence economic necessity was a compelling reason for a Youatt move out of Exeter, out of textile craftsmanship, and into farming.

After Exeter some intriguing church register entries from Chittlehampton enter the picture.

Chittlehampton

sizeable village in North Devon, CHITTLEHAMPTON, is located about 20 miles NW of Exeter. It is still a centre for many farms in the area and was once on a carrier route between Exeter and Barnstaple. A magnificent Parish Church dominates the village, with an unusual dedication to St. Hieretha once spelt St. Urith after a martyred Celtic saint. Urith was a favoured local name repeated in female christenings and a puzzling name to find when examining original parish registers.

From the Parish Registers of St. Hieretha - Chittlehampton

AGNES dau of John HEWET bur 16OCT1711

JOHN son of John HEWET bur. 21DEC1712

CALEB son of John HEWET bapt 11OCT1713

MARY dau of John & Mary HUETT bapt 22JAN1715

ELIZABETH dau of John & Mary HEWETT bapt. 03JUL1720

The first thing noticed was the variance of surname. However a diligent study of the Chittlehampton Parish Register fails to reveal a Hewet or similarly spelt name recorded. It is assumed from the use of the name Caleb that he had Exeter roots but of course this is open to question. It can be assumed that JOHN is likely to have married MARY around 1710.

If John Hewet was born in the1670’s as the son of JAMES YOUETT of St. Sidwell, then John would have been of such a marriageable age and a connection with later Youatts established.

In fact parish registers entries found at nearby Newton Tracey give substance to such a link.

NEWTON TRACEY 1727 – 1834, the Youatt Dynasty

he Heralds report backed by independent research has established NEWTON TRACEY to be the parish where a Youat marriage had taken place in 1727.

A detailed examination of the extant Newton Tracey Parish Registers (1562 to date) have failed to show a Youatt presence prior to 1727 but show three generations grew up in the village after that date. Furthermore, by 1839 they had all left although branches of the Youatt family were to be found living in the nearby parishes of Tawstock, Hiscott and Yarnscombe.

NEWTON TRACEY - a Description

ocated about 3 miles from Barnstaple and similarly distanced from Bideford and Great Torrington the hamlet of Newton Tracey is a quite small, even in 1802 only 86 persons were noted as living there. Surrounded by the large parishes of Fremington, Tawstock, Yarnscombe and Atherington, Newton Tracey straddles what was for many years a Packhorse road now a modern highway B3232. The following maps illustrate the village and it’s environs.

FIG.10. Shows part of Benjamin Donns’ 1765 map of the area.

FIG.11 shows a more recent a larger scale, Ordnance Map of 1885

The highest point is only just over 300 ft. above sea level and whilst many dwellings are on the lee side of a hill the severe Atlantic gales coming in from Bideford Bay must have made farming really a fight against the elements. Locally the soil is heavy and requires dressing to yield satisfactory harvests.

The Parish Church (FIG.12) dedicated to Thomas à Becket is from the 12th.C. Said to have been built as a penance by Henry de Tracey for his families’ part in assassinating Archbishop Becket. Built of hardwearing Ham ragstone the church consists of a squat tower housing 3 bells and two bays with gothic style windows.

The Victorians remodelled the church, added a second bay and an entrance porch and by so doing most likely destroying privileged pews, carved screen, text boards and heraldic monuments, once a feature of early churches. Still to be found however, is an ancient Font and a massive black oak Parish chest. Our ancestors certainly made good use of the Font for their Christenings and as Churchwardens would undoubtedly have kept the keys of the Parish Chest. (FIG.13a)

NEWTON TRACEY - 1727 - The First Youatt Mentions

rom the NEWTON TRACEY Parish register the relevant Youatt entries are copied as FIGS.14 & 15. Shown below is a copy of the parish register entry for the first Youatt marriage.

(extract by courtesy of Devon Record Office)

The Meare/Youatt marriage was by licence and the Marriage Allegation reveals that Thomas Butcher of Bideford furthermore that JOHN YOUAT, a farmer of Newton Tracey, was the bondsman or guarantor. One guesses that Susanna was the sister of John.

The MAYRE, MEAR or MEARE family kept their association with Newton Tracey with several of their children baptised and buried there, in fact a surviving gravestone to Thomas Mear and Susanna provides a link with earlier Youatts.

Susanna was buried 21st.March 1750 aged 48 suggesting a birthdate of 1702.

St.Sidwells at Exeter records the baptism of Susanna, daughter of James Youett 30th.November 1703.

Could these two Susannas be one and the same?

Taken with Newton Tracey entries for the burials of James and John Yeoatt and the marriage of Elizabeth together with Chittlehampton entries giving the births of Caleb and Elizabeth a link with Exeter through Chittlehampton appears most likely.

Returning now to entries in the Newton Tracey parish register.

After Susanna’s marriage in 1727 the next reference is: - ELIZABETH YEOATT married THOMAS BRAUNTON of Alverdiscott in 1753.Elizabeth was a spinster and married a Yeoman farmer of nearby Alscot as it is pronounced and known.

As suggested above an Elizabeth was born in Chittlehampton in 1720, sister of Caleb.

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Continuing with Youatt Newton Tracey parish register entries: -

James Yeoatt 16** - 1734

he first Youatt burial found in the parish register is that of James spelt YOOATT, the first O was in fact a period style of the letter E so the name is really YEOATT. No other detail such as age is to be found, in fact a persons age did not appear on entries until the 19th.C. Although James Yeoatt does not appear on the chart above he was undoubtedly from St.Sidwell in Exeter.

John Yeoatt - 16** - 1753

t is assumed that this John was father of Caleb and brother to Susanna when in 1727 he was her bondsman and recorded as a farmer. Details of John’s Parish activities are to be found recorded in the ‘Account book for the OVERSEER of the POOR’ for Newton Tracey. John was appointed both Overseer and Churchwarden for the period between 1731 to 1745 after which his son Caleb took over. Appointment of Overseer was given two persons of the parish, their role was to look after the secular welfare of the parish, arrange and supervise maintenance of the highways, bridges and find parish work for the poor.

A Churchwarden on the other hand had a responsibility to maintain the church, churchyard, and Parish cottages and to ensure Charities were distributed. Usually there were two appointed one by the Parish priest the other by the congregation. No doubt those amongst the villagers that could read and write were in demand and of course those held in esteem. Local landowners as Magistrates must also have had some say in selection, particularly of the Overseers.

Local tenancy agreements were occasionally noted in the Overseer’s Account Book, this was held either in the Parish Chest or more likely the Churchwardens home. As John Yeoatt was both Churchwarden and Overseer it is not perhaps surprising to find him noting an agreement to ‘bind’ James Nicholls for occupying part of Sir John Trevelyan’s property.

The Trevelyan’s came into possession of Newton Barton by marriage in 1694 and retained the largest property in Newton Tracey until sold to Thomas Hogg in 1785.

John Yeoatt was by 1734 - if not 1726 - principal tenant of Sir John Trevelyan an absentee landlord of Nettlecombe in Somerset.

The Youatt family certainly lived in the Barton, once an ancient Manor House and usually home of ‘The Lord of the Manor’ but then a farmhouse, in fact 3 generations of Youatt lived in and farmed Newton Barton.

Comprising lands totalling 89 Acres, Newton Barton included 65 Acres of Arable land, 9 Acres of Pasture, 4 Acres of Woodland, 10 Acres of Orchard ( Apple and Cherry ? ) there was at least one other cottage ‘Rag or Ray Cottage’ included in the Estate.

John and his son Caleb paid a nominal or Peppercorn Rent’ to the absentee Trevelyan’s as that was the usual arrangement to avoid legal expense and complexities. As tenants both John and later Caleb farmed the land, lived on the property and managed it on behalf of the Landlord.

For their part the Trevelyan’s had their possession kept in good order, had sporting and other access, and retained value of their property secure for any loan they might choose to realise.

From all that has been read about John Yeoatt one cannot but conclude he lived the life of a hardworking but respected farmer in his own right - he was a Yeoman in the truest sense.

John died in 1753 and was buried at Newton Tracey, ‘in woollen’, as was required by law at that time. It was a requirement to comply with a statute introduced to ensure the prosperity of the Wool industry. An alternative of burial in cloth was permitted on payment of a fine usually found as £5, gentry or the better off favoured such a choice, their deviation was of course noted in registry entries and the Parson received the fine, although, it was not thought, for his own pocket.

Change of Register Dating

wo changes to the calendar were introduced in 1752. The Calendar then in use was the Julian and the changes were to correct errors accumulated over the centuries due to basing a calendar year upon 365 days. From 1752 Leap year days were added to introduce today’s Gregorian Calendar.

Additionally New Years Day then became the 1st. January whereas previously 26th. March heralded the start of a New Year.

Dates lying between January and March genealogists often distinguish with a double year such as Feb.3rd 1734/5. Register dates about the period use NS or new style to record the change of dating. In this text dates are as they appear in the registers.

Caleb and Sibella - The First Newton Tracey Generation

t last we are on firm ancestral ground, for it can be said with rare exception that any Youatt surname found today can be traced to a Yeoman Farmer of Newton Tracey and his wife namely Caleb and Sibella.

Caleb married Sibella Tamlyn at Newton Tracey Parish Church in 1748.

Sibella is now usually spelt Sybil but then appeared as both Sibelly and Sibellah in the parish register.

Tamlyn is the name of an ancient North Devon farming family. Sibella’s branch came from the neighbouring parish of Tawstock and the Amos Tamlyn recorded as Caleb’s fellow churchwarden was likely to have been her brother.

Caleb tenanted land known as Chichester’s Tenement from a family whose Bideford heirs were Mercers. Apart from the Tenement, Caleb and his sons farmed Newton Barton as tenant of Sir John Trevelyan, a continuance of the tenancy held by his father John Youatt.

Caleb, like John before him was committed to Parish activities, his involvement as Churchwarden and Overseer of the Poor are recorded in the Account Book and make interesting reading.

Entries show that Caleb had been elected Churchwarden in 1745 followed by an entry concerning his trip to Exon (Exeter) on the subject of Highways, that was in 1754 and at a time when his namesake the Sergemaker would have still been alive, did the two Calebs meet one wonders ! Another entry states; ‘Ale for choosing a Constable and one Waywarden and labourers for the highways - four shillings’ - one is uncertain whether the ale was to bribe the candidates or jolly along the selection procedure!

Caleb has other mentions in the Account book until 1780 when his son John took over.

Chichester's Tenement - NEWTON TRACEY

ost Estates and Manors in Devon can be traced back to dispositions made by William the Conqueror, and so it was with Newton Barton once part of Fremington. After occupation by the Tracey’s, the property passed through the hands of several of the nobility of Devon. Sometimes transfer was the result of sale and at other times as the result of marriage settlement. Thus it was in 1652 when Sir John Chichester came into possession of Newton Barton, its Manor house and lands.

Whilst Newton Barton was apparently kept separate the remaining property became known as:

Today it is all but impossible to reconcile just what part of Newton Tracey formed the Tenement but the following details are recited in a Deed dated 1756/9.

CHICHESTER’S TENEMENT.

20 Acres of 3 - Messages (A Dwelling with associated lands)

1 - Cottage (‘Copplestones’ )

4 - Gardens

8 - Orchards

150 Acres of Land

50 Acres of Pasture

20 Acres of Meadows

5 Acres of Wood Furze & Heath - part in Fremington.

Tithe Apportionment’s and maps of 1840 show the total area of Newton Tracey to be 336 Acres including Newton Barton of 89 Acres, So it can be concluded Chichester’s Tenement was large indeed.

How Caleb became Possessed of Land

n extant Tripartite Deed of 1756/9 is of considerable interest for as a result of that document we are able to establish how CALEB YOUATT came into possession of his farmhouse and lands.

Surviving on four parchment skins with seals, flowing handwriting and signatures, the document is known as a Tripartite Lease and Release. In content it is fairly easy to read but requires a legal mind to explain its endless repetitions. Such an opinion was sought and the following purports to be the sequence of transaction that took place between 1756 - 1758

JOHN GRAHAM a Mercer of Bideford had title of Chichester’s Tenement in 1726, John Youatt could well have been his tenant but of this we need confirmation.

John Graham’s daughter Mary took the Tenement as part of her marriage settlement to THOMAS COPLESTONE a Mercer of Bideford.On the demise of Thomas Coplestone his son, also named Thomas, together with his fathers executors decided to raise capital from their holding.

In 1756, Caleb Youatt was holding a 14-year tenancy paying £20 per Annum to the Coplestone family. When the Coplestone’s were in need of finance they called on James Hillow of Bideford as mortgagee. Hillow advanced £323 on the estate After the prescribed time for redemption had expired the Coplestone’s could not, or chose not, to redeem their debt.

Caleb Youatt repaid the Hillow debt of £323 on their behalf together with an interest of £100.

By agreement Caleb Youatt dissolved his tenancy and became owner of the property, James Hopkins a Bideford Merchant took over ‘the remaining land’ although the extent of this is not clear.

Caleb Youatt was then a Yeoman Farmer and the owner of part of Chichester’s Tenement, a title that was to disappear after, Caleb’s purchase. The farm and house then used it’s early title of Coplestones nowadays spelt COPPLESTONES.

Several properties in Newton Tracey still retain the names of their earlier owners, such as Taylors, Balches, Cawseys ,& Hoopers. For posterity’s sake it was unfortunate not to have ‘Youatts’ included in the list but by the time Caleb had title of Copplestones its name had passed into common usage.

Caleb and Sibella Youatt

1. JOHN b.1749 was the first child of Caleb and Sibella, he was party to the lease of Newton Barton and was a yeoman farmer. John died unmarried in 1789.

2. MARY b.1752 died in infancy.

3. JONE b.1754 and married JOHN PETHERBRIDGE a yeoman farmer of nearby Alverdiscott in 1776.

4. JAMES b.1756 was to become head of the family and continue the Youatt line (Following the deaths of both John and Caleb). James was a yeoman farmer.

5. CALEB b.1758 died in infancy

6. SIBELLY b.1760 also died in infancy.

7. MARY b.1762 married HUGH KING a yeoman farmer from nearby Atherington in 1789

Dates shown ‘b’. are baptismal years taken from parish register.

As was usual with many of the better off families the daughters of Caleb & Sibella were married by Licence, such an arrangement had advantages of avoiding a wait for Banns to be read.

John Youatt 1749 - 1789

ith ageing Caleb, his eldest son JOHN became effective head of the family and like his father was appointed as Overseer of the Poor.

John possessed writing skills along with his farming knowledge as testified by his by his selection with neighbour Samuel Taylor as Assessors for the newly levied Land Tax.

Land Tax

and tax was introduced in 1780, and was levied until 1832. It required local assessment of all lands and holdings within the parish. A collection was then made and returned. Justices of the Peace from Barnstaple were responsible for appointing two assessors and a collector. For the first tax of 1780 John Youatt was appointed both Assessor and Collector and his neighbour Samuel Taylor as co-assessor. John, as collector received payment.

Copied from the original document FIG.18 shows the form drawn up by John Youatt.

Newton Barton

ohn acted as head of the family for a Leasehold Agreement dated 1786. It will be recalled that Newton Barton was held on a nominal or ‘Peppercorn Rent’ agreement with Sir John Trevelyan of Nettlecombe. The absent Landlord’s heirs decided to sell the property to a notable Fremington gentleman Thomas Hogg. Unfortunately Mr.Hogg died within a year of his ownership leaving his Widow Elizabeth and his Executors the property. Unlike the previous owners the Hogg family had a formal leasehold agreement drawn up, one that can still is seen thanks to Devon Records.

The 1786 Leasehold Agreement is easy to read if somewhat lengthy, FIG16 has been copied to show the foresight and lengths gone to preserve the environment and of course the Hogg inheritance. The property to kept in good condition, traditional fields only farmed, and those, to receive a specified fertiliser. The tenancy was for 21 years with John Youatt as the named tenant but with a usual clause that allowed John’s ‘heirs and assigns’ as a contingency.

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John Youatt’s and Caleb’s Death and James Youatt’s Succession

ohn Youatt was unmarried when he died aged 40 when only three years of the 1786 Newton Barton lease had expired; John was buried at Newton Tracey.

As next in line Caleb and Sibella’s son JAMES took over although to start with he did not initially live there.

Caleb lived to a ripe old age and died in 1802, when it is thought he was aged 89. His contribution to the Parish both to the Church and his secular activities were a tribute to what must have been an example of a true Yeoman Farmer, hardly a Squire but well respected by all. Sibella, aged 83 died a year after Caleb. As a working farmers wife she no doubt helped Caleb on the farm at the same time as bringing up a fair sized family.

The disappointments of losing several children then to lose her eldest son can only be imagined. As a working mother she no doubt passed on her skills both on the farm, in the kitchen and the dairy for her daughters all married neighbouring Yeoman Farmers, they of course wanted wives accustomed to hard work so much a part of farming life.

NEWTON BARTON - Description of the Old Farmhouse

ention has been made of the rich lands that formed a demesne of the ‘Barton’ but not the ancient Barton itself. Ancient certainly it was as it is remains of an original Manor house.

From the time of William the Conqueror the Manor was included as part of Fremington granted to the Bishop of Coutance, The property later passed into the hands of Henry de Tracey; he died in 1274. After a succession of owners the Manor House fell into disuse and became a farmhouse.

Newton Barton in 1991

Today Newton Barton it can be seen as a low farmhouse with parts adjoining of Tudor origin - in fact the owner in 1991 casually referred to a remaining part of the Manor House, a Tudor wing, as ‘the new part’!

A large kitchen is to be found behind the side door of the house and adjoining this is a surprisingly light room with Georgian glazing, this incorporates remains of the earlier Tudor building.

Within the old Tudor room redecorated in the 17th.C. is an interesting plasterwork frieze.

Coat of Arms : Possibly of the Hogg family?

he plasterwork frieze of a very decorative style surrounds the wall and includes also a plaster moulded heraldic helm, crest and shield. Claimed to be the Arms of the 15th.C.Baron Awdley but the shield dating from the late 16th.C is likely to have to have been the work of John Abbott or his son, Similar work can be found at Youlston Park and at the Royal Hotel, Bideford.

As regards the Coat of Arms. It was quite fashionable to incorporate these as decoration but there must be question as to whose they represent. A comparison with a shield over Newton Tracey church tower doorway suggests those of St. Leger family whose family owned lands nearby. Whether the heraldic arms on the church are Awdley or St.Leger or for that matter Hogg is a fine point as they are almost identical, most likely St.Leger, and those at the Barton, Hogg. Awdley, the other suggestion, is too early.

Newton Barton Estate Details

ithe maps of 1840 together with earlier Land tax returns enable the estate of Newton Barton to be outlined in detail.
Totalling 89 Acres, mostly surrounding the farmhouse, there were Orchards of probably Cherry and most certainly Apple; also Pasture and Arable farming lands.

These were surrounded by Furze and woodland providing vital firewood; whilst streams around the estate could well have given fish and marshy areas the reed for thatch.

When sold to the Hogg family for £940 Newton Barton was a very desirable farm and farmhouse.

Indeed when seen in 1991 the property Newton Barton together with only 5 Acres of land was for sale for £250,000: John paid £50 -9-0 rent!

Caleb, John and later James Youatt and his son James were in turn all tenants of Newton Barton and as far as can be discovered all lived there - a prestigious home indeed but we should remember that they were hardworking farmers whose wealth was very much subject to inclement weather and the price of grain.

Caleb and Sibella -The Final Years

aleb remained active in Parish affairs as Overseer of the Poor until 1780 when his eldest son John took over.

An indication of help given to the poor to find work in the village is an entry in the Account Book of the Overseer; firstly Samuel Taylor provided two Indentures at a cost of four shillings [ thought to be an agreement to employ a poor labourer and house him and his family ] To clothe the same man whose name was Richard Chipman, Caleb provided a sum of ten shillings from his own estate - surely an example of how villages helped the poor and of course an example of the Poor Law in action. If employment on a farm could not be found then there were Parish and Turnpike roads to maintain and provide employment for those on hard times.

The death of John Youatt in 1789 must have been a severe blow to Caleb and Sibella for John had only previously secured a continuing tenancy of Newton Barton for the family. However second son James was making his way as a Farmer whilst helping Caleb farm and maintain the Barton and Copplestones.

James was a tenant farmer in his own right both in Newton Tracey and in neighbouring Fremington.

Caleb died in 1802, we think he was then 89 years old. No trace of Caleb’s will remain but a glimpse of his bequests is revealed in surviving Revenue documents. Caleb left his estate entirely to his eldest son James Youatt with an annuity of £5 to his wife Sibella.

Sibella did not live to enjoy her annuity for she too died in 1803 aged 82.

There is unfortunately no churchyard memorial to any Youatt to be found at Newton Tracey today. Either wooden markers were originally used to mark their graves and these have perished, or, their headstones have been lost when the Church was remodelled in 1868.

Perhaps the missing headstones were amongst those used to form a porch entrance floor during Victorian remodelling of the church.

James and Elizabeth Youatt

ames married in 1779, his bride was Elizabeth Dallyn the daughter of William and Mary Dallyn. from the village of Challacombe a remote location on the fringes of Exmoor. The very name Challacombe was derived from ‘cold valley’ an indication of its openness to the elements.

A farming family, the Dallyns had relatives all over North Devon so it is likely James came into contact with Elizabeth in Tawstock where a branch of the Dallyns were living.

The marriage of James and Elizabeth took place at Challacombe - then a good half - days journey from Newton Tracey.

At the time James was farming 15 Acres of arable and furze land situated within the parish of Newton Tracey known as Fremington Poor Lands. The Poor in the title referred to ownership on behalf of the poor rather than the quality of the land.

Additional tenancies held by James located within Fremington parish was farmed on behalf of Mr.Hogg, or his executors, and a Mr.Hathersley whose property was named Grabbishaw.

Reported now to be a ruin, Grabbishaw is located about a mile SE of Newton Tracey church. The one time farmhouse was most likely to have been the home of James and Elizabeth and their growing family. All their children were christened at Newton Tracey and until 1798 the register entries show James and Elizabeth to be ‘of Fremington’ - a note made when parents lived outside the parish boundary. James and family moved into Newton Tracey after John had died.

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James Youatt and Elizabeth Dallyn

ames & Elizabeth’s family – a brief summary.John b.1782 was the first of James and Elizabeth’s children, he was our common ancestor and as such his life is described in the next section pp.34

onward. James the second son died in infancy.

James b.1786 continued the family name. A farmer all his life, he married Elizabeth Smallridge and alone of the Youatt’s remained in the area until his death in 1848.

Caleb, b.1789 furthered family use of this Biblical name, in fact other Youatt’s were named Caleb well into the twentieth century. Caleb however died, unmarried when aged 21.

(From a study of parish burials, farming usually took a heavy toll on lifespan however many Youatt’s if surviving their early years lived to their late 70’s , 80’s - and even 90’s !)

Thomas b.1795 the third surviving son was still quite young when his father James died; he too learnt farming skills but was for many years a gamekeeper.

James & Elizabeth’s daughters Mary, Elizabeth and Susanna learnt from their mother farming crafts such as dairying and attributes expected in a Farmers wife. All married either Yeoman or Tenant farmers and judging from surviving marriage certificates, all learnt to write or, could at least sign their name in a clear hand.

Mary, the eldest, married farmer William Joce from the neighbouring parish of Tawstock. The couple had six children two of who were sons. Most of their family were baptised and buried at Newton Tracey and a gravestone still can be found in the churchyard showing William died in1837 aged 56 and Mary in 1851 aged 71.

Second of James & Elizabeth’s daughters, Elizabeth, married at Filleigh in 1818 to a Farmer, Richard Passmore of Filleigh, undoubtedly in the employ of Earl Fortescue of Castle Hill, one of the largest and influential landowners in Devon. Elizabeth could well have been ‘in service’ at Castle Hill but we do not have the facts to corroborate this.

Susanna, the youngest daughter of James & Elizabeth, also carried another of those Youatt Biblical names first found used in Exeter. The marriage of Susanna to John Rumbelow was a link to another family of Yeoman Farmers whose roots disappear into the fabric of Devon in the 16th.C.

The Rumbelow Connection

UMBELOW is an unusual surname with an early mention of the name cited at Morebath, Devon in 1522 when William Rumbelow is noted as ‘gave to the store of the Church of Our Lady, a sheep for which he was to receive one shilling’. Until 1534 and the Act of Supremacy the Church had a Catholic dedication this was changed to St. George, the name in use today.

John Rumbelow came from a Landkey branch of that family. John was brother to Charlotte Rumbelow who as we shall soon discover played an important part in ‘our’ Youatt story.

Susanna Youatt married John Rumbelow at Bishops Tawton in 1824, it is presumed John was farming land in the parish. The couple had 8 children six of whom were male.

Unfortunately John Rumbelow died in 1840 leaving Susanna with 4 young children so when the 1841 Census was undertaken they were living at Hillberrow Farm Bishops Tawton with Susanna (then 43 years old) having to work as an ‘Agricultural labourer’.

Although marriage banns at Bishops Tawton are recorded for Susanna to marry Henry Newcome in 1847 there is no record to show that the marriage took place.

NEWTON TRACEY - The Last Generation

ames Youatt 1756-1811 on the 1802 death of his father, Caleb, James assumed an active role in parochial affairs, becoming elected both Churchwarden and Collector of Land Tax.

John, James and Thomas were the last male members of the Youatt family to live within the Parish of Newton Tracey. All three married and eventually left to farm elsewhere with James remaining closest to his birthplace - he latterly farmed at Hiscott in the nearby parish of Tawstock.

Their father James Youatt died in 1811 at the early age of 54; he was buried at Newton Tracey. During 1811 James had farmed Newton Barton, Copplestones, and Fremington Poor Land for himself together with glebeland on behalf of the Rector. Of course, sons John and James and a young Thomas together with their sisters all shared in running the farm.

James Youatt 1756 - 1811 - His Estate and Beneficiaries

lthough the actual last Will and Testament of James is no longer extant there are Death Duty records available to reveal the extent of his Estate and beneficiaries.

John and James were nominated Executors for the Estate of James Youatt, Yeoman of Newton Tracey. Dated 22 February 1811 with a [tax?] value under £450 the Legatees were: -

Thomas Youatt, son, to be paid £250 and £100 out of the Testators lands given to

John Youatt upon Thomas reaching the 21 years of age.

Mary Joce - daughter to receive £70.

Elizabeth Youatt & Susanna Youatt to receive £120 each on attaining the age of 21 years. Thomas, James and John Youatt, sons to receive the residue.

From the value of the bequests one cannot but conclude that James Youatt was a relatively wealthy Yeoman Farmer.

John, James and Thomas Youatt: Their Lives and Families

authors note. We now have reached a period when there are many descendants to describe. To start with, it is intended to take the male heirs of James & Elizabeth in reverse order starting with Thomas so leaving John, our forebear until last.

Thomas Youatt 1795 - 1859

homas Youatt b.1795, was the youngest son of James & Elizabeth. Only a young lad of 16 when James died in 1811 Thomas undoubtedly helped on the farm but his later activities show he was versed in Malting and in Gamekeeping. Thomas had to wait until his 21st. birthday until he received his fathers bequest.

We are fortunate to see some of young Thomas’s attempts at writing for found in the back pages of Newton Tracey Parish Register appears the following accompanied by the date 1814 :-

Thomas Youatt his hand but not his pen, to make amend he will be good but God knows when

{ A sort of ‘by hook or by Crook I’ll be last in this book’ - autograph book entry ? }

It may appear strange to find such an important parish record used for such frivolity but the register may well have been the only writing material the young Thomas could lay his hand on. No doubt the Parish Register was kept in his fathers house after all he was a Churchwarden.

Thomas’s handwriting exercise was not all to be found in those back pages for there were Whorls and sums relating to the tithe amount to be paid the Rector. It must have been a page used for trying out a Quill pen as the whorls or flourishes indicate. There were no other indicators to confirm that 1814 actually refers to young Thomas’s entry.

On the 18th. September 1818 Thomas, then aged 23, was married at the Parish Church of SOUTH MOLTON the home of his bride SUSANNA NICHOLLS then aged 27, [ the Nicholls spelling varies sometimes Nichols and once as Nickels ].

South Molton parish register shows Thomas to be a sojourner [ one living outside the Parish ]. An indication that Thomas could have been living and working with his brothers at Newton Tracey.

Christening entries for Thomas & Susanna’s children were found at Newton Tracey, South Molton and one in Ireland, these together with the Census Returns of 1841 and 1851 make it possible to chart the changes of both occupation and location of the couple and their family.

The children of Thomas & Susanna were :-

ELIZABETH b.1820 NT. Married William Willacott, a Cooper at Exeter 1846 later lived at Creedy Park, Sandford.

MARY b.1822 NT. Married at Bristol in 1849 to William Wellacott a Cooper.

TOMASINE b.1825 S.M. Died and was buried in 1827 SM.

THOMAZINE NICHOL b.1828 S.M. Died a spinster at Exmouth aged 84.

SUSANNA b.1831 Tawstock. Died a spinster at Exmouth aged 82.

EMILY NICHOL b.1833 IRELAND Married in London, 1868, to Terry Nation.

NT. = Newton Tracey entries note Thomas as a Maltster in 1820 and a Yeoman of Pristacott in 1822

SM.= South Molton, entries note Thomas was a Labourer at Hill, a farm close to the town.

Tawstock, - the entry for Susanna - notes Thomas to be a Gamekeeper at Eastercoombe on the estate of the Bourchier Wrey family a local landowner. From the Census Return of 1841 Thomas and his family were living in Tawstock, he was employed as a Gamekeeper. However in 1851 Thomas was found to be a Widower living at Brendon on the edge of Exmoor where during 1846 his wife Susanna had died. Susanna was brought home to South Molton to be buried. The Census also reveals that Thomas was ‘An assistant in Brewing’ at The Abbey. At first thought to be a monastic foundation, however upon checking further ‘The Abbey’ was found to be an Inn run by a Widow named Elizabeth Bromham. Meanwhile in 1851 at the nearby village of Lynton, Thomas’s daughter Emily was living ‘in the shop’, a General Shop run by Mr.Fry and his wife and located at Church-mile House. The Ireland birthplace of Emily was discovered in the 1851 Census for Lynton and repeated on the 1861 entry for Court House Arlington where she was a Ladies Maid to Lady Chichester. Although Emily’s actual birthplace in Ireland has not been found it is thought that Thomas worked for a spell on an Irish estate probably as Gamekeeper to a local Tawstock Landowner with property over there. Certainly the Chichester family had estates in Ulster.

Susanna and Thomasine Nichol remained spinsters and lived in their final years at the South Devon resort of Exmouth. Susanna was found in 1861 to be a Housemaid at the Chichester home of Arlington in N.Devon.

Children of Thomas & Susanna

he sisters died within a month of each other during 1912 at Exmouth. A Will shows that their Estate was bequeathed to Emily who in 1868 had married Terry Nation in London.

Thomas’s daughter Elizabeth, the oldest of his children was a Servant when she married in Exeter to William Willacott a Cooper employed on the Creedy Park Estate at Sandford near Crediton in mid-Devon.

Mary, Thomas’s second daughter also surprisingly married a Cooper with a like sounding name of her sister Elizabeth’s Husband. William Wellacott, was Mary’s husband, they married in 1849 at Bristol.

However it was at Sandford near Crediton with his daughter that Thomas spent his last days.

Thomas was buried in the Parish Church at Sandford a memorial stone in the churchyard is one of few still to be found in Devon carrying a Youatt surname.

With the death of Thomas there was no male line to survive so that particular branch of the Youatt family became extinct.

Farming post 1814

arming enjoyed a boom during the Napoleonic wars when food commanded high prices however in the aftermath from about 1814 was a time of depression . Many once Yeoman Farmers were forced to give up their holdings and seek employment where they could. so it was quite common to read the terms Agricultural Labourer and Husbandman used where once Yeoman described their role.

The Industrial revolution and the railways also brought about change so that many left the land altogether.

As we shall see the younger Youatt’s moved away from Devon several to London and others across the Bristol Channel to the South Wales coalfields.

James Youatt 1785 - 1848

ames too followed his father as Churchwarden and Collector of Land Taxes whilst he remained at Newton Tracey however by 1829 he had all but relinquished a connection with that parish. James continued to farm part of the Fremington Poor Lands, a parcel known as Broad Oaks.

Soon after James father’s death in 1811 James married Elizabeth Smallridge, a name today pronounced ‘Smorridge’. Elizabeth, a native of Tawstock, came from a farming family with roots in the area. Some members of the Smallridge family are thought to continue farming in the area today.

At he time of marriage 23rd., April 1811, their certificate shows a bold signature by James but an X where Elizabeth’s should be; Elizabeth could not write her name.

It was not unusual to find a cross in lieu of a signature in a parish register in fact a printed certificate of marriage had only just been introduced. In earlier times it was usual for the Parish Clerk to enter just names and dates in a Parish Register.

Not that Elizabeth’s illiteracy was a drawback to raising nine children .One became a Yeoman, one married a Yeoman whilst the others all made their way in the world either in farming or as farming labourers. One gave his name to the 1851 census taker as Yewett perhaps illiteracy was the reason for others at that time had their surname spelt correctly.

Tawstock the church where James and Elizabeth married has several Youatt and many Smallridge connections. The Church, shown as FIG.12, lies on the side of a hill overlooking the verdant valley of the River Taw. On the opposite side of the valley lies Codden Hill, a whale-backed mound rising to 600 or so feet, quite a dominating feature associated with local myths.

Inside the ancient church of Tawstock are many medieval monuments to the Bourchier - Wrey family, once Earls of Bath, whose one time seat Tawstock House is nearby.

Although a Catholic family with their own Priest and chapel the Bourchier - Wrey family installed at least one Anglican Rector of Tawstock as John & Charlotte’s marriage certificate shows.

Amongst other artefacts to be found within the church is an old horse drawn, steel, hand-plough carrying a label showing its donation by one of the local members of the Smallridge family.

James Youatt and Elizabeth Smallbridge

utside in the (Tawstock) churchyard are several Smallridge headstones, a few with a Youatt middle name. Still preserved and leaning against the boundary wall a tombstone of James Youatt the engraving is rather poignant and reads as follows:

To the memory of JAMES YOUATT of this parish who departed this life

on the 24th.day of November 1848. Aged 63 years

‘Forebear my wife to grieve for me

I’m gone but where you soon must be

Therefore improve each moment well

That your soul with Christ may dwell

Farewell dear children and the World

Where you do but yet remain

The Lord of Hosts be your defence

‘til we do but meet again.

If visiting Tawstock it is worth while viewing the village school since it is one of very few still in existence with a thatched roof. The school predated the introduction of National Schools of 1870 and was provided for local children by one of the Wrey family

James and Elizabeth had nine children, all survived and most married.

The first born was named Caleb thus carrying on a tradition started in 17th.C. Exeter and repeated well into the 20th.century.

Usually in country parishes parents had to wait the attendance of a priest at the Church - sometimes for long periods in a small parish, often a Curate was left in charge whilst the appointed priest was out of the parish or otherwise occupied. Not that matters of the Church took precedence over personal pursuits as the following example from nearby Landkey village shows. John Russell was a 19th.C. Rector who spent so much of his time fox-hunting and dog breeding that a breed of terrier Jack Russell was given his name.

In the case of Caleb his private baptism was likely to have been to enable a weak child to be received into the Church in the likelihood of an early death.

In the event Caleb survived and died at the right old age of 91 !

The children of James and Elizabeth nee Smallridge were :-

CALEB b.1811, m.1850 to Anne Clarke of Delley Farm, Yarnscombe

MARY b.1813 m.1843 to Thomas Smallridge, Yeoman of Upcott in Tawstock

BETSEY b.1814 m.1839 to Samuel Smallridge, Farmer of Tawstock

ANN b.1816 m.1848 ?

GRACE b.1818 m.1866 ?

JAMES b.1821 m.1848 to Phoebe Heddon at Barnstaple

SUSANNA b.1823 m.1866 ?

JOHN b.1825 m.1846 to Rebecca Courtney of Bishops Tawton.

THOMAS b.1828 m. ?

Image here

Family tree of James (1748-1848) and Elizabeth nee Smallridge

Caleb (1811-1902) and Anne Youatt of Yarnscombe

aleb went to work on Delley Farm the home of Anne Clarke, and at the age of 39 married. Caleb then moved on to Hollick Farm in Yarnscombe parish where his grand and great-grand-children Hollick Farmhouse - Yarnscombe
Caleb and Anne had eight children four of whom were male. It is known that one son James became a Railway Guard. Another son was William Clarke Youatt b.1862, he inherited Hollick and had eight children of whom his daughter Irene Netting Youatt (Netting her mothers surname) was interviewed on Youatt history during a visit to Devon by the author in 1979.

Then married and with two farmer sons, Mrs.Dymond neé Irene Netting Youatt welcomed us to Hollick, it was a scene long to be remembered.

Hollick stems from a Saxon name given to one of their settlements that likely took the form of a longhouse. Now built of traditional Cob and thatched, Hollick farmhouse was very picturesque.

In the far distance could be seen the snow covered slopes of Exmoor, for in May there was a noticeable chill in the air. Not only was the front door open but so was all windows.

Inside an everlasting log fire simmered making the room quite warm, as cob is an excellent insulating material. In the corner of a quarry tiled floor room with its oak table and Windsor chairs was an ancient longcase clock majestically ticking away.

No doubt those early settlers located Hollick carefully for it looked very welcoming as it must have done to many a Youatt arriving after a hard day’s labour.

In these days of change when such farmhouses pass into private hands to be ruinously converted it is heartening to learn that Hollick not only is subject to a preservation order but has been maintained by the local authority to heritage standards. At the time of writing Mrs.Dymond is well into her 90’s and is still able to get about in spite of having lost a leg earlier in her life.

James b.1821 and Phoebe Heddon

hen James married Phoebe in 1848 he was a Labourer but by 1851 was a Butcher and Grocer with premises in Butchers Row and Gaydon Street, Barnstaple.

Butchers Row exists today and is an example of Georgian townscape, it comprises a row of single storey shop fronts built for open display of meat and fish. Conveniently opposite Barnstaple Pannier Market Hall the picturesque shops still sell meat today but hygiene regulations prevent open display.

Some shops are devoted to the tourist trade selling local specialities, which include offering to despatch tins of the famous Devon Clotted cream throughout the world. An ancient Pannier market opposite is regularly held twice a week. Apart from its traditional use for the sale of local produce and scenes of cattle sales market stalls have much to interest he visitor.

James Gold Youatt and Eleanor: an Australian Emigration

ames and Pheobe had a son also named JAMES b.1853. James, according to the 1881 census, became a Wesleyan Teacher. In early 1878 James married Eleanor Gold at Bideford, later the couple went to Bassingham, Lincs. The most likely reason for James to undergo Teacher training.

James and Eleanors daughter Evangeline Francis was baptised.in late 1878 whilst they were in Lincolnshire. At census time in 1881 the family had returned home and JAMES GOLD YOUATT had been born and was living with his parents at Northam near Bideford.

JAMES GOLD YOUATT later emigrated to Queensland , Australia.

Whilst in Coomera, Queensland HERBERT GOLD YOUATT was born, he also was a schoolteacher and the father of MISS JEAN YOUATT who has corresponded with the author.

JOHN YOUATT b.1825 – the start of a WELSH YOUATT branch

Whilst in the 19th. & 20th.C three distinct branches of the Youatt Family lived in South Wales, a branch from about 1850 can be traced to JOHN YOUATT b. 1825. Youatt found in S.Wales today is invariably from that root.

Third youngest of the James (1786-1548) and Elizabeth sons, John was also baptised at Newton Tracey in 1825.

During 1846 John married Rebecca Courtney at Barnstaple.

The scene now moves to Neath in South Wales, then a town full of coal mining, iron foundries and Rolling Mills, all with shipping based on nearby Swansea.

John and Rebecca’s first child was Susanna b.1853 at Neath, Margam Taibach where John was a Labourer in the CoalMines. Susanna however did not live long and the couple returned to Pilton just outside Barnstaple for the birth of Thomas in 1854. With shipping frequently linking the North Devon ports and Swansea- a return to Neath was made, there the family developed.

In 1874 Thomas married Susanna Jefford in the Welsh town of Melincrynan in the Neath area.

From that date onward there have been many descendants of Thomas and Susanna living working and playing in South Wales. One such achieved fame by representing the Principality in Rugby Football a sport the Welsh for which the Welsh are renowned.

In fact until recently descendants of John & Rebecca still to be found today in South Wales both in Neath itself and nearby Briton Ferry.

At some future date these Cambrians will be rounded up and a suitable family relationship established. It is however satisfying to establish once more a link with Newton Tracey thus bearing out what Thomas Youatt the Monkleigh Wheelwright once claimed that

‘If the name was spelt Youatt then they were a relative’!

END OF THE FIRST PART OF THE YOUATT HISTORY