England Births and Christenings
Name: Nicholas Chatfield
Gender: Male
Christening Date: 22 Jun 1802
Christening Place: HADLOW,KENT,ENGLAND
Father's Name: John Chatfield
Mother's Name: Mary
Indexing Project (Batch) Number: C13135-2
System Origin: England-ODM
GS Film number: 992517
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Find a Grave Memorial ID 209517654
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The Times, London, Saturday October 19, 1833, p.3, column D.
Resistance to Church Rates.
Kent Quarter Sessions, Maidstone, Oct. 17. (Before J.Jacobson, Esq., and other Magistrates.)
Nicholas CHATFIELD, Zachariah Baker, and James Taylor, not in custody, were indicted for having riotously and tumultuously obstructed the parish officers of Sevenoaks in the levying of a distress for church rates.
Mr. SHEE and Mr. HORNE conducted the case for the prosecution, and the former stated that it was instituted by the parish for the protection of their parish officers in the execution of their duty in collecting the church rate. They did so with regret, but it was necessary to put an end to a general disposition to resist this rate, which was growing in this parish. The charge was for obstructing the parish officers in the distraint, and rescuing some pigs that had been seized for church rates. It appeared that in August last Mr. Morphew, a churchwarden of Sevenoaks, had made several demands on the defendant Chatfield of 8s. 3d. for church rates, and had always been refused payment. He then procured a magistrate's warrant, and went with a constable to Chatfield's residence to distrain. He was refused admission, and got over a wall into the garden, and seized two pigs, which were in a sty. Chatfield went to his neighbour, Baker, and borrowed money enough to cover the share of rate to which the garden was liable, which he offered, and brought Baker to witness the tender. Morphew refused to take less than the whole, and was trampling on some turnip-plants in the garden, when Chatfield told him that if he did not come off from them he would fetch him off, and assumed a threatening attitude. Morphew went for a cart to take the pigs away, when Chatfield took down the sty and let the pigs loose. The constable secured one after a hard struggle with it on all-fours in the mud, but the other escaped, Baker, according to the constable's evidence, driving it away, but according to his defence trying to catch it by crying "Tig, tig." A great crowd had by this time assembled, who hooted and hissed the church-warden and constable. The latter, however, took his swinish prisoner over the wall, and they bore it away in triumph, Morphew waving his hat and huzzaing, and the crowd hooting. Taylor was beating a stew-pan a la gong. Before they went, however, Baker asked Morphew if he were not ashamed to seize upon the pig which a poor man had procured by his labour for his family; and reproached him with having appropriated 4£ 4s. of the church rate to a visitation dinner. The prisoners now made a temperate and manly defence. They said that they looked upon a law which enabled one man to take another's goods in support of a religion which he could not enjoy, was as bad as a law would be which authorized one man to rob another on the high road.
The jury immediately acquitted all the prisoners.
They were then indicted, together with James Watkin Parish and James Whitehouse, for riotously obstructing the sale of the pig in Sevenoaks. The evidence only went to show that a great crowd attended, and that a great noise was made - that Chatfield put in a written protest against the sale, which he described to be as bad as a theft - and that the crowd cried out, lustily, "Silence!" and "Who stole the pig?" The pig was knocked down at 27s., and the crowd, with Parish and Baker in the front, pressed forward to know the name of the purchaser. The constables said that it was to rescue the pig.
Parish proved, on cross-examination, that, so far from being a riotous subject, he received 5L. by the vote of a public committee for keeping the peace of the town in the illumination of 1832. He is the Secretary of the West Kent Political Union.
The jury also acquitted them upon this indictment.
The defendants then complained that a demand had been made on them by the officer of the court - on Parish for 2£ 14s. for court fees and discharging the recognizances; and on each of the other defendants the sum of 4£ 8s. They complained warmly of the hardship of being dragged from their homes on such a trumpery charge, and put to such expense. They refused to pay it, and were told that their recognizances would be estreated.
Vestry Minutes 1832-1852-overseers of poor report extracted from Sevenoaks Parish Church by Joyce Aylward
1832 Mr. Nicolas Chatfield reports that William Capon has lately much neglected his work and has several times been drunk- he therefore thinks notice should be taken.
10 April 1834 Thomas Chatfield (of Shipbourne) attended on account of his brother Nicholas and family (wife and 6 children) his brother he says was arrested the other day and was on the road to prison but made good his escape from the officer-and he thinks he is gone to America-where he intended to go before being arrested. He now applies for assistance to send his wife and children after him -£8 he says would be sufficient. ...This case must stand over for the present.
Nicholas arrived in New York 21 May 1834 on the ship "George Clinton". Undoubtedly Nicholas got into trouble again for not paying taxes but this time was on his way to jail. The parish most likely did help send Nicholas's wife and family to America, as this would be less expensive than supporting them.
Susanne and five children arrived in New York 4 June 1834 on the bark "Gratitude". A bark is a type of ship.
From son John's obituary dated 24 June 1915
"Mr. Nicholas Chatfield Sr., with two brothers and their respective families left South Hampton for America. After a voyage of three months in a wooden sailing vessel landed in New York. There Nicholas parted with the other brothers, who went on to the New West to seek their fortunes, settling down finally in the vicinity of Chicago. With his own family he journeyed up the Hudson to Middlehope living there until the fall of 1834. The next year he moved to Cornwall or Canterbury as the village was then known and entered the employ of Oliver Cromwell as a currier and tanner."
From passenger lists we know Nicholas arrived first then his wife and children. John and Ann and children, Mary and Walter arrived five months later. His other brother Walter and wife Sophia did not arrive until May of 1835.
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Nicholas arrived in New York 21 May 1834
From the "The Cornwall Local": In his old age Nicholas Sr. was involved with Cornwall's first newspaper which was published in the 1870"s. In some issues, Nicholas takes the reader on a tour of the town, pointing out the places of business and newly built homes, relating stories about his fellow citizens. Nicholas is known to have spent his latter years with his son William, who had a farm on the mountain. the property is now part of Black Rock forest and the Chatfield homestead is used for some of the activies (1997) Janet Dempsey, Cornwall town historian.
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(Please note that the information in the next article is a bit suspect.)
From Thomas Chatfield's Autobiography written in 1904
"Of my grandfather's numerous family, three (John, the oldest, Walter, the youngest, and my father Nicholas) came to America during the period between 1830 and 1840 [actually 1834]. John and Walter located in Illinois, not far from Fort Dearborn, on the site of which Chicago now stands. Both died soon after arrival. Walter died childless. John left six sons - presumably the numerous Chatfields in the middle west are descended from those six sons."
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Index to Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York. [Don't know why he travelled on the "George Clinton" and the boys on the "Gratitude".]
Name: Nicholas Chatfield
Event Type: Immigration
Event Date: 1834
Event Place: New York, New York, USA
Gender: Male
Age: 33
Last Place of Residence: Eng
Ship Name: George Clinton
Birth Year (Estimated): 1801
GS Film number: 350218
Digital Folder Number: 004786605
Image Number: 04626
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USA Census, 1840
Name: Nicholas Chatfield
Event Place: Cornwall, Orange, New York
Page Number: 126
Affiliate Publication Number: M704
Affiliate Film Number: 322
GS Film number: 0017202
Digital Folder Number: 004410683
Image Number: 00256
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USA Census, 1850 for Nicholas Chatfield
Name: Nicholas Chatfield
Residence: Cornwall, Orange, New York
Age: 49 years
Calculated Birth Year: 1801
Birthplace: England
Film Number: 444289
Digital GS Number: 4202541
Image Number: 00287
Line Number: 21
Dwelling House Number: 59
Family Number: 61
Household Gender Age
Nicholas Chatfield M 49y
Susannah Chatfield F 50y
Mary E Chatfield F 14y
Norman Chatfield M 8y
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New York, State Census, 1855
Name: Nickolas Chatfield
Event Place: E.D. 1, Cornwall, Orange, New York
Gender: Male
Age: 54
Relationship to Head of Household: Head
Birth Year (Estimated): 1801
Family Number: 262
Line Number: 34
Page: 32
GS Film number: 834634
Digital Folder Number: 005207125
Image Number: 00484
Household Gender Age Birthplace
Head Nickolas Chatfield M 54
Wife Susan Chatfield F 56
Dau May Chatfield F 20
Son Norman Chatfield M 13
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USA Census, 1860
Name: Nicholas Chatfield
Event Place: Canterbury Town Cornwall, Orange, New York
Gender: Male
Age: 59
Race: White
Birth Year (Estimated): 1801
Birthplace: England
Page: 81
Household ID: 552
GS Film Number: 803833
Digital Folder Number: 004236769
Image Number: 00086
Household Gender Age Birthplace
Nicholas Chatfield M 59 England
Susan Chatfield F 60 England
Mary Handy F 25 New York
Howard Chatfield M 22 New York
Norman Chatfield M 18 New York
Ann Handy F 3 New York
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USA Census, 1870 for Nicholas Chatfield
Name: Nicholas Chatfield
Estimated Birth Year: 1801
Gender: Male
Age in 1870: 69y
Color: White
Birthplace: England
Home in 1870: New York, USA
Household Gender Age
Nicholas Chatfield M 69y
Susan Chatfield F 71y
Mary Handly F 32y
Ann Handly F 13y
Charles Handly M 7y
George Handly M 4y
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USA Census, 1880
Name: Niclows Chattfield
Event Place: Cornwall, Orange, New York
District: 5
Gender: Male
Age: 79
Marital Status: Married
Race: White
Occupation: Farmer
Relationship to Head of Household: Self
Birth Year (Estimated): 1801
Birthplace: England
Father's Birthplace: England
Mother's Birthplace: England
Sheet Number and Letter: 87A
GS Film Number: 1254910
Digital Folder Number: 004243443
Image Number: 00178
Household Gender Age Birthplace
Self Niclows Chattfield M 79 England
Wife Susan Chattfield F 81 England
Son-in-law B G Handy M 51 Massachusetts
Grandfather George Handy M 13 New York
Grandfather Edward Handy M 6 New York
Daughter-in-law Mary Handy F 44 New York
