[Index]
William TOWNSEND (1711 - )
Children Self + Spouses Parents Grandparents Greatgrandparents
William TOWNSEND (1734 - 1817)
William TOWNSEND (1711 - )

+

Ellenor PHILLIPS
Theobold TOWNSEND











Rebecca BRIGHT












b. bef 19 Aug 1711 at Topsham, Exeter, Devon, England
m. 27 Feb 1731 Ellenor PHILLIPS
Near Relatives of William TOWNSEND (1711 - )
Relationship Person Born Birth Place Died Death Place Age
Father Theobold TOWNSEND
Mother Rebecca BRIGHT

Self William TOWNSEND bef 19 Aug 1711 Topsham, Exeter, Devon, England

Wife Ellenor PHILLIPS

Son William TOWNSEND bef 21 Sep 1734 Alphington, Exeter, Devon, England 23 Oct 1817 Alphington, Exeter, Devon, England 83

Daughter in Law Alice ROWE

Granddaughter Ellenor TOWNSEND bef 09 Jul 1767 Shillingford St George, Exeter, Devon, England
Grandson William TOWNSEND 14 Sep 1768 Shillingford St George, Exeter, Devon, England 08 Jan 1836 St Mary Major, Exeter, Devon, England 67
Grandson Thomas TOWNSEND 14 Jun 1770 Shillingford St George, Exeter, Devon, England 05 Jan 1845 Upton Pyne, Devon, England 74
Granddaughter Elizabeth TOWNSEND bef 01 Jul 1772 St Petrock, Exeter, Devon, England 16 Apr 1858 Exeter, Devon, England 85
Granddaughter Grace TOWNSEND 24 Feb 1774 Kenton, Devon, England abt Dec 1849 St Thomas, Exeter, Devon, England 75
Granddaughter Alice TOWNSEND 1776
Granddaughter Mary TOWNSEND 04 Nov 1777 Kenton, Devon, England abt Mar 1838 St Thomas, Exeter, Devon, England 60
Grandson John TOWNSEND 1780 25 Jun 1812 32

Events in William TOWNSEND (1711 - )'s life
Date Age Event Place Notes Src
bef 19 Aug 1711 William TOWNSEND was born Topsham, Exeter, Devon, England 2
27 Feb 1731 19 Married Ellenor PHILLIPS 2
bef 21 Sep 1734 23 Birth of son William TOWNSEND Alphington, Exeter, Devon, England 2
23 Oct 1817 106 Death of son William TOWNSEND (aged 83) Alphington, Exeter, Devon, England
Source References:
2. Type: Book, Abbr: Devon to Down Under, Title: Devon to Down Under, Auth: Bettie Elworthy, Publ: Bookbound, Date: 1997
- Reference = 5 (Birth)
- Notes: The first member of this branch for whom there is any definite detail is William
TOWNSEND, born sometime in the first part of the 18th century. This third child
of Rebecca nee BRIGHT and Theobald Townsend was probably baptised at
Topsham (pronounced Tops-urn) Devon on 19 Aug 1711.
In this year the London Academy of Arts was established and the tuning fork
was invented. Some of Queen Anne's subjects were quite delighted when she
initiated horse racing at Ascot, but I don't suppose it mattered much down in
Devon.
- Reference = 5 (Marriage)
- Notes: What did matter and is known for certain is that 20 years later at Alphington on
27 Feb 1731, William married 23 year old Ellenor PHILLIPS. Back in London a
residence was built at No.10 Downing Street to become the official home of
Britain's future Prime Ministers.
Alphington, on Alphin Brook, was famous in the early 19th century for its horse
and cattle fairs where gypsy women told fortunes while their menfolk traded. The
whole area had been marshland but by 1620 was drained by a canaL Alphin Brook was subject to flooding and in July 1760 - during the time William and Ellenor lived there, a severe flood wiped out most of the com crop and destroyed a dozen or so houses and barns.
The frequent floodings and ensuing muddiness of the roads no doubt accounts
for a notice in the church asking parishioners to remove their 'pattens' so the
congregation will not be disturbed by the noise! A patten was a kind of wooden
clog or overshoe secured by an iron ring.
Charles Dickens rented a cottage at Alphington for his parents about 1840. It is
said that he wrote part of "Nicholas Nickleby" there and also caricatured a local
IS a dignitary from Exeter, three miles away, to create the character of Pecksniff in 'Martin Chuzzlewit'.
- Reference = 5 (Name, Notes)

Created on a Macâ„¢ using iFamily for Macâ„¢ on 2 May 2025