M. 6 Sep 1789 in North Bradley, England2
Wife: Jane Keats
D. 10 Feb 1833 in North Bradley, England1
Job Bevan worked in the cloth-making trade which was centered in Wiltshire County, England. He was born in about 1766 in the village of North Bradley to Joshua Bevan and Ann Summers, one of their six known children.3 On November 25, 1770, Job was baptized at the same time as four of his siblings at St. Nicholas Church.4 On September 6, 1789, he married Jane Keats, a young woman also from North Bradley,2 and together they were known to have three children by 1796.
1789 marriage record of Job Bevan and Jane Keats.
Job’s heritage went back at least four generations in North Bradley, and possibly more.5 During the late 18th century, the village was said to consist of a few houses with common lands between them.6 The larger town of Trowbridge was a few miles to the north, and was the location of several mills that made woolen products, an industry which dated back to the 1300s.7 Most of the steps in turning raw wool into cloth took place in the mills, but the weaving was farmed out to individuals operating looms in places like North Bradley,8 and Job was one of them.9 How it worked was that yarn produced at the mill was taken into the weaver’s home or shop; the looms belonged to the mills and were rented out to weavers. When the weavers completed their work, the product was brought back to the mill for the finishing process.
18th-century weaving loom and spinning wheel.
There’s evidence that Job took on an indentured apprentice to help with his work; on October 6, 1796, he was listed as having to pay a tax for an apprentice named Elizabeth Wheeler (females often worked in the menial labor of weaving).9 No other details are known about Job’s job as a weaver, nor how many years he performed this work. The weavers didn’t make much money, and during lean times, there was friction with the mills. Industrialization began to threaten their jobs, and several times around 1800, the weavers in and around Trowbridge rioted to protect their livelihood.
During the years 1812 to 1814, Job saw the marriage of both of his daughters, and the enlistment of his only son into the Royal Artillery, who then moved to Canada.10 Job died at North Bradley on February 10, 1833;1 his wife Jane survived him by only a few years, passing away in 1838.5 His daughter Elizabeth later became a Mormon pioneer, settling in Utah.
Children:
1. Ann Bevan — B. before 14 Nov 1790, North Bradley, England;5 D. 1825, England;5 M. James Purnell (~1785-?), 6 Jan 1812, Trowbridge, England5
2. Elizabeth Bevan — B. 26 Aug 1792, North Bradley, England;11 D. 11 Dec 1867, Farmington, Utah;11 M. William Adler (1784-1842), 24 Jan 1814, Trowbridge, England11
3. Job Bevan — B. about 1792, (probably) North Bradley, England;12 D. 6 Jan 1862, Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island;12 M. Rebecca Pepperell (1798-1868), before 1820, Canada12
Sources:
1 Burial record of Job Bevan, England Deaths and Burials, 1538-1991, FamilySearch.org
2 Marriage record of Job Bevan and Jane Keats, England Marriages, 1538-1973, FamilySearch.org
3 Christening records of North Bradley, Wiltshire, England, England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975, FamilySearch.org
4 Christening record of Job Bevan, E. B. & C.
5 Island Register (website)
6 British History Online
7 Trowbridge (Wikipedia article)
8 Working from Home: England’s Domestic Textile Industry, The Historic England Blog
9 Apprenticeship record of Elizabeth Wheeler, UK, Register of Duties Paid for Apprentices' Indentures, 1710-1811, Ancestry.com
10 Military record of Job Bevan (younger)
11 Find-a-Grave listing for Elizabeth (Bevan) Alder
12 Find-a-Grave listing for Job Bevan (younger)
