Daniel Chedgzoy

Son of John Chedzoy (#28) and Ann (nee Chedgzoy), baptised 21 Aug 1831 at Stoke St Gregory (father's occupation labourer, of Stoke St Gregory). FreeREG record His own marriage and death are for a later research turn. Adult life documented (verified 13 Jun 2026, Ancestry census + Somerset Gaol Registers). Admitted to WILTON GAOL, Taunton, 15 Oct 1857, aged 28 (Somerset Gaol Registers 1807-1879; South West Heritage Trust ref Q/AGW/15/6 - offence on the register image, not yet captured). 1871 census at Stoke St Gregory with 1st wife Selena/Selina (b.~1833) and children Mary Ann (1862), Harriett (1863), Henry (1865), George (1867), Deborah (1869), Eliza (1871) [TNA RG10/2369 f56 p12]. Later widowed; remarried Mary Ann (a widow, formerly Richard) and moved via Cornwall (children born Penzance) to the South Wales coalfield: 1891 census at Clydach, Ystradyfodwg, Pontypridd, Glamorgan, with Mary Ann and daughters Elizth Ann (b.~1883 Penzance) and Eliza Jane (b.~1887) [TNA RG12/4427 f89 p43]. = the "Daniel Chedgdzoy" of the Welsh-branch census captures; a second Welsh founder on John #28's own line (distinct from the separate James #1668 mason line). [2026-06-13 Ancestry] DEATH CONFIRMED: died Q3 1891 (Jul to Sep), Pontypridd/Ystradyfodwg (Rhondda), Glamorgan, Wales. Sources: GRO Civil Registration Death Index 1837-1915 (Daniel Chedgzoy, b.abt 1833, d. Sep 1891 Glamorganshire) + 1891 census Ystradyfodwg + Pascoe/Powell tree. Married Selina Masters (GRO Marriage Index Q3 1854, Yeovil). Migrated from Stoke St Gregory to the Glamorgan coalfield (a founder of the Welsh branch). Identity tied to this family by 1851 census (father John, mother Ann, sibling Edmund=#76) + 1841 & 1861 censuses at Stoke St Gregory + baptism there. CRIMINAL RECORD (researched 15 Jun 2026, from Ancestry record transcriptions). Daniel had two convictions for theft. On 28 June 1853 he was tried in Somerset and sentenced to imprisonment (England & Wales Criminal Registers, HO27/106 p.37). On 20 October 1857 he was convicted at Wells of larceny by a servant (theft from his employer), with a previous conviction noted against him, and sentenced to three years penal servitude; he had been admitted to Wilton Gaol, Taunton on 15 October 1857 ahead of the trial (Somerset Gaol Registers Q/AGW/15/6, admission age 28). He then appears in the quarterly returns of convict prisons through to about 1860 (Home Office HO8 series). Note: the Ancestry collection is broadly titled Criminal Lunatic Asylum Registers, but HO8 also covers ordinary convict prisons, so this is a convict-prison record, not an asylum committal. After his release Daniel returned to Stoke St Gregory, where the 1871 census shows him settled as a shoemaker with his wife Selina (nee Masters) and their six children. Identity is secure: the only Daniel Chedzoy of this generation born at Stoke St Gregory (recorded c.1829 to 1832 across the sources). Record images sit in Ancestry collections outside the current subscription tier, so only the indexed facts are captured. PRESS COVERAGE (15 Jun 2026, British Newspaper Archive). Daniel's 1857 conviction at the Somerset Michaelmas Quarter Sessions was reported by name (Daniel Chedzoy) in at least five papers: Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser, 28 Oct 1857 (Summary of Sentences); Sherborne Mercury, 27 Oct 1857; Bath Herald, 24 Oct 1857 (Sentences of the Prisoners, Penal Servitude); Wells Journal, 24 Oct 1857 (full Somerset Michaelmas Sessions report); and Bristol Mercury, 24 Oct 1857 (Somerset Michaelmas Session). These are full sessions round-ups listing every prisoner, so Daniel's line sits among many; NB the prominent 20-lambs theft (property of Thomas Kelson Bush, Brislington) in the search previews is a DIFFERENT prisoner, George White jun., not Daniel. Daniel's own entry (his exact offence wording and the goods) needs the full article, which is behind BNA registration (3 free pages on a free account). The convict record already establishes his charge as larceny by a servant with a previous conviction, sentenced to 3 years penal servitude. NEWSPAPER ENTRY (verbatim, Summary of Sentences, e.g. Taunton Courier 28 Oct 1857): "Daniel Chedzoy, larceny as a servant after a former conviction, at Stoke St. Gregory." This pins down that the offence was committed AT STOKE ST GREGORY itself, i.e. he stole from his employer in his own home village, and confirms the charge (larceny as a servant, with a prior conviction). On the sentence: the printed summary groups prisoners by sentence. Daniel is listed (after a semicolon) in the same group as George White jun. (the 20-lambs thief, given three years and recommended to Parkhurst), and his entry ends with a full stop before the next heading, "Imprisonment, Twelve Months", which belongs to the following prisoner Benjamin Elliott and NOT to Daniel. Taken with the convict-prison quarterly returns (HO8, which list only penal-servitude prisoners), this confirms Daniel served three years penal servitude, not twelve months. {CENSUS} External tree (parents John + Ann Chedzoy): married Selina Masters, daughter Harriet; 1861 census still at Stoke St Gregory; by 1891 had moved to the South Wales coalfield, living at Ystradyfodwg (Rhondda), Glamorgan; died there 1891 (Pontypridd reg. district) - confirms our 1891. Part of the Somerset -> South Wales mining migration. [Ancestry, transcription pass]. {CENSUS-IMG} 1871 Census GOT: Daniel #73 (Head, 39) + wife Selena (38, #2053) + children Mary Ann (9, #1713 probable), Harriett (8), Henry (6), George (4), Deborah (2, #627), Eliza (3mo) at Stoke St Gregory [TNA RG10/2369 f56 p12 sch.58]. STILL TO ADD as Daniel children: Harriett (b.1863), Henry (b.1865), George (b.1867), Eliza (b.1871) - many undated namesake fragments in DB, so add fresh or reconcile carefully (do NOT guess-link). *** NOTABLE: Daniel #73 has SOMERSET GAOL REGISTERS + UK Prison Commission + Criminal Registers + Calendar of Prisoners hints - he was IMPRISONED at some point (record set, not yet opened). A distinctive life detail; pursue + add to his story. [image attached] {BMD} Death registered Q3 1891 Pontypridd, age 58, GRO 11a/275 [FreeBMD, Chedgzoy, 22 Jun 2026].