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RTFHS burial/death index

Looking for the death of a travelling ancestor? Perhaps our index can help. We’re building up a collection of extracts from burial registers and death certificates that we’ll add regularly to this page. So please check back soon. And if you have any to share, please contact us.

It’s always best to check the original registers for accuracy as we receive contributions for this list from many different individuals and sources.

To protect the privacy of individuals, we only publish death and burial information from before 1965.

Burials and deaths A-F

NO SURNAME GIVEN, Anthonie
Buried 26 May 1553, Gravesend, Kent, an Egigtian [sic].

NO SURNAME GIVEN, Katheryn
Buried 5 June 1597, St Margaret with St Nicholas, Norwich, Norfolk, base born daughter of a Scotts shoman [sic].

NO NAME GIVEN
Buried 6 April 1757, All Cannings, Wiltshire, A travelling Boy.

NO NAME GIVEN
Buried 21 August 1768, St Mary’s, Caterham, Surrey. An infant traveller.

NO SURNAME GIVEN, Old Bridget
Buried 6 August 1768, Dulwich College, Dulwich, Kent, Queen of the Gipseys.

ANDREWS, Martha
Buried 22 September 1866, Turvey, Bedfordshire. A Traveller. Aged 35. Inquest Cople.

AYRES, Walter
Died 30 September 1957, Little Testwood Garage, Totton, Hampshire. Aged 89 years. Haulage Contractor (retired). Cause: Myocardial degeneration/Arteriosclerosis/Bronchitis. Informant: A. Brewer, Grandson, of 2 The Drove, Harton Heath, Eastleigh.

BARRETT, John
Buried 19 March 1777, St Mary’s, Caterham, Surrey, a poor traveller.

BENTLEY, Rose
Died 25 November 1923, Haymeads, Bishop Stortford [Hertfordshire/Essex]. Aged 39 years. Of Henham Stansted R.D. Widow of Frank Bentley, a Farm Labourer, an Army Pensioner. Cause of death: Uterine Cancer. Informant: N. E. Friend, Occupier, Haymeads, Bishop Stortford.

BLANKLEY Eliza
Died 15 December 1901, In a caravan, William Street, Loughborough, Leicestershire. Aged 45. Wife of Frederick Blankley, Dealer in Horses. Cause of death: Post Partum haemorrhage, certified by N.B.M. Blackham. Informant: F. Blankley, Widower of deceased, In attendance, William Street, Loughborough. [source: death certificate] [Eliza was Eliza Smith, daughter of John Smith and Maria Smith]

BLEWITT, Elizabeth
Buried 22 May 1785, Redenhall with Harleston, Norfolk, wife of Major Blewitt, a Travelling Tinker, aged 56.

BOSS, Caroline
Buried 16 August 1839, Bedingham, Norfolk, a Gipsy who died in the parish of Bedingham. Aged 50.

BOSS, Eli
Buried 7 April 1938, Philips Park Cemetery, Manchester, Eli Boss, Amusement Caterer, The Caravan, Print Works, Mount Road, Gorton. Aged 81.

BOSS, Emperor
Buried 12 January 1956, Philips Park Cemetery, Manchester. Showman, Living Caravan, Trent Street, Manchester. Aged 46.  
[From the transcriber of the burial: “I knew the Boss family in North Manchester as a child. Emperor lived on Greenhays Lane a stride from Moss-side. His boys used to work on Denmark Road Market on Saturdays. There were many other Travellers there too. They always carried my Mum’s shopping home for her and were well rewarded with tea and toast by the coal fire in winter.”]

BOSS, Riley
Died 28 December 1850, Potteries, Kensington, London. Aged 43. Tinman. Cause of death: Delirium Tremens, 1 week, certified. Informant: The mark X of Susan Boss, present at the death, Potteries, Kensington. [Death certificate]

BOSWELL Elizabeth
Buried 1 November 1798, North Luffenham, Rutland. An infant, str of Shillingworth Boswel, a Vagrant Gipsy.

BOSWELL Alma
Died 1 January 1917, Gipsy Encampment, South Shore, Blackpool, Lancashire. Male. Aged 62. Gipsy Horse Dealer. Cause of death: (1) Cardiac dilatation (2) Bronchitis, Heart Failure. Informant: A. Boswell, Nephew, in attendance, Gipsy Encampment, South Shore, Blackpool. [source: death certificate]

BOSWELL, Chandos
Buried 11 March 1864, Holy Trinity, Anslow, Staffordshire. Described as being of Stones Grove, aged 5. In margin: ‘a Gypsey’.

BOSWELL, Edward
Buried 16 October 1719, North Runcton, Norfolk, son of strolling Gipsey, buried from Setchey.

Interested in Boswells? Don’t miss our Boswell books here.

BOSWELL, Eli
Died 17 February 1902, 1 hour 40 minutes A.M, Caravan on vacant ground, Albert Street, Govan, Lanarkshire, Scotland. Horse Dealer, Married to Sarah Richards. Aged 35. Son of Manniwell Boswell, Horse Dealer (deceased) and Delerainey Boswell, Maiden Surname Herron (deceased). Cause of death: Pneumonia, 7 days, as certified by James Wilson MBCM. Informant: S. Boswell, Widow, Present [signs].

BOSWELL Genty
Buried 9 November 1866, Lowton, Lancashire, aged 50 years, abode Lowton. In left-hand margin: Gipsy. In right-hand margin: Cholera. [see also Samuel Boswell and Siberina Boswell, buried in the same parish, of the same cause of death, within a few days]

BOSWELL, Labana
Buried 23 February 1799, North Luffenham, Rutland, a Vagrant Gipsy Woman.

BOSWELL, Letitia
Buried 23 October 1825, Loddon, Norfolk, aged 101. ‘Died in Loddon.’

BOSWELL, Osery
Derby Daily Telegraph, 30 April 1912
“BAKEWELL GIPSY’S FUNERAL
The funeral of Osery Boswell, aged 100, believed to be the oldest gipsy in the world, formerly an inmate of Bakewell Workhouse, took place at Bakewell Cemetery on Monday. Several of the gipsy clan attended, and the service was of a very simple character. One of the most pathetic figures present was the octogenarian widow, who had to be supported at the grave side.”

BOSWELL, Naomi
The Examiner, 11 March 1838
“At Littleport, Isle of Ely, aged 70, Naomi Boswell, Queen of the Gipsies. She was in the habit of sitting outside the tents since the age of 17, and was found dead by the side of one. A coroner’s jury brought in a verdict of ‘Died from exposure to the inclemancy of the weather.’ ”

BOSWELL Samuel
Buried 12 November 1866, Lowton, Lancashire, aged 59 years, abode Lowton. In left-hand margin: Gipsy. In right-hand margin: Cholera. [See also Genty Boswell and Siberina Boswell, buried in the same parish, of the same cause of death, within a few days]

BOSWELL, Sarah
Suffolk Chronicle, 12 May 1838
“DEATHS – Last week died , in the Union Hospital, Nottingham, Mrs. Sarah Boswell, aged 93,  the Queen of the Gipsies. Her marriage lines, which were seen at the workhouse, indisputably proved that she was married to the great Boswell, the King of the Gipsies, seventy-two years since.”

BOSWELL, Sarah
Buried 19 February 1819, Appleton, Berkshire, aged 25, wife of Moses Boswell, a travelling Brazier

BOSWELL Siberina
Buried 10 November 1866, Lowton, Lancashire, aged 3 years, abode Lowton. In left-hand margin: Gipsy. In right-hand margin: Cholera. [see also Genty Boswell and Siberina Boswell, buried in the same parish, of the same cause of death, within a few days]

BOSWELL, Sidnal Smith
Buried 6 November 1886, St Michael’s, Litchfield, Staffordshire. By coroner’s order. Aged 11 months. Abode: none.

BOSWELL Sophia
Died 21 February 1861, Brindle, Lancashire, aged 100 years, widow of Tiso Boswell, a Soldier. Cause of death: Natural Decay, No Medical Attendant. Informant of death: X The mark of Edward Boswell, Present at the death, Brindle.

BOSWELL, Sophia
Buried 28 March 1864, Holy Trinity, Anslow, Staffordshire. Described as being of Anslow Legs, aged 3. In margin: ‘a Gypsey’.

BOZWELL, Edward
Buried 20 March 1741, Winslow, Buckinghamshire – King of the Gypsies, buried with a stone. Executed for horse stealing with Finnamore and Edward Smith gypsies? [sic]

BRINKLEY, Jonathan
Buried 19 August 1867, Datchworth, Hertfordshire, aged 16, of Bounds Green, Tottenham, Middlesex.

BRINKLEY, Prudence
Buried 5 May 1819, St Paul’s Walden, Hertfordshire, aged 17, A Traveller who died near the Rose in a Tent in the Lane.

BRINKLEY, Zeberetta
Buried 16 May 1887, Ridge, Hertfordshire, aged 16, of Greysham [?] Lane.

BROWN, Sanspareil
Buried 12 December 1882, Thorpe next Norwich, Norfolk, aged 32, of the Asylum, Thorpe.

BUCKLAND, John
Buried 1 April 1854, Asthall, Oxfordshire, aged 49, of Fordwell Bottom, a Gipsey.

BUCKLAND, Peter
Buried 10 June 1809, Shipton-under-Wychwood, Oxfordshire, a Gipsie died in the hamlet of Lineham in the parish of Shipton.

BUCKLAND, Sidney
Died 3 April 1948, The Barton, Clyffe, Pypard, Wiltshire. Hawker and General Dealer. Aged 84 years. Cause: Cardiac Failure/Acute Bronchitis. Informant: W. Hughes, Son-in-law, Hollow Street, Gt Somerford, present at the death.

BUCKLAND, Traney
Died 29 December 1948, The Barton, Clyffe Pypard, Wiltshire. Aged 75 years. Widow of Sydney Buckland, a General Dealer. Cause: Cerebral thrombosis. Informant: W. Hughes, son-in-law, of Hollow Street, Great Somerford, Wilts.

Interested in Bucklands or Buckleys? Don’t miss our Buckland Family Tree book and Buckland/Buckley Index here.

BUCKLAND, Uriah
Died 6 February 1906, In a van at Stratton St Margaret, Swindon, Wiltshire. General Dealer. Aged 80 years. Cause: Phthisis. Informant: Henry Buckland, Son [signs X]. Present at the death, of Lower Stratton.

BUCKLEY, Righto
Buried 2 November 1763, Albury, Oxfordshire, son of a Gipsy.

BUNCE, Deborah
Buried 17 February 1724/5, Culham, Berkshire, wife of Hercules.

BUNTS, Louisa
Mentioned in the History of Hertfordshire (published 1881) as having been buried in the north-west corner of the churchyard of Ridge, Hertfordshire. Her gravestone reads: “In memory of Louisa Bunts, Who died April 8th 1878. Aged 15 Years.” The book also records: “…under the shelter of a large tree is a pretty grave, covered with choice flowers, which are carefully guarded by wirework. Beneath lies a poor gipsy girl, who died in a caravan at the roadside. Her father pays a local gardener a weekly sum to attend to the grave…”

CAREY, Levi
Buried 22 April 1902, Hayes, Middlesex, aged 81.

CURTIS, Morella
Buried 1 November 1849, Cople, Bedfordshire, aged 62. [GRO death index lists her name as Marella].

DAVIS, Susannah
Buried 23 January 1835, Bletchingdon, Oxfordshire, “said to be 77, a travelling seller of laces calling herself Susannah Davis, sworn to belong to the parish of Eversholt near Woburn, Bedfordshire, found sick in a hovel at Underdown Farm on the 14th of January instant & removed to the school house – disease dropsy”.

DOE, Pleasanter
Buried 30 May 1879, Hagbourne, Berkshire, of Hagbourne Down, gypsey child, aged 1 year 6 months.

DRAPER Canary or Conary
Buried 14 September 1806, Stoke Bruerne, Northamptonshire, 
wife of William Draper, One of the People Called Gypsies.
[Forename recorded as ‘Canary’ in the Bishops’ Transcripts; ‘Conary’ in the original parish register]

DRAPER, Damon
Buried 15 October 1801, St Mary Northgate, Canterbury, Kent: 45 yrs, Sol [short for ‘soldier’. Canterbury was a garrison city and soldiers and their families were stationed in the Northgate area and routinely used this church]

DRAPER, Diffrey
Death certificate states: Died 5 February 1838, St David, Brecon, Wales. Aged 18. Occupation: Gipsy. Cause of death: Smallpox. Informant of the death: Thomas Morgan, Relieving Officer, Brecknock.

DRAPER, Diffrey
Buried 6 February 1838, churchyard of St David, Brecon, Wales. Aged 18 years. A Stranger. Abode: Heol Hwant.

DRAPER, Nelson
World War 1 death certificate relating to death in action
Men of the Royal Horse + Royal Field Artillery
 Regimental or Army number: 77810
 Gunner B/250 Bde RFA/DRAPER Nelson/Age: 20/Country of birth: England/Date of Death: 24.8.1918/Place of Death: France/Cause of Death: Wounds.

DRAPER, Peggy
Buried 8 November 1807, Irthlingborough, Northamptonshire, 
a Gypsy.

EMMETT, John
Buried 9 December 1833, St Mary’s, Walmer, Kent. Aged 4 months. A Gipsy child.

EVANS, Charlotte
Died 8 January 1908, Promenade, Portobello, Edinburgh, Scotland. Married to John Evans, Hobby Horse Proprietor. Aged 58. Parents: John William Hazard, Hobby Horse Proprietor (deceased) and Helen Hazard, maiden surname Davis (deceased). Cause of death: Cerebral Haemorrhage, Hemiphagia – 1 day. Informant: Christina Evans, Daughter, Present.

EVANS, John
Died 9 October 1915, Elliot Street, Edinburgh. Amusement Caterer. Widower of Charlotte Hazard. Aged 71. Parents: William Evans, Coal Pitman (deceased) and —— Evans, maiden surname ——— (deceased). Cause of death: Pulmonary Congestion 8 Days, Cardiac Failure. Informant: Isabella Evans, Daughter-in-law, 1 [illegible] Place, Portobello.

FLETCHER, Sydney
Buried 5 October 1896, Hagbourne, Berkshire, [of] van in Mr Dixon’s Yard, aged 24.

Burials and deaths G-Q

GASCOIGNE, William
Portsmouth Evening News, 20 March 1897
“William Gascoigne, who was known as the ‘King of the Gipsies’, has died in hospital at Ipswich at the age of 61, from blood poisoning. He was a native of Totham, in Essex, and will be buried at Colchester. He will have a grand gipsy funeral.” [No doubt a member of the East Anglian Gaskin family.]

GRAY, Belmont
Buried 14 April 1839, Hawsted, Suffolk, of Oakington, Cambridgeshire, aged 24.

GRAY, Israel
Buried 22 October 1859, Willingham, Cambridgeshire.

GRAY, Lazarus
Buried 19 June 1839, Welney, Cambridgeshire, aged 5

GRAY, Oezery alias JOHN
Buried 16 August 1862, Mattishall, Norfok. Gipsy from Hanningsea, Cambridge. Aged 40.

GRAY, Peter
Buried 18 October 1811, Hatley, Cambridgeshire. A travelling tinker belonging to the parish of Burwell who died in a barn in this parish after a sudden illness.

GRAY, Riley
Bury and Norwich Post, Tuesday 5 January 1875: Deaths
“On Christmas Day, at the Newmarket Union-house, at the advanced age of 87 years, RILEY GRAY, a well-known gipsy.”

GRAY, RILEY
Yarmouth Independent, 10 January 1925:
“FIFTY YEARS AGO: DEATH OF A NOTED GIPSY
Riley Gray, an original and genuine gipsy, so well known throughout every part of England, died at Newmarket Union on Christmas Day at the advanced age of 87. Riley and his family, who were considered the principals of their tribe, were born in and brought up in a migrating and wandering life, and he, the head of the gipsies, was particularly known as the first and most legitimate fiddler at all the country and other fairs in the kingdom. During the last few years of his life, Riley settled down and became more domesticated. He received parochial relief at Burwell, and after the death of his wife, whom he generally styled Madam Gray, he relinquished his cottage, and was admitted to the Newmarket Union, to pass his declining years.”

GREY, Lydia
Buried 21 January 1810, Weeting, Norfolk. “A gipsy child born at Isleham in Cambridgeshire, died at Weeting January 19th and was buried aged 4 months.”

GUMBRELL, Ruth
Buried 14 November 1864, Bocking, Essex, a traveller woman, aged 55.

HARRIS, Moses
Died 14 March 1861, Bassingbourn, Cambridgeshire, Moses Harris, age 1 year and 9 months. Son of Moses Harris, Travelling Photographer. Cause of death: Accidentally Poisoned by taking Cyanide of Potassium. Information received from Frederic Barlow Coroner for Cambridgeshire. Inquest held Sixteenth day of March 1861. [Courtesy of RTFHS member Jackie Oldman]

HARRINGTON, William
Buried 3 Feb 1788, St Mary’s, Caterham, Surrey, 
(a Traveller), a pauper.

HEARN, William
Bu 12 May 1923, St John the Baptist, Woking, Surrey, William Hearn, Victorian Encampment, Knaphill, Surrey. Aged 17. 

HEARNE, Reynolds
Died 27 December 1840 at Meadow Hall Lane in Kimberworth [Yorkshire], Male, 22 years, Gypsy-Tinker. Cause of death: Decline. Informant: Edward Hearne His mark [signs X], Father, at present encamped in Meadow Hall Lane.

HERN, Fuddle
Buried 16 November 1801, West Deeping, Lincolnshire, a gypsey.

HONE, William
Buried 29 May 1800, Horsell, Surrey, Fiddler.

HOPE, Britannia
Died 25 April 1857, Chapel Place, Great Ilford, Essex, Female, Aged 10 days, Daughter of Golden Hope, Beer Shop Keeper. Cause of death: convulsions, 2 days, Certified. Informant: the mark of Lucy Berry, in attendance, Back Street, Great Ilford.

JOHNSON, Cinderella
Buried 18 April 1904, Ridge, Hertfordshire, aged 2 months. Died in a wagon in Rowley Lane in this parish. The child of a traveller.

JOHNSON Froniga
Buried 6 March 1914, Holy Trinity, Kingston upon Hull, Yorkshire, aged 58. Address: In a caravan, Barnsley Street, Hull.

JOHNSON James
Buried 31 January 1724/5, Sandbach, Cheshire. Son of Saml. Johnson, a traveller, Sandbach.

JOHNSON James
Buried 8 March 1752, Oakington, Cambridgeshire. Son of Tim Johnson, travelling man.

LEE Bendigo
Death certificate states: Died 17 July 1916, 25 Atkinson Street, Preston, Lancashire, aged 58 years, Horse Dealer. Cause of death: Valvular Disease of Heart. Informant: Amy Smith, Daughter, 35 Queen’s Road, Blackpool.

LEE, Coronation
Buried 4 January 1833, Compton, Berkshire, aged 80, vagrant.

LEE, David or ‘Gipsy’ Lee
8 February 1896, Pateley Bridge & Nidderdale Herald
“Sydney (Australia) has just lost one of its centenarians, in the shape of David, 
or Gipsy, Lee, who died on Christmas Eve in Parramatta Asylum, at the ripe old age of 102 years. From the records in the institution it appears that the old man came to the colony in the convict ship John Berry as a prisoner in 1820. He had been stranded in the asylum since August 17th, 1893, and up to a few days preceding his death was moving about and eating heartily. He had no relatives and had led a nomadic life for very many years.”

LEE, Thomas
Died 5 November 1801 and buried in the churchyard of Ridge, Hertfordshire. The History of Hertfordshire (published 1881) states: “Adjoining the north-west angle of the [church] tower is a stone to Thomas Lee, still traditionally remembered as ‘old gipsey Lee’ who died on 5th December 1801, at the ripe age of one hundred years.”

LEE, Union Cooper
Buried 25 Match 1874, St Mary’s, Battersea, London. Aged 60. Address: The Gipsy’s Camp, Orkney Street.

LOVERIDGE, Alfred
Died 18 March 1929, Haymeads, Bishop Stortford [Hertfordshire]. Aged 75 years. Address: The Row, Henham, Stansted R.D. [ie, Registration District]. Cause of death: Senile Decay, No P.M. [ie, no post-mortem]. Informant: N.E. Friend, Occupier, Haymeads, Bishop Stortford.

LOVERIDGE, Eliza
Died 13 February 1961, St Albright’s Hospital, Stanway [Essex]. Aged 88 years. Widow of Israel Loveridge, a Grinder and Umbrella Repairer. Cause: Senility. Informant: A. L. Woods, Occupier, St Albright’s Hospital, Stanway, Colchester.

Interested in Loveridges? Don’t miss our Loveridge Family Tree book here.

LOVERIDGE, James
Died 22 April 1881, Union Workhouse, Ampthill, Bedfordshire. Aged 69. Umbrella Mender, North Crawley, Bucks. Cause of death: Morbi Valvarum, Emphysema. Informant: C. Sharland, Master, Union Workhouse. [Source: death certificate]

LOVALL, Violet
The Leeds Mercury, 30 November 1839
“On the 17th inst.. aged 86, near Wolverhampton, Violet Lovall, said to be queen of the gipsies. This patriarch of her swarthy tribe breathed her last in camp.”

LOVELL, Dinah
Buried 11 December 1836, Culham, Berkshire, aged 93. A gipsy.

LOVELL, Henry
Buried 9 November 1816, Cold Ashby, Northants. Gypsy, died in Coal Pit Lane, aged 90.

Interested in Lovells? Don’t miss our Lovell Family Tree books here.

MacPHEE, George
The Leeds Mercury, 9 March 1895
“The oldest travelling gipsy in the North of Scotland, has died, after a few days’ illness. Aged 101”.

MacPHEE, George
Death certificate states: George MacPhee, Travelling Tinsmith, married to Mary Wilson. Died 27 February 1895, 99 Shore Street, Cromarty, County of Ross and Cromarty. Aged 99 years. Parents: George MacPhee (deceased), Travelling Tinsmith, and Nancy MacPhee, maiden surname Wilson (deceased). Cause of death: Pneumonia, 4 days. Informant: George MacPhee (his mark X), Grandson, Present at death.

MARCHAM, forename blank
Buried [date blank] January 1622/3, Cottisford, Oxfordshire, son of a gypsy (Aegiptiaci).

MECLAM, Mary
Buried 6 October 1818, Great Barford, Bedfordshire, aged 2 years. Traveller.

PARKER, Comfort
Died 11 January 1931, The People Home, Saffron Walden [Essex]. Aged 82 years. Address given as Broxted. Spinster of no occupation. Daughter of William Ellice Parker, a Hawker (deceased). Cause of death: Senile Decay, Influenza. No P.M. [ie, no post-mortem]. Informant: Mrs H. Prior, Occupier, The Peoples Home, Saffron Walden.

PARKER, Sarah
Buried 5 October 1838, Turvey, Bedfordshire. Of Bletsoe. Traveller. Aged 48.

PIERCE, Mary
Buried 5 April 1709, Astwell, Oxfordshire, daughter of Mary of Amwell, Herts, beggar.

PINFOLD, David
Buried 27 September 1837, Thurton, Norfolk, of Pockthorpe in Norwich, aged 16.

PINFOLD, David
The Ipswich JournaL, 26 January 1888
“PINFOLD.-19th inst., at Hinderclay, David Pinfold, Hawker and Dealer, aged 45 years.”

PROUDLEY, Louisa
Buried 26 July 1871, Holdenhurst, Hampshire, A Gypsy, Moordown. Aged 53.

PUSEY, Emmanuel
Buried 6 February 1838, Hagbourne, Berkshire, of West Hagbourne Down, Traveller’s son, aged 12.

Burials and deaths R-Z

RIPLEY, Louisa
Buried 31 December 1880, Hailsham, Sussex. A Gipsy Cart at Hailsham. Aged 22.

ROBINSON, Arais
Died 12 December 1937, Birkenhead General Hospital, Birkenhead. Aged about 82 years. Of “Caravan”, Finney’s Yard, Cavendish Street, General Dealer. Cause of death: Asthenia following enforced recumbency result [of] fracture [of] femur caused by fall. Accident. Informant: Certificate received from J. Roberts Coroner for Birkenhead. Inquest held 14th December 1937.

ROBINSON James Smith
Buried 28 February 1795, Abbots Ripon, Huntingdonshire, son of Abraham and Ann Robinson, Gypsies.

SAUNDERS, Charles
Died 24 June 1957, The Caravan, Bath Road, Chippenham, Wiltshire. Aged 58 years. General Dealer. Cause: Carcinoma of the antrum. Informant: A. Saunders, Son, of The Pike House, Christian Malford, Chippenham.

SAUNDERS, Mary Magdalen
Died 5 November 1947, The Caravan, The Isolation Hospital, Chippenham, Wiltshire. Aged 48 years. Wife of Charles Saunders, Wood Merchant. Cause: Cardiac failure/Malignant hypertension. Informant: X The mark of Charles Saunders, widower of deceased, present at the death, of The Caravan, The Isolation Hospital, Chippenham.

SHAW, George
Buried 8 September 1676, Watton, Norfolk, a Stranger and Travilleur.

SIMSON, ARINGTON, FEATHERSTONE, FENWICKE and LANCASTER
Buried 8 August 1592, St Nicholas, Durham, County Durham: “Were hanged, being Egyptians”. [First names not given in the entry.]


SLENDER or SUMMERSBY, Bethorina
Died 20 October 1890, 10 Porter Street, Glasgow, Lanarkshire. Married to Charles Summersby, Hawker. Aged 24 years. Parents: Nicholas Slender, Hawker (deceased) and Frances Slender, Maiden Surname Shaw. Cause of death: Phthisis, 6 months. Informant: Charles Summersby, Widower (present at death). [Source: death certificate]

SLENDER, Noah
Died 13 March 1883 (8 hours 0 minutes A.M.), 142 [?] Westmuir Street, Glasgow, aged 2 1/2 years. Son of Noah Slender, Licensed Hawker, and Mary Slender, maiden surname Muirhead. Cause of death: Diptheria, 1 month. Informant: Noah Slender, His mark X, Father.

SMALL, James
Buried 17 November 1825, Uplyme, Dorset, A Member of a tribe of Gipsies, aged 66.



SMALL, Jane
Buried 20 March 1833, Uplyme, Dorset, A Tramper without any settled residence, aged 63.

SMALL, Kezia
Buried 30 March 1833, Uplyme, Dorset, Grandchild of the above, aged 6 weeks. [Next in register to Jane Small, above.]

SMITH, Abraham
Buried 20 February 1748, West Winch Norfolk: A Stranger. Affidt made by Elizth Bailey.
Monumental inscription on gravestone in churchyard reads: “Here lieth the body of Abraham Smith, who died Feb the 16 1748, aged 60 yrs.”
[An article in the Journal of the Gypsy Lore Society (Third Series, Vol. 25, page 45) suggests that this Abraham Smith aided in the repair of East Winch church, the church in a village close to West Winch, and that he was ‘a gipsy king’]

SMITH, Adolphus
Died 31 August 1897, Sand Hills, South Shore, Blackpool, Lancashire. Aged 53 years. Horse Dealer. Cause of death: Aneurism of the Aorta. Informant: A. Boswell, Cousin, Present at the death, Sand Hills, South Shore [signs].

SMITH, Adolphus 
Died 16 October 1911, Bohemian Estate, Eastwood, Essex. Aged 30 years. Marine Store Dealer. Cause of death: Diabetes, Exhaustion. Certified by W. Douglas Watson MRCS. Informant: The mark of Elizabeth Smith, Widow of deceased, Present at the death, Bohemian Estate, Eastwood.

SMITH, Angelina
Died 16 August 1889, Cobholm Island, Great Yarmouth, Norfolk. Aged 18 years. General Hawker. Cause of death: Enteric Fever certified by Robert Wrigley MRCS. Informant: The mark of Herbert Gray, Present at death, Cobholm Island, Yarmouth.

SMITH, Arnold
Bu 28 April 1858, Horley, Oxfordshire, Arnold Smith, Horley. Aged 72. Note in margin: “A Gipsy settled here abt 25 years ago – became a Mormanite.” [sic]

SMITH, Arthur
Buried 15 December 1723, Glasbury, Breconshire, son of Jeffery and Damaris Smith, travelling people.

SMITH, Barthwell
Died 21 November 1861, Navenby, Lincolnshire, age 71 years. Occupation: Itinerant Chair Bottomer (Gipsy). Cause of death: Paralysis 1 month certified. Informant: X The mark of Sarah Smith, Present at death – Navenby. [Sarah was the daughter of Barthwell Smith. Certificate courtesy of Wayne Clarke on behalf of his late father George Clarke.]


SMITH, Charlotte
Died 3 November 1889, North Kyme, Lincolnshire, age 86 years. Occupation: Widow of Barthwell Smith (Horse Dealer). Cause of death: Chronic Gastritis certified. Informant: X The mark of Harriet Gray, daughter, present at death, North Kyme. [Certificate courtesy of Wayne Clarke on behalf of his late father George Clarke.]


SMITH, Cinderella
Died 5 August 1918 in the Union Infirmary, Devizes, Wiltshire. Spinster. Aged 80 years. Hawker, of Hare & Hounds Court, Devizes. Cause: Senile decay/Gastric influenza. Informant: W. Fear, Master of the Union Workhouse, Devizes.

SMITH, George
Buried 2 September 1835, East Harling, Norfolk, a strolling beggar.

SMITH, Harriet
Buried 3 November 1843, Turvey, Bedfordshire. Of Bletsoe. A gipsy Child. Aged 4.

Interested in Smiths? Don’t miss our Smith Family Tree book here.

SMITH, Jane
Buried 23 October 1877, Princes Risborough, Buckinghamshire, aged 3 weeks, [abode] Travelling Caravan at the Fair.

SMITH, Leo
Died 29 December 1924 aged 39 years. Buried at Gorleston Cemetery, Norfolk. Gravestone commemorates Leo and his parents: Walter Smith and Matilda Smith (nee Gaskin).

SMITH Levi
Died 8 March 1883, Ausworth, Nottinghamshire. Aged 88. Hawker. Cause of death: Decay of nature certified by W. H. Hill MRCS. Informant: the mark of Levi Smith, son in law, present at the death, Ausworth. [source: death certificate]

SMITH Madeline
Died 23 December 1907, General Hospital, Nottingham. Aged 45. Wife of Thomas Smith, a Travelling Hawker, Living van in Berridge Road. Cause of death: Acute Appendicitis, Abcess, Exhaustion certified by K. Black MRCS. Informant: the mark of Thomas Smith, Widower of deceased, A Living Van, Berridge Road, Nottingham. [source: death certificate] [Buried in Basford Cemetery on 26 December 1907]

SMITH, Matilda
Died 22 December 1927 aged 88 years. Buried at Gorleston Cemetery, Norfolk. Gravestone commemorates Matilda Smith (nee Gaskin), her husband Walter Smith and their son Leo Smith.

SMITH Nipton
Hertford Mercury and Reformer, 1 February 1845
“SUDDEN DEATH OF A GIPSY – An inquest was held on Tuesday, before E. Eagles, Esq., at Potton, upon the body of Nipton Smith, who was found dead in a barn attached to the Sun public house. Richard Baxter, the ostler, went to the barn for the purpose of fetching some staples, and there found the deceased lying on a plank with his face downwards. He ran and fetched his master, and they removed the man into a room, and sent for a surgeon, but life was extinct. They found 11s. 5d. in his pockets. Plato Smith, the gipsy, identified the body as that of his son. He parted with him at Guilden Morden. Joseph Keeling, the landlord, deposed that deceased had a half-quarter of gin in the afternoon, and about five o’clock asked witness to allow him to lie down in the barn; he was a little fresh. Witness believed that no person went into the barn after that, until Baxter found him dead. Mr Raynes, surgeon, was of opinion, that deceased died from apoplexy. The jury returned a verdict accordingly.”

SMITH, Phebe
Buried 26 July 1798, Newton Longville, Buckinghamshire, a gipsy.

SMITH, Shipton
Buried 23 October 1843, St John the Baptist, New Windsor, Berkshire, aged 25, Frogmore Road.

SMITH, Soloman
Buried 8 March 1801, Wilstead, Bedfordshire, an Egyptian.

SMITH, Walter
Died 1 November 1921 aged 83 years. Buried at Gorleston Cemetery, Norfolk. Gravestone commemorates Walter, his wife Matilda Smith (nee Gaskin) and their son Leo Smith.

THORPE, Meshach
Buried 9 May 1844, Digby, Lincolnshire, aged 6.

VEN, William
Buried 23 November 1749, Aldermaston, Berkshire, ye son of John and Susan Ven, Travellers.

WEST Eliza
Buried 17 February 1926, aged 73, St Paul’s, Astley Bridge, Lancashire. Of caravan, Duncan Square, Oswaldtwistle.

WEST Lipy
Buried 2 December 1915, aged 32, St Paul’s, Astley Bridge, Lancashire. Of caravan back of Union Road, Oswaldtwistle.

WHATNELL, Adelaide
Buried 21 September 1886, Anfield Cemetery, Liverpool, Lancashire, aged 51. Address: Gipsy Encampment, Mere Lane, Walton.

WOODS, Enoch
Buried 23 May 1742, Durston, Somerset, the Egyptian.

YOUNG Albert
Died 17 July 1889, Blackpool, Lancashire. Buried in Layton Cemetery, Blackpool. Death commemorated on a headstone.

YOUNG John
Buried 2 August 1835, Coningsby, Lincolnshire, travelling potter, died at Hawthorn Hill, aged 50.

YOUNG, Oscar
Buried 10 May 1894, St Mary’s, Walton on the Hill, Liverpool, Lancashire, [abode] Gipsies Tent, City Road, Walton, aged 2 days. No baptism.

This page last updated:  2 August 2024.