Annotated by Ewart Tearle Apr 2011.
With thanks to Pat Field, who found this document at the Hertfordshire Archives site.

Miscellaneous Names:

• Hatfield Union Workhouse BG/HAT/52 Florence Tearle Hatfield admission, born 1883 29 June 1895
• Hatfield Union Workhouse BG/HAT/52 Jane Tearle Hatfield admission, born 1885 29 June 1895
• Hatfield Union Workhouse BG/HAT/52 John Tearle Hatfield admission, born 1887 29 June 1895
• Hatfield Union Workhouse BG/HAT/52 Florence Tearle Hatfield discharge 31 July 1895
• Hatfield Union Workhouse BG/HAT/52 Jane Tearle Hatfield discharge 31 July 1895
• Hatfield Union Workhouse BG/HAT/52 John Tearle Hatfield discharge 31 July 1895
• Hatfield Union Workhouse BG/HAT/52 Harriet Tearle Hatfield admission, born 1829 8 Dec 1896
• Hatfield Union Workhouse BG/HAT/52 Harriet Tearle Hatfield discharge 29 December 1896

Florence Emily T 1883, Jane Elizabeth 1885 and John Henry T 1887, all born Hatfield, the children of William Francis T 1857 Soulbury and Sarah Ann nee Kefford. William Francis T is the eldest son of John 1831 and gs of Richard 1805 and Martha nee Burnard. John Henry T 1887 was killed in WW1 in Gallipoli, 1915. See above.

Harriet nee Figg, wife of John Tearle 1831 Soulbury, eldest son of Richard 1805 and Martha nee Walker. John and Harriet left Soulbury between 1865 and 1867.

The levels of poverty indicated by these spells in the workhouse is shocking. Add to this, your son is killed, in the case of Sarah nee Kefford. The pain and despair in these circumstances, is appalling. The Hatfield Union Workhouse was little more than a few motley buildings wrapped around the Hatfield Cemetery, but it still accommodated 188 inmates. There is no existing photo of it, so I have included a picture of the Hertford Union Workhouse.

The Hertford Union Workhouse, Ware Rd. Demolished 1970.

Marriages:

• Stephen Axtell Mary Tearle Kings Langley 8 Jun 1572
• John Bean of St Peters St Albans Mary Tearle of St Peters St Albans St Albans St Peters 10 Apr 1804
• Robert Buckmaster Ann Tearle Kings Langley 4 May 1573
• George Edwards of Abridge Essex Elizabeth Tearle of St Peters St Albans St Albans St Peters 27 Jul 1800
• John Feild Alice Tearle Hemel Hempstead 8 Jul 1565
• William Feilde Alice Tearle Hemel Hempstead 5 Jul 1567
• John Fusedale Lucy Tearle Shenley 21 Sep 1836
• James Paterson Emma Tearle Middlesex Monken Hadley 7 May 1835
• Richard Scrivener of St Peters St Albans Sarah Tearle of St Peters St Albans S Albans St Peters 12 Nov 1811
• John Tearle Lucy Thompson St Albans St Peters 4 Sep 1823
• Charles Tearle Esther Munt St Albans St Michael 13 Jul 1830
• Charles Tearle Elizabeth Starkins St Albans St Michael 12 Sep 1826
• Richard Tearle Frances Maline St Albans St Peters 5 Jul 1825
• Richard Tearle of St Michaels Mary Webb Sandridge 17 Feb 1778

Notes to the marriages

Mary Tearle and Stephen Axtell. Mary was the daughter of Robert 1508-1562 Stbg and Alice, who died 1594. See Will of Robert Terle of Stanbridge, made 1562.

Mary T and Stephen Bean. Mary 1780 Sandridge was a daughter of Richard 1754 and Mary nee Webb. She is a gd of Thomas 1709 and Mary nee Sibley.

Ann Tearle and Ralph Buckmaster. Ann is the sister of Mary Tearle, above. Her parents were Robert 1508 Stbg and Alice.

Elizabeth Tearle and George Edwards. Elizabeth 1778 Sandridge was the eldest dau of Richard 1754 and Mary nee Webb.

Alice Tearle, John Field and William Field.
Note the will of Alice Field, Hitchin 1694. Barbara noted: “Alice married William Field two years after Robert’s death. The son mentioned, Robert, was married to Joan (?) who is at the centre of our ‘Tearle mystery’. Daughters Alice, Anne, Mary and Jo(h)an married William Field( presumably the son of her stepfather, but not confirmed), Ralph Buckmaster, Stephen Axtill and John(?) Weedon respectively.”

Lucy Tearle and John Fusedale.
UNK – no record of a Lucy Tearle b 1814 or earlier.
Name: Lucy Tearle
Gender: Female
Spouse’s Name: John Fusedale
Marriage Date: 21 Sep 1836
Marriage Place: Shenley, Hertfordshire, England

Emma Tearle and James Paterson. Emma 1814 was the dau of William 1783 (headmaster of the Monken Hadley school) and Roseanna nee Fensom, granddaughter of Richard 1754 and Mary nee Webb.

Sarah Tearle and Richard Scrivener. Sarah 1796 Sandridge was a daughter of Richard 1754 and Mary nee Webb.

John Tearle and Lucy Thompson. John 1794 Sandridge was a son of Richard 1754 and Mary nee Webb.

Charles Tearle and Esther Munt. Charles 1798 St Albans was the son of William 1775 and Mary. Esther is his second wife. We have postulated that William was most likely a son of William 1749 and Mary nee Prentice.

Charles Tearle and Elizabeth Starkins. The first wife of Charles 1798, above. Elizabeth died in 1829 leaving three children.

Richard Tearle and Frances Maline. Richard 1800 St Albans married Frances Malme on 05 July 1825. He was a son of Richard 1754 and Mary nee Webb.

Richard Tearle and Mary Webb. Richard 1754 Stbg was the youngest son of Thomas 1709 and Mary nee Sibley. There are records of Richard being in the Sandridge militia, presumably to chase off Napoleon, should he attack England.

Newspapers and magazines

Death notice of Mary Tearle : Died 22nd November aged 85 Reformer page 2 04/12/1841
This is Mary nee Webb, wife of Richard 1754 Stbg.

Deaths : Death notice of George Tearle Herts Advertiser page 8 15 February 1890
George 1818 son of Abel 1789 and Hannah nee Frost. Married Annie Haws.

Watford Divisional Sessions Herts Advertiser page 7 23 August 1890
Alice Tearle. This would appear to be Alice Mary Tearle, born 1868 in Fenny Stratford, Bucks, to Thomas 1847 and Mary nee Bowler. She never married and died in Watford in 1917. Some of her family is in Watford, as can be seen in the next clipping.

Marriages : Marriage notice of Benjamin Jackson and Florence Jane Tearle Watford Leader page 8 04/09/1894
Florence Jane 1867 Fenny Stratford, dau Thomas 1847 LB and Mary nee Bowler.

Watford St Mary’s Football Team Watford Leader page 6 31/03/1896
W Tearle, Watford St Mary’s Football Team. This could be William 1852 (he would be 43yrs at this date) son of John 1824 and Sarah nee Bishop. Or William 1857 (he would 39yrs) son of Abel 1833 and Sarah nee Davis. Or William 1875 (he would be 21) son of Elizabeth 1856, dau of Emma 1837 before she married George Pratt. She was a dau of Thomas 1807 and Mary nee Garner.

Watford engine driver retires Hertfordshire News page 7 3 March 1920
Thomas 1847, died 1925. Son Thomas 1820 and Sarah Jane nee Elliott. Grandson of John 1780 and Sarah nee Claridge.

Cricketers, Hitchin : Detailed illustrated profile of The Cricketers, Hitchin Pennant vol 2 part 6 page 190 1934 Apr
George Tearle was the proprietor of the Cricketers PH in Bedford Rd, Hitchin according to Kelly’s Directories of 1922 and 1933. The will of George Tearle, 41 Bedford Rd, Hitchin, who died 1941, gave his estate to Lydia Maria Tearle, his widow. Lydia Maria Wells married George Tearle 1871, of Stanbridge on 26 Dec 1896, in Chelsea, London. George was the son of William 1832 and Catharine nee Fountain. He was the brother of Jonathan 1862, and 11 other children. William famously (to me anyway) married my gg-grandmother Mary nee Andrews, nee Tearle, nee Shillingford.. Gertrude Louisa T, the blind musician and teacher, dau of Henry J T 1880 and Louisa nee Lees, stayed at the Railway Hotel and gave its address as her England address when travelling. The proprietor was Arthur James T 1902, Gertrude’s brother. This family includes Donald Stanley Tearle 1910, the Australian soldier and miner.

Mann family and St Albans Hertfordshire People part 22 page 7-9 1984 Summer
An article written by our own Barbara Tearle in the Hertfordshire People of 1984.

Mill on the Ver : Redbournbury Mill Hertfordshire Countryside vol 55 part 498 page 22-23 Oct 01 2000
Mill on the Ver is an article by Jean Tearle in the Hertfordshire Countryside magazine of 2000. I’m not sure who she is.

Paper trail : Story of the John Dickinson paper mill at Apsley Hertfordshire Countryside part 572 page 10, 32 Dec 2006
Paper Trail is an article in the Hertfordshire Countryside by Jean Tearle in 2006.

Newspaper pictures

Herts Advertiser, 18 Oct 1929, p16 Arthur Cyril Tearle St Albans wedding 18 Oct 1929
Arthur Cyril T 1905 married Gertrude May Seabrook on 12 Oct 1929. He was the son of Edward Joseph 1869 and Emma nee Warner and gs of John 1831 and Harriet nee Figg.

Herts Advertiser, 22 Apr 1927, p10 Augustus George Tearle St Albans wedding 22 Apr 1927
Augustus George T 1902 married Ivy B Brown in 1927. Brother of Arthur Cyril, above.

Hertfordshire Mercury, 25 Aug 1928, p3 C.H. Tearle Herts/Colchester soldier 25 Aug 1928
Charles Henry T 1896, ser nos: 3241, 265905, 5987043. As regiments were decimated in WW1, men were moved to other regiments and collected new serial numbers along the way. His parents were Charles Henry T 1864 and Sarah Ann nee Carter. He is the gg-gson of John 1780 and Sarah nee Claridge.

Hertfordshire Mercury, 4 Apr 1930, p3 Mr S Tearle Hertford football club secretary 4 Apr 1930
S Tearle of Hertford, football club secretary. Here is another of the footballing Tearles whom it is difficult to identify.
UNK

Herts Advertiser, 24 Jul 1915, p6 Pte. Leslie Tearle St Albans obituary 24 Jul 1915
Leslie James Tearle 1896 killed in France 11 July 1915, aged just 19yrs. He entered the 1st Btn, Herts Regiment on 3 Nov 1912 as a Territorial (serial no: 2007) and was sent to France on 11 Dec 1914. He lasted barely 6 months. We know nothing of the circumstances of his death except that he was wounded at Cuinchy on 17 Apr 1915 (gunshot wound in the eye) and killed in Cuinchy in the July. He was the son of Edward J Tearle 1869 and Emma Elizabeth nee Warner. His memorial stands outside St Peters Church, St Albans, and in the foyer of the Old Council Building, Market Sq. He received the British Medal and the Victory Medal, along with the 1914 Star. He is buried in the Woburn Abbey Cemetery, a few hundred metres from Cuinchy village. See here for details of the battlefield and existing cemeteries.

Herts Advertiser, 4 Mar 1932, p14 Reginald Frank Tearle St Albans wedding 4 Mar 1932
Reginald Frank Tearle 1908 is a Watford man who moved to St Albans and married Eleanor Godman in 1932. He was a railway porter who rose to the rank of Sgt in the RAF Volunteer Reserve, serial no: 1379571. He was killed in 1944, and has his memorial in Watford North Cemetery. I know nothing of the circumstances of his death. His parents were Frank Tom Tearle 1881 and Margaret May nee Warr. He is the g-son of Abel 1852 and Alice Gray nee Collier and g-gson of Thomas 1830 and Jane nee Draper.

Wills

Thomas Tearle 1730 Watford shoemaker filed will 167AW17
Thomas Tearle 1730 Watford shoemaker registered will 11AR200

Barbara has transcribed this will for us, but the identity of Thomas of Watford, shoemaker, George of Akeley, Bucks, wheelwright, bro-in-law John Tearle of the fourth Troop of His Majesty’s Life Guard and bro-in-law William of Ivinghoe are a mystery. The marriage of a Thomas Tearle to a Mary (hopefully in Watford) is also undiscovered.