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                        Black Servants

Thoughts of the traditional English countryside conjures up images of wild moors, rolling hills and lavish houses. Typically, it is viewed as a space in which only white people interacted. However, recent historical research is demonstrating that people of African descent lived and worked in rural areas of Britain including East Yorkshire.
In the eighteenth century, ‘servant’ simply meant ‘employee’ so, for example, on a farm they would be agricultural labourers and in the home, domestic workers. While today these jobs may be deemed undesirable, in the past when life for ordinary people could be a tremendous struggle, being employed as a servant, particularly within the household, would have been considered an excellent opportunity.  Despite long hours and hard work, it ensured comfortable accommodation, regular sustenance and smart clothing which was a luxury to many working class men and women in Britain.

The history of servants in Hull and East Yorkshire prior to 1750
Between the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries it became fashionable for rich families living in grand houses all over Britain to employ a Black servant as a status symbol. From parish registers and other records, we know that a small number were employed in East Yorkshire during this era. For example, in 1600, Anna described as ‘a negro belonging to Mr Burnet’ is listed in the tax records as a member of the household of Bartholomew Burnett of Hull.  She was recorded as living with the family from 1598 to 1600, but then disappears from the records. Furthermore, in the late seventeenth century, a servant named Cassie, worked for Alderman Richard Barnes. By day he worked in Barnes’ wholesale warehouse before donning a smart livery to serve dinner in the evening.

In the early eighteenth century, Black servant John Scampston, was employed by Sir William St. Quintin, 3rd Baronet of Harpham. The record of his baptism in Rillington in 1720 reveals that he was a ‘Black boy.’[1] Given his age, the era and prestigious position of his master it is possible that Scampton was employed as a decorative page. Sadly, he was buried in 1725, only five years after his baptism.
In the early 1740s, a Black servant was brought to the region from the East Indies by William Draper. After his appointment in 1743, the new Archbishop of York, Thomas Herring, wrote to all the clergymen within his diocese requesting information. In response to a question about whether his parishioners were baptised, Thomas Mease, curate at Beswick wrote:

‘I know of none who come to church in this place that are not baptised, except one call’d Beswick, a Black, who is about twenty years of age; he was in the East Indies, sold to Mr William Draper, Esq of this Town. He is a Youth of no learning, and but of very slender capacity.’[2]

Three years after this correspondence, on 30 November 1746, Beswick was baptised in Kilnwick and given the Christian name John.[3]
Black Servants in Boynton and Beverley
A case study of Boynton demonstrates that three Black servants lived and worked in the village during the eighteenth century. In 1746, Richard Pompey, a ‘grown-up person’ was baptised at Boynton.  There is no mention of his race in the parish records, but Pompey was a name typically given to many Black servants. In addition, adult baptisms were very rare for English men and women, however they were common among newly arrived Africans.[4] Almost two decades later in 1761, John Pomfret, a ‘negro servant to Mr. Knowsley’ the curate of Boynton was also baptised in the village. Furthermore, Peter Horsfield, a footman to Sir George Strickland, married Elizabeth, daughter of the Rev. George Lawson, vicar of Weaverthorpe at Boynton on 25 March 1780.  Their son, one-day-old Henry Horsfield, was baptised at St. Cuthbert's Peaseholm Green in York on 21 December, the same year, it identified his father as ‘a negro’. Additional confirmation that Horsfield was of African descent comes from a letter sent to Boynton Hall from a Mr. Stedman, addressed to ‘Peter the Negro, Servant to Sir George Strickland.’ It read:
I send you a guinea Peter to drink the
health of Sir George and all the Ladies
this very day.
Be a good lad, you have got a good family
to serve; wel serve them honestly and
faithfully with all your heart and soul.
Mind their interest as you would mind
your own and you shall never want.
Give my hearts wel wishes to them all and
in hopes of seeing them all once more.
I am in the most damnable haste
Yours
Jack Stedman.[5]
As well as Boynton, Black servants also lived and worked in Market Weighton and Beverley during the eighteenth century. In 1776, John Denbir ‘a Negro Boy’ was baptised at Market Weighton, where he was also buried in 1777. Two decades later, baptism records show that ‘John Robinson, about 18 years of age, an African servant to Mr. R. Graham…residing in Kell Gate’ was baptised in Beverley Minster in 1796. 
Black Servants in Hull and East Yorkshire in the nineteenth century
Men and women of African descent continued to be employed as servants in Hull and East Yorkshire throughout the nineteenth century. Their presence can be found etched into the landscape on gravestones, in newspaper articles and recorded within the pages of the census.
Gravestones
Fisher Murray, a Black servant was buried in Elvington churchyard in the early nineteenth century (right). His gravestone reads:

                                                To the Memory of
                                                   Fisher Murray
                                            A faithful Black servant
                                      who came from Madeira with
                                       Thomas Cheap Esqr who was
                                       Consul there, and after living
                                          Sixty Years in the Family
                                          died the 18th Dec 1821


This touching commemoration by his master demonstrates that Murray was a loyal servant who lived with the Cheap family for many years. Unfortunately, as of yet no further information about Murray has been found. However, it is probable that he spent several happy years in East Yorkshire.
Picture
Newspapers
Although, there is very little information about servants of African descent in the local newspapers, the following article featured in the Hull Advertiser and Exchange Gazette on 10 February 1843, (below).[6] While it does not give specific information, and may well be a fictitious account, it is probable that the author based the character on a previous experience or encounter which may have occurred in Hull or East Yorkshire.
Picture
The census
The census has also revealed the names of several potential people of African descent who lived and worked in the region as servants. In 1851, West Indian, agricultural labourer Abram Jones was listed as a servant working for the Brankley family at ‘Rawlston’ (Rolston) and Barbadian Catherine Lakes was the servant for the Cornwall family who lived in Beverley. In addition, Celia Saul who was born in Trinidad and Tobago was recorded as a servant of the Moselys at 15 Whitefriargate in Hull. Thirty years later in 1881, West Indian, Mary Greenwood’s occupation was noted as a servant, although she was classed as the head of the household at 3 Banks Court, Hull. Lastly, the 1901 census revealed that Annie Armbrister was a domestic servant from Saint Kitts working at Manor House in Willerby.
Further research
It is difficult to find the presence of people with African heritage in rural areas, however, this does not mean they did not exist. As demonstrated Black men and women were living and working in East Yorkshire as servants from the seventeenth century. A closer analysis of the country houses listed in the table below may well highlight a larger presence in this region. Where possible the number of servants has been included within the table to give an idea of the size of the house and how many people were employed within the grounds. It is likely that these numbers are conservative as the census data is sometimes illegible, the houses are listed under abbreviated or other names and it is possible that they fluctuated during the years between data collection. However, given the number of servants in the region it is probable that there is a greater Black presence waiting to be uncovered.

Footnotes
[1] Ancestry.com. Yorkshire, England, Extracted Church of England Parish Records [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2001.
[2] Sidney Leslie Ollard and Philip Charles Walker, Archbishop Herring’s Visitation Returns, 1743, vol. 1 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1928). p. 105
[3] Ancestry.com. England, Select Births and Christenings, 1538-1975 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014.
[4] Ancestry.com. England, Select Births and Christenings, 1538-1975 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014
[5] Gloucester Archives, Strickland Family Papers, to "Mr. Peter", negro servant to Sir Geo. Strickland, D1245/2
[6] Hull Advertiser and Exchange Gazette, 10 February 1843
Bibliography
D. Neave and E. Waterson, Lost Houses of East Yorkshire (Georgian Society for East Yorkshire, 1988)

Acknowledgements
Many thanks go to David and Susan Neaves, and Audrey Dewjee for sharing their research and for their assistance in preparing this page.
The painting at the top of the page is The Young Teacher by Rebecca Solomon (1861), reproduced with kind permission of the owner.

The table below represents the numbers of servants present in country houses in the East Yorkshire and Hull areas and is taken from English census data. The research is a work in progress and will be updated at regular intervals when more information is uncovered.
NAME
LOCATION
FAMILY
BUILT
CURRENT STATUS
No. Servants listed in Census
Anlaby House
Anlaby
Built for John Boyes
1790s
Divided into flats
-
Aston Hall
North Ferriby
William Wilberforce
Sir Frederick A. T. Clifford-Constable
1740s
Demolished 1970
-
Benningholme Hall
Swine
Harrison Family, Hull bankers
Early 19thC
Private House
1861:4
Bessingby Hall
Bridlington
Rebuilt for Harrington
Hudson
1807
Nursing Home
1851: 1
1891: 5
Beswick Hall
Beswick
Daniel family
William Draper
Hotham family
c.1600
Divided into two farmhouses c.1820
1891: 16
Bettlefield House
Sutton on Hull
John Hipsley
Benjamin Pickering
c.1815
Demolished c. 1965
-
Bolton Hall
Fangfoss
-
c.1760
Private House
-
Boynton Hall
Boynton
Strickland Family
Late 16thC
Private House
1881: 10
1901: 8
Braffords Hall
Swanland
Osborne Family
c.1812
Private House
1851: 5
1861: 6
1881: 5
Brandesburton Hall
Brandesburton
Midgley family
Harrison family
19thC
Was hospital, now apartments
1851: 2
Brantinghamthorpe Hall
Brantingham
Shawe family
Sykes family
19thC
Private House
 
Brantingham Hall
Brantingham
Built by Isaac Broadley, Hull merchant
c.1765
Private House
-
Brough Hall
Brough
T. W. Palmer
Sir J. T. Woodhouse
1850-52
Demolished c.1960
1881: 2
1891: 5
Buckton Hall
Bridlington
Robinson Family
1740s
Farmhouse
1881: 6
1891: 7
Burton Agnes Hall
Burton Agnes
Griffith then Boynton family
c.1600
Country house open to the public
1861: 7
1881: 6
Burton Constable Hall
Burton Constable
Constable family
c.1560-1630, altered 1755-85
Country house open to the public
1851: 39
Cave Castle
South Cave, Brough
Henry Boldero Barnard
c.1802
-
1861: 7
1891: 9
Cherry Burton Hall
Cherry Burton, Beverley
Remodelled for David Burton
1857-8
Private house
-
Cherry Burton House
Cherry Burton, Beverley
Rev Henry Ramsden
Lady Mildred Boynton
c.1830
Private house
1881: 3
1891: 3
1901: 2
Cottingham
Grange
Cottingham
George
Knowsley
1800-02
Demolished
1830s
1881: 5
Cottingham Castle
Cottingham
Thomas Thompson
1808-1
1961
1851: 2
Cottingham Hall
Cottingham
William Tavis
1774-1795
Demolished 1936
1901: 8
Cottingham House
Cottingham
James Milnes
Joseph Gee
c.1744
Demolished 1972
1891: 4
Cowick Hall
Cowick Hall
Dawnay family,
Lords Downe to 1869,
1869-89 Shaw family

Late 17thC
In 1955 it became the headquarters of Croda International
-
Dalton Hall
South Dalton
Hotham family, Lords Hotham
c.1771
Private House
1891: 3
Dairycoates Lodge
Hull
Anthony Atkinson
1801-1809
Demolished c.1879
-
Drewton Manor
North Cave
Walter Holiday
Baron family
Jowett
Late 18thC, remodelled in 19thC
Private house
1851: 6
1881: 3
1891: 2
1901: 3
East Ella House
Anlaby
John Galloway
Robert Jameson
1842
Demolished 1945
1901: 5
Everingham Hall
Everingham
Constable family
Lord Herries
Lady Anne Fitzalan-Howard
1757, enlarged 1840s
Private House
1851: 20
Everthorpe Hall
North Cave
T. S. Whitaker
c.1870
Part of a prison
1891: 5
Fangfoss Hall
Fangfoss
George Overend
1766
Private House
1881: 3
1891: 2
Ferriby Hall
North Ferriby
Thomas Broadley
Nunburnholme family
c.1850
Restaurant
1891: 4
Ferriby House
North Ferriby
Sir Henry Etherington
c.1760
Nursing Home
1891: 2
1901: 3
Field House
Anlaby
Francis Casson
1849
Demolished 1865
-
Garrowby Hall
Kirkby Underdale
Wood family, Lords Halifax
c.1805, greatly enlarged 1892-3 and c.1900
Partly remodelled c.1970
1901: 2
Grimston Garth
Grimston
Thomas Grimston
1781
Private House
1851: 1
1881: 4
Howarth Hall
Cottingham
Ralph Burton
Benjamin Blaydes Haworth
Booth family

1760s
Private House
1851: 4
1901: 1
Hesslewood Hall
Hessle
Pease family home from 1749 until late 19thC
Rebuilt 1784-91
Offices
1881: 12
High Paull House
Paull
Benjamin Blaydes
Anthony Atkinson
1818
Demolished 1920
1901: 0
High Hall
Etton, Beverley
Belt family
William Grimston
c.1750, rebuilt 1866
Private House
1851: 5
1861: 3
1881: 4
1891: 5
1901: 5
High Hall
Bishop Burton
Sir William Gee
c.1600
1870 (rebuilt see below entry)
-
‘New’ High Hall
Bishop Burton
Francis Watt
Ernest R.B. Hall-Watt
1870
Demolished 1950s
-
Holme Hall
Holme on Spalding Moor
Langdale and Stourton families
1720s, remodelled c.1840
Sue Ryder Home
1851: 11
1861: 6
1881: 1
1891: 2
1901: 3
Houghton Hall
Sancton
Philip Langdale
Lady Fitzwilliam
c.1765-8
Private House
-
Hotham Hall
Hotham
Burton family then Stracey-Clitherow family
c.1720, enlarged 1871
Private House
1861: 12
Hotham House
Hotham
Gee, White and Wrangham family
c.1740, altered and extended in 19thC
Private House
-
Kilnwick
Kilnwick-on-the-Wolds
Grimston Family
17thC altered and enlarged 18thC
Demolished 1950s
1851: 12
1881: 2
1891: 8
1901: 0
Kilnwick Percy Hall
Kilnwick Percy
Denison then Duncombe family
1574, altered 18thC, enlarged 1840s
Buddhist Retreat Centre
-
Kingtree House
Cottingham
Samuel Watson
1769
Demolished 1960
-
Londesborough Hall
Londesborough
Cliffords, Earls of  Cumberland, Boyles, Earls of Burlington and Dukes of Devonshire
1589, enlarged c. 1680
Demolished 1818, replaced c.1840 Londesborough Park, and occasional home of Lords Londesborough
1891: 0
Kirk Ella Hall
Kirk Ella
Built for Wm Kirkby, Hull solicitor/manufacturer
1770s, and early 19thC
Hull Golf Club
-
Low Hall
Bishop Burton
James Gee
c.1825
Demolished 1874
-
The Mansion
Anlaby
John Wilkinson
Walter S. Bailey
Mrs Hall Sissons
1738
Demolished 1929
-
Marton Hall
Marton, Bridlington
Gregory Creyke
c.1672
Hotel/Restaurant
1851: 10
1861: 9
1881: 4
1891: 8
1901: 0
Melbourne Hall
Melbourne
Henry Vavasour
1780s
Private House
1851: 7
1861: 7
1881: 9
1891: 12
1901: 10
Melton Hill House
Melton
Joseph Williamson
Charles Whitaker
Broadley family
1780
Demolished 1952
1851: 3
1861: 9
1881: 11
1891: 7
Melton House
Melton
Mrs Ann Wilson
Mrs A. F. Reynolds
Thomas Hearfield
1830
Demolished 1957
1881: 3
1891: 3
1901: 4
Neswick Hall
Neswick
Grimston family
Wrangham Family
1700s
Demolished 1954
1851: 6
1861: 12
1881: 7
1891: 7
Newington Hall
Hull
James Hodgson
William Hodge
William Walker
Thomas Read
Frederick Holder
John Watt
1840-1842
Demolished 1908
1861: 4
1901: 3
Portington Hall
Eastrington
Sir Harold Wilberforce- Bell
c.1670
Private House
1851: 8
1881: 0
1901: 0
Rawcliffe Hall
Rawcliffe
Creyke Family
Mentioned in Domesday Book
Became a Hospital c.1911
-
Raywell House
Skidby
Sykes Family
1803
Converted into flats
1851: 13
Risby Hall
Risby
Ellerker family
1680
Demolished 1829
-
Rise Hall
Rise
Bethell family from c.1600 until 1940s
Rebuit 1815-20
Convent school from 1940s to 1990s, Now a wedding venue.
1891: 2
Saltmarshe Hall
Laxton
Saltmarshe  family from Middle Ages until c.1970
1825-8
Private House/Wedding venue
-
Sand Hall
Kilpin
John Scholfield
1777
Private House
1851: 5
1861: 8
1881: 5
1891: 8
1901: 5
Sewerby Hall
Sewerby, Bridlington
Greame family until 1930s
c.1714, enlarged 1807-8 and 1848
Country House Museum owned by East Riding of Yorks Council
-
Sledmere House
Sledmere
Sykes family from 1748 to the present
c.1751, enlarged 1783-1800
Private House. Open to the public
1851: 25
1861: 25
1871: 10
1881: 15
1901: 12
Sigglesthorne Hall
Sigglesthorne
Matthew Gibson
William Wright, Hull merchant
c.1820, enlarged c. 1850-1
Private House
1861: 4
1891: 5
1901: 2
Summergangs House
Hull
J. K. Pickard
1785
Demolished 1838
1891: 1
1901: 2

Sunderlandwick Hall
Sunderlandwick
Edward Horner Reynard
1856
Demolished 1945. Rebuilt for Sir Thomas Ferens 1862-3
1851: 12
1861:15
1881: 10
Swanland Manor
Swanland
Samuel Watson
Sir James Reckitt
1848-51
Demolished 1935
-
Thorpe Hall
Rudston
Thomas Hassell
Godfrey Bosville
Bosville-Macdonald
Late 17thC, altered in 1778-80, 1815-20 and 1886
Private house owned by Sir Ian Macdonald, Bt
-
Tranby Croft
Anlaby
Arthur Wilson
1874
School
-
Tranby Lodge
Hessle
Samuel Cooper
Christopher Ringrose
c.1810
Demolished 1985
1861: 9
1901: 4
Tranby Park
Hessle
Todd Family
c.1810
Demolished 1950
1891: 4
Waghen Hall
Wawne
Windham
18thC, enlarged late 19thC
Demolished 1950s
-
Waplington Hall
Allerthorpe
Denison family
1841-2
Private House
-
Warter Priory
Warter
Pennington family, Lords Muncaster
Charles Wilson, Lord Nunburnholme  Hull shipowner
George Ellis Vestey
Late 17thC, enlarged 1830s, 1870s and 1885-95
Demolished 1972
1861: 2
1891: 7
Wassand Hall
Seaton
Rev. Charles Constable
1813
Private House open to public on set days
1851: 4
1861: 12
1891: 15
1901: 19

Welham Hall

Welham
Bower to 1884
Rebuilt c.1892
-
Demolished 1957
1881: 11
1901: 11
Welton Grange
Welton
Built for Thomas Fell, then Richard Bell, Hull merchant
c.1750
Private house
-
Welton Hall
Welton
William Battle, Hull grocer
Late 18thC
Private House
-
Welton House
Welton
Thomas Williamson, Hull merchant
Raikes family
Broadley family
Broadley-Harrison family
Built 1768-9, enlarged/altered in 19thC
Demolished 1952
1851: 10
1861: 9
1881: 12
1891: 22

Welton Manor
Welton
Built for Robert Raikes, Hull banker
c.1820
Private House
-
West Ella Hall
West Ella
Built for Joseph Sykes, Hull merchant
Mid 18thC, later enlarged
Private House
-
White Hall
Winestead
Arthur Maister till 1834, Bailey family Hull shipowners 1871-1930
1814
Private house
-
Willerby Hall
Willerby
Built for William Mowld, Hull merchant
c.1720
Converted to flats
1851:4
Winestead Hall
Winestead
Hildyard  family owned Winestead estate from Middle Ages until 1880s
c.1759
Demolished 1936
1851: 14
Wolfreton Hall
Kirk Ella
William Williamson, Hull merchant
Late 18thC, refronted c. 1810
Now two houses
-
Wolfreton House
Kirk Ella
Built for John Cankrien, Hull merchant
c.1810
c.1810
Wood Hall
Ellerby
William Maister
Constable family
c.1816
Private House
-
Wyton Abbey
Bilton
-
c.1765
Care Home
-
Wyton Hall
Bilton
Raines family
1785
Private House
-
Yokefleet Hall
Yokefleet
J. H. Empson
1868
Private House
1881: 1
1901: 7
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