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The Rousell Family of Merriott

Earliest Mentions            18th Century         19th Century Baptisms     19th Century Marriages   19th Century Burials    Censuses

Earliest Mentions in the Records

In the early records, the surname spelling was quite variable, with Rousell, Rowsell, Rowswell and Rowsewell all being recorded.   Eventually Rousell became the only spelling used in Merriott.

The surname was  right there at the beginning of the Merriott Parish Records, with a baptism in 1651:

Baptism 8 February 1651 Henry of Richard & An Rowswell

Other baptisms mentioned in the early register:

Thomas Rowswell Baptism 6 January 1660 John Baptism 13 March 1665 Thomas
John Rowswell Baptism 8 September 1678 Jane
Christopher & Anne Rowsell/Rowsewell Baptism 23 May 1680 Elizabeth Baptism 19 November 1682 Anne
John & Joan Rowsewell/ Rowsell Baptism 15 November 1682 Jane
Baptism 19 February 1684 Henry
Baptism 29 February. 1687 Thomas


BURIALS:

Burial in Woollen 1 October 1682 Jane Rowsewell 

MARRIAGE:

15 December 1690 Joane Rowsell m Robert Bost

The 18th Century

MARRIAGES

MALES - 6 FEMALES - 12
7 February 1743 John Rousell m Eliz Dimont (Lopen)
3 May 1757 John Rousell m Ann Pattemore
30 August 1768 John Rowsell m Betty French
16 October 1775 Robert Rowsell m Sarah Willey
7 July 1777 John Rowsell of Lopen m Sarah Robbins
23 July 1795 Robert Rousel m Elizabeth Llewellin

3 February 1728 Eliz Rowsel, Shepton Beauchamp m John Beel, Shepton Beauchamp   
28 June 1736 Joan Rousell, of Merriott m Alexander Osband, of Merriott
11 May 1738 Martha Rousell, of Merriott m James Slad, of South Perrott
1 August 1743 Mary Rousell (West Coker) m Joseph Edmond (Lopen)    
5 January 1747 Jean Rousell m Anthony Daw
7 or 13 April 1755 Mary Rousell m Joseph Mitchell (duplicated entries)
28 November 1775 Mary Rowsell m Matthew Daw
1 July 1777 Ann Rousell of Lopen m Robert Bailey
6 February 1786 Ann Rousel m James Lacy
2 August 1784 Joan Rousel m Philip Munford (Crewkerne)
24 May 1798 Joan Rousel m William Marks
23 February 1800 Sarah Rousell m Jonathan Pattemore

I do not know why some marriages occurred at All Saints, Merriott, when both parties lived elsewhere.


BAPTISMS (or Burials where indicated)

(Illegible) & Cathrine Rowsell  Baptism 29 November 1709 (illegible) (daughter) 
Henry & Catharine/Kat Rousell Baptism 16 November 1712 Joan 
Baptism 22 January 1716 John 
Baptism 26 August 1718 Mary
Robert & Ann Rousell
Baptism  12 March 1714 John Shynner 
Baptism  28 March 1716 Robert 
Baptism  24 February 1717 Robert Shynner
Baptism  5 October 1718 Jane 
Burial  23 August 1720 Jean 
Baptism 22 February 1720 Ann 
Baptism  2 June 1723 Jane 
Baptism  27 December 1726 Mary
Baptism  5 September 1731 William 
Edward & Thomazin Rousel Baptism 17 July 1720 Edward
Thomas Rousell (no wife's name given) Burial 15 November 1730 Robert 
Robert Rousell (no wife's name given) Burial  18 November 1739 Robert 
Robert & Mary Rousell
Note:  A Robert Rousell married a Mary Murley at Crewkerne on 15 December 1736.  Both "of Merriott"
Baptism  27 July 1738 Jone 
Baptism  25 June 1741 Robert 
Baptism  20 November 1743 Illegible 
Baptism  31 January 1744 Mary 
Baptism  18 April 1747 Robert
Baptism  30 March 1750 Anna 
Burial  3 April 1750 Anne 
Baptism 6 August 1751 Ann 
Burial  25 April 1754 Ann 
Baptism  11 November 1757 Ann 
John Rousell (no wife's name given) Burial 8 October 1740 Kath   Burial 16 June 1742 Robert 
John & Agnes Rousell
Baptism 27 January 1741 Eliz. 
Baptism 7 December 1744 Jno 
Burial 8 February 1744 Jno 
Baptism 21 September 1745 Katherine (buried 24 September 1745)
Baptism 12 December 1746 Katharine 
Burial 5 June 1749 John 
Burial 6 February 1750 John 
Burial 30 May 1753 John 
John & Elizabeth (? Betty nee French)  Rousell/Rousel/ Rowsell Baptism  2 May 1770 Joan
Baptism  20 April 1772 Robert
Baptism  25 August 1774 John
Baptism  20 November 1776 Elizabeth
Baptism  23 May 1779 Mary
Burial  5 July 1780 Mary
Baptism  25 December 1783 William  
Baptism  3 September 1786 Thomas 
Mary Rousell Baptism 3 September 1775 William, BB
Robert & Mary Rowsell Baptism 31 December 1775 Mary
Robert & Sarah (nee Willey) Rousel/Rowsell Baptism  20 April 1778 Ann
Baptism 8 May 1780 Jane
Baptism  27 December 1782 Catharine
Baptism  25 December 1784 Rhoda
Baptism  21 May 1787 Martha
Baptism 24 July 1788 Grace
Baptism 16 May 1790 Robert Tilly
Robert & Hannah Rousell/ Rowsell/ Rowsel Baptism  11 June 1786 Susanna
Baptism  5 May 1788 Hannah
Baptism  5 January 1791 Robert
Baptism  17 May 1807 Reuben
Baptism  15 May 1809 Elizabeth
Baptism  4 April 1812 Elizabeth
Robert & Betty/ Elizabeth (nee Llewellin)  Rousell/ Rowsell Baptism 8 March 1793 Thomas (father Robert noted as a pauper)
Baptism 8 October 1795 Betty Gillett 


BURIALS

MALES - 10 FEMALES - 10
19 March 1737 John Rousell 
2 June 1775 John Rousell 
16 March 1750 Henry Rousell 
14 November 1769 Robert Rousell 
5 March 1788 Robert Rowsel 
17 June 1798 Robert Rousel 
27 September 1795 Samson Rousel 
9 April 1758 Thomas Rousell 
23 January 1731 William Rousell 
14 December 1790 William Rowsel 
5 October 1764 Anne Rousell 
5 March 1788 Ann Rowsel Pauper 
31 March 1797 Ann Rousell 
12 April 1713 Elizabeth Rousell 
6 July 1715 Joan Rousell Wife of John
11 July 1720 Katherine Rousel Wife of Henry
23 July 1730 Mary Rousell 
28 March 1762 Mary Rousell 
4 February 1785 Mary Rowsell 
9 March 1798 Sarah Rousel 

I am afraid all the Robert Rousells have defeated me - I cannot place them all with any certainty.  There are not enough Roberts being baptised in the first half of the 18th century to account for the four Roberts baptising children in the late part of the century.   Of the four, at least three are quite definitely different people (bigamy being illegal!); the Robert married to Mary may be a duplicate if Mary died early & Robert remarried.  The lack of detail in the marriage register at this point (as well as the lack of marriages) makes it very difficult.  I would be pleased to hear from anyone who has worked them all out!  As you will see, more Robert Rousells started new families in the early 1800s, just to add to the confusion.
New information 21st April 2003: There are two Roberts listed as having Estate Duty Wills at the Somerset Record Office; one proved 1814 (spelt ROWSELL) and one proved 1821 (spelt ROUSELL).   The contents of these wills should shed light on at least two of the Roberts if anyone is interested.

The baptism of Thomas Rowsell in 1793, son of Robert & Elizabeth Rousell, bears the notation "Pauper".  At this time, a fee was charged for Church services, with the waivering of the fee in the case of Paupers.  Whether or not Robert was a Pauper all his life or only for a short period I don't know.

When John Rousel died in 1809, the notation in the register says:  "A Good Clerk of this Parish".   John , Robert,  Thomas  and  William Rousel were sometimes  found as witnesses in the register in the late 1700s, early 1800s, suggesting they were all Clerks of the Parish at some stage.  Thomas Rousell continued as a regular witness to marriages until about 1830 ; and another Robert Rousell began witnessing marriages around 1820.  After the mid 1830s, witnesses in the marriage register tended to be brothers or sisters, parents or friends of the couple being married.

The 19th Century

By the time of the censuses in the 19th century, the surname ROUSELL was the tenth most common surname in Merriott, with just under two and a half percent of the population bearing the name.

MARRIAGES 1801 - 1900

MALES  FEMALES 
22 May 1815 William Rousell m Francis Read
26 May 1816 Thomas Rousell m Hannah Lawrence
29 December 1818 Robert Rousell m Ruth Doutch
22 September 1836 William Rousell m Ann Warry
16 April 1816 Elizabeth Rousell m John Pattemore
15 October 1821 Elizabeth Rousell m Sampson Hooper
30 November 1824 Hannah Rousell m Eliel Warry
2 October 1831 Elizabeth Rousell m William Sweet
7 September 1833 Anna Rousell m Richard Warry

MARRIAGES post 1837 (extra detail)

Date

Year

Forename

Surname

Spouse

Age

Condition

Signed?

Abode

Occupation

Father

Father's Occ

Witness

12-May

1839

Elizabeth

Rousell

William England

19

Spinster

No

Lower St

Reeler

Robert Rousell

Pauper

Mary Ann Rendall

12-May

1839

William

England

Elizabeth Rousell

19

Bachelor

Yes

Lower St

Turner

William England

Weaver

John Rendall

6-Oct

1839

Eliza

Higgins

Simon Rousell

24

Spinster

No

Lower St

Labourer

Thomas Higgins

Farm Gardener

Henry Rousell

6-Oct

1839

Simon

Rousell

Eliza Higgins

24

Bachelor

No

Higher St

Labourer

Robert Rousell

Servant

Elizabeth Follett

4-Nov

1839

Thomas

Lawrence

Catharine Rousell

22

Bachelor

Yes

Broadway

Weaver

Henry Lawrence

Weaver

John Dawe

4-Nov

1839

Catharine

Rousell

Thomas Lawrence

21

Spinster

Yes

Lower St

Milliner

William Rousell

Sawyer

Elizabeth Greenham

4-Aug

1840

Honour

Osborne

William Rousell

not full

Spinster

Yes

Merriott

 

Job Osborne

Yeoman

Ann Osborne

4-Aug

1840

William

Rousell

Honour Osborne

full

Bachelor

Yes

Merriott

Carpenter

William Rousell

Yeoman

Samuel Pattemore

10-Dec

1841

James

Doutch

Mary Rousell

30

Bachelor

No

Eggwood Hill

Traunter

John Doutch

Gardener

Harriett Doutch

10-Dec

1841

Mary

Rousell

James Doutch

25

Spinster

Yes

Broadway

Glove sewer

Robert Rousell

Wheelwright

Thomas Vicary

23-Jun

1842

John

Miller

Sarah Rousell

27

Bachelor

Yes

Merriott

Yeoman

Robert Miller

Yeoman

Robt Lawrence

23-Jun

1842

Sarah

Rousell

John Miller

20

Spinster

Yes

Merriott

not given

Robert Rousell

Carpenter

Ann Rousell

28-Jun

1842

Henry

Rousell

Caroline Toulman

24

Bachelor

Yes

Merriott

Brewer

Robert Rousell

Servant

Sarah Rousell

28-Jun

1842

Caroline

Toulman

Henry Rousell

21

Spinster

Yes

Merriott

Glove Sewer

Anthony Toulman

Shoemaker

George Toulman

21-Dec

1843

Ann

Higgins

Robert Rousell

23

Spinster

Yes

Lower St

not given

William Higgins

Farm Gardener

Samuel Cridge

21-Dec

1843

Robert

Rousell

Ann Higgins

27

Bachelor

Yes

Church St

Smith

William Rousell

Wheelwright

Isaac Osborne

24-Dec

1844

John

Osborne

Ann Osborne

24

Bachelor

No

Hitchen Field

Husbandman

Samuel Osborne

Farm gardener

William Rousell

24-Dec

1844

Ann

Osborne

John Osborne

22

Spinster

Yes

Lower St

Labourer

Job Osborne

Farm gardener

Honour Rousell

16-Nov

1846

Ann Tully

Rousell

William Simeon Webb

of age

Spinster

Yes

Merriott

not given

Robert Rousell

Carpenter

Mary Ann Rousell

16-Nov

1846

William Simeon

Webb

Ann Tully Rousell

of age

Bachelor

Yes

Merriott

Painter

William Simeon Webb

Innkeeper

Joseph Rendall

4-Sep

1847

Joseph

Raindle

Mary Ann Rousell

28

Bachelor

Yes

Murly's Yard

Blacksmith

Samuel Raindle

Gardener

Joshua Perry

4-Sep

1847

Mary Ann

Rousell

Joseph Raindle

26

Spinster

Yes

Nap

Mantua? Maker

Thomas Rousell

Weaver

Anna Rousell

28-Aug

1853

Joseph

Furzer

Martha Rousell

22

Bachelor

No

Lower Street

Weaver

Joseph Furzer, late

Shoemaker

Joseph Rousell

28-Aug

1853

Martha

Rousell

Joseph Furzer

22

Spinster

No

Lower St

Glove Sewer

Robert Rousell, late

Labourer

Simon Rousell

17-Sep

1853

Isabella

Holt

John England

26

Spinster

Yes

Broadway Naps

Servant

John Holt (late)

Baker

Samuel Rousell

29-May

1854

Samuel

Rousell

Harriett Shutler

25

Bachelor

Yes

Broadway

Carpenter

William Rousell

Sawyer

William Shutler

29-May

1854

Harriett

Shutler

Samuel Rousell

25

Spinster

Yes

Church St

Mantua Maker

Joseph Shutler

Gardener

Ann Shutler

3-Sep

1854

Anne

Lawrence

Joseph Rousell

23

Spinster

No

Merriott

not given

John Lawrence

Labourer

Susan Lawrence

3-Sep

1854

Joseph

Rousell

Anne Lawrence

28

Bachelor

No

Merriott

Labourer

Thomas Rousell

Labourer

John Rousell

5-Dec

1854

Priscilla

Lacey

Robert Rousell

30

Spinster

No

Lower St

Laundress

Samuel Lacey

Labourer

Simeon Rousell

5-Dec

1854

Robert

Rousell

Priscilla Lacey

30

Bachelor

Yes

Ashwell Lane

Labourer

Thomas Rousell

Labourer

Sarah Rousell

19-Feb

1857

Sarah

Hebditch

William Rousell

full

Widow

Yes

Merriott

 

Thomas Gillingham

Yeoman

Mary Ann Gillingham

19-Feb

1857

William

Rousell

Sarah Hebditch

full

Widower

Yes

Merriott

Carpenter/ parish clerk

William Rousell

Yeoman

Joseph Paul Read Rousell

28-Sep

1857

Sarah

Rousell

Jonah Bailey

full

Spinster

No

Merriott

Thomas Rousell

Labourer

Ann Rousell

28-Sep

1857

Jonah

Bailey

Sarah Rousell

full

Bachelor

Yes

Residing? in Merriott

Labourer

James Bailey

Labourer

Joseph Rousell

16-Oct

1860

Susan

Lawrence

John Rousell

23

Spinster

No

Merriott

 

John Lawrence

Labourer

Ann Rousell

16-Oct

1860

John

Rousell

Susan Lawrence

23

Bachelor

No

Merriott

Labourer

Thomas Rousell

Labourer

Joseph Mitchell

20-May

1861

William

Mitchell

Louisa Rousell

26

Bachelor

Yes

Merriott

Gardener

William Clark Mitchell

Gardener

William Mitchell

20-May

1861

Louisa

Rousell

William Mitchell

24

Spinster

Yes

Merriott

Martha Rousell

Single Woman

Anne Mitchell

1-Dec

1861

Rebecca

Hutchings

William Rousell

28

Spinster

No

Merriott

 

James Hutchings

Labourer

Joseph Rousell

1-Dec

1861

William

Rousell

Rebecca Hutchings

28

Bachelor

Yes

Merriott

Sawyer

Thomas Rousell

Labourer

Reuben Rousell

18-Nov

1867

Eliza

Rousell

Edward Elswood

full

Widow

No

Merriott

Thomas Higgins

Gardener