'Stories from the Stones'
Please visit the Contents Page where you will find other 'Stories from the Stones' from the St John’s Church Burial Ground Project
These same stories are also published on Penistone Archive Group's Facebook page, their Journal and in 'The Bridge' magazine issued by St John's church, Penistone. Many thanks to their tireless author, Mr Steve Lavender, for his worthy contributions to local history and this website. - JB.
Story 26 , Part 2: Alice Hebblethwaite (d.1848), Ben Burchell (Beardsall, d.1856), Louisa Child (d.1856), John Lawton (d.1857), John Kenworthy (d.1858)
Stories of the Small Stones 26, Part 2, continues John Beardwood’s work to identify the people behind the small simple inscriptions on the stones at St John’s Church burial ground. John managed to discover the names behind these initialised stones by researching every burial entry for each year carved onto the stones and then matching the initials. By good fortune, in no case was there more than one entry for a particular set of initials and year. Whilst I have taken John’s work and put it into the context of the 'Stories of the Stones' it is very important to acknowledge that this is John’s work, and he deserves full credit.
See also Part 1.
'Alice H 1848' - Alice Hebblethwaite
'Alice H' is Alice Hebblethwaite, the daughter of James and Martha Hebblethwaite of Kirkwood, Oxspring. James and Martha were married at St John’s Penistone on 26th June 1831. By the time of the 1841 census the family comprised James and Martha and their three children Martha (8), Ann (4) and Alice (1). At this time the family was living at New Mill and James was a woollen cloth weaver. Around 1846 the family moved to Kirkwood, Oxspring and in 1848 Alice sadly dies at the age of 8 due to ‘Inflammation of the mesenteric glands’. This specifically relates to inflammation of the lymph nodes in the tissue that attaches the intestines to the abdominal wall.
In January of 1859 James aged 55 died, leaving Martha now with six children. The Hebblethwaite family continued to live and work in the Penistone area variously as dressmakers, grocers and drapers. Martha passed away in 1886 aged 74 and both she and husband James are also buried at St John’s Church.
A suitable epitaph for Alice:In memory of Alice Hebblethwaite of Kirkwood, Oxspring who died 7th July 1848 aged 8 years.
'BB 1856' - Ben Burchell
The Penistone Church burial record shows BB to be Ben Burchell of Thurlstone who died on 24th November 1856 aged 8 months. There is a bit of confusion over Ben’s surname as he was the son of William Beardsall whose name has also been recorded as Bearchill; Berchill and Birchill. Ben’s mother was Ruth (Wilkinson). Ben’s father, William was one of eight children of unmarried mother Ann Bearchill. In due course all Ann’s children would take the name Beardsall. It is interesting to note that as we are in 2025 experiencing a rise in cases - Ben died of measles in 1856.
In the 1861 census, William and wife Ruth were living at Tenter Hill, Thurlstone and William’s occupation was a Stone Quarrier, indeed he was involved with the quarry industry throughout his life - a Stone Quarrier (1861), a Stone Getter (1871), a General Labourer (1881) and by 1891 he was back at Tenter Hill as a Stone Cutter. William passed away in 1892.
Whilst Ben passed away at just eight months, we have been able to link his family to an earlier Story of the Stones (number 4). I am now not surprised when links come out of unexpected sources and so it is here. The Beardsall family as has been discussed were closely involved with the quarry industry in the Thurlstone Rockside area. An earlier story of ours (Story 4) looked at another family – the Wainwright family – who were also quarrymen. Once again through the work of John Beardwood we have an unexpected link to Ben’s story.
William (Ben’s father) had a half-brother Joseph who was also involved in the quarry industry at Thurlstone. Joseph married Harriet Jubb in 1869 and they had three sons and a daughter. Their eldest son Tom married Annie Woodcock and had a son Eric. Meanwhile Annie Woodcock’s sister Emily married Albert Wainwright the Stonemason living up at Prospect View and their fourth child was Alfred Wainwright.
So it came to pass that it was Eric Beardsall, the cousin of Alfred Wainwright (famed for the Lake District Guides) who introduced Alfred to the Lake District on their visit when they were in their early 20s. Alfred and Eric saved up a few pounds for a week’s holiday in the Lakes in 1930. They arrived in Windermere and climbed Orrest Head where Alfred saw his first view of the Lake District - and, as they say, the rest is history.
A suitable epitaph for Ben:In memory of Ben Beardsall, son of William and Ruth Beardsall of Thurlstone, died November 1856 aged 8 months.
'LC 1856' - Louisa Child
Louisa was the daughter of Joseph and Sarah Child of Doubting Farm up at Hartcliffe. She was born on 20th November 1852 and baptised at St John’s on 16th January 1853. The 1841 census shows Joseph living in the household of Thomas Noble a farmer and grocer at Snow Gate Head, New Mills. Sarah was living at Marsh Hall with her parents John and Hannah Noble, so it is most likely that the two met through the Noble families. Over the years the family continued as farmers and lived to a good age, Sarah passing away in 1895 at the age of 75 and Joseph died in 1907 aged 86. Young Louisa died on 18th May 1856 aged 3 years due to a respiratory disease called croup. This was a common cause of death in children at this time.
In memory of Loisa Child, daughter of Joseph and Sarah Child of Doubting Farm, died 18th May 1856 aged 3.
'JL 1857' - John Lawton
John Lawton was the son of Benjamin and Jane Lawton who were living in Brightholmlee, Bradfield at the time of his birth. Benjamin Lawton, John’s father was one of the several children of Richard Lawton, joiner of Penistone Green. The Lawton family was well established in Penistone, Richard was born there and listed as a joiner in Pigot’s Directory of 1841. (Pigot’s Directory was a major British Directory started in 1814 by James Pigot as a valuable resource regarding major professions, nobility, gentry trades and occupations of the day). Benjamin followed his father into the joinery trade and on 28th March 1853 he married Jane Thorpe at Penistone Church.
Benjamin and Jane’s first child Mary was born on 22nd July 1853 and baptised at Netherfield Congregational Church. Their second child Richard was born on 10th January 1855 and baptised at St John’s. At this time the family were living at Penistone Green. Soon after this the family moved to Brightholmlee, Bradfield, where John was born on 11th April 1857 and baptised at St John’s that May. John passed away on 20th December 1857 aged just 8 months and his death certificate records ‘Inflammation of the lungs’. Today this would most likely be recorded as pneumonia.
The reason for the family still being a part of the church in Penistone is that the move to Brightholmlee might have simply been seen as a temporary one. Eventually the family settled in Oughtibridge. Benjamin’s parents Richard (1797 – 1874) and Martha (Downing) (1801 – 1872) are both buried at St John’s Church. Indeed, there are twenty members of the Lawton family interred at the burial ground.
A suitable epitaph for John might be:
In memory of John Lawton, son of Benjamin and Jane Lawton of Brightholmlee, died 20th December 1857 aged 8 months.
'JK 1858' - John Kenworthy
Our final entry in this part of the Story of the Small Stones is for John Kenworthy who was born on 8th December 1808 and baptised at St John’s a few days later on 18th December 1808. John was the son of William Kenworthy and his wife Helen (Holland).
John married Elizabeth Charlesworth on Christmas Day 1831 at Penistone Church and in the 1841 census they were living with their four children at Catshaw. By 1851 John had progressed to having his own farm, Royd, off Royd Lane up from Millhouse Green. All four of his children (Ellen 19, John 16, William 14 and George 11) are recorded as working on the farm. After 1851 the family moved to Acre Head, a small farm just along from the Flouch crossroads where John was to meet his tragic end.
John Kenworthy’s death certificate records that on 13th March 1858 he died as a result of ‘A penetrating wound of the abdomen by falling upon a hay fork’. He was buried at the Church on 16th March. Although his burial record at the Church says he was 50 years old, he was in fact 49. By 1861 John’s widow Elizabeth was the Head of the family still at Acre Head farm.
In the burial ground it is interesting to note that there are 20 Kenworthys buried there as well as over 30 Charlesworths (Elizabeth’s family). Elizabeth herself, passed away in 1868 aged 59 and son William took over Acre Head until he and the rest of the family moved away from the Penistone area by 1891.
A suitable epitaph for John would be:In memory of John Kenworthy, husband of Elizabeth and father to Ellen, John, William and George, died 13th March 1858 aged 49.
In Conclusion
Why families chose to provide for only small, initialised gravestones we can only guess. In some cases, it might have been cost, in other cases it might be to do with space at the burial ground, we don’t know. What is surprising is where we have found those who have a small stone and then later been included on a more complete gravestone with other family members. It has been a fascinating opportunity to work with John Beardwood and his work to bring these otherwise anonymous stones to life and tell a part of their story here. See also Part 1.
The research for this 'Stories of the Stones Number 26, Parts One and Two' was conducted by John Beardwood for the Burial Ground Project for which we thank him.
My thanks to: John Beardwood, The St John’s Burial Ground Project, Ancestry.com, Wikipedia.
Written by Steve Lavender former Chair, Friends of Penistone Church, April 2025
William Wordsworth - "We take no note of time but for its loss."