Chapter 5.

THE LATE 17TH CENTURY.

Michael, (1633-1675), was baptised at Pickhill in May 1633, his father being described as "Robert Daggett de Roxby". His mother was, of course, Frances Raper.

      Michael grew up in a very turbulent period of English history. While he was still a child the Civil Wars took place, with the battles of Edgehill near Banbury in 1642 and Marston Moor two years later. The second of these and many other events in the struggles took place in and around York, uncomfortably near to the Daggetts' home. Michael married Grace Coates in September 1659 at Pickhill and proceeded to bring up a family of four boys and three girls. Reference to the chart will show that William II was the only one of direct concern to us, and that he was born in 1669. During Michael's lifetime the Commonwealth came and went, with a very drastic effect on the survival of some parish records. In 1653 the custody of these registers was taken out of the hands of the local parson and entrusted to a person elected by the local community. In many cases this was still the incumbent. But the temporary change, which was discontinued in 1660, together with alterations in the form of information entered in the registers, caused a number of these very important records to be lost for ever. Civil marriages before a J.P.-which need not have been subsequently ratified in church - also caused some confusion in the systematic keeping of records.

      Michael died at Pickhill in May 1675, but we can find no indication of his wife's death, unless she was the Grace Daggett of Holme who died in Pickhill 1721; this would have made her about 85-90 years old. We cannot trace any other Grace at that time. The Pickhill Churchwardens' Accounts tell us that Grace Daggett subscribed twopence for the poor in 1680 and a penny in 1689.

William II (1669-1700).

      Information about our ancestors before 1700 is very difficult to find. This William was baptised in Pickhill on 11th February 1669, the son of Michael and Grace. The next reference to him is in the Pickhill Register for December 1694 which records the burial of "Anne, wife of Willa Daggett de Roxby". No record of the marriage has been found in the district. (To confuse matters, we know that another William of Roxby was born in 1661 and married Elizabeth - of Aynderby in 1684.They had eight children between 1685 and 1709. The bride's name is missing from the register and even the Christian name of William Daggett in very indistinct..)

      After the death of Anne, our William married again two years later, when he was 27. His second wife was Ann Harrison of "Coseby", by whom he had a son George the following year. There is a small village or hamlet about nine miles north-east of Pickhill now called Cowesby, which must have been where this Ann came from. William II had an Uncle William, Michael's elder brother. He was known as William Daggett Senior and he died in Pickhill in 1692. He contributed sixpence - quite a tidy sum then - to the poor in 1678. Two years later he reduced this to threepence and was joined by William junior (i.e.William II) who added fourpence.William II paid twopence into this fund in 1791. He was churchwarden in 1689 at the early age of 20 and again in 1693.

      William II died in February 1700, four months before his second son, William III, was born. The latter's mother Ann had a further son baptised at Pickhill in1704. He was variously entered as "John Simpson bastard child of Ann Daggett of Roxby" and "John Dagget or Simpson, son of Ann Dagget".