In this final episode of Series Five ‘The Shoemaker’, host Andrew meets professional genealogist, speaker, blogger, and One-Place Studier, Kelly Cornwell.

Andrew finds out how Kelly got hooked on family history, and why she chose to go professional. He also hears about her very niche One-Place Study in a Court, within a Lane, within a District of London!

Listen to the episode

Also available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube Music, and others…

The Life Story: Rebecca Monksfield

Kelly has chosen Rebecca Monksfield – her 5x Great Aunt (the sister of her paternal 4x Great Grandfather George Monksfield) of Shoreditch, London.

Rebecca was born to blacksmith Joseph and shoemaker Rebecca Monksfield senior. Rebecca junior took up work alongside her mother as a shoemaker working for Thomas Deeble Dutton. She would go to the nearby shoe factory, collect materials, and then make the shoes at home. Times were extraordinarily hard, and with multiple siblings, including triplets, money, clothing, and food will have no doubt been hard to afford or obtain, amongst the many other families who lived in these severely impoverished streets of London.

After researching in newspapers, Kelly realised that in 1829 Rebecca junior had tried a more profitable area of the shoemaking industry – theft from her employer. According to records found in the newspapers and Old Bailey Online Rebecca stole shoes from her employer’s factory at night, and then received money after pawning them in her local pawn shops. Eventually, one of the pawn shop staff questioned her actions, triggering a series of events that would see young Rebecca transported to the island of Tasmania off the south east coast of Australia for seven years.

Was she a good person acting in desperation, or was she a bad person with a criminal habit? Kelly tells Andrew what she thinks…

The Brick Wall: Rebecca Monksfield

Sticking with her convict relative Rebecca Monksfield, Kelly needs some help to complete Rebecca’s story.

Thanks to the help of the Tasmanian archives, Kelly has been able to trace Rebecca’s time at a house of correction, and her onward employment as a servant. However, after several further brushes with controversy and re-admittance to the house of correction, Rebecca is finally free.

For some reason, Rebecca doesn’t collect her certificate of freedom from the authorities, and vanishes without a trace.

Her last known appearance is in Hobart, Tasmania in 1836. Can you help Kelly find Rebecca’s next steps?

• Did Rebecca Monksfield die shortly after 1836?
• Did she marry?
• Did she give herself a new name in hope of a fresh start?
• Did she return home, or travel elsewhere?

If you think you can help Kelly with a research clue or idea, then you can email her via the address given in the episode, or you can reach out to her at her website, Twitter, or Facebook. Of course, alternatively, you can send us a message over at our contact form and we’ll pass it on.

In the meantime, Kelly jumps at the chance of some help from Andrew, but something very strange is about to happen…

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Resources

A list of resources and websites mentioned in this episode;

• https://www.ancestry.co.uk – Ancestry
• https://www.balh.org.uk – British Association For Local History
• https://convictrecords.com.au – Convict Records of Australia
• https://foundersandsurvivors.com – Founders & Survivors
• https://search.lma.gov.uk – London Metropolitan Archives
• https://www.myheritage.com – MyHeritage
• https://www.oldbaileyonline.org – Old Bailey Online
• https://www.one-place-studies.org – Society for One-Place Studies
• https://www.pharostutors.com – Pharos Tutors
• ‘The Butcher’ with George Hall – The Family Histories Podcast
• The Floating Brothel: The Extraordinary True Story of an Eighteenth-century Ship and Its Cargo of Female Convicts – Siân Rees, 2002

Episode Credits:
Series Five, Episode Seven

• Andrew Martin – Host and Producer
• Kelly Cornwell – Guest
• Daniel Loftus – Guest