Michael Hinton Castle

Michael Hinton Castle counterclaimed with Charles Cave of London on two estates belonging or recently belonging to the Pickering family, as owners-in-fee of Palmiste and as assignees of the mortgagees in possession on Cascade. These two estates were shown in an 1828 codicil to the will of Isaac Pickering (q.v.) to have been mortgaged to Philip & George Protheroe of Bristol, and it is possible that Castle and Cave had advanced credit to the Protheroes on the security of the latters' interest in these estates.

1. Michael Hinton Castle, son of Robert Castle and Deborah, was baptised 27/07/1785 at the Dissenting Church, Hatherleigh, Devon. Rubinstein has Michael Castle (1763-1821), a distiller in Bristol, and a son Michael [also d. 1845] as a distiller; Rubinstein also has Catherine Castle of Stapleton Bristol, leaving £120,000. Catherine Castle appears incorrectly identified by Rubinstein as the daughter of Michael Castle and Deborah Kiddell, who married in 1806 in London - in fact Catherine Kiddell (widow of Stapleton whose will was proved in 1823) married Michael Castle, brother of Robert and uncle of Michael Hinton Castle, in London in 1806 and their only child was also called Catherine (spinster of Stapleton who died 11/12/1834 age 22 and whose will was proved in 1835). Rubinstein's 'son Michael' must be an error for Michael Hinton Castle: Michael Hinton Castle was Michael Castle's nephew.

2. Castles & Ames were distillers, partners were Robert Castle, John Ames and Michael Castle in 1793.

3. Michael Hinton Castle's first wife was Susan Smith, daughter of John Christmas Smith and Charlotte Maria Bearsley; they married in Clifton, Gloucestershire, 27/08/1808. An online blog relates the story of Susan's family who were wine merchants in Oporto, Portugal and Bristol, England.

4. No death for Susan Castle had been found but on 17/02/1816 Michael Hinton Castle remarried, to Frances Boddam, daughter of Rawson Hart Boddam (1734-1812), Governor of Bombay. Another online blog (of the same series as 3., above) relates the story of Frances's family and their connections with India. Michael and Frances had four children: Tudor (baptised 13/04/1817 in St Andrews, Clifton), Boddam (born 06/01/1819 and baptised at Lewin's Mead Unitarian Church, Bristol), Fanny (born 14/09/1821, baptised at Lewin's Mead) and Susan (born 30/10/1825, baptised at Lewin's Mead). Frances died shortly after the birth of Susan in 1825.

5. Michael Hinton Castle's third marriage was to Mary Helen Gordon on 12/06/1828 in Clifton, Gloucestershire. Mary Helen Gordon was the daughter of John Gordon and Catherine nee Hering (both q.v.). Mary Helen's sister Catherine Gordon (1798-1869) married Sir William Miles (1797-1878), the son of Philip John Miles (q.v., 1773-1845) and brother of Philip William Skynner Miles (q.v., 1816-1881). Michael Hinton Castle and Mary Helen Gordon had five daughters: Kate (born 13/0/1829), Ellen (born 29/01/1832), Mary (born 22/06/1833), Mary Rose (born 10/06/1836) and Alice (baptised 14/09/1839). All the daughters were baptised at Lewin's Mead.

6. Records of second baptisms have been found for two of Michael Hinton Castle's children: Susan (daughter of his second wife Frances) was baptised for a second time in Silchester, Hampshire, 28/02/1846 and Alice (daughter of Mary Helen) was baptised for a second time at Abbots Leigh (Holy Trinity), Somerset, 15/03/1853.

7. Michael Hinton Castle was registered at Clifton, Gloucestershire in 1830 and as a Distiller of Milk Street, Parish of St Paul, Gloucestershire, 1837.

8. M.H. Castle, Distiller, age 56, was living at Stapleton in Gloucestershire in the census of 1841 with his wife Mary age 38, children and servants. Death of Michael Hinton Castle registered Q1 1845 Clifton, Gloucestershire.

9. Michael Hinton Castle was a Liberal Councillor in Bristol, 1835-1839 and 1841-1845 and left £35,000 on his death in 1845.

10. Michael Hinton Castle's first cousin Deborah (1816-1902, daughter of Thomas Castle who was brother of Michael Hinton's father Robert) married Sir John Bowring (1792–1872). Both were prominent Unitarians.

T71/894 Trinidad claim nos. 1063 (Cascade) and 1867 (Palmiste).

1. Familysearch.org batch no. C06412-1. William D. Rubinstein, Who were the rich? A biographical dictionary of British wealth-holders Volume One 1809-1839 (London, Social Affairs Unit, 2009) references 1821/31 and 1835/8. Marriage of Michael Castle of the Parish of St Philip & Jacob in Bristol and Catherine Kiddell of St Peter Cornill, 07/05/1806 at Ancestry.com, London, England, Marriages and Banns, 1754-1921 [database online]. Will of Catherine Castle, spinster, 1823 PROB 11/1677/412. Will of Catherine Castle, spinster, 1835 PROB 11/1841/113. For more on the will of the younger Catherine and intrigue about who she left her money to see http://talltalesfromthetrees.blogspot.co.uk/2011/06/catherine-castle-1812-1834-and-reading.html [accessed 16/04/2013].

2. Boulton & Watt Engines: Gloucester http://www.gsia.org.uk/boulton-watt.php [accessed 22/01/2013].

3. Ancestry.com, England & Wales Marriages, 1538-1940 [database online]. http://talltalesfromthetrees.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/susan-smith-1783-1814-and-good-glass-of.html [accessed 16/04/2013].

4. Ancestry.com, England & Wales Marriages, 1538-1940 [database online]. http://talltalesfromthetrees.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/fanny-boddam-1796-1825-and-boddam-of.html [accessed 16/04/2013]. Familysearch.org batch no. C17091-1.

5. Ancestry.com, England & Wales Marriages, 1538-1940 [database online]. Familysearch.org batch no. C17091-1.

6. Familysearch.org batch no. I02930-8 and digital folder no. 4277929.

7. Ancestry.com, UK, Poll Books and Electoral Registers, 1538-1893 [database online].

8. 1841 census online. FreeUKGen, England and Wales Free BMD Database, Deaths, 1837-1983 [database online].

9. Graham Bush, Bristol and its Municipal Government, 1820-1851 (Bristol, Bristol Record Society, 1976) pp. 27-28, 119, 149 and 235.

10. ODNB entries for Deborah Castle http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/56282 and Sir John Bowing http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/3087?docPos=1. Sir John Bowring in the Dictionary of Unitarian and Universalist Biography, http://www25.uua.org/uuhs/duub/articles/sirjohnbowring.html [all accessed 16/04/2013].

We are grateful to Victoria Wisternoff and Ruth Hecht for their assistance with compiling this entry.