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John Freeman

1804–1866

Born
5 Dec 1804, Kensington
Country of birth
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, today United Kingdom
Died
26 Aug 1866, Zurich
facts
6
sources
1
images and files
0

Facts and their sources

Tap a fact to see where it comes from.

  • Birth5 Dec 1804, KensingtonProbable1 source
  • Death26 Aug 1866, ZurichProbable1 source
  • UnionSophie de BlonayConfirmed1 source

A life in time

  1. Born · Kensington

    Birth, Kensington

  2. Died · Zurich

    Death, Zurich

What was it like?

The world around Kensington, 1804: who ruled, who else was alive, how people lived. This is general history, not a record about the family, and every item shows where it comes from.

John was born the same year as Benjamin Disraeli, Richard Owen, and George Sand.

Born the same year

  • Benjamin Disraeli

    British statesman (1804–1881)

  • Richard Owen

    English biologist and paleontologist (1804–1892)

  • George Sand

    French novelist and memoirist (1804–1876)

  • Michael Glinka

    Russian composer (1804–1857)

  • Johann Strauss I

    Austrian Romantic composer

  • Franklin Pierce

    president of the United States from 1853 to 1857

Fashion

Essential wardrobe of working women

Working-class women commonly wore a shift, a petticoat, and a versatile bedgown, often accessorized with a neck handkerchief, an apron, and a cap for indoor wear.

Everyday attire of working men

Working men typically wore a shirt, waistcoat, heavy wool coat, handkerchief, stockings, and a hat, with breeches being common until trousers gained popularity after 1800.

Music

Festival rewards

Festival participants like pace-eggers often went from house to house singing and dancing, hoping to be rewarded with items such as eggs and strong beer.

Popular dance instrument

The tabor and pipe, featuring a small drum and a single-handed three-holed pipe, remained a popular and enduring instrument for dance bands well into the 1820s.

Getting around

Comparing stage-wagon and stagecoach speeds

Stage-wagons, which were the slow trucks of the era, charged about one penny per mile and could take nearly three days to cover 101 miles. In contrast, by 1800, a fast stagecoach could cover 168 miles in 32 hours.

Walking was the primary travel method

For most ordinary people, walking was the primary mode of transport, as stagecoaches and hired horses were often too expensive. Pedestrians typically traveled at an average speed of 3 mph, rarely exceeding 20 miles in a single day.

Daily life

Cooking and Baking Habits

In some households, families without a private oven sent their bread and cake mixes to a local bakery, marking them with their initials to identify them. Cooking ranges heated by coal were used, with water heated in kettles hung over the fire or in boilers behind the coal fire.

School Discipline and Enrollment Statistics

Discipline in early schools included harsh punishments such as putting a sluggard in a basket and hoisting it up to the ceiling by a rope. In 1818, about 605,704 children out of two million were enrolled in schools across the country.

Food
Around 1801–1801

Government Banned Sale of Fresh Bread

Following a bread shortage, the government passed the 1801 Stale Bread Act, which banned the sale of fresh bread to ensure people ate it only after it was 24 hours old, as stale bread was more filling.

Cheap Gin Available for the Poor

During the Gin Craze, poor Londoners could get drunk for a penny or become dead drunk for twopence, leading to high levels of gin consumption among the lower classes.

Prices and wages

Cost of a loaf of bread

A four-pound loaf of wheaten bread typically cost between six and ten pence during this period.

Shoemaking and prices of boots

A pair of boots could be made in a single day, with Blucher boots costing one shilling and threepence.

Work

Memorable work facts

Squatters could claim land rights if they built a cottage overnight and had smoke coming from the chimney by morning. Night-soil men disposed of human waste from pits and buckets under the cover of darkness.

Primary occupations of the era

Agriculture and domestic service were the largest employers, while many children worked as messengers, errand boys, or in cottage industries like lace-making.

News and letters
Around 1812–1812

Expensive recipient-paid postage

Postal charges were expensive and paid by the recipient, with a letter from London to Brighton costing 8d in 1812.

During their lifetime

  1. 1816

    Economic crisis and emigration, 1816-1817

    Switzerland experienced significant economic crisis in 1816 and 1817, forcing many people to emigrate to find new opportunities.

  2. 1832

    Uster factory fire in 1832

    In 1832, home workers burned down the new Corrodi & Pfister factory in Uster to protest the introduction of mechanical looms.

  3. 1840

    Introduction of the Penny Post

    The Uniform Penny Post was introduced in 1840, making mail affordable and leading to a five-fold increase in sent letters.

  4. 1847

    First Swiss railway line opened, 1847

    The first railway line in Switzerland opened in 1847, marking the start of a major transformation in transport and economic growth.

  5. 1850

    Introduction of the Swiss franc in 1850

    In 1850, Switzerland adopted the Swiss franc as a single national currency, replacing various local cantonal currencies.

  6. 1852

    1852 Railway Act promotes industrial growth

    The 1852 Railway Act empowered private companies to build Switzerland's rail network, which became a vital driver of industrial modernization.

Family

Spouses

Children

Ancestors and children

Open the full tree

Four generations back to the right, the children to the left. The number beside a child counts the generations of descendants known after them.