Hibbitt & Barnes Family History Blog

Whilst away recently on a short break, hubby and I took the opportunity to stop off at the quaint village of Curry Rivel on our return journey. Tucked away in the Somerset countryside, the village features a church, parts of which date back to the Norman period, a village green and some lovely character properties.

St Andrew’s Church, Curry Rivel

Curry Rivel was the home of my Weaver family for centuries; my 6 x great-grandparents, John Weaver and Mary Fidoe, married in St Andrew’s Church on 5th August 1745 and there is evidence of numerous generations of Weavers living there before them. I’ve been reluctant to include these generations in my tree without further documentation but I may revisit this again some time in the future and take a view.

Whilst exploring the churchyard I happened upon three Weaver headstones, one of which belonged to my 4 x great-grandparents, Robert Weaver and his wife, Sarah nee Street. Robert and Sarah were 80 and 82 years old respectively when they passed away.

The headstone of Robert Weaver and his wife, Sarah, nee Street

Inside the church, on the War Memorial board I saw the name of my great-grandfather, Henry James Weaver. Someone had taken the trouble to compile a folder entitled, “Men of Curry Rivel Who Died in the Great War 1914-1918”. Killed in September 1916, Henry had stood or knelt at the altar of this same church only nine months earlier when he’d married his bride, Florence Smale.

The altar inside St Andrew’s Church, Curry Rivel

I wrote in the visitor’s book and, at the last minute, I went back and added my email address. By a strange co-incidence, three days later, I received an email from the great-grand-daughter of one of Henry’s sisters who had just visited the church and had seen my message.

A committee which was formed in 1919, decided the main village War Memorial should be situated “on the roadside, on the King’s highway, so that not only the inhabitants of this district could see it, but also all those who passed by on that road …” Henry is remembered on this memorial which was dedicated at a moving service attended by the whole village on 7th November 1920. I have no idea if there were any representatives from the Smale side of the family (his widow and child lived in Tavistock in West Devon) but I would imagine Henry’s parents, and perhaps some of his siblings, would have been present.

The War Memorial at Curry Rivel

My gran, Phyllis Grace Geake, nee Weaver (Henry and Florence’s daughter), lost touch with her father’s side of the family after she was orphaned when she was quite small. Later, in 1939, she travelled to Curry Rivel from her home in Tavistock with my mum who was then a baby, to see if she could find family. She asked someone whether there were any Weavers still in the village and was directed to the home of her Uncle Dick (Richard Arthur Weaver) and his wife, Alice, nee Trott. To my gran’s amazement, the person who came to the door was her 91 year old grandfather, William Henry Weaver (1848-1944). They were both thrilled – my gran hadn’t known the old man was still alive.

If you enjoyed reading this post, you may like to take a moment to view the short video I took during my brief visit.