The Russ Family

The 'Russ' surname can be found in just about every Sutton Benger document from the 1600s to the 1900s; there seem to have been Russ families in the village - and surrounding villages - throughout recorded history. Fortunately for the amateur historian and genealogist they have left quite a few Wills over the years, enabling the creation of a Family Tree that spans about 500 years and covers hundreds of individuals.

And as part of the research, small 'stories' come to light. Like the following.

Francis Russ the Bankrupt Butcher

There were several generations of butchers in the Russ family, from John Russ (1605-1655) to his son, Francis Russ (1625-1680) to his son, Francis Russ (1650-1705). It looks like the younger Francis Russ was not a very successful butcher, or simply not a very good businessman, because when he died he seems to have left his wife with a few debts. In fact, he wasn't even well-organise enough to leave a Will behind, and died intestate.

Probate in the 'good old days' was handled by the Church Court; and Francis' widow, Joan, felt the need to write to the Diocese asking to be excused from the task of being Executrix to her husband's estate, because there were more debts than assets. And she delegated the task to a friend who just happened to be one of the people owed money by her late husband. To use her own words: ... well knowing my said late husband’s debts to amount to much more in value than the personall estate he hath left ... do hereby renounce and absolutely refuse to take on me the burthen of the Administration of my said late husband’s goods & chattels.

The Diocese agreed to pass the task to Nicholas Daniel. And he, together with the appraisers, seems to have been involved in some wheeling and dealing on Joan's behalf. Because the value of items in the Inventory is much lower than in other similar inventories of the time; this perhaps enabled Joan to hold on to many of the household goods, rather than having to sell them to pay off the debts. The appraisers even added unusual comments on the various items, such as ... One old bedstead & very ordinary bedding, a few ordinary napkins ... & other lumber not worth naming. Note that one item that was worth naming was a pile of dung with a value of 5 shillings.

Walter Russ

Walter Russ was the late Francis' son. He made the sensible decision not to be a butcher, and was an ordinary yeoman farmer. While most members of the family had from 4 to 12, or even more, children at that time, Walter was in his late 40s before he got married. This was perhaps a business arrangement rather than a love match. His wife was probably about 10 years younger than him, and was a widow. One can imagine the scenario: she had some money, he had a house, and could benefit by having a housekeeper as he got older.

We know that she had some money, because she came to the marriage with a £30 dowry - worth around £5,000 today. And we know that, because he became ill and died just a couple of years after getting married. But before he died, he wrote a Will and included a clause to stipulate that his wife's dowry was to be paid as bequests to his nieces.

But she still got a good deal out of it; under the traditions of the Manor Court, she would have inherited the house for the rest of her life. And she managed to live for another 20 years, a very contented lady who had seen off 2 husbands. Although I don’t know where she slept. Ever one to have a good laugh, Walter had also included bequests in his Will to give away the Best Bed, the Bedstead of Oak, and the Guest Bed. What a joker he was.

PS. Just to continue the minor theme of dung; Walter also gave a bequest to his cousin (also called Francis) which included a dung pot - an essential tool of the trade for an eighteenth century farmer.