This Samuel HOOKINS was born on Christmas Day 1852 in Kings Brompton. He was the 2nd of 11 children born to William HOOKINS and his wife Charlotte (nee FARMER). His baptism, recorded as HOOKINGS, took place at the Blessed Virgin Mary Church in Brompton Regis just 4 days after his birth. He therefore first appears in the Census returns in 1861 with the family name given as HOOKINGS. The family were at Great Smallmoor in Kings Brompton where Samuel lived with his parents and 4 siblings.
By 1871, again under the HOOKINGS name, Samuel was an indoor servant at Vinnicombe towards Exeter with the family of James QUICK whilst his own family lived a few miles away in the hamlet of Bury.
On 25 September 1873 Samuel married Margaret Hannah HOWE at Kings Brompton Parish Church. At that stage Samuel is described as a Miner. Margaret already had a son, Henry WOOD born 1871, whose father was John WOOD. Further children were born as a result of Samuel's union with Margaret - William born as HOOKINGS in Kings Brompton in 1875, Elizabeth born in Luxborough in 1877, and James born Brendon Hill in 1879.
The HOOKINGS name continues in the 1881 Census where Samuel is living at Brendon Hill, Old Cleeve with Margaret + Henery (spelling) now taking the HOOKINGS name, William, Elizabeth and James. Two more children, John in 1881, and George in 1885 were born before the next Census in 1891 where we find that Samuel had moved his family to the South Wales coalfields to pursue his mining career. He lived at Nailers Cottage in Risca with Margaret and all 6 children.
However a change of career seems to have happened at some time during the next 10 years as by the 1901 Census Samuel HOOKINGS was an Innkeeper in Risca where he lived with Margaret and 4 of their children. Daughter Elizabeth had married in 1895. Henry is now using his mother's maiden name of HOWE which he continues to use when with his own family in the 1911 Census.
Margaret died in April 1902 in Newport at which time Samuel was the Innkeeper of the Western Valleys Inn in Pontymeister. Samuel remarried in 1903 as HOOKINGS with his wife Elizabeth WILSON being 20 years his junior.
After his mining days and subsequent dabbling in the pub trade, Samuel makes a further random career diversion for, by 1911 he is a Fish Fryer living with Elizabeth at 29 Clive Road in Cardiff!
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