Charles Boughen and David Bates
On 21 October 1870 Charles Boughen aged 19, a farm labourer, walked to the bone mill to take dinner to his cousin David Bates. Whilst there he offered to help the workmen who were digging out manure from a 12 ft high heap. As Charles was filling a skip, the heap gave way and a large quantity of ground up manure fell on him, knocking him over and injuring him. He was taken home and despite the care of the doctor he died the same night. It had only been the end of the previous year that Charles’ mother Phoebe had died and been buried in Narborough churchyard where Charles was also buried on 24 October 1870.
Charles had been born in 1851, the son of William Boughen of Narborough and Phoebe (nee Bates). Phoebe’s brother James, who had married Hannah Hobbles in 1838, were the parents of David Bates, who was the cousin Charles had been taking the food to.
The Boughen family lived at The Meadows, in Narborough. Before his birth, Charles’ parents and their two daughters can be found on the 1851 census and by 1861, Charles is now there with his family, and two of his sisters aged 16 and 19 are listed as working in the field and Charles’ father William is an agricultural labourer.
On the 1881 census, William, a widower for 12 years is aged 70, still working as a labourer and living with a son and daughter in Everett’s cottages, the Meadows in Narborough. William lived to the age of 85 and was buried in 1895 in Narborough churchyard.
Charles’ cousin David who on the 1871 census aged 23 can be found living with his parents in Narborough and working as a Corn Porter. In 1881 David, now working as a carpenter is living at The Row in Narborough with his wife Lavinia (nee Dye). By 1891 he and Lavinia are living at Glebe Cottage in Narborough.
On the 1911 census the couple can be found living in Hastings Buildings in Pentney. The record tells us they never had children and were married in 1877. Ten years on, in 1921, they are living at Crossways, Pentney. David is 73 and a retired old aged pensioner, he dies in 1929.
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