St. Valentine's Day was an important day for my ancestors. 232 years ago my 5xGreat Grandfather John Wait (1765-1831) married Ann Wheatley (1766-1840) on the 14th February 1790, at St. Luke's Church in Old Street, Finsbury.
What a romantic day to be wed! In between working for my clients, I like to look at the world in which my ancestors lived. During this period, Valentine cards started to be sent. Initially, they were made by hand as pre-made cards were manufactured later. They consisted of lines of poetry decorated with flowers and love knots. An early hand-made Valentine puzzle, dating from the year of John and Ann's marriage, is shown.
Exactly a year later, John and Ann Wait’s first child was born. Their son, William was born on 14th February 1791 and baptised at Holywell Mount Chapel on the 10th March of that year. He was given the middle name Valentine.
William doesn't appear to have married, but when he died in 1857 he left a Will that showed he had been a reasonably wealthy barrister's clerk. Listed amongst his possessions were a mahogany Elizabethan bedstead and various silver-plated cutlery. He left his best clothes to his brother John Wait (1797-1868) - my 4xGreat Grandfather.
William Valentine Wait was buried on February 7th 1857 in St James Cemetery, Swain's Lane, Highgate, London. But his name would live on. When his brother John Wait had a second son on 31 May 1822, he was baptised William Valentine Wait.
