Page 38 - ‘A Blaker Family History’ The family history of Joseph Blaker (1916-2007; ‘Joe’)

© The Blaker Society
© The Blaker Society

6.11 Richard Blaker (1643-1696): Son of Richard Blaker (1611-1672) and
Mary Randell ( -1669)
Born: c. 1643, Sussex
Married: 16 December 1673, aged 30 years, married Dorothy Beckley; St. Mary
Magdalene Church, Bolney, Sussex
Died: September 1696
Buried: 4 September 1696, St Mary Magdelene, Bolney, Sussex

Richard was one of 2 children born to Richard and Mary Blaker.

Very little is known about Richard. He was granted Administration of his father’s
estate in 1672 – his father, Richard Blaker (1611-1672) having died intestate.

In 1673, Richard married Dorothy Beckley.

6.11.1 Dorothy Beckley (1644-1698)
Born: c. 1644
Married: 16 December 1673, married Richard Blaker; St. Mary Magdalene
Church, Bolney, Sussex
Died: 1698
Buried: 1 March 1698, St. Mary Magdelene Church, Bolney, Sussex

Nothing is known about Dorothy until her marriage to Richard Blaker in 1673.
The transcription of her marriage record in the parish register denotes her as
‘Dorothy Blechly’ – it is not known if this is a transcription error.

6.11.2 Richard Blaker and Dorothy Beckley
Richard and Dorothy appear to have lived in Bolney, Sussex. They had at least
one child:
• Richard: b. 1677, Bolney, Sussex

Richard’s Will, dated 16 May 1696, described him as a ‘Yeoman of Bolney’, and
provided that he ‘heirs all his lands in Bolney called Gravehurst, alias Gravenhurst,
containing 3a 0r 32p, and also all his goods, to his loving wife, Dorothy, and made
her sole executrix’. The 1896 map of Bolney shows ‘Gravenhurst’ as a named area
of land west of Boney. In the 1890s, Henry Courage (a member of the ‘Courage’
brewing dynasty) owned ‘Gravenhurst’ (now Farney Close) in the 1890s and had
a private cricket pitch on the south side of what is now the A272 road. It is not
clear how much of this land was owned by Richard Blaker.

Richard died in 1696, leaving Dorothy was a widow. Richard was buried in the
churchyard of St. Mary Magdelene, Bolney.

Dorothy was described in 1697 as ‘Dorothy of Bolney’. In 1698, Dorothy died
intestate. She was buried in the churchyard of St. Mary Magdelene, Bolney. The
exact location of her grave is not known.