Landed families of Britain and Ireland

This site, which was short-listed for the Society of Architectural Historians (GB) Colvin Prize in 2019, presents my research into the landowning families of the British Isles and the country houses which they owned. Comments, especially in the form of corrections, additional information or new illustrations, are very welcome. Please use the Contact Form in the right hand side bar to contact me privately or the comments facility at the bottom of the page to make a public comment.

Wednesday, 8 October 2025

(614) Bickley of Attleborough, baronets

Bickley of Attleborough

"Rags to rags in three generations" is said to be the fate of many families who come suddenly into comparative wealth, and it applies pretty closely in the case of the Bickleys of Attleborough. We know little about their antecedents, but the Visitation of Warwickshire in 1682-83 recorded that Francis Bickley (c.1545-1603), with whom the genealogy below begins, descended from a younger brother of Bickleys of Bickley, who were a minor gentry family in late medieval Devon. Other sources suggest Francis was a younger son of Henry Bickley (1503-70) of Chidham (Sussex), but since there was no Francis on the list of 'my sons' which Henry included in his will, this seems unlikely. Francis was evidently a farmer, and settled at Lolworth (Cambs), where he married Amy Mayres in 1573, and over the next fifteen years they had five sons and three daughters, who all survived to maturity. The eldest son, the Rev. John Bickley (1575-1628) went into the church and became rector of Sandy (Beds.); the second son, Robert (b. 1581), probably inherited most of his father's lands; and the third son, Francis Bickley (1583-1670), was apprenticed to a London draper and obtained his freedom in 1608. It was Francis who made the family fortune through his successful London business as a draper and merchant taylor. He rose through his livery company to become its Master in 1646-47, and in 1649 became an Alderman of the City of London, although he was never chosen as Lord Mayor. Alongside his career in the city, he invested in land. His first purchase was a large house at Dalston (Middx) called Beldames, which he retained until 1667. Soon afterwards he bought the manor of Over (Cambs), but he sold this again c.1636 before leasing the manors of Caxton and Longstowe (Cambs) c.1638 and going on to purchase their freeholds in 1649. His standing in Cambridgeshire was sufficient for him to be chosen as High Sheriff in 1647-48, but in 1655 he sold all his property in that county and bought the manor of Attleborough (Norfk), where he may have remodelled the manor house. His house in London was in the parish of St Antholin, Budge Row, London - long a centre for Puritan teaching - and since all his children were baptised there it is likely that he held Puritan views, but he seems to have preserved a careful neutrality through the Civil War, and after the restoration of King Charles II, he was quick to purchase a baronetcy in 1661.

Sir Francis Bickley died at an advanced age in 1670 (his funerary monument says he was 'nearly 90' but he was actually 87), and his estates passed to his eldest son, Sir Francis Bickley (1622-81), 2nd bt., who was raised as a gentleman through education at Oxford and Grays Inn, though at least one of his brothers was apprenticed to a London merchant. The 2nd baronet married the daughter of a London and Norwich merchant, who must have had a constitution of iron, since she bore him fifteen children in twenty-three years, although only ten of them can be shown to have reached maturity. If his father had not provided Attleborough Hall with new brick walls, he must have done so, but his position as head of the family was only to last for eleven years, for he died in 1681. He was succeeded by his eldest son, Sir Francis Bickley (1644-87), 3rd bt., who was given a similar education to his father, but at the age of nineteen married Deborah (d. 1670), the daughter of the famous Dutch drainage engineer, Sir Cornelius Vermuyden (1595-1677), kt. After Deborah's death he married Mary (d. 1686), the daughter of Sir Humphrey Winch (1622-1703), 1st bt., of Hawnes (Beds) and Braunston (Lincs). Both were more socially advantageous marriages than his father's, but by the end of his life he was in serious financial difficulties. His eldest son and successor, Sir Francis Bickley (1668-1746), 4th bt. also married well, to Alathea (d. 1740), daughter of Sir Jacob Garrard, 1st bt., of Langford Hall (Norfk), a successful London merchant, who brought him two manors (Bretts and Ickburgh). As early as 1692, however, Le Neve recorded 'no child yet living, the estate sold; he not worth anything, my lady works plain work for her living'. He probably overstated their destitution, for Bretts was not sold until 1709 and Sir Francis was apparently still lord of Ickburgh in 1738; the estate passing at his death through Alathea's family to Sir Jacob Garrard Downing (c.1717-64), 4th bt. After the sale of Attleborough, the Bickleys seem to have lived with Alathea's family at Langford, although they continued to be buried in their vault at Attleborough.

Sir Francis and Alathea had no surviving children, so on his death in 1746 the baronetcy passed to his half-brother, the Rev. Sir Humphrey Bickley (1676?-1752), 5th bt., the rector of Attleborough, who died unmarried. The youngest of the 3rd baronet's sons, Joseph Bickley (c.1680-1751), had emigrated to Virginia before 1703, and it is not clear whether he and his descendants remained in contact with the family in England. At all events, Joseph's son does not seem to have claimed the baronetcy after Sir Humphrey's death, and it was instead assumed - on the grounds of what relationship is unknown - by a clergyman called Samuel Bickley, who was chaplain to the garrison at Sheerness (Kent) in 1754 and vicar of Bapchild (Kent), 1759-64. According to Lysons' Environs of London, he 'dishonoured a respectable family by crimes which involved him in distress and infamy', and for which he suffered 'a disgraceful punishment at Lincoln'. He evidently remained a clergyman and probably held curacies in Lincolnshire after being dismissed from Bapchild. Newspapers in 1773 carried testimonials to his conduct from several Lincolnshire clergymen and he is known to have sought relief from the Bishop of Lincoln, but he died without issue 'in great poverty at the King's Head Inn, Enfield' (Middx) in 1773. He evidently had antiquarian interests and a manuscript about the history of Kent was sold at auction after his death. His claim to the baronetcy seems to have been unquestioned at the time, and he was described as 'baronet' in the parish register of Enfield where he was buried on 29 July 1773, but it seems unlikely that he had a well-founded claim.

Attleborough Hall, Norfolk

This is a medieval moated site (though the moat has largely been filled in except on the south side), with an Elizabethan semi-timbered house on the platform which was encased or partly rebuilt in brick in the later 17th century.

Attleborough Hall: the house from the south-east, with the bridge and deep moat in the foreground.
Image: David R. Wickham/Historic England.

The manor belonged to the Radcliffes, Earls of Sussex from 1529, and although they had grander properties elsewhere, the 2nd Earl, who died in 1557, requested to be buried at Attleborough and therefore presumably felt a connection with the place. Nothing coherent is known about the medieval house that stood here, although some walls have been excavated in the past. It seems to have been replaced in Elizabethan times by a semi-timbered hall house with cross-wings, of which some internal walls and four 16th century bridging beams in the kitchen survive. At the same time the moat, which is 60 ft wide and very deep, was revetted in flint and brick, and the present bridge over the moat was constructed.

The outer walls of the house were all rebuilt in brick by Sir Francis Bickley (1583-1670) or his son, Sir Francis Bickley (1622-81). The Bickleys also laid out an impressive avenue leading to the house from the south (which was truncated by the building of the A11 Attleborough bypass). The present open-well staircase, which rises through three storeys to the attic and has a moulded string and handrail, turned balusters and square newels, was also constructed at this time. There is a good deal of other 17th century work surviving in the interior, including the panelled dado and deep moulded coving in the sitting room, and an upper bedroom with two walls of moulded panelling painted to initate marble, extending over the fireplace and enclosing an Arcadian painting as an overmantel. Later alterations to the house include the replacement of most of the windows with early 19th century sashes, and the insertion of a new drawing room fireplace of c.1830.

Descent: Robert Radcliffe (c.1483-1542), 1st Baron Fitzwalter and later 1st Earl of Sussex; to son, Sir Henry Radcliffe (c.1507-57), 2nd Earl of Sussex; to son, Thomas Radcliffe (c.1525-83), 3rd Earl of Sussex; to widow, Frances (d. 1589), for life and then to brother, Henry Radcliffe (c.1532-93), 4th Earl of Sussex; to son, Robert Radcliffe (1573-1629), 5th Earl of Sussex; to kinsman, Sir Alexander Ratcliffe; to son, John Ratcliffe; sold c.1656 to Sir Francis Bickley (c.1580-1670), 1st bt.; to son, Sir Francis Bickley (1622-81), 2nd bt.; to son, Sir Francis Bickley (1644-87), 3rd bt.; to son, Sir Francis Bickley (1669-1746), 4th bt., who sold, perhaps by 1692, to Mary, Lady Ashe (d. 1705); to Joseph Windham (later Windham Ashe) (1683-1746)... Rev. Sir Edward Smijth (later Bowyer Smijth) (1785-1850), 10th bt.; to son, Sir William Bowyer Smijth (1814-83), 11th bt.; to son, Sir William Bowyer Smijth (1840-1916), 12th bt. The house was occupied for nearly two hundred years from the 1820s by successive generations of the Salter family, including Thomas Salter (d. 1853), land agent; William Webb Salter, auctioneer and stockbreeder; Thomas Fisher Salter, auctioneer; William Herbert Salter (d. 1913), auctioneer, John E. Salter and Maj. Jack Salter (d. 2014); and is now the home of Ian Walker, a director of J. & J. Salter Ltd. The Salters appear to have acquired the freehold in the early 20th century.

Bickley family of Attleborough, baronets

Bickley, Francis (c.1545-1603). Parentage unknown*, born about 1545. He married, 13 December 1573 at Lolworth (Cambs), Amy Mayres (d. 1619), and had issue:

(1) Elizabeth Bickley (c.1574-1630), born about 1574; married, 6 January 1591/2 at Lolworth, Anthony Ashe (d. 1624) of Islington (Middx), and had issue two sons who died young; they then took in Anne, a daughter of her sister Dorothy and raised her; Elizabeth married 2nd, 1625 (licence), as his second wife, Sir Rowland Rugeley alias Ridgeley (1569-1629), kt. of Dunton Hall, Curdworth (Warks); buried at Over (Cambs), 27 November 1630; will proved in the PCC, 8 February 1630/1;
(2) Rev. John Bickley (1575-1628), baptised at Lolworth, 29 December 1575; educated at St John's and St Catherine's Colleges, Cambridge (matriculated c.1592; BA c.1595; MA 1598; BD 1605); ordained deacon, 1596 and priest, 1601; rector of Sandy (Beds), 1601-27; married, 1600 (licence), Anne Chamberlain (d. 1628)**, and had issue four sons and five daughters; buried at Sandy, 2 January 1627/8;
(3) Margaret Bickley (1576-1631), said to have been born 6 July 1576; married, 31 March 1608 at Islington (Middx), John Cosford (d. 1640) of Over (Cambs) and had issue one son and one daughter; buried at Over, 1 June 1631;
(4) Dorothy Bickley (b. 1578), baptised at Lolworth, 9 November 1578; married, 27 October 1596 at Lolworth, Thomas Stallen (d. 1647) of Over (Cambs), and had issue one son and two daughters (of whom Anne was raised by her uncle and aunt, Anthony and Elizabeth Ashe, and later married John or Richard Yorke); living in 1624 but death not traced;
(5) Robert Bickley (b. 1581), baptised at Lolworth, 15 January 1580/1; lived at Caxton (Cambs); married Jane [surname unknown] and had issue at least one son and one daughter, who evidently predeceased him; living in 1624, but death not traced;
(6) Sir Francis Bickley (1583-1670), 1st bt. (q.v.);
(7) Richard Bickley (1585-1667), baptised at Lolworth, 3 October 1585; lived at Halloughton, Nether Whitacre (Warks); married, 13 September 1618 at Kingsbury (Warks), Sarah (fl. 1670), daughter and co-heir of John Rugeley, and had issue four sons and five daughters; buried at Kingsbury, 27 October 1667;
(8) Thomas Bickley (1588-1625?), baptised at Lolworth, 2 June 1588; married, 14 May 1623 at Kingsbury, Elizabeth Spencer, and had issue two daughters; living in 1624, but possibly the man of this name buried at Kingsbury, July 1625.

He settled at Lolworth (Cambs) before 1573.

He was buried at Lolworth, 30 January 1602/3; his will was proved 16 February 1602/3. His widow died in 1619 and was buried at Over (Cambs).

* Some sources suggest he was a younger son of Henry Bickley (1503-70) of Chidham (Sussex) and his first wife, Eleanor Sonnford, but there is no mention of him in Henry's will of 1570, so this seems unlikely. The Visitation of Warwickshire, 1682-83 says that he was 'descended from a younger brother of the Bickleys of Bickley' (Devonshire). His will indicates that he was survived by two brothers, John and George Bickley. Richard Bickley, buried at Lolworth in 1594 may have been another brother, as the registers show that he was adult, who was married and had children.

** Anne was buried just six days after her husband, so it seems likely they died of an infectious disease.

Bickley, Sir Francis (1583-1670), 1st bt. Third son of Francis Bickley (c.1545-1603) of Lolworth and his wife Amy Mayres, baptised at Lolworth (Cambs), 4 February 1582/3. Apprenticed to Henry Gay of Watling St., London, draper; and made free of the city of London, 1608. A member of the Draper's Company (Liveryman, 1614; Fourth Warden, 1631; Auditor, 1637-39; Master, 1646-47). Alderman of the city of London, 1649. Like so many other prosperous London tradesmen he pursued gentility, registering his pedigree at the herald's visitation in London in 1634, buying a country estate, and finally purchasing a baronetcy from King Charles II, 3 September 1661 (he received discharge for the payment of the fee of £1,095, November 1668). He was Sheriff of Cambridgeshire, 1647-48. His attendance at St Antholin's church in London suggests he had Puritan sympathies. He married, 15 May 1615 at St Lawrence Jewry, London, Mary (d. 1635), daughter of Richard Parsons of London, and had issue:

(1) Anne Bickley (b. 1617), baptised at St Antholin, Budge Row, London, 3 August 1617; married, 11 June 1633 at St John, Hackney (Middx), Richard Edisbury (d. 1654) of London, merchant taylor, son of Kenrick Edisbury (d. 1638) of Chatham (Kent), surveyor of the Navy 1632-38, and had issue two sons; living in 1670 but death not traced;
(2) Amy Bickley (1619-57), baptised at St Antholin, Budge Row, London, 14 February 1618/19; died unmarried and was buried at St Antholin, Budge Row, London, 28 July 1657;
(3) Mary Bickley (1620-1701), baptised at St Antholin, Budge Row, London, 17 December 1620; married, 15 May 1637 at St Antholin, Budge Row, London, Thomas Hoo (d. 1649), son of William Hoo of Hoo Bury, St Paul's Walden (Herts), and had issue at least one son and one daughter; married 2nd, as his second wife, Sir Kenrick Eyton (c.1607-81), kt., of Lower Eyton (Denbighs.), judge and MP for Flintshire, 1660-61, and had further issue one son and two daughters; as a widow lived at Wrexham (Denbighs.); a nonconformist in religion, whose reputation as a 'godly woman' protected her second husband from the confiscation of his estates in the 1650s; she died 13 February 1701/2 and was buried in the nonconformist burial ground, Rhosddu Road, Wrexham, where she was commemorated by a monument; will proved at St Asaph, 30 January 1702/3;
(4) Sir Francis Bickley (1622-81), 2nd bt. (q.v.);
(5) Elizabeth Bickley (b. & d. 1624), baptised at St Antholin, Budge Row, London, 10 August 1624; died in infancy and was buried at St Antholin, Budge Row, London, 21 August 1624;
(6) Richard Bickley (d. 1626); buried at St Antholin, Budge Row, London, 2 September 1626;
(7) Thomas Bickley (1627-50), baptised at St Antholin, Budge Row, London, 2 February 1626/7; apprenticed to Thomas Adams, 1643; died unmarried and was buried at St Antholin, Budge Row, London, 14 November 1650; administration of his goods granted in the PCC, 1650;
(8) John Bickley (b. 1628), baptised at St Antholin, Budge Row, London, 10 September 1628; said to have died unmarried before 1650, but burial not traced;
(9) Elizabeth Bickley (1630-75?), baptised at St Antholin, Budge Row, London, 25 December 1630; married, 30 January 1648/9 at St John, Hackney, Col. William Beale; living in 1670 and probably the Elizabeth Beale buried at St Antholin, Budge Row, London, 17 November 1675;
(10) Margaret Bickley (b. & d. 1634), baptised at St Antholin, Budge Row, London, 24 January 1633/4; died in infancy and was buried at St Antholin, Budge Row, London, 27 January 1633/4.

He lived chiefly in London. Probably in the late 1620s he purchased a house called Beldames (later Graham House) at Dalston (Middx); this had 15 hearths in 1664. At much the same time he bought the manor of Over (Cambs), but he is said to have sold it again c.1636. He leased the manors of Caxton and Longstowe (Cambs) c.1638 and purchased the freehold in 1649, but sold them in 1655 to Sir Ralph Bovey of Hillfield Hall (Warks). In 1656 he purchased the manor of Attleborough (Norfk), and may have remodelled the manor house, but he had a previous association with Attleborough, since he petitioned the king on behalf of the town in 1639 for the granting of new letters patent for its market and fairs. He sold Beldames in 1667 to Sir Stephen White (d. 1678), and that house was rebuilt c.1800.

He died 11 August, and was buried 23 August 1670 in a vault which he had constructed in Mortimer's Chapel at Attleborough church, where he is commemorated by a monument erected by his son; his will was proved in the PCC, November 1670. His wife died 7 December 1635.

Bickley, Sir Francis (1622-81), 2nd bt. Eldest son of Sir Francis Bickley (c.1580-1670), 1st bt., and his wife Mary, daughter of Richard Parsons of London, baptised at St Antholin, Budge Row, London, 26 October 1622. Educated at University College, Oxford (matriculated 1637) and Grays Inn (admitted 1640). He married, 4 April 1643 at St Mary Bothaw, London, Mary, daughter of Ald. John Mann of Norwich and London, and had issue:

(1) Sir Francis Bickley (1644-87), 3rd bt. (q.v.);
(2) Mary Bickley (1645-56), born 22 November and baptised at St John, Hackney, 4 December 1645; died young and was buried at St Antholin, Budge Row, London, 23 July 1656;
(3) Anne Bickley (b. 1647), born 22 August and baptised at St John, Hackney, 27 August 1647;
(4) Thomas Bickley (c.1648-50), probably born about August 1648; died young and was buried at St Antholin, Budge Row, London, 14 November 1650;
(5) Amy Bickley (1649-88), baptised at St Pauls Walden (Herts), 31 August 1649; married, 7 September 1682 at Attleborough, Rev. Thomas Church, rector of Hethersett (Norfk); died 2 July 1688 and was buried at Attleborough, where she was commemorated by a monument;
(6) Elizabeth Bickley (1650-58), baptised at St Paul's Walden, 22 October 1650; died young and was buried at St Antholin, Budge Row, London, 8 June 1658;
(7) Thomas Bickley (1652-97?), baptised at St John, Hackney, 20 August 1652; buried at St Edmund King and Martyr, London, 17 November 1697; administration of goods granted to his sister Jane in the PCC, 1 December 1697;
(8) John Bickley (1654-82), baptised at Hackney, 14 March 1653/4; educated at Magdalene College, Cambridge (matriculated 1669; BA 1673; MA 1676); died unmarried and was buried at Attleborough, 19 June 1682;
(9) Richard Bickley (b. 1655), baptised at St John, Hackney, 31 December 1655; mercer in London; died unmarried; living in 1670 but death not traced;
(10) Nathaniel Bickley (b. 1657), baptised at St John, Hackney, 29 August 1657; an officer in the Duke of Norfolk's regiment (Lt.); said to have died unmarried in Ireland;
(11) Elizabeth Bickley (b. 1661), baptised at St John, Hackney (Middx), 5 February 1660/1; married, 15 June 1684 at Attleborough, John Ware (d. 1708), leather seller, of London and Chesham (Bucks); living in 1708 but death not traced;
(12) Mary Bickley (1663-1708), baptised at St John, Hackney, 18 February 1662/3; married, 29 May 1683 at Attleborough, her cousin, Rev. Richard Bickley (c.1637-1708), rector of Attleborough; died 24 March 1707/8 and was buried at Attleborough, where she was commemorated by a monument;
(13) twin, Jane Bickley (b. 1664), baptised at St John, Hackney (Middx), 26 January 1663/4; married, 23 November 1694 at St Nicholas, Cole Abbey, London, William Bernard, apothecary, of London; living in 1697;
(14) twin, Anne Bickley (b. 1664), baptised at St John, Hackney, 26 January 1663/4; died unmarried;
(15) Charles Bickley (1666-94), baptised at Attleborough, 18 April 1666; an officer in the Duke of Norfolk's regiment (Lt.); murdered at New Buckenham (Norfk) while visiting relations; a crime for which an Irishman named Hickford, who is reputed to have followed him from Ireland, was later convicted at Norfolk Assizes and hung; died unmarried and was buried at Attleborough, 3 July 1694.

He inherited Attleborough Hall from his father in 1670.

He was buried at Attleborough, 29 April 1681; his will was proved 6 May 1681. His wife's date of death is unknown.

Bickley, Sir Francis (1644-87), 3rd bt. Eldest son of Sir Francis Bickley (1622-81), 2nd bt. and his wife Mary, daughter of Ald. John Mann of Norwich, baptised at St John, Hackney (Middx), 19 April 1644. Educated at Clare College, Cambridge (matriculated 1656), Magdalen College, Oxford (matriculated 1660) and Inner Temple (admitted 1662). He married 1st, 1663, Deborah (d. 1670), daughter of Sir Cornelius Vermuyden, kt.; 2nd, Mary (d. 1686), daughter of Sir Humphrey Winch (1622-1703), 1st bt., of Hawnes (Beds) and Braunston (Lincs); and 3rd, Rebecca (c.1640-94), daughter of Edward Warne of New Buckenham (Norfk) and widow of Samuel Benson of Norwich and Thomas Davy of Norwich, and had issue:

(1.1) Anne Bickley (b. 1664), baptised at St John, Hackney (Middx), 26 January 1663/4; living in 1670;
(1.2) Sir Francis Bickley (1668-1746), 4th bt. (q.v.);
(1.3) Charles Bickley (1670-71), baptised at Attleborough, 20 February 1669/70; died in infancy and was buried at Attleborough, 2 August 1671;
(2.1) Capt. John Bickley (1675-1739), baptised at Attleborough, 17 August 1675; an officer in the army (Capt., 1694), who was evidently wounded as he appears later as captain of companies of invalids at Windsor, Tilbury Fort and Tynemouth Castle, 1710; died unmarried and was buried at Attleborough, 30 July 1739;
(2.2) Rev. Sir Humphrey Bickley (1676?-1752), 5th bt., said to have been baptised at Attleborough, 13 August 1676, but does not appear in the register; educated at Bury St Edmunds GS and Magdalene College, Cambridge (matriculated 1692; BA 1696); ordained deacon, 1706 and priest, 1707; rector of Attleborough, 1708-52 and of Thurston (Norfk), 1742-52; succeeded his half-brother as 5th baronet, 4 July 1746; died unmarried, 14 August, when the baronetcy should probably have passed to the American descendants of his next brother, Joseph, and was buried at Attleborough, 17 August 1752, where he is commemorated by a floor slab; will proved at Norwich, c.1752;
(2.3) Joseph Bickley (c.1680-1751), baptism not traced; emigrated to Virginia by 1703; sheriff of Louisa County, Virginia, 1744; JP for Louisa County (from 1745); married, 1703/4, Sarah Shelton (d. 1733), widow of Richard Gissage, and had issue six sons and one daughter; said to have died 4 December 1751;
(2.4) Elizabeth Bickley, baptism not traced; died unmarried;
(2.5) Mary Bickley (d. 1681), mentioned but not named in Kimber's English Baronetage; died young and was buried at Attleborough, 13 September 1681.

He inherited Attleborough Hall from his father in 1681, but by the end of his life was in financial difficulties.

He was buried at Attleborough, 19 July 1687; his will was proved at Norwich, 1687/8. His first wife died following childbirth and was buried at Attleborough, 6 March 1669/70, where she is commemorated by a monument. His second wife was buried at Attleborough, 26 January 1685/6. His widow married 4th, Nicholas Poynter of Norwich, gent; she died 18 August 1694 and was buried at New Buckenham, where she was commemorated by a monument.

Bickley, Sir Francis (1668-1746), 4th bt. Eldest son of Sir Francis Bickley (1644-87), 3rd bt., and his first wife Deborah, daughter of Sir Cornelius Vermuyden, kt., baptised at Attleborough, 29 January 1667/8. An officer in the army (Capt, 1689). DL for Norfolk, 1701, 1704. He succeeded his father as 4th baronet, 1687. He married, 25 May 1691 at Holy Trinity, Minories, London, Alathea (c.1675*-1740), daughter of Sir Jacob Garrard, bt., of Langford Hall (Norfk), and had issue:

(1) Charles Bickley (b. & d. 1692); died young and was buried at Attleborough, 3 July 1692;
(2) John Garrard Bickley (1694-95), baptised at Attleborough, 29 January 1693/4; died in infancy and was buried at Attleborough, 20 January 1694/5;
(3) Alathea Bickley (1696-1718), baptised at Attleborough, 15 January 1696/7; died unmarried and was buried at Bury St Edmunds, 4 July 1718;
(4) Francis Bickley (b. 1709), born 7 March and baptised at St James Piccadilly, Westminster (Middx), 20 March 1708/9.

He inherited Attleborough Hall from his father in 1687, and through his marriage acquired the manors of Ickburgh (Norfk) and Bretts, West Ham (Essex). He sold Bretts to Peter Courtney (d. 1719) in 1711 and Attleborough to Dame Mary Ashe (d. 1705), perhaps as early as 1692. He and his wife lived latterly at Langford. Ickburgh passed on his death to his wife's kinsman, Sir Jacob Garrard Downing.

He died 4 July 1746, when the baronetcy passed to his half-brother; his will was proved in the PCC, 8 July 1746. His wife died at her lodgings in London, 19 February 1739/40; her will was proved 1740.

* She was baptised at Quidenham (Norfk), 8 May 1677, but the marriage licence stated she was sixteen, so she may have been born a couple of years earlier.

Principal sources

Burke's Extinct and Dormant Baronetcies, 2nd edn., 1841, pp. 61-62; F. Blomefield, An essay towards a topographical history of Norfolk, vol. 1, 2nd edn., 1801; pp. 520-31; G.E. Cockayne, Complete Baronetage, vol. 3, 1903, pp. 229-30; G. Jahoda, 'The Bickleys of Virginia', The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 66, No. 4 (1958), pp. 463-482; Sir N. Pevsner & B. Wilson, The buildings of England: Norfolk - North-West and South, 2nd edn., 1999, p. 189; NHLE 1342452;

https://www.attleboroughheritage.org.uk/DocumentStore/The%20Loving%20Maid.pdf;

Location of archives

No significant accumulation is known to survive.

Coat of arms

Argent, a chevron counter-embattled, between three Griffin's Heads erased, Sable, each charged with a Plate on the neck, and langued Gules.

Can you help?

This post leaves more genealogical puzzles unresolved than most, and I would be particularly grateful to anyone who can shed light on how the 3rd and 4th baronets became so impoverished; or the relationship of the self-styled 'Rev. Sir Samuel Bickley' (d. 1773) to the rest of the family, or on the nature of the offences for which he was punished in the 1760s.
Can anyone confirm that the Salter family acquired the freehold of Attleborough Hall, and if so, when?
Can anyone provide photographs or portraits of the people whose names appear in bold above, for whom no image is currently shown?
If anyone can offer further information or corrections to any part of this article I should be most grateful. I am always particularly pleased to hear from current owners or the descendants of families associated with a property who can supply information from their own research or personal knowledge for inclusion.

Revision and acknowledgements

This post was first published 8 October 2025.

Tuesday, 30 September 2025

(613) Bickford and Coham (later Dickinson) of Dunsland House and Coham House

Coham of Coham

Bickford of Dunsland

This post tells the stories of two Devon families, who were linked by marriage and by their successive possession of the Dunsland estate near Great Torrington: the Bickfords and the Cohams.

Dunsland had been a seat of the Arscott family from the 16th century, but on the death of Arthur Arscott in 1662 it passed to his daughter Grace, the widow of William Bickford (d. 1659) of Plympton (Devon) and St Keverne (Cornwall), with whom the genealogy below begins. Grace survived her husband until 1687, when the Dunsland estate passed to their son, Arscott Bickford (c.1636-93), who at once put in hand a major remodelling and enlargement of the house, which seems to have been completed by the time of his death six years later. Arscott married three times, but his only surviving sons were the children of his third marriage and were still minors when he died. The elder son was William Bickford (1684-1740), who again married three times and left four sons by his two later marriages. William does not seem to have altered the house at Dunsland, but his heir, Arscott Bickford (1713-71), may have acquired a very richly carved chimneypiece from Stowe House, Kilkhampton (Cornw.), when that house was dismantled in 1739 and installed it in the drawing room at Dunsland. Arscott died unmarried, having outlived his brothers, and so on his death Dunsland passed to his half-brother, George Bickford (1735-95) of Okehampton (Devon). George and his wife had one son and three daughters, and Dunsland passed in the normal way to his son, Arscott Bickford (c.1769-1817), who pursued a career in the regular army, at first in the infantry and later in the cavalry, retiring as a captain in about 1805. He was active in managing his estate, but he remained unmarried, and so at his death the estate devolved upon his sister Mary (d. 1839) and her husband, the Rev. William Holland Coham (1763-1825) of Coham House.

The Cohams of Coham House in Black Torrington (Devon) have a much more ancient lineage than the Bickfords, and Burke's Landed Gentry in 1898 said 'it is not known when its possessors did not dwell there, they having possessed it from time immemorial". Certainly it is true that many families who took their surnames from their estates did so at a fairly early date, but in the case of the Cohams there seems to be no actual proof of their association with the property before the mid 16th century, partly because a devastating fire at Coham in the early 18th century is said to have destroyed many of the family muniments. However long the family's roots in the rich Devon soil are, however, they were not regarded as county gentry until at least the 17th century, and are ignored in the herald's visitations of 1531, 1564 and 1620. I have chosen to begin the genealogy below with Lewis Coham (1632-91?), who like William Bickford (d. 1659), married into the Arscott family, as it may have been this marriage which raised the social status of the family significantly. Lewis and his wife had a large family of ten children, among whom the heir was their eldest son, Stephen Coham (1676-1756?). At some point in his tenure, probably around 1716, the house at Coham was largely destroyed by fire, and was not immediately rebuilt, as by his marriage of 1706 Stephen had come into possession of a farmhouse at Upcott Avenel in Sheepwash (Devon), to which he removed. It was left to his eldest son, Lewis Coham (1706-78), who spent most of his life as a mercer in Great Torrington, to rebuild the family seat at Coham, which was still unfinished when he died. Lewis and his wife were childless, and his heir was his nephew, Stephen Coham (1751-86), who completed his uncle's house and moved in about 1779. He died unmarried just a few years later, when the estate passed to his younger brother, the Rev. William Holland Coham (1763-1825), whose wife was, as we have seen, the heiress of the Bickfords of Dunsland.

The integration of the estates at Dunsland, Coham, Upcott Avenel, and Warleggan (Cornwall) made the Cohams more prosperous than before, and their status was also strengthened by three successive generations being 'squarsons': clergymen with benefices in the same area as their landholdings. William Holland Coham was succeeded by his eldest son, the Rev. William Bickford Coham (1792-1843), who further strengthened the family's connections by marrying the eldest daughter of Joseph Davie Bassett of Heanton Court and Watermouth Castle, the chairman of Devon Quarter Sessions. Their eldest son and heir, William Holland Bickford Coham (1828-80) did not enter the church but was active in public affairs in the county, including twenty-five years as a member of the North Devon Yeomanry Cavalry. In 1872 he built a new front block to the house at Coham, which he seems to have preferred to the grander house at Dunsland. His wife came from an Anglo-Irish family (how they met seems not to be recorded), but they had no sons and only one daughter. As a result, the estates were divided on William's death in 1880, with Coham passing to his daughter, Elinor (1861-1938), while Dunsland went to his sister, Augusta (1831-1901) under a settlement of 1839. In 1883, Elinor married John Blyth Fleming (1860-1921), who took the name Coham-Fleming on their marriage, and on her death the Coham estate descended to her grandson, William Holland Bickford Coham-Fleming (1912-2008). After military use in the Second World War, he converted the house into an hotel, and later bed-and-breakfast accommodation, and it is now available for short-term lets. The family continue to farm the Coham estate.

Augusta Christiana Davie Dickinson (1831-1901), who inherited Dunsland in 1880, was a widow with a son and twin daughters. Her son, Arscott William Harvey Dickinson (1859-1952) was educated at Oxford and the Inner Temple, and became a barrister. His professional activities being focused in London, he made a new home at Sydenham (Kent) and later retired to Bude on the Cornish coast. Dunsland fell into disrepair, and in 1947 he sold it. In the 1950s its future seemed promising, as it came into the hands of the architect, Philip Tilden, who began repairs, and then passed to the National Trust, which instituted a thorough programme of repairs before opening the house to the public. Unfortunately, in 1967, when work had recently been completed and the house had just been furnished, it was gutted by fire, and the shell being deemed unsafe was too quickly pulled down.

Dunsland House, Bradford (Devon)

An account of this house was given in a previous post.

Coham House, Black Torrington (Devon)

The Cohams have been at Coham House since at least the 16th century, and possibly much longer, but their ancient home was destroyed by fire in about 1716 and the site was abandoned for half a century, with the family moving to Upcott Avenel in Sheepwash parish (Devon).

Coham House: what is now the rear wing represents the new house built for Lewis Coham in the 1770s. Image: Chris Andrews. Some rights reserved.

Only in the 1770s did Lewis Coham (1706-78) build a new house at Coham, and this remained a modest two-storey affair, more like a farmhouse than a country house, but no doubt adequate for the needs of a childless couple. The surviving elements of it are two parallel ranges, which may incorporate some fabric from the earlier house. In the 19th century some of the original rooms were subdivided when the two ranges were partly converted into service wings, but they still contain a library lit by a later canted bay window and an open-well staircase with turned balusters. The staircase hall has a Venetian window partly glazed with stained glass, and is hung with five funeral hatchments displaying in heraldic form the extensive connections of the family.

Coham House, Black Torrington: the new front block added in 1872.

In 1872, William Holland Bickford Coham (1828-80) built a new main block at right-angles to the existing 18th century wings. This is again of two storeys but on a grander scale, with a symmetrical front in a rather severe Tudor style, with bargeboarded gables, a slate roof, and mullioned casement windows under drip moulds. In the centre is a projecting two-storey porch with a castellated oriel above the doorway and an heraldic datestone in the gable, and the end bays are also stepped slightly forward. The ground floor of the new range is largely occupied by an entrance hall with an immense Tudor-style chimneypiece supporting an heraldic overmantel, and a drawing room and dining room placed to either side of it.

The house was requisitioned for military use in the Second World War, and in the 1950s it was converted into an hotel. More recently it has been used as bed-and-breakfast accommodation, and it is currently available for self-catering holidays, but the heirs of W.H.B. Coham-Fleming continue to farm the estate.

Descent: Lewis Coham (1636-91); to son, Stephen Coham (1676-1756?); to son, Lewis Coham (1706-78); to nephew, Stephen Coham (1751-86); to brother, Rev. William Holland Coham (1763-1825); to son, Rev. William Bickford Coham (1792-1843); to son, William Holland Bickford Coham (1828-80); to daughter, Eleanor Mary Bickford Coham (1861-1938), later wife of John Blyth Fleming (later Coham-Fleming) (1860-1921); to grandson, William Holland Bickford Coham-Fleming (1912-2008).

Bickford family of Dunsland

Bickford, William (1605-59). Probably the son of John Bickford of Bickfords Town, Plympton St Mary, baptised at Plympton, 18 October 1605. He married, 9 December 1634 at Bradford (Devon), Grace (c.1601/2-87), second but only surviving daughter and heiress of Arthur Arscott (c.1581-1662) of Dunsland House, and had issue:

(1) Mary Bickford (1634-36), baptised at Plympton St Mary, 10 October 1634; died in infancy, 29 March 1635/6;
(2) Arscott Bickford (c.1636-93) (q.v.);
(3) Frances Bickford (1637-47), baptised at Bradford, 29 November 1637; died young, 2 May, and was buried at Plympton St Mary, 7 May 1647;
(4) Elizabeth Bickford (1639-75), baptised at Bradford, 26 June 1639; married, 24 August 1658 at Bradford, Henry Rowland (d. 1691); buried at Holsworthy, 28 September 1675.

He lived at Bickford Town (Devon) and St. Keverne (Cornw.). His widow inherited Dunsland from her father in 1662.

He was buried at Bradford, 3 November 1659; his will was proved in the PCC, 5 December 1660. His widow was buried at Bradford, 13 January 1686/7; her will was proved at Exeter, 1688.

Bickford, Arscott (c.1636-93). Only son of William Bickford (1605-59) and his wife Grace, daughter and heiress of Arthur Arscott (c.1582-1662) of Dunsland House, born about 1636. Educated at New Inn Hall, Oxford (matriculated 1658). He married 1st, 27 January 1660 at Plympton (Devon), Mary (d. 1675), daughter of Edmund Parker of Boringdon (Devon); 2nd, 24 April 1677 at St Mary, Truro (Cornw.), Honor (1645-81/2), daughter of John Prideaux, and 3rd, 8 July 1683 at Padstow (Cornw.), Bridget (1660-1712), daughter of Edmund Prideaux of Prideaux Place, Padstow (Cornw.), and had issue:

(1.1) Edmund Bickford (d. 1677); died young and was buried at Bradford, 30 September 1677;
(2.1) Honor Bickford (1679-1735), baptised at Bradford, 14 November 1679; married, 12 February 1699/1700 at Bradford, William Harris (b. 1674) of Pickwell Manor, Georgeham (Devon), son of John Harris of Wortham (Devon), and had issue at least two sons and three daughters; buried at Holsworthy (Devon), 14 July 1735;
(3.1) William Bickford (1684-1740) (q.v.);
(3.2) Edmund Bickford (1685-1732), baptised at Bradford, 21 October 1685; educated at St Edmund Hall, Oxford (matriculated 1703) and Inner Temple (admitted 1703; called 1710); barrister-at-law; probably died unmarried; buried in Temple churchyard, London, 5 June 1732;
(3.3) Arscott Bickford (d. 1689); died young and was buried at Bradford, 22 May 1689;
(3.4) Nicholas Bickford (1689-90), baptised 23 October 1689; died in infancy and was buried 31 July 1690;
(3.5) Bridget Bickford (1691-93), baptised 13 February 1690/1; died young and was buried at Bradford, 1 January 1693/4;

(3.6) Arscott Bickford (d. 1696); died young and was buried 19 February 1695/6.

He inherited the Dunsland House estate from his mother in 1687 and undertook a major remodelling and enlargement of the house before his death.

He was buried at Bradford, 19 June 1693; his will was proved at Exeter, 1694. His first wife was buried at Plympton, 1 September 1675. His second wife is said to have been buried 6 April 1682. His widow was buried at Bradford, 18 June 1712.

Bickford, William (1684-1740). Eldest son of Arscott Bickford (c.1636-93) and his third wife, Bridget, daughter of Edmund Prideaux of Place (Cornw.), baptised 2 September 1684. Educated at St Edmund Hall, Oxford (matriculated 1702). High Sheriff of Devon, 1719-20. He married 1st, 12 November 1707 at Maristow (Devon), Bridget (1684-1709), daughter of Edmund Tremayne of Sydenham (Devon); 2nd, 14 May 1712 at Egloshayle (Cornw.), Damaris (1683-1729), daughter of Edward Hoblyn of Nanswhyddon (Cornw.); and 3rd, 7 November 1733, Elizabeth (d. 1767), daughter of Rev. John Richards, rector of Bradford, and had issue:

(2.1) Arscott Bickford (1713-71) (q.v.)
(2.2) Edward Bickford (1715-16), baptised at Bradford, 25 January 1714/5; died in infancy and was buried at Bradford, 21 January 1715/6;
(2.3) Damaris Bickford (1716-17), baptised at Bradford, 23 May 1716; died in infancy and was buried at Bradford, 22 May 1717;
(2.4) Rev. William Bickford (1717-45), baptised at Bradford, 12 June 1717; educated at Exeter College, Oxford (matriculated 1737; SCL, 1740); ordained deacon, 1740; buried at Bradford, 30 May 1745;
(2.5) Edward Bickford (1718-43), baptised at Bradford, 25 August 1718; died unmarried and was buried at Bradford, 12 July 1743;
(3.1) George Bickford (1735-95) (q.v.).

He inherited the Dunsland estate from his father in 1693 and came of age in 1705.

He was buried at Bradford, 26 February 1740/1. His first wife died without issue and was buried at Bradford, 11 February 1708/9. His second wife was buried at Bradford, 25 July 1729. His widow lived latterly at Okehampton and was buried at Bradford, 22 June 1767.

Bickford, Arscott (1713-71). Eldest son of William Bickford (1684-1740) and his second wife, Damaris, daughter of Edward Hoblyn of Nanswhyddon (Cornw.), baptised at Bradford, 5 February 1712/3. High Sheriff of Devon, 1760. JP for Cornwall. He was unmarried and without issue.

He inherited the Dunsland estate from his father in 1741. At his death it passed to his half-brother, George Bickford (d. 1795).

He was buried at Bradford, 26 April 1771.

Bickford, George (1735-95). Only child of William Bickford (1684-1740) and his third wife, Elizabeth, daughter of Rev. John Richards, rector of Bradford, baptised at Cookbury, 11 April 1735. JP for Devon and Cornwall. He married, 17 December 1762 at Dulverton (Som.), Mary (1734-1803), daughter of John Palfreyman of Molland (Devon), and had issue:

(1) Bridget Bickford (1763-1804), baptised at Okehampton (Devon), 9 December 1763; married, 21 December 1802 at Bradford (Devon), Philip Furse (1761-1847), but had no issue; died 9 January and was buried in the chancel of St Stephen, Bristol, 12 January 1804;
(2) Mary Bickford (1767-1839), baptised at Okehampton, 2 May 1767; married, 29 November 1790, Rev. William Holland Coham (1763-1825) [for whom see below] and had issue four sons and three daughters; died at Dunsland, 4 February 1839;
(3) Arscott Bickford (c.1769-1817) (q.v.);
(4) Elizabeth Bickford (1773-1820), baptised at Cookbury (Devon), 14 October 1773; died unmarried and was buried at Bradford, 21 January 1820.

He lived at Okehampton until he inherited the Dunsland estate from his half-brother in 1771.

He died in May 1795. His widow was buried at Bradford, 10 November 1803.

Bickford, Arscott (c.1769-1817). Son of George Bickford (d. 1795) and his wife Mary, daughter of John Palfreyman of Molland (Devon), baptised at Okehampton (Devon), 16 January 1770. An officer in the army (Ensign, 1788; Lt., 1792; Capt., 1795; retired c.1805). He was unmarried and without issue.

He inherited the Dunsland estate from his father in 1795. At his death he was succeeded by his sister Mary.

He died at Exmouth (Devon) and was buried at Bradford (Devon), 25 July 1817; his will was proved in the PCC, 23 September 1817.

Coham of Coham and Dunsland

Coham, Lewis (1632-91?). Son of Stephen Coham of Coham, baptised at Black Torrington, 15 March 1632. He married, 22 December 1669 at Black Torrington, Mary (1645-1722), daughter of John Arscott (1613-75) of Tetcott (Devon), and had issue:

(1) Mary Coham (b. 1672), baptised at Black Torrington, 7 May 1672; married 1st, 29 June 1704 at Black Torrington, Benony Bampfylde (d. 1721) of Black Torrington (Devon), and 2nd, 11 April 1722 at Black Torrington, William Battishall; death not traced;
(2) Susanna Coham (b. 1673), baptised at Black Torrington, 2 September 1673; married, 22 December 1703 at Black Torrington, as his second wife, Clement Gay (b. 1675), who is said to have been related to the poet and dramatist, John Gay (1685-1732), who was born in Barnstaple;
(3) Gertrude Coham (b. 1675), baptised at Black Torrington, 23 February 1674/5;
(4) Stephen Coham (1676-1756) (q.v.);
(5) John Coham (1678-1736?), of Bovacott in Bradford (Devon), baptised at Black Torrington, 3 April 1678; married, 23 May 1712, probably at Shebbear (Devon), Margaret, second daughter and co-heiress of William Holland of Upcott Avenel, Sheepwash (Devon), and Thorne (Devon), and had issue three sons (including Rev. Arthur Coham, later Archdeacon of Wiltshire); probably the man of this name buried at Black Torrington, 6 March 1735/6;
(6) Grace Coham (b. 1681), baptised at Black Torrington, 2 February 1680/1; married, 8 January 1709/10, Humphry Braund (d. 1720); buried at Black Torrington, 13 February 1727/8;
(7) Elizabeth Coham (b. 1682), baptised at Black Torrington, 6 December 1682;
(8) Lewis Coham (b. 1684), baptised at Black Torrington, 26 August 1684;
(9) Arscott Coham (1686-1760), baptised at Black Torrington, 12 November 1686; buried at Black Torrington, 2 August 1760;
(10) Arthur Coham (1691-1725?), baptised at Black Torrington, 15 March 1690/1; married, 4 July 1715, Elizabeth Burdon (b. 1693) of Burdon in Highampton, and settled at Holsworthy (Devon); possibly the man of this name buried at Black Torrington, 2 April 1725.

He inherited the Coham estate from his father.

He may be the person of this name buried at Black Torrington, 1 September 1691, although that entry could refer to his son and namesake. His widow was buried at Black Torrington, 1 June 1722.

Coham, Stephen (1676-1756). Eldest son of Lewis Coham (1632-91?) and his wife Mary, daughter of John Arscott of Tetcott (Devon), baptised at Black Torrington, 3 October 1676. He married, 9 May 1706 at Black Torrington, Mary (1683-1725), daughter and co-heiress of William Holland of Upcott Avenel, Sheepwash (Devon), and had issue:

(1) Lewis Coham (1706-78) (q.v.);
(2) William Coham (1708-53), baptised at Black Torrington, 16 December 1708; lived at Bideford (Devon); married, 20 November 1745 at Bideford, Jane Kelly (d. 1780); buried at Black Torrington, 9 April 1753;
(3) John Coham (1711-25), baptised at Black Torrington, 1 February 1710/11; died young and was buried at Black Torrington, 24 April 1725;
(4) Mary Coham (1713-92?), baptised at Black Torrington, 22 April 1713; married, 8 May 1745 at Highampton (Devon), Edmund Herring (d. 1771), and had issue two sons and one daughter; probably the woman of this name buried at Hatherleigh (Devon), 4 December 1792;
(5) Stephen Coham (1715-57?), baptised at Black Torrington, 10 May 1715; mercer in Great Torrington; probably died unmarried and may be the man of this name buried at Black Torrington, 24 August 1757;
(6) Susan Coham (b. & d. 1717), baptised at Sheepwash, 3 May 1717; died in infancy and was buried at Black Torrington, 26 December 1717;
(7) Gertrude Coham (1718-65), baptised at Buckland Filleigh, 30 December 1718; married, 21 August 1744 at Black Torrington, John Bradford (d. 1785) of Sheepwash, and had issue five sons and six daughters; buried at Sheepwash, 4 July 1765;
(8) Rev. Holland Coham (1720-77) (q.v.);
(9) Susanna Coham (1722-1813), baptised at Sheepwash, 7 October 1722; married, 11 February 1751/2 at Buckland Filleigh (Devon), John Silke (1725-94?), and had issue two daughters; died aged 91 and was buried at Buckland Filleigh, 24 November 1813.

He inherited the Coham estate from his father, and Upcott Avenel in Sheepwash in right of his wife; after the fire at Coham, c.1716, he lived at Upcott Avenel.

He was buried at Black Torrington, 27 October 1756. His wife was buried at Black Torrington, 14 April 1725.

Coham, Lewis (1706-78). Eldest son of Stephen Coham (1676-1756) of Coham and his wife Mary, daughter and co-heiress of William Holland of Upcott Avenell, baptised at Black Torrington, 19 March 1706. Mercer in Great Torrington (Devon). He married, 18 December 1744 at East Putford (Devon), Lucretia (1703-87), daughter of Abra[ha]m Barnfield of Mambury and Great Torrington (Devon), but had no issue.

He inherited the Coham and Upcott Avenel estates from his father, and built a new house at Coham, which was unfinished at his death, when the property passed to his nephew, Stephen Coham (1751-86).

He was buried at Sheepwash, 20 July 1778; his will was proved in Exeter, 1778. His widow was buried at Sheepwash, 19 September 1787.

Coham, Rev. Holland (1720-77). Fifth and youngest son of Stephen Coham (1676-1756) of Coham and Upcott Avenel (Devon) and his wife Mary, daughter and co-heiress of William Holland of Upcott Avenel, baptised at Sheepwash (Devon), 7 September 1720. Educated at Exeter College, Oxford (matriculated 1739; BA 1742; MA 1745). Rector of Northlew (Devon), 1750-77. He married, 10 July 1750 at Buckland Filleigh (Devon), Christian (b. 1720), daughter of Rev. James Silke of Northlew and Bedminster (Som.), and had issue:

(1) Stephen Coham (1751-86), baptised at Buckland Filleigh (Devon), 5 September 1751; inherited the Coham estate from his uncle in 1778, completed the house and moved there about 1779, but died unmarried, 22 May, and was buried at Black Torrington, 30 May 1786; his will was proved at Exeter, 1786;
(2) Christian Coham (1753-87), baptised at Northlew, 20 September 1753; married, 14 July 1776 at Buckland Filleigh, Richard Wivell, and had issue one daughter; buried at Northlew, 7 July 1787;
(3) William Coham (1755-59), baptised at Northlew, 21 August 1755; died young and was buried at Northlew, 29 March 1759;
(4) John Coham (1757-62), baptised at Northlew, 29 March 1757; died young and was buried at Northlew, 27 August 1762;
(5) Lucretia Coham (b. & d. 1761), baptised at Northlew, 14 August 1761; died in infancy and was buried at Northlew, 20 October 1761;
(6) Rev. William Holland Coham (1763-1825) (q.v.).

He lived at Northlew.
He was buried at Northlew, 23 April 1777; his will was proved at Exeter, 1777. His wife's date of death is unknown.

Coham, Rev. William Holland (1763-1825). Fourth and youngest son of Rev. Holland Coham (1720-77), rector of Northlew (Devon), and his wife Christian, daughter of Rev. James Silke of Northlew (Devon) and Bedminster (Som.), born 23 August and baptised at Northlew (Devon), 28 August 1763. Educated at Exeter College, Oxford (matriculated 1781; BA 1785; MA 1792). Ordained deacon, 1786 and priest, 1788. Curate of Whitstone, 1786-90; rector of Halwill and curate of Black Torrington, 1790-1825; he acted as a surrogate for the issue of marriage licences from 1800. As an estate owner, he was noted as 'a spirited improver'. He married, 29 November 1790, Mary (1767-1839), daughter of George Bickford (d. 1795) of Dunsland [for whom see above], and had issue:

(1) Rev. William Bickford Coham (1792-1843) (q.v.);
(2) Mary Anne Coham (1793-1875), said to have been born 20 April 1793 and was baptised at Black Torrington, 7 May 1795; lived with her sister Christiana at The Tower, Compton Gifford, Plymouth (Devon); died unmarried, 3 January, and was buried at Black Torrington, 8 January 1875; will proved 27 January 1875 (effects under £8,000);
(3) Christiana Coham (1795-1864), baptised at Black Torrington, 24 August 1795; married, 29 June 1837 at Bradford (Devon), George Boughton Kingdon (1775-1857) of Launcells House (Cornw.), but had no issue; as a widow lived at The Tower, Compton Gifford; died 28 December 1864;
(4) Stephen Coham (c.1798-1819), born about 1798 and baptised at Black Torrington, 14 January 1800; a midshipman in the Royal Navy; admitted to St Catherine's College, Cambridge, 1819, but did not go into residence because of his untimely death; died unmarried, when a boat he was commanding was upset near Deal (Kent), 23 October 1819; commemorated on his father's monument at Black Torrington; will proved in the PCC, 24 November 1819;
(5) George Lewis Coham (1802-1878), of Upcott Avenel (Devon), baptised at Black Torrington, 17 March 1802; educated at Exeter College, Oxford (matriculated 1819; BA 1823); farmer; JP and DL for Devon; Vice-Chairman of Holsworthy Board of Guardians, 1837; married, 29 July 1841 at Belstone (Devon), Elizabeth Ann (d. 1855), daughter of Rev. John Hole of Belstone, but had no issue; died 1 January 1878; administration of goods granted 14 February 1878 (effects under £1,500);
(6) Rev. Holland Coham (c.1804-67), born about 1804 but baptised at Black Torrington, 20 August 1807; educated at Blundells School, Eton, and Trinity College, Cambridge (matriculated 1825; BA 1829); JP for Devon; lived with his sisters at The Tower, Compton Gifford, Plymouth (Devon); died 26 March and was buried at Black Torrington, 2 April 1867; will proved 1 May 1867 (effects under £450);
(7) Ellen Coham (b. & d. 1808), baptised at Black Torrington, 8 February 1808; died in infancy and was buried at Black Torrington, 26 April 1808.

He inherited Coham House from his elder brother in 1786, and his wife inherited the Dunsland estate from her brother in 1817.

He died 15 March 1825 and was buried at Black Torrington, where he is commemorated by a monument; his will was proved in the PCC, 17 June 1825. His widow died at Dunsland, 4 February 1839.

Coham, Rev. William Bickford (1792-1843). Eldest son of Rev. William Holland Coham (1763-1825) and his wife Mary, daughter of George Bickford of Dunsland (Devon), born 6 April 1792 and baptised at Black Torrington (Devon), 14 March 1793. Educated at Blundells School and St Catherine's College, Cambridge (matriculated 1811; LLB, 1819). Ordained priest, 1816. Curate of Black Torrington and Beaworthy, 1816, and of Highampton, 1818. He married, 17 April 1827 at Berrynarbour (Devon), Augusta Mary Davie (1802-68), eldest daughter of Joseph Davie Bassett of Heanton Court and Watermouth Castle (Devon), and had issue:

(1) William Holland Bickford Coham (1828-80) (q.v.);
(2) Mary Bassett Eleanor Coham (1829-75), baptised at Black Torrington, about September 1829*; married, 17 August 1852 at St Peter, Parkstone (Dorset), William Parr (1826-63) of Fernside, Parkstone (Dorset) and The Tower, Compton Gifford (Devon), but had no issue; died 2 March and was buried at Pennycross (Devon), 6 March 1875; will proved 1 October 1875 (effects under £7,000);
(3) Augusta Christiana Davie Coham (1831-1901) (q.v.);
(4) Arscott Bickford Courtenay Coham (1832-73), born 29 April and baptised at Black Torrington (Devon), 25 May 1832; solicitor in Holsworthy (Devon); died unmarried, 1 July 1873; will proved 22 August 1873 (effects under £800);
(5) Reginald Stephen Coham (b. & d. 1835), baptised at Black Torrington, 10 January 1835; died in infancy, 14 March 1835.

He inherited the Coham and Dunsland estates from his parents.

He died 2 July and was buried at Black Torrington, 11 July 1843; his will was proved in the PCC, 6 February 1844. His widow died 8 October 1868, and was buried at Black Torrington.

* Date missing in parish register.

Coham, William Holland Bickford (1828-80). Eldest son of Rev. William Bickford Coham (1792-1843) and his wife Augusta Mary, eldest daughter of Joseph Davie Bassett of Heanton Court and Watermouth Castle (Devon), baptised at Black Torrington (Devon), 28 July 1828. Educated at St John's College, Cambridge (matriculated 1847). An officer in the North Devon Yeomanry Cavalry (Cornet, 1851; Lt., 1855; Capt., 1867; retired 1875); JP and DL (from 1860) for Devon; Chairman of Holsworthy Board of Guardians. 'His amiability of character made him universally beloved'. He married, 3 September 1857 at Lucan (Co. Dublin), Dora Elizabeth Louisa, youngest daughter of Gen. Sir Hopton Stratford Scott KCB of Woodville (Co. Dublin), and had issue:

(1) Elinor Mary Bickford Coham (1861-1938) (q.v.).

He inherited the Coham and Dunsland estates in Devon and Trevedoe Manor, Warleggan (Cornw.) from his father in 1843 and came of age in 1849. In 1873 his estates comprised 3,744 acres in Devon and 221 acres in Cornwall. He constructed a new main block to the house at Coham, which passed at his death to his daughter, while Dunsland went to his sister Augusta, under a settlement of 1839.

He died 22 September 1880 and was buried at Black Torrington (Devon); will proved 25 October 1880 (effects under £3,000). His widow died 19 June 1922; her will was proved 10 January 1923 (estate £15,833).

Coham, Elinor Mary Bickford (1861-1938). Only child of William Holland Bickford Coham (1828-80) and his wife, Dora Elizabeth Louisa, youngest daughter of Gen. Sir Hopton Stratford Scott KCB, born about 1862. She married, 5 June 1883 at St Martin-in-the-Fields, Westminster (Middx), John Blyth Fleming (subsequently Coham-Fleming) (1860-1921), High Sheriff of Devon, 1887, eldest son of John Fleming of Bigadon (Devon) and Clayquhat (Perths.), and had issue:

(1) Blyth Bickford Coham-Fleming (1884-1929) (q.v.).

She inherited Coham House from her father in 1880.

She died 29 March 1938; administration of her goods was granted 15 June 1938 and 22 November 1938 (estate £30,182). Her husband died 18 May 1921; his will was proved 10 November 1921 (estate £10,236).

Coham-Fleming, Blyth Bickford (1884-1929). Only child of John Blyth Fleming (later Coham-Fleming (1860-1921) and his wife Elinor Mary Bickford, daughter of William Holland Bickford Coham of Coham House (Devon), born 5/6 September and baptised at St James, Paddington (Middx), 3 October 1884. An officer in the army during the First World War (2nd Lt., 1917; Lt., 1919; retired 1920) He married, 19 March 1910 at Cofton (Devon), Lilian Alice Sarah (1889-1939), daughter of Charles Francis Reed of Bradford House (Devon), and had issue:

(1) Daphne Lilian Dora Coham-Fleming (1911-89), born 15 July and baptised at Black Torrington, 6 August 1911; nurse and lecturer in nursing at St Thomas' Hospital, London who served in Second World War with Princess Mary's RAF Nursing Service Reserve (Sister; invalided out, 1946); died unmarried, 15 March 1989, and was buried at Black Torrington;
(2) William Holland Bickford Coham-Fleming (1912-2008) (q.v.);
(3) Brian Jack Avenal Coham-Fleming (1914-98), born 11 July and baptised at Black Torrington, 9 August 1914; served in the army from 1938; married, 30 January 1946 at St Mark, Marylebone (Middx), Elizabeth Primrose (1918-99), nurse, elder daughter of Maurice Bernheim (d. 1922), and had issue one son and one daughter; died 21 January 1998.

He died 10 August, and was buried at Black Torrington, 13 August 1929; his will was proved 5 November and 25 January 1930 (estate £34,969). His widow died 10 December 1939; her will was proved 12 January and 22 November 1940 (estate £21,223).

Coham-Fleming, William Holland Bickford (1912-2008). Elder son of Blyth Bickford Coham-Fleming (1884-1929) and his wife Lilian Alice Sarah, daughter of Charles Francis Reed of Bradford House (Devon), born 2 November and baptised at Black Torrington, 15 December 1912. He was employed by the Indian Forestry Service before the Second World War, and was later an officer in the Indian army (2nd Lt., 1941; Lt.; Capt.; Maj. by 1946, when he was mentioned in despatches) and a farmer in Devon. He married, Apr-June 1979, Caroline Sophia (1915-2012), daughter of Thomas Beamish of Clooneen, Midleton (Co. Cork), and widow of Allan Stewart Maclaren (d. 1971) of Glasgow, son of John Maclaren of Fort Augustus (Inverness), but had no issue.

He inherited Coham House from his grandmother in 1938. After the war he converted the house into an hotel and moved into the former stables.

He died aged 95 on 2 May 2008 and was buried at Black Torrington (Devon); his will was proved 8 September 2008. His widow died 31 March 2012; her will was proved 8 October 2012.

Coham, Augusta Christiana Davie (c.1831-1901). Second daughter of Rev. William Bickford Coham (1792-1843) and his wife Augusta Mary, eldest daughter of Joseph Davie Bassett of Heanton Court and Watermouth Castle (Devon), born about 1831. She married, 29 April 1858 at St Peter, Parkstone (Dorset), Maj. Harvey George Dickinson (1830-66), son of John Dickinson, gent., and had issue:

(1) Arscott William Harvey Dickinson (1859-1952) (q.v.);
(2) twin, Augusta Frances Courtenay Dickinson (1863-92), born 25 April and baptised at Quilon, Madras (India), 18 October 1863; married, 3 November 1883 at Compton Gifford (Devon), Adm. Henry Morton Tudor-Jones (later Tudor Tudor) RN (1855-1926), and had issue two sons and one daughter; died 14 October 1892 and was buried at Ford Park Cemetery, Plymouth (Devon);
(3) twin, Elinor Mary Coham Dickinson (1863-1923), born 25 April and baptised at Quilon, Madras (India), 18 October 1863; married, 14 April 1884 at Buckland Monarchorum (Devon), Vice-Adm. William McCoy Fitzgerald Castle RN (c.1843-1916), son of Vice-Adm. William Langford Castle (1800-74) of New Lodge, Lymington (Hants), and had issue one son and one daughter; died at Herrison Mental Home, Charminster (Dorset), 17 December 1923; administration of her goods granted to her son, 18 February 1924 (estate £3,515).

She inherited the Dunsland estate from her brother in 1880, under a settlement of 1839.

She died 13 July and was buried at Bradford (Devon), 17 July 1901; her will was proved 30 November 1901 (estate £8,945). Her husband died at sea while being invalided home from India, 27 November 1866; his will was proved 16 April 1867 (effects under £100).

Dickinson, Arscott William Harvey (1859-1952). Only son of Maj. Harvey George Dickinson (1830-66) and his wife, Augusta Christiana Davie, younger daughter of Rev. William Bickford Coham of Dunsland (Devon), born 23 April and baptised at Quilon, Madras (India), 29 May 1859. Educated at Lincoln College, Oxford (matriculated 1879; BA 1884; MA 1886) and Inner Temple (admitted 1884; called 1888). Barrister-at-law. JP for Cornwall (from 1898) and Devon (from 1904). He married, 11 January 1893 at Lew Trenchard (Devon), Mary (1869-1945), eldest daughter of Rev. Sabine Baring-Gould of Lew Trenchard Manor, and had issue:

(1) Arscott Sabine Harvey Dickinson (1893-1979), born 28 November and baptised at Lew Trenchard, 31 December 1893; educated at Dulwich College and Worcester College, Oxford (matriculated 1913; BA); served in First World War with Royal North Devon Yeomanry (Lt., 1916); schoolmaster at St Lawrence College, Ramsgate (Kent), 1919-23 and Langport (Som.) Grammar School, 1923; librarian of the Jersey Library, 1934-50; a Fellow of the Library Association; lived at St Clement (Jersey); married, 23 April 1924 at Holy Trinity, Ramsgate (Kent), Eva Louise Mace Sankey (d. 1979); died 24 August 1979 and was buried at St Clement; administration of goods with will annexed granted 30 January 1980 (estate £20,255);
(2) Edward Dabernon Dickinson (1895-1961), born 27 June 1895; educated at Dulwich College and Keble College, Oxford; served in First World War with Liverpool Regiment (2nd Lt., 1917; Lt., 1919); export and office manager for a company manufacturing toilet cleaning products; married, 17 October 1921 in Canada, Frances Anne (1899-1960), daughter of Col. George Arnold Brinton of Indian Head, Saskatchewan (Canada), and had issue two sons; died 19 September 1961; will proved 13 October 1961 (estate £14,950);
(3) Rev. Bickford Holland Coham Dickinson (1900-75), born 16 July 1900; educated at St Paul's School, London; JP for Devon (from 1943); schoolmaster at Shebbear School, 1945-57; a mature entrant to the church, who trained at Ripon Hall, Oxford; ordained deacon, 1959, and priest, 1960; curate of Holsworthy (Devon), 1959-61; rector of Lew Trenchard, 1961-72?; a keen cricketer (who played for Devon) and lepidopterist in his youth, he was also the author of a biography of his grandfather and predecessor, Sabine Baring-Gould (1970) and other local history works; married, 1947 at Shebbear (Devon), Marjorie Mona Clark (1905-94); died 23 July 1975 and was buried at Bradford (Devon); will proved 14 August 1975 (estate £15,740).

He inherited the Dunsland estate from his mother in 1901, but sold it in 1947. He lived chiefly in Sydenham (Kent) while working as a barrister, and later at Bude (Cornwall).

He died at Bude, 21 January 1952, and was buried at Bradford (Devon); his will was proved 14 March 1952 (estate £31,967). His wife died 31 January 1945; administration of her goods was granted 2 March 1945 (estate £3,530).