John married Sarah WOODWARD on 31 Mar 1725. Both were from Chipping Campden. They baptized 10 children in Chipping Campden between 1725 and 1738/39. Their twin girls, Elizabeth and Sarah, died shortly after birth.
There were two John HARRISs christened in Chipping Campden of the right age to be Sarah's husband:
- John HARRIS, bap. 06 Dec 1696 by Samuel HARRIS
- John HARRIS, bap. 01 Sep 1703 by John HARRIS.
The 1703 christening may have been that of the John HARRIS who had been born into a Quaker family in Willersey, 4 miles west of Chipping Campden in 1691. His parents were John HARRIS of Long Compton, and Mary MOSELY of Willersey1. The key issues with this John HARRIS are:
- John's Quaker upbringing doesn't fit with John's later Church of England observances, including his own baptism in 1703 and the christening of his ten children in the Chipping Campden parish church.
- John's parent's were still observing Quaker practises in naming children well after 1703.
- This John would have been 34 at the time of the marriage.
However,
- John's parents were resident in Chipping Campden in November 1702 (when they named their son Thomas in a Quaker meeting) where John was christened in 1703.
- In 1703 John would have been 12, the age when many boys were being apprenticed. If apprenticed in Chipping Campden then it would likely be to a non-Quaker who would expect anyone living in their household to be a good Christian. The christening may have been a necessary act to secure John's future.
- Sometime between November 1702 and June 1706 John's parents relocated to Charlecote, Warwickshire where they named a son William in 1706 and a daughter Sarah in 1709. This would have left John alone in Chipping Campden and, his family having moved away, his participation in church life would have became a normal part of his week. He is unlikely to have been permitted to attend Quaker meetings and would have lost touch with his Quaker heritage. A marriage to a non-Quaker and the subsequent christenings would naturally follow.
In contrast the John HARRIS, baptized by Samuel HARRIS in 1696 seems a easier fit. However there is one problem with Samuel being the father: none of John and Sarah's four male children are called Samuel. They did, however, name their first son John and a daughter Mary. This is hardly conclusive evidence that John's parents were John and Mary HARRIS though.
There is an apprentice indenture document in Gloucestershire Archives for a John HARRIS of Chipping Campden dated 1711, Ref P81/OV/4 151443. The very next indexed name is Samuel HARRIS (deceased), suggesting that the apprenticeship was for John HARRIS born 1696, who would have been 15 years old in 1711. After seven years of apprenticeship he would be available to marry Rachel BEAZLEY.
Aside from the marriage to Sarah WOODWARD, there was another marriage in Chipping Campden involving a John HARRIS: on 9 Feb 1718/19 a John HARRIS married Rachel BEAZLEY. No baptisms from this marriage were recorded and no burial record for a Rachel HARRIS has been found. Perhaps this was a childless marriage. John HARRIS b.1691 would have been 27 at the time of this marriage, while John HARRIS b.1696 would have been 22. Either John HARRIS might have been the groom.
As it stands, it is unclear which of the John HARRISs was Sarah WOODWARD's husband. Perhaps the neatest narrative is:
- John HARRIS named in the Quaker style by John and Mary HARRIS in 1691, left Chipping Campden with his family sometime 1702-1706
- John HARRIS bap. 1696 by Samuel HARRIS married Rachel BEAZLEY when aged 22, but they had no children
- John HARRIS bap 1703 by John HARRIS married Sarah WOODWARD when aged 22.
Unfortunately, this narrative leaves us with no information about John's father John HARRIS.
There are several burials of John HARRISs recorded, however none of these were in Chipping Campden.
Other information
There is an admon bond relating to the administration of the estate of a Thomas HARRIS of Broad Campden, dated 1705, and signed by his widow, Susanna2. John HARRIS's first born child was named Susannah, however there was no child named Thomas, and no evidence that this couple had a child called John.
In 1563, John HARRIS of Broad Campden bought a house and land in Blockley from Thomas, HARWARD of Bretforton. [Source: Bigland's Monumental Inscriptions p.1432]
