The servant of God, was borne in London, 1608, came into this toune in
1629, married Mary, daughter of James Crompton, of Breightmet, 1635,
with whom he lived comfortably 20 yeares, & begot 4 sons and 6
daughters. Since then he lived sole till the da of his death. In his
time were many great changes, & terrible alterations--18 yeares Civil
Wars in England, besides many dreadful sea fights--the crown or
command of England changed 8 times, Episcopacy laid aside 14 yeares;
London burnt by Papists, & more stately built againe; Germany wasted
300 miles; 200,000 protestants murdered in Ireland, by the papists;
this toune thrice stormed--once taken, & plundered. He went throw many
troubles and divers conditions, found rest, joy, & happines only in
holines--the faith, feare, and loue of God in Jesus Christ. He died
the 29 of Ap and lieth here buried, 1684. Come Lord Jesus, o come
quickly. Holiness is man's happines.
[THE ARMS OF OKEY.]
We gather from Mr. Briscoe's history that Okey was a woolcomber, and came
from London, to superintend some works at Bolton, where he married the
niece of the proprietor, and died in affluence.
Bradley, the "Yorkshire Giant," was buried in the Market Weighton church,
and on a marble monument the following inscription appears:--
In memory of
WILLIAM BRADLEY,
(Of Market Weighton,)
Who died May 30th, 1820,
Aged 33 years.
He Measured
Seven feet nine inches in Height,
and Weighed
twenty-seven stones.
In "Celebrities of the Yorkshire Wolds," by Frederick Ross, an interesting
sketch of Bradley is given. Mr Ross states that he was a man of temperate
habits, and never drank anything stronger than water, milk, or tea, and
was a very moderate eater.
In Hampsthwaite churchyard was interred a "Yorkshire Dwarf." Her
gravestone states:--
In memory of JANE RIDSDALE, daughter of George and Isabella Ridsdale,
of Hampsthwaite, who died at Swinton Hall, in the parish of Masham, on
the 2nd day of January, 1828, in the 59th year of her age. Being in
stature only 31-1/2 inches high.
Blest be the hand divine which gently laid
My head at rest beneath the humble shade;
Then be the ties of friendship dear;
Let no rude hand disturb my body here.
In the burial-ground of St. Martin's, Stamford, Lincolnshire, is a
gravestone to Lambert of surprising corpulency:--
In remembrance of that prodigy in nature,
DANIEL LAMBERT,
a native of Leicester,
who was possessed of an excellent and convivial mind, and
in personal greatness had no competitor.
He measured three feet one inch round the leg, nine feet four
inches round the body, and weighed 52 stones 11lbs.
(14lb. to the stone).
He departed this life on the 21st of June, 1809, aged 39 years.
As a testimony of respect, this stone was erected by his
friends in Leicester.
Respecting the burial of Lambert we gather from a sketch of his life the
following particulars: "His coffin, in which there was a great difficulty
to place him, was six feet four inches long, four feet four inches wide,
and two feet four inches deep; the immense substance of his legs made it
necessarily a square case. This coffin, which consisted of 112 superficial
feet of elm, was built on two axle-trees, and four cog-wheels. Upon these
his remains were rolled into his grave, which was in the new burial ground
at the back of St. Martin's Church. A regular descent was made by sloping
it for some distance. It was found necessary to take down the window and
wall of the room in which he lay to allow of his being taken away."
In St. Peter's churchyard, Isle of Thanet, a gravestone bears the
following inscription:--
In memory of Mr. RICHARD JOY called the
Kentish Samson
Died May 18th 1742 aged 67
Hercules Hero Famed for Strength
At last Lies here his Breadth and Length
See how the mighty man is fallen
To Death ye strong and weak are all one
And the same Judgment doth Befall
Goliath Great or David small.
Joy was invited to Court to exhibit his remarkable feats of strength. In
1699 his portrait was published, and appended to it was an account of his
prodigious physical power.