Collection of monuments to the Joules family in churchyard, including iron railing enclosure, about 8m north east of chancel, of the Church of St Mary.

Collection of monuments to the Joules family in churchyard, including iron railing enclosure, about 8m north east of chancel, of the Church of St Mary., Church Road, Yatton, Bristol, BS49 4HH

Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places

Overview

A collection of mid-C19 to early C20 funerary monuments commemorating the Joules family, who were known to be Gypsies local to Somerset. Read the official list entry to find out more.

Heritage Category:: Listed Building
Grade:: II
List Entry Number:: 1137378
Date first listed:: 20-Jan-1986
List Entry Name:: Collection of monuments to the Joules family in churchyard, including iron railing enclosure, about 8m north east of chancel, of the Church of St Mary.
Statutory Address:: Collection of monuments to the Joules family in churchyard, including iron railing enclosure, about 8m north east of chancel, of the Church of St Mary., Church Road, Yatton, Bristol, BS49 4HH

User submitted image — Uploaded by David Lovell This photo may not represent the current condition of the site
View all

Location

Location of this list entry and nearby places that are also listed. Use our map search to find more listed places.

There is a problem

Use of this mapping is subject to terms and conditions.

This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale.

What is the National Heritage List for England?

The National Heritage List for England is a unique register of our country's most significant historic buildings and sites. The places on the list are protected by law and most are not open to the public.

The list includes:

🏠 Buildings
🏰 Scheduled monuments
🌳 Parks and gardens
⚔️ Battlefields
⚓ Shipwrecks

Find out more about listing

Images of England Project

To view this image please use Firefox, Chrome, Safari, or Edge.

Archive image, may not represent current condition of site.

Date:: 2000-08-24
Reference:: IOE01/01408/21
Rights:: © Mr Derek Evans. Source: Historic England Archive

Historic England Archive

Search over 1 million photographs and drawings from the 1850s to the present day using our images archive.

Find Photos

Official list entry

Heritage Category:: Listed Building
Grade:: II
List Entry Number:: 1137378
Date first listed:: 20-Jan-1986
Date of most recent amendment:: 05-Jan-2024
List Entry Name:: Collection of monuments to the Joules family in churchyard, including iron railing enclosure, about 8m north east of chancel, of the Church of St Mary.
Statutory Address 1:: Collection of monuments to the Joules family in churchyard, including iron railing enclosure, about 8m north east of chancel, of the Church of St Mary., Church Road, Yatton, Bristol, BS49 4HH

This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.

Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.

For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.

Understanding list entries

Corrections and minor amendments

This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.

For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.

Understanding list entries

Corrections and minor amendments

Location

Statutory Address:: Collection of monuments to the Joules family in churchyard, including iron railing enclosure, about 8m north east of chancel, of the Church of St Mary., Church Road, Yatton, Bristol, BS49 4HH

The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.

District:: North Somerset (Unitary Authority)
Parish:: Yatton
National Grid Reference:: ST4315165432

Summary

A collection of mid-C19 to early C20 funerary monuments commemorating the Joules family, who were known to be Gypsies local to Somerset.

Reasons for Designation

The collection of funerary monuments to the Joules family are listed Grade II for the following principal reasons:

Historic interest:

* they represent an unusual collection of monuments to a group of mid-C19 Gypsies; an ethnic minority group who, by virtue of their cultural beliefs, nomadic lifestyle and lack of recognised status have limited physical reminders of their impact on society.

Group value:

* the monuments are located within the churchyard of the Grade I listed Church of St Mary. This expansive churchyard contains several listed funerary monuments of varying ages alongside many unlisted examples, all of which provide a physical record of past communities of Yatton and their association with the Church and Parish.

History

Gypsy (also spelt Gipsie), Roma and Traveller people belong to the minority ethnic group whose distinctive way of life and traditions manifest themselves as nomadism, the centrality of their extended family, unique languages and entrepreneurial economy.

Gypsies have been in Britain since at least the C16 after migrating from continental Europe during the Roma migration from India. The first reference to Gypsies in England occurs in 1514. It was incorrectly believed this group came from Egypt, as such the term Gypsy come from the word ‘Egyptian’. This group have suffered many forms of persecution in England over the centuries but have also formed part of and enriched our society. In 1530 they were expelled from England under the ‘Egyptian’s Act’, Mary Queen of Scots ruled that being a Gypsy was punishable by death and they were only recognised as a distinct ethnic minority group in 1976 under the English Race Relations Act.

Somerset seems to have had a long history of attracting Gypsies, documentary evidence suggests that many known families regularly visited, camped and were married, baptised and buried in churches around the county.

The Joules (also spelt Joles) family were local Gypsies, well known around the Yatton area of Somerset. They are referred to in the 1922 Somerset Yearbook as ‘the celebrated Somersetshire gypsies’.

There are known to be approximately 13 members of the family buried in the churchyard of St Mary’s Church. Eight date from the mid-C19 to the early C20 and four are enclosed within a wrought iron enclosure.

Isaac and Morella (Merily) Joules are well documented in contemporary sources from the Yatton area. Isaac is believed to have been the son of a Wiltshire farmer and a stone mason by trade that married Morella Cooper and took up the Gypsy life. Contemporary sources suggest Isaac was a knife grinder and well known as an identifiable figure known amongst the local community, with prints and pictures sold of him. Births and Census records suggest that the couple had 10 children (Jessie, Louisa, Teanna, Richard, Mary Ann, Henry, Priscilla, Matilda, Caroline and Charlotte).

Isaac and Morella’s son, Richard Joules went on to marry Jane. The 1861 census records Richards occupation as Horse Dealer/Gypsy Tribe. They had 7 children (Henry, Druscilla, Eldarah, William, Caroline, Jentella and Joseph) all of which are recorded under the occupation Gypsy Tribe in the 1861 census return.

Details

A collection of mid-C19 to early C20 funerary monuments commemorating the Joules family, who were known to be Gypsies local to Somerset.

MATERIALS: the seven headstones are all made of a variety of stones and are of varying sizes and designs. The funerary vase is made of limestone and is cuboid with a follow for flowers.

DESCRIPTION: the group comprises of eight monuments. Four headstone and three corresponding footstones are located within a wrought iron enclosure. Three headstones, two corresponding footstones and a funerary vase are located to the west of the enclosure in close proximity to it.

The whole group are located 8m to the north-east of the chancel of the Church of St Mary the Blessed Virgin.

The monuments are laid out in two parallel rows. Each is of a different date and unique design.

The mostly westerly row is outside the enclosure and the stones read (North to South):

In loving memory / of our dear father/ Henry Joles / Died March 1929/ Aged 96; IN / Memory of / ISAAC JOULES / Who died / March 10th 1841 / Aged 70 Years; Here lie Merily Joules/ A beauty bright / that left Isaac Joules / Her hearts delight / 1827.

The funerary urn has the inscription – JOHN JOULES / 1874 – 1963 / AT REST

The four headstones and associated footstones in the wrought iron enclosure read (North to South):

Headstone - Illegible. Footstone - W J Headstone - In Memory of / Richard Joules / Died March 1st March 1867 / Aged 56 / IN LOVING MEMORY OF OUR DEAR MOTHER / JANE JOULES / PASSED AWAY ON DEC. 9. 1898 / AGED 92. Further text illegible. Footstone – R J Headstone – Illegible. Footstone – Illegible. Headstone only – In Loving memory of / MY DEAR SISTER / DRUSCILLA JOULES / ELDEST DAUGHETER OF R and J JOULES / DIED Oct 25th 1929 / AGED 94 YEARS.

The enclosure is surrounded by a wrought iron railing. The railings are made up of 12 twisted square upright members with square connectors attached to horizontal lengths of square rods with a twist halfway. The uprights have a mixture of arrow heads and fleurs-de-Lys finials.

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:: 33812
Legacy System:: LBS

Sources

Books and journals
'Recording Yatton Churchyard' in Yatton Local History Society, Yatton Yesterdays, , Vol. 6, (2001), 13-15
'A Gypsy Funeral At Yatton, 1898' in Yatton Local History Society, Yatton Yesterdays, , Vol. 7, (1990), 19-20
'The Jowles Family' in Journal of Gypsy Lore Society, , Vol. Series 3, Volume 32, (1953), 78-80
Watson, w. G, ''Pestiferous Carbuncles' in Somerset' in Journal of the Gypsy Lore Society, , Vol. Series 3, Volume 11-12, (1933), 82-93
'Old Harry Joules' in Journal of the Gypsy Lore Society, , Vol. Series 3, Volume 29, (1953), 154-155
'A Gypsy Grave' in Journal of the Gypsy Lore Society, , Vol. 1, (1907), 397-398
Websites
Friends, Families & Travellers - Gypsy, Roma an Traveller History Month June 2023, accessed 4 October 2023 from https://www.gypsy-traveller.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/FFT_GRTHM_2023_Education-Pack.pdf
ROMANI - A Romany Gypsy and Traveller Heritage Project, accessed 20 September 2023 from https://www.romaheritage.co.uk/newspapers/1938-04-02-where-the-gipsies-are-buried/
Surrey County Council - Surrey Heritage: Tracing Gypsy Romany and Traveller Ancestors at Surrey History Centre, accessed 20 September 2023 from https://www.surreycc.gov.uk/culture-and-leisure/history-centre/researchers/guides/tracing-gypsy-romany-and-traveller-ancestors
The Traveller Movement, accessed 6 September 2023 from https://travellermovement.org.uk/gypsy-roma-and-traveller-history-and-culture

Legal

This building is listed under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 as amended for its special architectural or historic interest.