Henry was 23 when he sought the hand of Sarah Haynes in marriage. She was the daughter of Edward Haynes and Ann Cook. She was 22, having been christened at Painswick October 21, 1770. Henry could not afford to be married by license, so they were married by banns and waited out the required four weeks while their intentions to be married were announced in church. The purpose of banns was to allow anyone who might oppose the marriage the chance to present their opposition before the marriage took place. Since no one objected the Vicar of Painswick, the Reverend John Moseley, married them on April 10, 1792 at he parish church,. Sarah’s father, Edward Haynes, was one of the witnesses and there were probably other family members present to wish them happiness.

Neither Henry nor Sarah could read or write, so they had to place the usual “X” by their names. Edward Haynes also placed an “X” by his name. There were no national schools until 1870 and schooling was not required or thought important. Parents were more concerned that their children received training in a labor or trade and find employment than be in a schoolroom learning to read and write. It has been told that Henry was concerned about education and one of his sons attended Oxford, but Sarah and Henry were a generation too soon.

After the marriage, Henry took his new bride to Sheepscombe to live. It was a beautiful country with green rolling hills crowned by trees and woods and forests. In early morning, sometimes the mist lays low among the trees and as the sun broke forth above the treetops, it turned the meadows a brilliant green. The cottages reflected the sun and wisps of curling smoke rose from the chimneys as the families prepared to meet another day. Sheepscombe was an isolated village north of Painswick, but included in the parish.

There were two large estates that required farm laborers, the Manor of Sheepscombe, which included part of Cranham and the Ebworth estate that consisted of 300 acres of land and a substantial gable house from the early 17th century and a contemporary stable block. In 1715, the house was heightened and enlarged during remodeling. It was sold many times from 1715 to 1800 and each owner made his own alterations to the house and stables. Most of the owners held large estates and homes in other cities and used Ebworth as a country estate for fox hunting and fishing. It had a game park patrolled by game keepers to protect the game and fish from encroachment by the public.

Henry apparently obtained employment at the Ebworth estate, for according to the 1841 census, Henry and Sarah were living at Ebworth Park in House #196. (It was the custom of the Lords of Manors and the gentry with large estates, to build houses for the tenant farmers and farm laborers. The house would have included a garden spot, ranging from a small plot to several acres and they also had the privilege of pasturing a few cattle on the commons, for which they paid rent or lease.

Ebworth was north of Sheepsombe village and was bounded on the north by the Sheepscombe stream that divides it from Cranham. Brookthrape and Harrescombe lie to the west, Miserden (home of the Wagers) is on the east and southwest is Painswick. This is the heart of the Cotswold country, known for its beauty and the Cotswold stone—a soft sandstone pushed up from the sea. It was easy to cut and work with, but has also proven very durable. Most of the homes and buildings are several hundred years old. The post office at Painswick dates back to 1428. The stone ranges in color from soft grays at Painswick to the golden honey hue of Stanton, often called the most beautiful village in England. The weathering and moss has etched beautiful designs and markings in the stone.

Henry and Sarah settled in their home with a few sheep and cattle to pasture on the commons and several acres of ground to grow crops and though the wages were low, they were able to manage and raise a family. Their first child was their daughter, Sarah. Since there was no church at Sheepscombe, they had to travel several miles to Painswick to have her christened at the Painswick church on June 9, 1793. The Reverend John Moseley, who had married them, performed the christening. Sarah was followed by another daughter, Elizabeth, who was christened on February 3, 1798 by a curate, as Reverend Moseley had passed away.

One wonders how they traveled to Painswick in the cold winter with a newborn baby. Most children were christened soon after birth as possible because they were warned that if the baby died before it was baptized, it would burn eternally in hell. What anguish this teaching must have caused! Christening was their form of baptism. The baby’s head was held over the font, which held the holy water, and the minister dipped his fingers into the water, sprinkled the baby’s head and gave it it’s name at the time of baptism.

Henry and Sarah took Elizabeth in the cold winter to be christened. Some farmers had a cart that was pulled by a small horse to take products to market and used it to travel if they had to go far. Did they borrow a cart or did they walk? Most people in the working class walked. Sarah probably wore patterns in the mud and snow, which consisted of wooden soles mounted on iron rings that raised the shoes above the mud.

With each new child, Henry probably wished for a son. It was important in England to have a son to carry on the family name. So we can imagine how pleased he was when the next child was a boy. He was christened March 26, 1800 and given the name of Richard. Usually the first son was named after the father or a grandfather. Was Richard the name of his mother’s father? Or a friend? It would be someone who was close or dear to them. He also was christened by the curate.

Another son was born to Henry and Sarah during these troubled years. He was named Henry, after his father. He was christened on Christmas day, December 25, 1802, by the acting curate. Three years later a daughter was born. She was christened and received the name Meriam on November 11, 1805. Child number six was William who was born at Sheepscombe, December 27, 1806 and christened February 15, 1807 at Painswick. Their seventh and last child was Joseph. He was christened September 2, 1810 at Painswick. Henry and Sarah raised their children through trying times. The anger and feelings in the Church weakened the parish spiritually and the rough environment of Sheepscombe must have given them grave concern. There was also the depression, the industrial revolution, plagues, disease and war to cause them worry.