Richard Savage II was born in Pulham St Mary on the Norfolk side of the River Waveney. But the family seems to have had connections with the Suffolk Savages descended from Nicholas in the Saxmundham area. (Ultimately the Savages may have been “Sauvages”, Huguenots seeking refuge in England but this would need further research.)
Richard was certainly living in Sibton, Suffolk in 1766, when he married Mary Baldry in Denton, Norfolk. Four months earlier she had given birth to a son whom she had named Richard Savage: maybe a visit to relatives in Suffolk seemed opportune for Richard at that point!
Richard and Mary had three more children, Mary Ann, John and Margaret, in their tragically short marriage. When Mary died in 1774 Richard was left with four young children. Baby Margaret died two years later and poignantly, he and his new wife Elisabeth named their first daughter Margaret Elisabeth.
Richard was a freeholder at Denton. The land tax assessment for 1798 was £16, about £18,000 in 2016 money. The average assessment for Denton was £20, so he was quite well-to-do. He was a proprietor of land and also rented a small holding. He does not seem to have had any tenants himself, but made his living as a farmer.
He appears in poll books for 1768 and 1802. It looks as though he voted for a different party each time, though it’s hard to draw parallels between politics then and now. But I do wonder what made him change his mind? Food for more thought there.
Father of Richard Savage III, son of Sarah and Richard Savage I
Baptised 26 February 1746 at Pulham St Mary, Norfolk
Married Mary Baldry on 7 October 1766
(Second marriage to Elisabeth Easter 13 Feb 1777)
Buried 1 April 1804