Timothy Overend was born in Yeadon and baptised at Guiseley parish church. His father was a yeoman: unfortunately I have not yet found out anything about his mother, having been led astray by confusion of the names “Mercy” and “Mary”.
In 1747, at the age of twenty-two, Timothy married Martha Brook. He was a clothier and she a clothier’s widow. The term “clothier” could mean a cloth dealer or maker and Timothy also seems to have inherited the family farm. In 1753 we find him paying land tax (of slightly below average) for land at Skyrack.
In 1758 he was appointed a “cloth searcher” at the Pontefract Quarter Sessions, charged with ensuring the correct labelling of broadcloth produced in mills at Shipley. The position carried a salary of £11 per annum – about £20,000 in 2016 money – and would have been a prestigious and influential one. He held this position for at least ten years.
Timothy and Martha had three children: Timothy, Nathan (our ancestor) and Mercy.
Father of Nathan, son of John and Mercy Overend
Baptised Timothy Overend on 5 August 1725 in Guiseley, Yorkshire
Married Martha Brook née Shay in 1747
Buried 8 February 1787