Part of the Earley family tree (Great-great-aunt)
Family background and early life
Ann Matilda Southwell (known to the family as Nancy) was born at East Dean, Hampshire in October 1834, the third of seven children born to William Southwell (1799–1867) and his wife Martha née Pritchard (1801–1885).
At the first national census in June 1841, 6-year old Ann was living with her parents and five siblings at Lockerley Green, where her parents ran the village shop.
In March 1851, she was still living at home with her parents in Lockerley Green; aged 16, she was now employed as an assistant in her parents’ shop.
Marriage
At Michaelmas, 20 September 1858, Ann , aged 23, married William Compton, a 25-year old agricultural labourer, at the Romsey registrars’ office. Unlike most of her siblings, she did not marry at the Baptist Ebenezer Chapel at Lockerley. At the time of the marriage, Ann was several months pregnant, with birth expected the following January.
The couple appear not to have lived together as after the marriage Ann continued to live with her parents, while William lodged with friends at Ampfield, about nine miles east of Lockerley Green.
Death
On the evening of Friday 7 January 1859, Ann went into labour, which continued into the following day. The labour was extremely difficult and Ann was in considerable pain. At about 10 o’clock in the evening, Ann’s mother and sister Louisa, suggested that a doctor should be called. The midwife, 68-year old Elizabeth Sims said: “No; I can tell as well if it was my own self; her pains are trifling. The fact is, she has got no patience”, adding “a doctor would only call us a set of fools”.
The child was eventually born at about 11:15 and named Julia Ann.
By midnight, the afterbirth had not come away and Ann started bleeding. Mrs Sims applied vinegar and water, but this was ineffectual. The midwife still refused to call for a doctor and attempted to pull the afterbirth away by tugging at the cord, before inserting a hand into the womb in an attempt to release it. Ann’s mother and sisters again asked for a doctor to be called. It was now 1:20 on Sunday morning, when Ann’s brother, Alfred, was sent to fetch Dr. Nunn from Whiteparish, about five miles away.
While Alfred had gone off in search of the doctor, Mrs Sims again tried to pull the afterbirth away by the cord. Ann was now delirious and called for her younger sister, Kitty, to come up and sit with her.
Alfred had reached Dr Nunn at about 2:15; the doctor would not come out to attend Ann as he had other urgent cases to attend to, but gave Alfred some medicine, saying that Ann should take half immediately and the rest after 1½ hours. If this did not work, the doctor was to be called again, in which case he would come out. John got back at about 3:20, and the medicine was given to Ann, but nothing improved.
After this, Ann called for her parents and sisters, but she gradually slipped into sleep, and died at 4 o’clock on the morning of Sunday 9 January 1859.
She was buried at the Ebenezer Baptist Chapel on Thursday 13 January; her husband was not at her death but did attend the funeral before returning to Ampfield a few days later.
Inquest
For a full transcription of the inquest see here.
After the death, Alfred was again sent to Dr Nunn to ask him to come to the house to certify the cause of death. Again the doctor refused to come to the house, saying that he would only come if the Registrar ordered it, otherwise he would not get paid. When Alfred asked about an inquest, the doctor suggested that the family should speak to the coroner. On Alfred’s way back home, Dr Nunn’s assistant caught up with him and gave him a letter addressed to the coroner. When he got back to Lockerley, Alfred gave the letter to Police Constable Barnes to deliver to the coroner.
The following day, Police Superintendent Sparshott and two constables came to the house and returned the letter. When asked about an inquest, Sparshott said: “No; I have enquired into the case, and found nothing particular in it. It was a case that often did and would occur. The poor thing was dead, and nobody could help it.” He then told the mother to go to Mr Bayley, the registrar, and request a death certificate, and tell him that no inquest was needed. The registrar accepted this and issued a death certificate, with the cause of death as “debility, not certified”.
After the funeral, people in the village began to discuss the case and the circumstances surrounding Ann’s death and eventually the coroner, Mr Todd, was asked to investigate, deciding that the case should be put in front of a jury.
On Wednesday 26 January, an inquest was opened at the King’s Arms in Lockerley, with the jury being made up of the two churchwardens and thirteen other “respectable inhabitants of the parish” [all men].
The first witness was Ann’s sister, Louisa, who related the events leading up to Ann’s death. She was followed by Luther Owen Fox, an eminent surgeon from Broughton, who explained that he had been asked to attend the inquest to give his opinion on the cause of death. In his opinion the cause of death was haemorrhage caused by the failure of the afterbirth to separate worsened by the actions of the midwife and the lack of proper medical assistance. He then requested that a post-mortem examination should be carried out, to be certain as to the cause of death. With the jury’s agreement, the coroner issued a warrant to have the body disinterred, and adjourned the inquest to the following day
On the next day various members of the family were called – Anne’s younger sister Keturah, her parents and her brother, Alfred. Luther Fox then returned to the stand, and explained that he had conducted a post-mortem at the Baptist chapel, which confirmed his opinion that the death was caused by the haemorrhage and neglect on the part of the midwife.
Mrs Sims then gave her evidence, in which she said that she believed that she would have been able to remove the afterbirth successfully if Ann “had not squeaked so”.
Following the summing up by the coroner, the jury retired to consider their verdict which was:
“That the said Ann Matilda Compton, on the 8th day of January instant, was delivered of a female child, which is. still alive. That shortly after the birth of such child, violent haemorrhage ensued for several hours, and ultimately caused her death, which took place early the following morning. That the haemorrhage was occasioned or increased by the omission of Elizabeth Sims, the midwife. to perform with sufficient firmness the duties of her office, but that she was not guilty of any wilful neglect, or gross misconduct requiring the Jury (having due regard to her great age and good character) to return a verdict amounting to a criminal charge; but they strongly recommend her not to practice as a midwife in any case hereafter, except ender the superintendence of a medical man.
And the Jury further say that, in their opinion, an inquest in this case was necessary and proper, and generally expected by the neighbourhood as well as the friends of the deceased; and that, if the parish officers or some of the principal inhabitants had been consulted in the first place, much painful feeling, delay, and expense would have been avoided.”
Ann was re-interred in the Baptist churchyard near the present day Chapel Farm at Tote Hill. The chapel was replaced in 1880 by a new Baptist chapel at Lockerley Green; the old chapel was only demolished in 1967, although the graveyard still exists.
Subsequent family history
Ann’s daughter, Julia Ann lived with her grandparents until she married Tom Langridge in 1877. She had six children and died in 1944.
William Compton later adopted his father’s surname and became William Weeks. He re-married in December 1862 to Ann Smith; they had one child, Ethel Jane Weeks. William Weeks died in 1891.
Jane’s sister, Louisa died, aged 38, at the birth of her tenth child on 16 February 1865. Nothing further is known about the circumstances of her death. Her daughter, Martha Kate survived; she never married and died, aged 51, in 1916.