This grave contains several members of the same family. John and Elizabeth Hebden and two of their daughters Jane and Catherine.
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John Hebden was born to Sarah and William Hebden in Halifax on May 2nd 1768. He married Elisabeth Webster, two years his junior, in Jan 1792 at Halifax Parish Church.
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Little seems to be recorded about his wife, Elisabeth, but between their marriage and 1809, they had five daughters. They were all at some time involved in similar industries. John was a cloth dresser and later a cloth merchant; Jane and Catherine were milliners, dressmakers, and haberdashers.
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At the time of his marriage, John was described as a cloth dresser; the cloth and clothing industry was one he stayed attached to for the rest of his working life. It seems likely that he took on his father’s profession. In an 1810 commercial trade directory 'Cloth Dresser William Hebden & Sons' is listed at Blackwall in Halifax. John was also for a time in partnership with a John Milner as Cloth Merchants and Manufacturers in Halifax but the partnership was dissolved “by mutual consent” on March 22nd 1827.
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John was eligible to vote in elections, through owning property, but from the poll books held in Local Studies it appears he never actually voted. Interestingly in 1837, he is in the list of non voters but against his name it states ‘tax collector’, John is sometimes described as a cloth dresser and other times a cloth merchant. He also owned property.
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John and his daughters lived and worked at the same premises on Old Market.
Census information confirms that the whole area was already an established commercial neighbourhood, a status which remains today.
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It isn’t possible to discover how successful the Hebden’s business was, but it ran, in some form and in the hands of different members of the family, for at least 50 years (from before 1827 with John H & John Milner, premises unknown) as cloth merchants and manufacturers, and later as dressmakers, milliners and haberdashers.
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John and Elizabeth had five daughters – Sarah, Jane, Mary Ann, Elizabeth and Catherine. We haven’t been able to find anything concrete about Elizabeth, suggesting she either died or married young. However, the other four daughters all went into business together as haberdashers and dress makers. At first they were based first at Old Market and later at George Street.
Advert in Halifax Guardian 5th November 1842
They appear to have been well respected business women. They advertised in the local paper when new collections were available, stating that they had returned from London or Paris with new goods to buy. There are several references to the Misses Hebden's in Anne Lister’s diary. She bought clothes and materials from them and also arranged for the daughter of one of her servants (Charlotte Booth) to work for them and learn dressmaking. Both Mary Ann and Sarah got married (for more information on Sarah see SCG 168) and they left the business. Jane and Catherine however continued for many years. Neither married, devoting their time and energies into the business. They lived together their entire lives.
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Jane’s name was included in a published list of members of Halifax & Huddersfield Union Bank which over many years of amalgamation with other small banks, ultimately became the Halifax Building Society.
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On the 1841 and 1851 censuses Catherine and Jane are listed as milliners. They also have several young women living at the address who are a mix of assistant milliners, apprentices and servants. In 1841, their father John was also living with them. It seems likely that their home and workshop was in the same place and that they provided accommodation for at least some of their workers. It must have been a fairly substantial building to house up to ten women.
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However by 1861 they have retired and are now living as boarders on Upper Beaumont Street. In 1871 they are in a lodging house on Lord Street. Jane and Catherine lived at 14 Lord Street until their deaths in 1880 and 1888, aged 84 and 80 respectively.
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You can find out more about the eldest daughter here:
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Researched by Susan Hawkes
Photograph of gravestone made for exhibition