Person Page - 191

Robert Sackett, son of John Sackett and Mary Ayles, was born in Margate, Kent^G, on 1 September 1753 and baptized at St John in Thanet^G on 4 February 1754.¹ He died in infancy and was buried at St John in Thanet^G on 24 November 1754.²

Mary Sackett, daughter of John Sackett and Mary Ayles, was born in Margate, Kent^G, on 20 January 1756 and baptized at St John in Thanet, Margate^G, on 4 February 1756.¹ She died aged 26 in Margate^G and was buried there on 12 February 1782.⁴ She married at St John in Thanet^G on 27 May 1779, John Matthews Goodspeed.^2,3
     Mary was named as a beneficiary in her uncle Francis Sackett's will made at Margate, Kent^G, on 13 October 1763.⁵ She was left one guinea.

John Sackett, hoyman of Margate, Kent, son of John Sackett and Mary Ayles, was born in St John in Thanet^G on 17 November 1757¹ and baptized there on 30 November 1757.¹ He died aged 76 in St John in Thanet^G on 28 March 1834² and was buried there on 4 April 1834.^5,2 He married at St John in Thanet^G on 12 May 1787, Ann Hooper.^3,4 Ann was born about 1756.⁶ She died aged 85 and was buried at St John in Thanet^G on 24 December 1841.⁷
     John was the owner of a hoy (a small coastal sailing ship for carrying goods and passengers) named the Margate which, in 1802, was wrecked in a storm, with the loss of 22 passengers. Six passengers survived by clinging to the rigging. The ship was en route from Margate to London with, in addition to the passengers, a full load of corn for the London market. John Sackett was not aboard. The ship's master, John Goodburn, was also lost, but the other four crew members survived.
     The disaster made nationwide headlines, with London newspaper reports being repeated across the regional press. A fund was set up for public donations to alleviate the financial hardship of bereaved families. A book, A Circumstantial Narrative of the Stranding of a Margate Corn Hoy, was published, "the Profits arising from the Sale being applied to the Benefit of the Orphans, and other Sufferers by the Calamity."
     It would appear that John Sackett disposed of the Margate soon after the shipwreck, either in its wrecked state or after making repairs. The ship was offered for sale by auction by the assignees of Edward Curling, a bankrupt, in July 1804. It was described as in good repair and fit for immediate service. John Sackett was named in the advertisement as a contact for enquiries, along with the auctioneer.
     In 1826–7 John was living at Hawley Square, Margate^G, and was listed in Pigot's Directory of Kent under "Gentry and Clergy."⁸
     John was named as a beneficiary in his uncle Francis Sackett's will made at Margate, Kent^G, on 13 October 1763.⁹ He was left one guinea.
     John was listed as a freeholder on the electoral register for the County of Kent in 1790. He owned a house in Margate^G.¹⁰ He was listed as a freeholder on the electoral register for the Wingham Division, East Kent, in 1802. He owned and occupied a house in Margate^G.¹¹
     John made his will in St John in Thanet^G on 21 July 1831, naming as beneficiaries his wife Ann, his daughter Mary, his grandsons John Sackett Swinford, Daniel Swinford, Stephen Swinford and Henry Herbert Swinford, and his granddaughter Ann Swinford.¹² He left much of his substantial lands and investments to his wife Ann, but also left to his surviving daughter Mary investments worth £1,700. He stated that this sum was the equivalent of the value of premises left to his son-in-law John Swinford, the husband of John Sackett's deceased daughter Ann. He left sums of money in trust to be inherited by his five grandchildren at 21.
     In 1840 John's widow Ann was living at 27 Hawley Square, Margate^G, and was listed in Pigot's Directory of Kent under "Gentry and Clergy."¹³
     John's widow Ann made her will in Margate, Kent^G, on 2 April 1840, naming as beneficiaries her daughter Mary, her grandsons John Sackett Swinford and Daniel Swinford, and her granddaughter Ann Swinford.¹⁴ She left her personal estate to her unmarried daughter Mary, and various specified personal items to her three Swinford grandchildren, the children of her deceased daughter Ann.

Sarah Sackett, daughter of John Sackett and Mary Ayles, was born in Margate, Kent^G, on 25 December 1760 and baptized at St John in Thanet, Margate^G, on 6 January 1761.¹ She died aged 34 in Margate^G and was buried at St John in Thanet^G on 19 February 1795.⁴ She married at St John in Thanet^G on 18 February 1788, Henry George Stricker, son of Jacob Stricker and Elizabeth ___.^2,3 Henry was baptized at Margate^G on 14 December 1762.⁵
     Sarah was named as a beneficiary in her uncle Francis Sackett's will made at Margate, Kent^G, on 13 October 1763.⁶ She was left one guinea.