Joseph Fulcher : Mole Catcher

Lois' paternal grandmother was Elizabeth Fulcher, the daughter of Joseph Fulcher and Eliza Ann Waun. Joseph Fulcher had arrived in Canada as a teenager from Kettleburgh, a small impoverished parish in Suffolk on the east coast of southern England. The Fulchers would likely have left little trace on the records of that parish if it had not been for the English Poor Laws. The Poor Laws, which dated back to the reign of Elizabeth I established the principle that each parish was responsible for looking after its own poor. Because the money for this came from the landowners and from the parish church, it is easy to understand why residency examination committees were established to rule on which of the poor were legitimate members of the parish and thus deserving support. Joseph Fulcher, the mole catcher, a poor man with a wife and four children appeared before this committee in 1824. Evidently, Joseph had lived outside the parish for several years and needed to establish his rights as a legitimate resident. As can be seen in the document Joseph based his argument on the fact that both he and his parents had been members of Kettleburgh parish. We can presume that Joseph did get some poor relief and remained in the parish because eight years later, the parish paid the costs for Joseph and his family, along with Lionel Waun and family to emigrate to Canada. A total of 44 people came and, as a group settled in Etobicoke outside of Toronto. Years later, in 1845 Joseph married Eliza Ann Waun and together they moved to Downie Township.