This article is part of a series of brief lifestories of the Champ family. William was the eldest child of James Champ and Eliza Moody of Downton, Wiltshire. See project bibliography.

William Champ, the eldest son of James Champ and Eliza Moody, was born on the 22nd of August, 1818. He was baptised four months later in Charlton, London, nearby where his parents were married. Some time later, they settled in his mother’s hometown, Downton. As he grew up, William Champ became a sawyer, likely having learned the trade from his father.

William was charged with having taken part in the incident that occurred in 1848, when his family attacked high bailiff Shergold, who had come to levy their goods as ordered by the court. It seems that William was less aggressive, or there was less testimony against him, as he was only fined 10 shillings.

The following year, 1849, William married Augusta Warner, daughter of a sawyer named George Warner. Only nine days earlier, on the 1st of March, William’s brother Edmund had been sentenced to 10 years’ transportation to Australia for allegedly taking part in killing a wether sheep.

In the 1851 census, on the 30th of March, William and Augusta are recorded as having a one-year-old daughter named Sarah Ann. On the census night, Augusta’s 9 year-old sister was visiting. A few weeks later, William’s father, James Champ, died at the age of 53.

William and Augusta had two additional children. Their daughter Emily was born about 1855, and Margaret was baptised in 1861.

In 1865, William was fined 5 shillings for obstructing the highway.

Later Years

The trade of a sawyer involved hard work. As William was getting older, he likely began to notice the effects of the hard labour on his back. His family’s livelihood depended on their horse’s ability to carry timber for him, and he may not have been able to afford another one. This might be comparable to a modern-day professional who relies on his computer to work each day, and who might become frustrated as it becomes slower with age.

Unfortunately, it seems that William lost his temper with his poor horse more than once. The situation eventually descended into animal cruelty.

In 1877, William was fined £1 for allegedly forcing his old horse to work despite suffering from a chronic sprain of the joint. In 1879, he was punished for a similar offence. A police constable claimed that he was in an orchard at the bottom of Bower-hill on the 1st of April, 1879, when he saw William trying to force a weak horse to draw a truck carrying 10 owt. of timber, with another load of timber in front. The horse appeared to be suffering from a fracture in the hind leg.

According to the constable, William was severely beating the horse with a ground ash stick to try to force it to carry the heavy load up a hill. Not long afterwards, William took the horse to the kennels to be slaughtered. As punishment, William was to either be fined 20 shillings or imprisoned for 14 days.

By the time of the 1881 census, William’s 79 year-old mother was residing with his family. She was now living off an annuity. On the date of the census (April 3), William’s youngest daughter Margaret was visiting her aunt Eliza, William’s sister.

William Champ died in 1903 at the age of 84.