Zephaniah (aka Zechariah) Jarvis was born in 1865 (Baptised on 27th July) in Whitwell, about ten
miles northwest of Norwich. He started his working life on farms, but by his
early twenties was a self-employed carpenter. His mother died when Zephaniah was
very young and his father moved to Middlesborough (it is not known if Zephaniah
went with him, or stayed with grandparents in Norfolk) where a second marriage
produced a large crop of children. By 1879 the family had moved back to the
Bawdeswell area and by 1881 Zephaniah was plying his trade from the Ram Inn in
that village.
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The Willows (formerly The Ram Inn,
Bawdeswell
He settled here, marrying Edith Harrowen in 1894 and having one
child, Violet (later Warner) soon afterwards. By 1901 the Jarvises had taken on
the licence of the Bawdeswell Crown. They were there until 1905 and then moved
on to the Lodge pub in nearby North Tuddenham and then to the Dial Inn in
Swanton Morley, where they stayed until about 1921. He continued to work as a
carpenter and wheelwright throughout this period and afterwards.
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Bawdeswell Crown (formerly the Bear) - landlord
17.12.1900 to 9.4.1905 (described as a carpenter aged 36 in 1901) - Pub closed
in 1920. |
North Tuddenham Lodge
- landlord 7.4.1905 to 4.1.1906 - Pub remains open as a
restaurant and bar. |
Swanton Morley Dial Inn -
landlord 4.1.1906 to 8.4.1921 - Pub closed in 1961.
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More details of his life are known from an obituary in the The Journal (Dereham
and Fakenham Times) from 17th June 1955, where it states that he had made seven
dulcimers, the last one quite recently. He was evidently well known in the area
as a musician, playing the violin as well as the dulcimer. His last dulcimer was
described as being made from ‘yellow pine, a piece of walnut and some spare
parts from an old piano’. The obituary also mentions a previous article in the
same paper which had apparently resulted in ‘two Hingham’ men visiting him and
playing duets on his two dulcimers. One of these would undoubtedly have been
Billy Cooper, and it sounds as if they had not met before. We have not yet been
able to unearth the other article referred to.
 N.B. This article is the only place his name is given as Zechariah – all
censuses etc have Zephaniah (although often mis-spelled).
Zephaniah Jarvis died,
aged 89 in 1955
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