Pennock, Nesswell

Also known as: Nesswell Pinnock

Singer

Collection date: Jun 1914

Area: Yorkshire

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Nesswell Pennock at Beck Hole, nr Goathland: age 53, 7 fiddle tunes for country dances (FT2967-73) on 15 June 1914: Sharp wrote ‘Pinnock’ but all censuses and records have ‘Pennock’. In his notes (FT2967) Sharp wrote that Nesswell’s brother Stephen* and his own wife taught the dances to Sharp, while Nesswell played away on the fiddle. The dance figures were noted in full. On the same day Sharp had just visited singer Richard Hutton at Goathland for the second time:

Nesswell Pennock was born on 4/7/1861, 8th of 9 children of John Pennock, stone mason and his wife Sarah. The family lived at Lynn’s or Ling’s farm, Beck Hole nr Goathland for nearly 100 years. Nesswell married Sarah Brown in October qr 1879 (Whitby 9d 829). Initially they lived with widowed father John Pennock and then took over Lynn’s house by 1901. They had 7 children.

Nesswell was a labourer at the whinstone quarry and was probably recommended to Sharp by Richard Hutton, the quarry manager. In 1939 Register Nesswell Pennock was still at Ling’s farm – his wife Sarah had died in 1924 but his daughter Edith was living with him. He died in April qr 1947 aged 85 (Whitby 1b 854).

*Stephen was Nesswell's eldest brother (b1843). He was a widower, aged 66 in the 1911 Goathland census.