Thomas Tennant Coar, Apothecary
Thomas Tennant Coar (c.1786–1859) was born in Tottenham. He was matriculated at the University of Oxford as a "pharmacopola" on 15 April 1822, and two years later his marriage was announced thus in Jackson's Oxford Journal of 17 July 1824:
On Saturday last was married, at Kensington Church, by the Rev. John Page, Vicar of Gillingham, Thomas Tennant Coar, Esq. of this city, to Sarah Maria, youngest daughter of the late Thomas Davis, Esq. of Bicester.
Coar and his wife had the following children, all born in Oxford, probably in New Inn Hall Street:
- Maria Caroline Harriet Coar (baptised at St Michael's Church on 18 ovember 1826)
- Julia Elizabeth Coar (baptised at St Michael's Church on 18 March 1829)
- Charles John Coar (baptised at St Michael's Church on 22 December 1830)
Coar is described as a surgeon (rather than an apothecary) in the baptism register, and also as a surgeon in New Inn Hall Street in Pigot's Directory for 1830, and again in Gardner's 1852 directory.
In the 1851 census, Coar (62) is described as an "Apothecary and midwife". He and his wife are living at 16 New Inn Hall Street with their daughters Maria (24) and Julia (22) and two servants. Their son Charles can be found as an undergraduate living at Balliol College.
Between 1851 and 1859 the family moved to 15 Park Place. Park Place was the old name of St Giles Road East, later renamed Banbury Road, and it was then in St Giles's parish. No. 15 was two doors to the north of St Giles's School at 34 Banbury Road.
Coar died at the age of 73, and his death was announced thus in Jackson's Oxford Journal of 17 December 1859:
DIED Dec. 12, at his residence St Giles's, Thomas Tennant Coar, Esq., Surgeon.
He was buried at St Giles's Church on 17 December 1859, and his address in the register is given as "Park Place".
Coar's family
Coar's wife Sarah Maria remained at 15 Park Place. The 1861 census for St Giles shows her living there at the age of 74 (and recorded as blind) with her two unmarried daughters, Maria (34) and Julia (32), plus a cook. She is described as a fundholder.
Her daughter Julia died at Park Place at the age of 34 and was buried at St Giles on 15 July 1863. The 1871 census (with the south end of the Banbury Road now coming under St Paul's parish) shows Sarah (84) is living just with Maria (44) and one servant.
Mrs Sarah Coar died at Park Place at the age of 86 and was buried at St Giles on 28 February 1872.
The Rev. Charles John Coar, Coar's eldest son, matriculated from Balliol on 30 November 1849, aged 19. He gained his BA in 1854, his MA at Magdalen Hall in 1869, and won a medal for serving as a Senior Chaplain in the Zulu war.