William Gawthrop was the youngest of the six children of Richard Gawthrop, a blacksmith, and his wife Mary Giger of Histon, Cambridgeshire.
When William was no more than two years old, his father died. His mother remarried to John Marsh (also a Blacksmith of Histon) in October 1746 but she died just three months later.
It is unknown as to whom looked after the young family.
William married Ann Langford of Mepal in Witcham in 1758 and the couple settled down to have four known children. It is the baptism of their oldest child, Mary in 1769 that documents the ever changing surname to GOLTRIP in Witcham parish registers from the GAWTHROP spelling of Histon.
Born:
1742, Histon, Cambridgeshire.
Baptised:
2nd January 1742, Histon, Cambridgeshire.
Died:
December 1796 / January 1797, aged about 53 years old.
Buried:
2nd January 1797, Witcham churchyard, Cambridgeshire.