Biography:
1. A Return dated 1801 showing the marital status of the employees, lists Thomas Betts as a Labourer and a single man (Supply 5/221).
2. In a letter dated the 23rd June 1801 (Supply 5/195), it was stated that the writer had "the Board's commands to transmit to you on the other side hereof a list of the men who have been burnt and otherwise hurt by the fire which lately (16th June, 1801) destroyed the Corning House at Waltham Abbey; and I am to desire the storekeeper will pay the men all their pay until they are recovered." The list included Thomas Betts, but it did not give his trade.
3. A Return of Artificers and Labourers dated the 3rd November 1801 (Supply 5/221), recorded that Mr. Betts was so severely burnt in the Old Corning House that it would be dangerous to expose him with the other men in repairing the river banks at the time, but that he could perform trifling jobs as they occurred.
4. In 1804, Mr. Betts was working as a Refiner and was paid 2/-d per day; all Refiners received an additional allowance of 1/-d per night when it was their turn "to watch" - on average every 5th night. (Supply 5/222 dated the 8th May 1804).
