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The Norfolk Ancestor Volume Eleven Part One March 2014 The Journal of the Norfolk Family History Society formerly Norfolk & Norwich Genealogical Society
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Norfolk Ancestor - Norfolk Family History Society magazine/pdfs/2014/No… · The Norfolk Ancestor The Norfolk Ancestor is a quarterly journal published in March, June, September

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Page 1: Norfolk Ancestor - Norfolk Family History Society magazine/pdfs/2014/No… · The Norfolk Ancestor The Norfolk Ancestor is a quarterly journal published in March, June, September

The

Norfolk Ancestor

Volume Eleven Part One

March 2014

The Journal of the Norfolk Family History Society

formerly Norfolk & Norwich Genealogical Society

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The Front Cover On the cover of this Ancestor is a photograph of a bas-relief by John Moray-Smith,

which has recently been restored by the “Norwich Society”. The mural is a

representation of Norwich’s St Stephen’s Gate and was created c. 1937, based on an

engraving by John Ninham c. 1864 and a 1792 print. The mural is said to weigh just

under a ton and is situated on the Coachmakers Arms Public House, which was at

one time the leper- house of St Stephen, just outside the old city walls and site of

the St Stephen’s gate.

The mural had

suffered from

traffic fumes

and was in need

of restoration.

The Norwich

Society marked

their 90th

anniversary by

paying £4,000

for the cleaning

and repainting

in July 2013.

The earliest surviving document that refers to the gate at St Stephen’s is dated 1285.

In 1578 the gate was improved and repaired for a visit by Queen Elizabeth I who

visited Norwich as part of her East Anglia Progress. She stayed in Norwich for 5

days.

The gate was demolished in1793. The site of the gate is now occupied by a

roundabout on the city’s inner link road.

Not much is known about John Moray-Smith. He was an Italian gypsy who came to

England as a prisoner during the First World War. After the war he stayed and

studied art at the Slade School of Art in London where he met a Norwich woman,

Katrina Moray-Smith, whom he married and took her name. He worked for Watney

-Mann’s Norwich Brewery as an artist in the 1940s and 1950’s and created many

murals for public houses in East Anglia.

John Moray-Smith died in the West Norwich Hospital in 1958 aged 69, a few

weeks after his wife’s death.

The back cover of this magazine shows another of Moray-Smith’s bas-reliefs which

is now in the Cromer Museum.

Paul Harman MN 3205

The Coachmakers Arms, St Stephens Rd, Norwich.

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 3 March 2014

Norfolk Family History Society

A private company limited by guarantee

Registered in England - Company No. 3194731

Registered as a Charity - Registration No. 1055410

Registered Office address:

Kirby Hall, 70 St. Giles Street, Norwich, NR2 1LS

Headquarters and Library Kirby Hall, 70 St. Giles Street, Norwich NR2 1LS

Telephone No. (01603) 763718

NFHS Web pages: http://www.norfolkfhs.org.uk

For a full list of contacts with email addresses please see page 54

Current Rates for Membership

Single Joint Single

10 Year Joint

10 Year Single

Life Joint Life

UK £10 £15 £75 £112 £165 £250

Overseas Airmail £12 £18 £90 £135 £200 £300

ISBN 0141 4505 © Copyright 2014 NFHS and Contributors

NFHS Board of Trustees Jean Stangroom Chair and Membership Secretary

Mike Dack NORS Admin

Paul Harman Projects

Margaret Murgatroyd Transcripts Organiser

Edmund Perry Company Secretary

Carol Reeve Volunteer Co-ordinator

Carole Taylor Treasurer

The Norfolk Ancestor Editorial Team Edmund Perry Editor

Paul Harman Editor

Mary Mitchell Proof Reader

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 4 March 2014

Front and Back Covers “John Moray Smith” - Paul Harman ....................... 2 Kirby Hall Opening Times .......................................................................... 5 Group Meeting Venues................................................................................. 5 Diary of Events ............................................................................................ 6 From Freethorpe to Canada and back via WW1 Part 1- Ellen Carr.............. 7 –10 Valentine’s Day “Gifts” - Pauline Cushing Weinstein................................... 11 Gressenhall Workhouse - Arlene Pilgrim ..................................................... 12-13 A Chettleburgh Conundrum - Heather Wilkins ............................................. 14 Born on Census Day - Keith King ................................................................ 15-17 Searching for de Castilla & Cooke families in Norwich 1820-1840 - Robert Atkins .. 17 Grandad Horace Nichols Webb - David Culley ............................................ 18-19 My Burial Problem - Robert Maidstone ....................................................... 20-21 Tom Allen, Nelson’s Personal Servant. - Pauline Cushing Weinstein............ 21 Adrift in a rowing boat and unpaid wages - Julie Cooper ............................. 22-24 New Members and Members Interests ......................................................... 25-30 Guidelines for Submitting Articles ............................................................... 31 Book Reviews .............................................................................................. 33-34 Putting it right! - Brian Ellis ........................................................................ 36-37 Queries ........................................................................................................ 38 The Norwich Society - City Walls Project - Pauline Cushing Weinstein ....... 39 The Walled City of Norwich in the 14th Century ......................................... 39 Broadland During the First World War - Nicola Hems, ................................. 40 Diss War Memorial and “Over the Top” - Betty Morley ................................ 40 Group Reports and contacts ......................................................................... 41 South Norfolk Group Report ........................................................................ 41-42 London Group Report .................................................................................. 42-44 Norwich Group Report ................................................................................ 44-45 Kirby Hall Library Report - Margaret Murgatroyd ....................................... 46-47 Village Boxes - Judith Kilbourn ................................................................... 47 Family Trees and Pedigrees - Pam Bridge .................................................... 48 NORS (Norfolk Online Record Search) - Mike Dack ................................... 48-49 NFHS Website - Mike Dack ......................................................................... 49 Norfolk Record Office Report - Jenny Watts ................................................ 50-51 Norfolk Centenarians in the early 19th Century - Edmund Perry .................. 52 Who to Contact in the NFHS and how to contact them ................................. 54 The Walled City of Norwich 14th Century illustration.................................. 55

CONTENTS The Norfolk Ancestor March 2014

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 5 March 2014

Kirby Hall Library Opening Times

Tuesday and Thursday 10.00am - 1.00pm

Wednesday 10.00am - 4.00pm

First and last Sunday in the month 10.00am - 1.00pm

The Norfolk Ancestor The Norfolk Ancestor is a quarterly journal published in March, June, September and December. Opinions expressed in this journal are those of individual authors and do not necessarily represent the views of either the Editor or the Norfolk Family History Society which cannot take responsibility for the accuracy of facts in the articles submitted.

All advertisements are commercial and their inclusion does not indicate

endorsement by the Society, which accepts no responsibility for any loss suffered

directly or indirectly by any reader or purchaser as a result of any advertisement

or notice published in this journal.

No part of this journal may be reproduced in any form whatsoever without the

prior permission of the Society.

DISS Diss Methodist Church,Victoria Road, Diss (A1066)

SOUTH NORFOLK (2nd Tuesday of each month at 7.00 pm)

£1 per member - £2 for non-members

NORWICH Kirby Hall, 70 St Giles Street, Norwich

(2nd Friday of each month at 7.30 pm)

LONDON Society of Genealogists, 14 Charterhouse Buildings, Goswell Road.

London EC1M 7BA

(Approximately every six months, 2.00 - 4.00pm)

Group Meeting Venues

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 6 March 2014

DIARY of EVENTS From March 2014

Date Event Speaker Group

11 Mar The Blackest Streets Sarah Wise (author)

Diss

14 Mar Eminent Norwich Men Barbara Miller Nch

15 Mar Members’ Day focussing on the conflict of World War 1

Lon

8 Apr The Royal Hospital Chelsea Brian Cumming MBE KstG

Diss

11 Apr Writing Your Family History Gill Blanchard Nch

9 May Norwich Markets Frances and Michael Holmes

Nch

13 May The Town Crier Mike Wab Diss

10 Jun Teenage Valour - The stories of the five youngest recipients of the Victoria Cross

Edith Morley Diss

13 Jun Norwich in the Sixties Pete Goodrum Nch

8 Jul Terror in the Night - 1953 North Sea Surge

Michael Holland Diss

11 Jul Norwich Mousehold Heath Walk William Stewart Nch

8 Aug Member Help Member Nch

12 Aug Gone to Look for America! - An English Merchant in C18th and C19th in Baltimore

Dr Simon Pawley

Diss

12 Sep Norwich City of Industries Nick Williams Nch

14 Oct Rural Norfolk Women Charlotte Paton Diss

18 Oct TBA Lon

11 Nov In the Footsteps of our Fathers - A journey from landing in Normandy in June 1944 ending in a city in Holland

Beverley Cooper

Diss

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 7 March 2014

Researching Sidney ALEXANDER and his role in WW1 began as part of a study of men from the small Norfolk village of Freethorpe who fought in the war. Online research found that this man was part of the Canadian Overseas Expeditionary

Force and had enlisted in Calgary. More research was needed!

Census records for 1911 show Sidney’s parents, Benjamin and Florence ALEXANDER living at the Brickyard on the Reedham Road, Freethorpe, although their son was born in Acle on the 24th of November 1888. At the age of 22 Sidney was a carpenter, and not yet married, but it must have been crowded in the small cottage with 8 people living there – Sidney, his parents, siblings Maude, Eva, Ernest and Alec as well as cousin Charles WILKERSON (who also later enlisted). Perhaps the overcrowding was one of the reasons that Sidney decided upon a new life and emigrated to Canada although I have still to discover the exact date. This must have been quite an adventure for the 24 year old from a very rural

county.

However far away he was, Sidney obviously heard what was going on in Europe and decided to enlist. On March 8th 1915 he became soldier number 435091, one of the 600,000 from Canada who volunteered, when he joined the 50th Battalion, Canadian Overseas Expeditionary Force (C.O.E.F) at Calgary, Alberta. His Attestation papers, together with those of all the other volunteers from Canada, are available online and when I saw the address of the next of kin was Freethorpe I knew I had the correct records. At the time he was still a carpenter and not married. Like many who enlisted ‘For the Duration of the War’, he had not been part of the military before. In fact from 24th August to 24th September 1915 his records show he was helping to

get the harvest in!

His Attestation papers, kept in the Library and Archives of Canada, describe him as 5 feet 5 inches tall with a red complexion, blue eyes and sandy hair. He was examined and considered fit for the C.O.E.F. The only distinctive mark noted was a ‘Big joint on second knuckle of right hand due to injury’ suffered in 1913. Perhaps this was the result of an accident whilst doing his job as a carpenter. The 50th Battalion left Halifax, Nova Scotia on the 27th October 1915 on HMS “Orduna” and arrived in Plymouth on the 4th November. They were stationed at Bramshott Camp, Hants. We can only imagine what a homecoming it was for

From Freethorpe to Canada and Back via WW1 – Part 1

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 8 March 2014

Private Sidney ALEXANDER. The Battalion embarked for Le Havre, France on

10th August 1916.

It was whilst searching the Canadian Archives that I found the War Diary of the 50th Battalion which I hoped might give me more of an understanding of Sidney’s experiences during the war. War diaries contain the minutiae of military life from location to pay days, officers names, orders, and activities of the troops and the 50th Canadian Infantry Battalion diaries are no exception. The fact that they were involved in the fighting at Vimy, The Somme, Passchendaele, Amiens, Arras and Cambrai tells its own story and is well documented but I was interested in the details that give an insight into the lives of the soldiers like Sidney and how they might have felt. Reading through several hundred pages of diary online was enthralling but also tedious at times due to the administrative details which, whilst being their raison d’etre, were of limited interest to me. These records rarely mention ordinary soldiers by name (they are just referred to as O.R. - Other Ranks) and there is no way of knowing which company Sidney belonged to, so gaining an insight into his life in the trenches has to be very general and

based on records of what the battalion was doing.

Having arrived in France, Sidney, along with the rest of the battalion, disembarked at about 7.30 am and stayed there until the following morning. Then at 6 am on the 12th of August “The men travelled thirty in a cattle truck,” all night to Godewaersvelde near the Belgian border. Welcome to France! Perhaps this method of transport gave them some reality of what serving in the war would be like, especially as they had to march about two miles to their billets afterwards! They were allowed to rest for a day before being given instruction in “Bayonet Fighting and Bombing” followed by training in the use of “Gas

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 9 March 2014

Helmets”. The latter was considered to be very important as Canadian troops were amongst those killed and injured by the first gas attack of the war near Ypres

in April 1915.

Sidney and the others were then taken to the trenches ”for instruction.” We can only guess at what they thought about the conditions they saw and this new type of fighting. It was on the 19th August, just 8 days after arriving in France that they took their first casualty when Major L.O.WEBSTER, the officer commanding ‘A’ company was killed. Did this bring it home to the men that they were in a deadly war? When not ‘at the front’ troops were held in reserve or allowed to rest although their positions could still be within firing range of the enemy. While on reserve there was constant training in fighting techniques, physical training and the use of various weapons including grenades, rifles, mortars and machine guns. There were also more mundane tasks like salvaging from damaged support

areas. On January 10th 1918, 17 men recovered amongst other things:

The sheer numbers involved as well as the actual equipment itself gives an insight into what was important in everyday life in the trenches. Perhaps the 200 tins of

corned beef were more welcomed by the troops than the shovels!

The diaries give an idea of the ‘new’ technology being used in warfare. Apart from the first use of poisonous gas in warfare, the war also saw the use of tanks and planes for the first time. In March 1918, “Our planes very active today, twenty four being noted coming from enemy territory at one time in the afternoon.” This gives the idea that it was an unusual experience to see so many at one time. It was not one sided though for the next day, “at 5.30.pm an enemy plane flew along our lines and shot down four of our balloons in flames. Observers landed safely in parachutes.” A few days earlier, “A large number of balloons with enemy propaganda descended in this district today.” By April “Considerable aerial activity today on both sides, ten of the new Boche planes coming over our lines at 7.00

pm but turned back by our AA guns.”

On 28th August 1916, the battalion moved into the front line trenches for the first time and the weather changed! “Thunderstorms in the afternoon” followed the next day by “rain all day and night” was a foretaste of conditions to come. The pattern was that troops would be in the front line for about 6 days and would then move back into the reserve for the same amount of time. The diaries show the men were often paid whilst in reserve and this must have been quite important to the morale of the troops. Sidney, having no dependents, arranged for part of his

120 rifles 30 bayonets 294,000 rounds of AA

11 sacks Ely Cartridges 9 boxes grenades 100 shovels, good

70 shovels, broken 200 tins Bully beef 64 picks, good

30 picks, broken 200 screw stakes 85 spools, barbed wire

3 windlasses 2 trench pumps 6 wheelbarrows

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pay to be sent to his mother back home in Freethorpe. The pay rate for infantry was $1 a day plus a field allowance. Some money was given directly to the men and the ‘Assigned Pay’ was sent to dependents. Although $15 a month does not seem much by modern standards, it must have helped his parents a lot as Sidney’s father, Benjamin, was a bricklayer who would not have been earning a high wage in 1915. This payment continued throughout the war and only stopped

on 1st July 1919 when Sidney left the army.

By October 1916 the battalion had moved to the Brickfield near Albert. Here they were again in the front line and several men sustained injuries, including “Lieut. W J EVELEIGH self inflicted wound”. Was this a case of accidental wounding or an intentional act by someone who could no longer endure life in the trenches? There are no more mentions of this officer so we can only wonder at the truth of this. Even those helping the wounded were not safe. On 26th October 1916, the “50th battalion volunteered a party to evacuate wounded of the 44th battalion .....Pte WESTLAKE and Pte COLE killed carrying wounded.” In April 1918 “... one man killed and one seriously wounded and three slightly wounded by a gas shell. The stretcher bearer was gassed while dressing them by gas from

their clothing.”

Towards the end of October 1916 Sidney and the others from the 50 th battalion were camping in “Sausage Valley” near Albert. I am not sure this is a true geographic name for the area and it reflects the way that soldiers gave recognisable names to places that were easier for them to recognise or were indicative of something that happened there. In May 1918 they camped at Houchin and named the place P.D.Q. [Pretty Darn Quick]. “The name given to this camp unofficial, and prompted by the celerity of the move yesterday.” So even the war diarist acknowledged the names given by the troops. Whilst on the subject of names, the diary records that Lieut. G S COWARD was “slightly

wounded” on November 8th 1916. An unfortunate name for a soldier!

However, names were also chosen with considerable care. In August 1918 the men prepared for an operation code named L.C. “the letters signifying ‘Llandovery Castle’ the Canadian Hospital ship torpedoed by the Boche.” This incident had taken place on 27th June 1918 off the coast of southern Ireland with the loss of 234 lives. In terms of the number of dead the sinking was the most significant Canadian naval disaster of WW1. This incident must have had a profound effect on the men, including Sidney, and would probably have galvanised their efforts to win the war.

Ellen Carr MN 9159

(Part 2 will be in the June 2014 Ancestor)

An erased entry of 1824 for the Banns for William CLEAVER and Susannah THOMPSON concludes “The young lady ran away”

From Blakeney Banns

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Valentine’s Day “Gifts”

Long before cards and flowers were exchanged between sweethearts, February 14th was a special day when a wide range of gifts and toys were given to children as “Valentines”. In my Mother’s family “tea without a light” took place and as soon as darkness fell, a sharp rap would be heard at the front door. The eldest child was allowed to answer but would find nobody there. On the doorstep would be an unwieldy package addressed to him. So it would continue until every child had answered the door and found a parcel. The contents, a hoop, whipping top or skipping rope, were usually the same but the children entered into the spirit and feigned amazement. No one knew who the mysterious giver was although per-

haps the older ones made a guess.

This custom was widespread in Norfolk although a little more mischievous with overtones of Halloween trickery. Sometimes the parcel was empty save for a scribbled insult or similar snub, or contained a pig’s tail or a beautifully wrapped dead bat. Snatch Valentine was played as a prank by children who took ad-vantage of houses having doors next to one another. Parcels would be left on each doorstep and the door handles tied together, or the parcels would be fas-tened to a long string so they could be snatched away as the recipient bent to pick them up. Even worse a loosely tied parcel of horse manure was left finely balanced on the doorstep - most gratifying when the step led down into the

house.

In some districts children made a night of the mischief by knocking on doors and

chanting a piece of nonsense verse:

Good morning Valentine, Good morrow Valentine How do it hail How thundering hot When Father’s pig die When Father’s pig die

You shall ha’ its tail You shall ha’ its jot

In Snettisham children went round the big houses for gifts of money, oranges or

sweets singing:

Good morrow Valentine God bless the baker You’ll be the giver I’ll be the taker The roads are very muddy My boots are very thin

But I’ve got a pocket to put a penny in.

Evidently this ‘gift-giving’ in Norfolk and parts of Suffolk is unknown in the rest of

Britain. It would be interesting to know the origins of these Norfolk customs.

Pauline Cushing Weinstein MN 390

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 12 March 2014

For several years my husband and I have spent our summer holiday in Norfolk and Suffolk, and while there, we often go to the County Record Offices to find out more about our ancestors. This time we had a most rewarding and interesting day out at the Gressenhall Workhouse situated near East Dereham, which is now a museum and educational centre run by Norfolk C.C. Several members of my family had ‘visited’ there from the 1860s right up to 1902 and we wondered if we could find out anything about them. The Librarian was most helpful in showing us

their records.

Phoebe FREEZER, born in Beeston 1826, was the sister of my great grandfather. She was married to John FREEZER who died aged 37 in 1858 leaving Phoebe, aged 31 with seven children. Phoebe had another child, William, in 1862. The Gressenhall records show that in June 1871, “the 3 children (Elizabeth 15; Robert 13; William 9) of Phoebe FREEZER of Beetley, widow, had become inmates of the workhouse and chargeable to the Union through being deserted by the said Phoebe FREEZER, their mother.” It was ordered that Mr. Reynolds the Master take proceedings against her before the Magistrate with a view to her punishment

in accordance to the law.

On 9th June 1871 she was given 1 month in Wymondham Bridewell “For deserting family”. Phoebe did marry again in 1874 to a widower, but by 1911 she was back again in the workhouse, this time at Horsham, where she died in 1915. A rather

sad life.

Regarding her three children, the news was more positive. 25th September 1871 a clothing allowance of £2.10s was allowed to Elizabeth FREEZER on going into the service of Mr. Edward CUNNINGHAM of St. Benedicts, Norwich, a photographer. The Local Government Board agreed on 2nd October 1871. She married in 1876, had two children and died in 1941 aged 85. Robert FREEZER (aka FRASER/FRAZER) became a shoemaker, quite probably a skill acquired at

Gressenhall. He married in 1881 and had eight children.

William FREEZER married in 1891, also had eight children and was in

“greengrocery” in Norwich.

In 1891, another relative Edgar George BLOCKWELL, aged 10 was an inmate at Gressenhall because his single mother had died. In April 1893 the clerk laid before the Board a letter from Henry COOPER of Beeston offering to take an apprentice to his trade of blacksmith. It was resolved that Edgar “aged 12, an inmate of the workhouse, from the said parish of Beeston, be selected as a proper lad to fill the situation but that the question of the mode of service and terms of agreement stand over until the next meeting”. on 23rd May, £2. 10s was granted to him on going into service. In 1901, Edgar is a blacksmith working in Beeston,

Norfolk.

Gressenhall Workhouse remains a grim looking place, but if you were poor, as most of the inmates were, or sick or unemployed, where else could you turn?

Gressenhall Workhouse

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There were neither welfare benefits or NHS in those days. The children were fed, received an education, work or an apprenticeship was often found for them. The Librarian said that the workhouse liked to send their children out into the world

looking presentable, hence the grants of money when they left.

It was an illuminating visit and I am left thinking that we should be grateful that

these places existed.

Arlene Pilgrim MN 11355

Gressenhall Workhouse

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 14 March 2014

I have been researching my family history and have come across a puzzling situation regarding my grandmother's maiden name. My grandmother was born, lived & married in Norwich, Norfolk. My grandmother's name was Rose Elizabeth CHETTLEBURGH, she was born in September 1874 & married William GOODMAN in 1906. She had my mother in 1910 and here is where the problem starts. On my mother's birth certificate it shows my grandmother's maiden name as SAYER & not CHETTLEBURGH. I have spoken to other members of my family who have been researching and they are as puzzled as me. I have queried this directly with both the local register office concerned and the general register office

but unfortunately neither can explain this.

I have a copy of the original birth certificate for my grandmother in 1874 (Rose Elizabeth CHETTLEBURGH), showing that she was born in Rupert Street, Heigham. It shows the registration district as the West Wymer sub-district of Norwich. I also have copies of my grandmother's marriage certificate to William John GOODMAN in 1906, showing her maiden name as CHETTLEBURGH and her age as 32. I have already requested copies of birth certificates for my mother's siblings from the general register office to see what former name they show for my

grandmother, although their anticipated delivery date is some way off yet.

I have a copy of the 1911 census entry which shows that my grandparents lived at 116 Pottergate Street, Norwich. They were William and Rose (then aged 37) although she is listed as Rosa (as she was fondly known in the family), 2 of my mother's brothers aged 9 and 1, a sister aged 3 and my mother aged 6 months. Also listed is a William GOODMAN, aged 24, who was my grandfather's son by a

previous marriage.

I wonder if anyone has any ideas where I can go from here. Perhaps I should enlist the aid of a genealogist to do further research. Any thoughts would be

greatly appreciated.

Heather Wilkins email: [email protected]

A CHETTLEBURGH Conundrum

Ancestor Editor

Regrettably, Robin Whitmore left us just before Christmas. The trustees express their thanks to him for editing the Ancestor in 2013 and the constructive changes he made. Fortunately, Peter Steward has offered to become the new Editor for the June 2014 issue. We wish him the very best in this role.

This issue is a collaborative effort by the Trustees.

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This is a short background to the life of my great grandmother, Harriet COX and her family. Perhaps there is someone out there who will be able to solve a mystery that has lasted over ten years. But more of that later, let us start at the

beginning.

John COX was born in the lovely village of Barton Turf on 2 October 1846 to John and Sarah COX, formerly HEWITT. He was the second of six children born to the couple. Four years later in the nearby village of Smallburgh his future wife made her appearance. Frances CURTIS was born on the 9 July 1850. She was the twelfth child of thirteen that her mother, also Frances, bore her husband John

CURTIS.

The couple married at Smallburgh on 3 June 1868. Frances was under eighteen years old and pregnant. Their first child was born on 3 October, just four months after they married. I wonder what John thought of his birthday present. They named their son, John Matthew COX and it was not long before their family increased. On 25 February 1870 Frances gave birth to a girl and named her Mary Ann. Life was rather hard in the Norfolk farming community of the 1860’s. Many

people chose to move to the expanding cities to find work.

Mary Ann CURTIS, an older sister of Frances, had moved north to Gateshead by 1861. Within ten years six of the CURTIS children had followed their sister north including John and Frances COX. They settled at Seaham and the men found work in the coal mines. John COX was fortunate and worked above ground as a

labourer in one of the factories or at the harbour.

Life was not any easier in this industrial town living at Back South Railway Street. On 7 November 1871 Mary Ann COX died from ‘Marasmus’ a disease of malnutrition when breast feeding on an inadequate diet. John and Frances lost three other children in the next few years and sent their eldest child to Norfolk to live. Their life in Seaham seemed to have improved by 1875 when Emily was born at Church Street. Like many families they soon moved. In 1877 Sarah Jane was

born at Railway Street and Mary Ann at John Street in 1879.

About a year later, John and Frances COX witnessed the suffering of their family and friends in Seaham. Mining accidents were a regular hazard of the job but on 8 September 1880 there occurred a major disaster. A build up of methane gas in the mine caused a huge explosion. The result was the death of 164 men and boys, as well as over 200 animals and made headlines in the national

newspapers.

The family still lived at John Street on census day 1881. On this day, Sunday 3 April Frances gave birth to another daughter, Harriet. I have this vision of John filling out the census form while Frances is giving birth in another room. The mine incident may have been the final reason to persuade them to return to Norfolk.

They settled at Estcourt Road in Great Yarmouth with their children.

Born on Census Day

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While there Frances gave birth to another daughter, Ellen, in August 1883. John COX worked as a labourer for the town corporation. Then in July 1885 after five girls, they had a boy and named him George William. After nearly twenty years of bearing children Frances was not finished. In March 1887, she gave birth to twin girls named, Minnie and Hannah. Sadly Hannah only lived for seven weeks. Minnie would more than make up for her twin sister and live to be eighty-one

years of age and marry twice.

Some time after the 1891 census John moved his family to North River Road. The property, close to Yarmouth town centre, overlooked the River Bure and would remain the family home until Frances died in 1935. The children of John and Frances COX were fast becoming young adults and finding their own way in the world. My great grandmother, Harriet COX, left school and began work as a maid around 1895. In December 1896 her eldest sister married Benjamin CRANE at Great Yarmouth. Harriet became an aunt when Emily gave birth to Lily May two

years later.

In 1901 Harriet COX lived in Northgate Street in Great Yarmouth. She was a general servant to Fanny PASSON, a Church of England missioner. Harriet seems to have been the ‘wrong un’ of the family. In the spring of 1904 she discovered she was expecting a child. Like so many women of her generation in her predicament Harriet went to stay with relatives at Sloley. On the first of November Harriet gave birth to a boy, my grandfather. She named the child

George William, perhaps after her younger brother.

A few weeks later her sister Sarah Jane COX married James RUSSELL and the couple became involved with the Salvation Army. Harriet returned to Great Yarmouth with her son where she met her future husband, Henry KING. In August 1907 her younger sister, Ellen, married Victor BOULTON and the following April Harriet married Henry KING. He was a milkman from the Southtown area and in

December 1909, Harriet gave birth to a second son, Reginald Henry.

The 1911 census finds the family of Harriet living in various parts of the town. Emily lived with her husband and their two children. Childless Sarah was married but fostering her niece, Dorothy BOULTON. Mary was working as a servant for her long term employer, Harry CHITTLEBURGH, a butcher. Married Ellen was living in The Rows with her husband. Minnie lived and worked as a servant at the home of draper James WINTER. George, the boy of the family, lived with his

parents and worked for a hay dealer.

Harriet with her husband and two sons had moved about forty miles away. They were living at Ryburgh to the north-west of Norwich. Henry worked as a cowman on a farm. I suppose with the responsibility of a wife and family to feed he had to find a better paid job. Henry and Harriet probably moved regularly in search of

work and with the Great War farming was a reserved occupation.

At the end of the war tragedy struck the KING family. At this time they were living in Chedgrave when Harriet contracted Influenza. She passed away on the 14

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 17 March 2014

November at the age of thirty-seven just three days after the death of the local doctor, Lawson McCLINTOCK at thirty-nine. Sarah nursed Harriet during the illness but there would be no other family help. Within two years Henry died from appendicitis. Reginald aged eleven went into the workhouse. My grandfather

George lied about his age to join the British Army.

George, died in 1983 and he still lived with his lies from 1920. I have discovered much about the sisters of Harriet. I even met the youngest Minnie when I was a baby but do not recall the meeting. The mystery surrounds the brother George William COX. The last I know of him is from the 1911 census in Great Yarmouth. A descendent of one of the girls told me “George joined the Navy and was married to Marian”. Perhaps there is someone out there with knowledge of this

family or can tell me about George William COX.

Keith King MN5521 email: [email protected]

My 3x Great Grandfather, Mariano de CASTILLA

(Argentine gentleman & revolutionary emissary seeking

the freedom of South America from Spanish rule)

married Rebecca COOKE (from Norwich) in 1815. The

family lived in London until about 1820 when they moved

to Norwich. His name appears with a list to a Loyal

address, Norfolk Chronicle 13/1/1821. Four of their

children: Henry, Emma, John and Georgina appear to

have been born in Norwich (1821 – 1827). I have images

of baptism/re-baptism records from St John Catholic

Church Maddermarket for nine children. The 1836

Norfolk Directory index lists “Castilla Misses, 1” on page 223 and the Norfolk

Chronicle (5th July 1834) includes an advertisement about the relocation of “The

Misses Castillas’ School” from Catton to Magdalen Street.

By 1839 Rebecca de CASTILLA was living in London

after Mariano’s death in 1837 in Lima, Peru. Rebecca’s

parents were Thomas COOKE and Elizabeth HOWARD

(m 4 Feb 1783). I have an image of the will Thomas

prepared at St. Faith’s Lane Norwich on 6th August 1829,

which was proved 3rd January 1832. I am seeking any

evidence relevant to this family, particularly about the

school and Thomas COOKE’s occupation, birth and

death dates.

I can be contacted by email [email protected] or write to Robert Atkins

[MN 13128], 21 Hartung St. Mundaring 6073 Western Australia.

Searching for de CASTILLA and COOKE families in Norwich 1820 - 1840

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 18 March 2014

Grandad Horace Nichols Webb

Walking along the Newmarket Road in the late 1950s my mother, abruptly advised me there was some doubt about the paternity of her recently deceased father Horace NICHOLS. I was perhaps 12 years old. Later I discovered mother’s London based Aunt Ada, Horace’s sister, had told her that Horace Nichol’s real father was one Henry SEXTON of the Norwich shoe-making family.

Mother took it with a pinch of salt but this is what I have found.

Horace NICHOLS was baptised and married “Horace NICHOLS WEBB”. My mother was baptised Henrietta NICHOLS WEBB, although apparently brought up unaware of this as she was plain Henrietta NICHOLS at her marriage. My grandmother, as a widow in later life, fiercely insisted on being addressed as Martha WEBB, which of course was correct. Horace’s mother was Alice Maud WEBB. Two years after his baptism she married Horace NICHOLS. This was the common name formula for a child born out of wedlock where the father admits paternity and a marriage follows. In this case the delay can be justified by Alice’s age, 15 at the time of conception. Horace NICHOLS was the father of

the baby, or so it would seem.

My mother often remarked how different her loved father was from his father, Horace NICHOLS, whom she detested. It was a reflection on this difference which had prompted Ada’s remark. Horace’s father, Richard NICHOLS, married Susan SEXTON. Richard had been a shoemaker in Heigham, adjacent in the 1860’s to the family of Henry Fisher SEXTON, founder of the shoemaking business. Susan SEXTON was his cousin. This gave Ada’s story some credence. Henry Fisher SEXTON had a son, plain Henry SEXTON. At the time of the conception of Alice Maud WEBB’s child, this Henry was newly married and had just baptised his first child, Alice Maud SEXTON. Alice Maud was not the name combination of the day although there are a few others baptised in the same year so it is an interesting co-incidence. At this time the SEXTONs, father and sons, had yet to start their own business. They were employed by Howlett and White in St George’s Plain and lived nearby in Gildengate. A few minutes’

walk away in Peacock Street lived Alice Maud WEBB.

There is then a case supporting Ada’s account. What I want to know is how Susan née SEXTON could manage to persuade her teenage son Horace NICHOLS to marry a “fallen woman” and let the world believe the child was his. Alice WEBB and her parents also had to be persuaded this was going to be the best arrangement, offering long term security for their daughter. Horace appeared an unpromising prospect being a pot-boy in his father’s public house and then cow-keeper at the time of his eventual marriage. To protect Henry SEXTON’s marriage and the SEXTON family name, any arrangement would have to be secret, and it had to stay secret forever. In other words Horace NICHOLS and the WEBBs would have to have something to lose if the cat ever

got out of the bag.

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 19 March 2014

I can think of two possibilities. Shortly after the marriage, Alice who had been a dressmaker before her marriage was a boot machinist (factory) and Horace, the cow keeper, was a shoemaker. They had a rented house in Silver Street where Horace allegedly had a side-line, running an illegal betting ring. The perfect

cover amongst friends and neighbours for any undue affluence.

Horace and Alice Maud had several children. Only Ada appears to have known the secret. How might this have come about? In the early autumn of 1918 Ada married a soldier. By December he was dead. A shocking end to her dreams. I imagine her mother Alice, telling of the man she had loved and lost and how her life had carried on, but swearing Ada to silence. By the 1950’s all those involved were dead. I can hear Ada say to my mother: “They’re all gone now dear, so it

can’t hurt......”

It seems to me, in the photos above, my granddad looks more like Henry Jesse SEXTON than Horace NICHOLS. This is not particularly telling as Henry J SEXTON was the nephew of the Henry SEXTON referred to in this story. No

doubt somewhere there is a photograph of plain Henry.

David Culley MN 14645

Horace Nichols Webb Horace Nichols Henry Jesse Sexton

?

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 20 March 2014

My ancestor, Robert MAIDSTONE, was granted a faculty in February 1766 to a 12 foot by 8 foot plot in Great Plumstead Churchyard where his late wife had been buried in October 1765. The faculty included permission to sink a vault, with steps to go down if necessary, a monument and iron or other rails, as convenient, for him, his heirs

and family exclusive of all others.

As the last of the Great Plumstead born MAIDSTONE’s I wish to be buried, as appears my right, in the family vault, however it seems no-one knows how to get

access into the vault, or indeed if, as most funeral director question, there is one.

Robert made his will in May 1766 instructing his body to be interred at Great Plumstead “in the same tomb where my wife now lies and under my name and age I desire there may be inscribed these words”. It seems that between February and May 1766 some works were undertaken to provide ‘a tomb’ and a substantial

table monument that stands to this day.

The monument stands with an area clear of other graves stones of at least twelve feet on both its north and south sides and is surrounded by a concrete strip studded with the sawn off ends of metal railings. From the inscription only Robert and his wife lie in the vault. Other family members are recorded as being buried at Great Plumstead but only two are marked with headstones, dated 1871 and 1878,

and those stand to the immediate west of the monument.

Some funeral services have suggested only the monument was erected and ‘normal’ graves exist beneath or to one side, or that a simple ‘pit’ or ‘well’ type tomb comprising of a brick lined hole exists over which the monument was built. All seem to think that access, if any, is gained by simply lifting off the top slab, a

73 inch by 37 inch by 3 inches thick piece of stone and lowering the coffins down.

My Burial Problem

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 21 March 2014

As there is a resurgence of interest in Admiral Lord NELSON it seems a good

time to tell readers about his Norfolk personal servant Tom ALLEN, a distant

relative of mine. It is now accepted that apart from Lady HAMILTON, Tom was

NELSON’s closest companion, responsible for his personal care and apparently

took his duties very seriously. He acted as “go-between” with Emma HAMILTON,

enjoyed himself at the court of Naples, and called his son Horatio NELSON

ALLEN.

Entry in Fakenham Baptisms Parish Register 1802

Both man and Master came from the Burnhams and Tom was intensely loyal, an

attribute which NELSON valued. He was with NELSON during most of the

engagements, but unaccountably was not at Trafalgar. Like many of the crewmen

he was wounded and like others had no pension and nowhere to live with his wife

and granddaughter when he returned home. However a sum of money was raised

for them and eventually a home found at Greenwich Hospital where he ended his

days enjoying a new role as raconteur. There is a painting of him at the Royal

Hospital & he is buried in the grounds with a tombstone inscribed: “To the memory

of Thomas ALLEN The faithful servant of Admiral Lord NELSON born at Burnham

Thorpe in the County of Norfolk 1764 and died at the Royal Hospital Greenwich

on the 23rd of November 1838.”

Pauline Cushing Weinstein MN 390

A close inspection of the monument shows that the side slabs are ‘falling apart at the joints’ and that the centre is filled with bricks, on which the top slab looks as if it is resting. This goes someway to confirming my feeling that in the 1760s there was an easier way of access rather than raising the top slab and lifting it over the metal railing, lifting the coffin up, over and then down and afterwards replacing the

slab.

Another suggestion is that my cremated remains could be interred by digging down and under the foundations of the monument, an interesting exercise if any brick ‘tomb’ exists beneath the soil, but I don’t like the idea of being stuffed under

the footings like a bit of waste pipe!

So I wonder if any member has any information about access to vaults or how to find the entrance? I’m not worried about the legal aspects, just the physical way of

getting in.

To complicate the issue the church was burnt out in the late 1800s so I am not

sure if burial plans for this ‘old’ part of the churchyard exist.

Robert Maidstone MN11556

Tom ALLEN, NELSON’s Personal Servant

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 22 March 2014

Two of my 4x Great Grandfathers are linked by a ship. The first is Daniel CHAMBERLIN born 1763 in Lowestoft Suffolk and the second is William MANNERS possibly born in Ireland c1755. Daniel married Elizabeth DRAPER in 1786 at St. Nicholas Church, Great Yarmouth (Gt.Y) I am having difficulty tracing her parentage so would love to hear from anyone who knows of her family. They had 12 children but 5 died in childhood, all born in Gt.Y where Daniel was a shipwright in the late 1700s and early 1800s. He built small ships and did repairs on a Yarmouth Customs Revenue Cruiser/Cutter called “Hunter”. One of Daniel’s sons, Daniel Junior, married Ann MANNERS in 1842 daughter of William MANNERS and was a mariner on the same ship. Perhaps Daniel Jnr & Ann met because their father’s knew each other through their dealings with the “Hunter”. They had 11 children, one of whom is my 2x Great Grandfather Alfred John Norman CHAMBERLIN.

My cousin Patrick CHAMBERLIN researched letters at the National Archives in Kew which give an insight to the working lives of Daniel and William.

On May 16th 1792, Captain Thomas RICHES was the Commander of the “Hunter” which was chasing a smuggling vessel off Yarmouth, when the wind dropped, so 8 men including William MANNERS, continued the chase in a rowing boat. The wind came up again and the 2 bigger ships left the rowing boat behind which was adrift without provisions for four days and three nights before being rescued by a Swedish boat. They eventually landed at Elsinore in Denmark on May 23rd 1792. Three of the men Peter DANIEL, Thomas WATT/WARR and John WINDSELL/WINSDALE sadly died from exposure. The other four John WILLIAMS, Mark MASTER, Nathaniel CHAPMAN, Saul SMITH, and William MANNERS, survived. Capt. RICHES’ and William’s statements to the Board of Customs about the circumstances of the tragedy can be found in the National Archives.

Regarding Daniel CHAMBERLIN: in 1805 letters by W.PALGRAVE, J. COLLS, G. THOMPSON and Samuel BELL (presumably Solicitors) were written to the Commissioners of H. M. Customs on Daniel’s behalf, begging for him to be paid for work he had done on the “Hunter” in 1800. The problem seems to have arisen because Capt. RICHES needed some paintwork repairs. The secretary to the Customs Commissioners didn’t know who had been employed to do this work previously. He employed SYMONDS and CORBETT as painters and James

Illustration of the type of revenue cutter ‘The Hunter’.

143 tons 32 men.

Station: Harwich to Cromer out of the Port of Yarmouth

Adrift in a Rowing Boat and Unpaid Wages

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 23 March 2014

LOVEWELL as boat builder. The previous painters, LONSDALE & GARWOOD and Daniel, the boat builder, were understandably upset by this and petitioned the Customs Commissioners, asking if there was any cause for complaint or misconduct which had caused them to employ other tradesmen, thereby losing them considerable custom.

On 10th September 1804, Daniel’s letter to the Commissioners said he had worked on the “Hunter” for many years and had always given Capt. RICHES great satisfaction, serving him as soon as orders were given at the shortest notice. He hoped Their Honours would take into consideration that he never gave any offence to warrant their employment being given to Mr LOVEWELL who did not have six children to care for as he did (he had 9 but 3 had died). He was sorry to lose their employment in such a way, not to be told the reason and hoped he had not offended Their Honours. He was certain he had not offended Capt. RICHES. He begged them to write to Capt. RICHES in respect to his character. Daniel hoped Their Honours would not let things remain as they were as Capt. RICHES knew he could accommodate him with a very large boat yard, big enough for the boats to be under cover, whereas Mr LOVEWELL could not, as Daniel’s yard was the biggest in Yarmouth. He begged that they would not take Their Honourable employment from him.

In the same letter, Daniel asked the Commissioners to send the order to pay him for the new boat he had built in the year 1800 (4 years previously) and for repairs done to other boats belonging to Their Honours. Daniel’s last sentence said that he hoped they would not be angry with him and he hoped to have a line from Their Honourable hands soon! Two days later PALGRAVE & THOMPSON wrote to the “Honourable Sirs” on Daniel’s behalf, saying bills were submitted to them on Lady Day (March 25th ) 1800 amounting to £32.17s.6d and another for £16.7s.9d for the building and repairing of boats belonging to the “Hunter” Cutter. On 9 th April 1805 Daniel was still waiting for his money as a letter was written by Samuel BELL to Capt. RICHES asking for immediate payment of several itemised bills as this poor fellow had been very distressed by the non-payment of the sums.

If the debt was not discharged within 14 days, Mr BELL wrote:

“I shall be of the disagreeable necessity of arresting you”.

The following day, Capt RICHES wrote to Yarmouth Customs, enclosing the letter from Mr BELL with the following bills itemised:

Poor Capt. RICHES also wrote about more bills which had not been paid saying we humbly crave the Honourable Board will be pleased to give the order for the payment of those bills, that I may not be arrested for the same. He finished the

Feby 12th £ 7.18s.2d Boat repaired

Mar 12th £ 20.16s.0d A new boat built from estimate

July 18th £ 4. 3s .4d Boat repaired

£ 32.17s.6d

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 24 March 2014

letter saying he remained with respect Their Most Humble Servant Thomas RICHES. On 11th April 1805, PALGRAVE, COLLS & THOMPSON wrote to the Honourable Sirs, enclosing Capt. RICHES’ letter, stating “Mr BELL an Authority in this Town” was threatening Capt. RICHES with arrest if the bills were not paid and wanted to remind their Honours that the bills were sent to them with letters of explanation and a request for payment by them on 8th June 1803 and 14th Sept 1804. Daniel died in 1848 aged 83 from “Natural Decay”, so I hope he got paid

eventually but I bet the not-so-Honourable-Sirs didn’t pay the interest he had lost!

William MANNERS also had problems with non payment. In 1789 he had to beg for his wages as he had not been paid for nearly a year and in 1790 he had to beg for buttons for his uniform! He retired from the Customs Service in 1801, died in 1825, aged 70 & was buried in the Rosary Cemetery, Norwich. I guess “The

Honourable Sirs “of the Customs Board were very slow in paying their debts!

Tragically, the “Hunter”, whilst patrolling the coast 18th February 1807, was caught in a storm which dashed it onto the Happisburgh Sands and then drove it towards the shore, being beached to the north of Cart Gap. The whole crew, about 33 men, were lost and those bodies recovered were buried in the churchyard

at St. Mary, Happisburgh.

Sources: Patrick CHAMBERLIN found this information at the National Archives Kew Richmond, Surrey. CUST 97/32, CUST 97/33, CUST 97/34 and

“SMUGGLERS ALL” by Kenneth Hipper published by the Lark Press.

Julie Cooper MN 9810

ALL IS NOT LOST! Your torn, creased & faded family photographs

can be repaired and restored

For further details please contact

PPF Images, Millennium House, Gapton Hall Road,

Great Yarmouth, Norfolk NR31 0NL

Tel: 01493 655222

www.ppfimages.co.uk

St Mary’s Church, Happisburgh

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 25 March 2014

Compiled by Jean Stangroom Membership Secretary

email:[email protected]

Another year has passed and renewal time is with us again.

A big thank-you to all of you who renewed online last year as our new automated systems significantly reduced our manual processing time. If paying online please check that you are on the renewal page and not the join page as this will create a new membership number!

Due to card security issues imposed by our card merchant we are unable to process any card details at Kirby Hall. For the same reason we are unable to offer Life and 10 year memberships online but can accept cheque payments via post.

To avoid confusion and queries about new members details and members interests not appearing in the same magazine we have decided to ensure that from this issue the lists will be in step. To meet print deadlines these lists will be produced several weeks before you receive the quarterly Ancestor.

If we have made an error with your details please contact us as soon as possible so that we can correct the error.

Please also remember that you can change your details and members interests online.

NB Please remember to supply your POSTCODE with your address.

BANKERS ORDER - IMPORTANT INFORMATION

If you pay by Bankers Order please do not pay by cheque. Each year we

have to refund several payments as members have forgotten they have a

Bankers Order in place. The Ancestor address label contains “BO” if we

know that you have a Bankers Order set up with us.

To avoid forgetting your renewal payment you may find it easier to pay by Bankers Order. The BO form is attached and if 01/04/2014 is inserted in the start date we will be able to collect this year’s renewal automatically from your bank. Please forward your signed completed form to the Treasurer at

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A reminder that once a Bankers Order has been set up it can only be

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New Members and Members Interests to 31st December 2013

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS i March 2014

MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL NOTICE

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS ii March 2014

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS iii March 2014

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS iv March 2014

Issued by Norfolk Family History Society

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 33 March 2014

Great Yarmouth’s Sporting Heritage Part 1 The Early Years by

David Tubby. 100pp. £9.99 from W.H.Smith and Jarrolds or direct from the author

at [email protected]. ISBN 09568967223 / 9780956896728

If your ancestors lived in the Great Yarmouth area during

the 19th and early 20th century then you may find this book

written by local historian David Tubby extremely

interesting. This first book of a trilogy covers the early

years from the eighteenth century to the beginning of the

Great War in 1914. The following books will cover the Inter

-War and the Immediate Post-War Years to 1970, on the

sporting heritage of Great Yarmouth, Gorleston and the

surrounding villages.

The first book includes all sports from the popular games of cricket, golf and football to the less well known pastimes of quoits and croquet, including the names of the many participants. Its 100 pages give a good insight into the early development of over twenty sports, and its early personalities. Also included are three interesting chapters on the development of the three Victorian recreation grounds constructed at Wellesley Road, Beaconsfield Road and

Gorleston. Publisher's publicity sheet

Tracing Your House History by Gill Blanchard and published in 2013 by

Pen and Sword. ISBN 978 1 84884 254 0 The latest book by Gill, focuses on Wales and England and acts as a guide and practical handbook to unravelling the history of your home. This history can give you a remarkable insight into the lives of those who inhabited it and your neighbourhood over time. Well illustrated, Gill explains how you can unpick the resources available locally, thereby making the knowledge more accessible. Each section of the book lists useful addresses, websites and particular publications. I found the wealth of online research addresses of particular interest. Should book tokens have been gifted to you over Christmas, this book would be an excellent choice to use them up.

Reviewed by: Patricia Wills-Jones MN 6738

Book Reviews

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 34 March 2014

Houses of Brundall and Braydeston, and occupations past and present Vol I (82pp 2011) Vol II (103pp 2013) Brundall Local History Group.

Softback A5 size, printed by Interprint. Available on NFHS Website & at Kirby Hall at £6.50 plus postage: UK £1.60; Europe £3.75; Rest of the world £4.95.

These two small books are additions to the large

Halsgrove hardback A Tale of Two Villages edited by

Barbara Ayers. They cover houses varying in age, style,

and size, some still existing, others long gone; their

physical features and surroundings and biographical

information about the different people who lived in them.

Vol I deals with a number of properties: ‘Lavender/Rose Cottage’; ‘Barn Terrace/Row , (Stockings Buildings)’; ‘Hillcrest’; ‘Inglebank’ cottage; ‘The White House’; ‘Kenmare House’; ‘Glenview’ House.

Vol II looks at the Rectories and Rectors from 1681 onwards: The ‘Holm Close and Hillsides Fires’; ‘Coppersmead. The Wisteria House’; ’Jesmond’ and ‘Braydeston House’

Both books are well illustrated with street maps and numerous photographs.They provide an interesting insight into the development of property in Brundall, their features, alterations and additions and details about their numerous occupants.

Edmund Perry MN3181

Book Reviews (continued)

NFHS BOOKSTALL SPECIAL OFFERS

Norfolk Marriages 1801-1837 CD. Now half price £7.25

Fragments of a Village Life, Booton. Was £4 now £1

Children of Booton 1900-1905. Was £4 now £1

Memories of Sparham. Was £3.50 now £1

All Items plus Postage:

U.K. 1.20; Europe £3.25; Rest of the World £3.75.

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 35 March 2014

Family, House and Local

History Research

Gill Blanchard Author of “Tracing Your East Anglian Ancestors: A Guide for

Family Historians” and "Tracing Your House History"

BA (Hons) History and Sociology ● MA History and Politics ● Post.

Grad. Cert. Ed (Adults) ● Cert. Architecture in Theory and Practice

Suite 14, Meadow View House, 191 Queens Road, Norwich, NR1 3PP

01603 610619

Email: [email protected] ● www.pastsearch.co.uk

Family History Courses, Workshops and Personal Tuition available

locally and online

Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire, Essex and Linconshire

All other areas considered

Professional

Researcher,

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Historian

and Tutor

Record

Office and

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since 1992

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 36 March 2014

Nowadays we have a wonderful array of material published on internet sites like Ancestry, Find My Past and Genes Reunited. Unfortunately incorrect information, once published, is duplicated by less rigorous 'researchers' who add it to their own family tree and errors multiply. The following article shows how we need to thoroughly research and check all possibilities before coming to our own conclusions on our own family trees.

I am descended from Robert SAUNDERS and Elizabeth CATCHPOLE who were my 3x great grandparents. They married at St Mary's, Gissing on 8th October 1816. Subsequently they moved to Burston. They had nine children: Mary b.1817, Hannah b.1819, William b.1822, James b.1824, Robert b.1826, Henry b.1829, Elizabeth b.1832, Caroline b.1835, William b.1838 and 'my' Solomon b.1841. When I first started researching my family tree, the 1881 census was yet to be put online, so it was a case of visiting churches, the Norfolk Record Office (then at Shirehall) and using the LDS films in the King's Lynn Family History Centre. To be accurate with a fairly common name you need to trawl through pages and pages of registers and to cross reference everything. There have been many problems, such as their youngest son listed as Richard aged 6 in the 1851 census. Purchase of his birth certificate revealed that he was the illegitimate son of their eldest daughter Mary. In 1851 she was working at Ann FLOGDELL's farm in Gissing where the son of the house is Richard …a possible father!

My first error was with Robert SAUNDERS' birth. I knew he had lived in Burston with other members of the family. All I needed to do was tie them together. Robert did not appear in the 1891 census so I searched for his death prior to this date. His obituary was in the Diss Express on 2nd Jan 1891. It told me that he died aged 99 and stated that "had he lived till next September he would have been a centenarian", which gave me September 1791 as a possible birth date. However, I could only find a reference to a Robert SAUNDERS in the Diss Parish registers in 1792 and so went off on this (wrong) tack for some time.

Whilst looking for something completely unrelated I happened upon the records for Roydon Tabernacle where I found the following: "Richard SAUNDERS son of Richard & Leah SAUNDERS of Burston Norfolk was born July 20th 1784; Isaack b. Feb 4th 1789; Robert b. Sep 8th 1791; Mary b Nov 17th 1794". Here was the proof I was looking for linking the members of the Burston family with their parents. Since that time I have collected an enormous amount of material on the extensive SAUNDERS families of Burston, South Norfolk and beyond with common forenames like Robert and Elizabeth. In the process of developing my family tree I discovered that my first cousin three times removed, William SAUNDERS and hiswife Emma, lived in Bixley in 1881. In the 1851 Gissing census, William was the son of Robert SAUNDERS and Eliza SANDY. He moved to Bixley before 1861 and became a miller by 1871 living in Trowse Newton before his death in 1932. There are two marriages in the GRO Index which might apply to him. In the December quarter of 1871 in Henstead registration district, a William SAUNDERS married Emma SAUNDERS and in the June quarter of 1872 in the Norwich registration district, a William SAUNDERS married Emma ATKINS.

Putting it right!

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As I didn't want to spend money on a marriage certificate I left it at that: Emma was either SAUNDERS or ATKINS.

I came back to this quandary some years later. The only other clue I had was from the 1881 census which stated that Emma was 29 so born around 1852 in Burston. I ordered the microfilm and went to the LDS Library in King's Lynn to see who fitted this criteria in 1861. There were just two candidates in the Burston census: Emma SAUNDERS born 1852 or Emma TURNER born 1851. Emma SAUNDERS was listed under Robert and Elizabeth (nee CATCHPOLE) as granddaughter, so that got me no nearer. My previous search through the parish registers of Burston listing every SAUNDERS now proved fruitful. In 1859 Emma was christened as the daughter of 'Elizabeth SAUNDERS now WARNES, spinster'. Indeed in the 1861 census, this Elizabeth WARNES (the daughter of Robert and Elizabeth SAUNDERS) appeared in the family listed just above Emma. I surmised that this must be the Emma who married William and they were both my first cousins once removed.

It is interesting to see how often people assumed that the marriage in 1872 to Emma ATKINS was the correct wedding. I did nothing more about it as I didn't have absolute proof that my assumption was correct. However, having become more and more frustrated at not knowing the truth, I lashed out the money and ordered the Dec 1871 marriage certificate from the GRO. To my delight I found that the marriage occurred on Christmas Day in Bixley Parish church of St Wandregesilius (sadly destroyed by fire in 2004). William is listed as a Miller, son of Robert SAUNDERS and his wife Emma SAUNDERS, daughter of GeorgeSAUNDERS, gardener, the witnesses being Emma MURRELL and John SHINGELS.

My database of over 9000 people had only one match: Emma SAUNDERS the daughter of an Elizabeth SAUNDERS who married George WARNES 'Groom and Gardener' at Diss in 1853. So there we have it, no doubt when the vicar of St Wandregesilius asked Emma her father's name she said George and the vicar assumed he was George SAUNDERS, as she was a spinster and her surname was SAUNDERS? I wonder how often similar mistakes are made.

Brian Ellis MN 3532

NORFOLK FAMILY SEARCH

Experienced Professional Genealogist

Offers a range of Research and Photographic Services

Website: www.norfolkfamilysearch.co.uk

Email: [email protected]

Or write to: Norfolk Family Search

14 Silver Street, Norwich, Norfolk, NR3 4TT, United Kingdom

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Henry Robert CAGE alias Henry CADGE

I am researching my great grandfather's brother Henry Robert CAGE, who was born 5 July 1823 in Norwich. He appears in the 1841 census as CAGE and after that seems to disappear from all civil and parish records. However, there may be a reason for this because from 1843 onwards he seems to have joined the

criminal fraternity in Norwich on a full time basis.

He (as CAGE and by strange irony residing at Crook's Place, Norwich), and others were indicted for robbery at the Distillery public house in Distillery Street, Norwich in February 1843 but were acquitted. At the time it was said that "he had been several times in custody and in prison". His luck ran out a few months later when he was caught, (as CADGE), attempting to break into a counting house in Lakenham. For this offence he was sentenced to two years hard labour having being called a 'notorious thief'. His final appearance (as CADGE) occurs in July 1851 when he was sentenced to 12 months hard labour for stealing 5 sovereigns

at the White Hart Inn, Ber Street, Norwich.

At this point he is not heard of again. Was his notoriety such that he was forced to change his name and leave the area or did he die in prison? If anyone has any information or thoughts about possible next steps for me to follow please contact me at [email protected] or write to me at the following address:

Mr C C Cage, 11 Fairview Road, Macclesfield, Cheshire. SK11 8 NZ.

Chris Cage MN 9273

Searching for John POWLES

We are researching the names on our village memorial in Salhouse to produce a

book for the centenary of WW1 this year.

We have family information on nearly all the men listed, mainly obtained from Ancestry, but we are having trouble linking John POWLES to a family in the village. We know that he was Private 3/7270 in the 1st. Battalion of the Norfolk Regiment and that he was killed in action in Flanders on the 31st May 1915. He is commemorated on the Menin Gate. We think he might have been born in 1895 but we do not wish to apply for a birth certificate at this stage as our funds are very limited. We have found a John POWLES who was well over 40 and therefore was, presumably, too old and we have found a John POWLES who was living with his grandfather, John, in 1901 but we cannot be sure of his parentage

and we cannot trace him in 1911.

We would much appreciate any help you can give us in this connection.

Jill Taylor email: [email protected]

Queries

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 39 March 2014

Do you or did any of your recent Ancestors actually live in or close to the Norwich

City Walls?

Hello my name is Pauline Weinstein and I am a member of the NFHS and also a member of The Norwich Society. I am involved in a project to update the information that the Norwich Society have on the Norwich City Walls. My brief is to interview people who have a personal knowledge of life by the walls; they may have lived in a nearby house as children, or perhaps lived in a house which incorporates some of the stone or flint work, or indeed played there and

remember stories about the walls.

Searching the web finds 12 walled cities including York mentioned, but Norwich is not included. In fact building began in 1294 and was completed around 1342. It

was intended to defend the City and indeed played its part at Kett’s Rebellion.

It was a way of keeping out “undesirables”; hospices for people suffering from leprosy had to be built outside. Vagrants and gypsies or those unable to pay taxes lived “outside the walls”. Inside, or “behind the walls”, many lived

comfortable lives with large gardens & orchards.

I would be delighted to hear from anyone who can help update our information

about how the walls were, or still are, used in the recent past.

If you can help please contact me by sending any information to me via email to [email protected] with “Norwich City Walls” in the subject or

write to me Mrs P. Weinstein, 16 Cow Hill, Norwich, Norfolk, NR2 1HD.

Pauline Cushing Weinstein MN 390

The Norwich Society - City Walls Project

The Walled City of Norwich - 14th Century.

An artist’s drawing, based on historical records, depicts the City of Norwich as it

appeared soon after the completion of the protecting walls and gates in 1343.

The gates served the additional purpose of being centres for toll-collection from

those coming to trade in the City. The boom towers were erected to prevent inva-

sion by river. Their guards could raise heavy iron chains to halt any unauthorised

ship approaching the City from the sea. The gates outlived their usefulness and

were removed in the later half of the 18th century, after which the walls fell into a

state of decay, but pieces of wall and some of the towers still remain as a treas-

ured link with the mediaeval City.

The artist’s drawing is reproduced on the inside back cover of this magazine by

courtesy of Norwich Union Insurance Societies, now Aviva.

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The Museum of the Broads has received £10,000 from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) for this project, which will film local people recounting how their families lived in the Broads area during the First World War. Stories will include the men who went away to fight as well as those citizens left behind.The Museum will work with students from Stalham High School, training them to interview / film local people and illustrate their stories using photographs from private collections and local archives. The resulting DVD will be launched at Stalham High School in July, before being shown at the Museum as part of a special exhibition. It will also feature part of the collection of diaries of the Rev Maurice BIRD who was Vicar of Brumstead during the War. Museum volunteers and High School staff will be encouraged to get involved in this exciting community project. The Exhibition will be shown again in 2018, and a dedicated website will be created to allow greater

access to these stories of life in the Broads one hundred years ago.

To do all this, the Museum needs you! Did your family live in the Broads area during the First World War? Did one of your relatives fight in the Armed Forces? If you have a story to tell and would like to share it, allow us to copy a family photograph, or lend us family mementoes for our exhibition, then please contact me on 01692 581681 or [email protected] . Help us to make this

project a fitting tribute to all those who lived and died during the Great War.

Nicola Hems, Curator

On Sunday 1st June 2014 Diss Museum is planning events entitled ‘Over the Top’ to accompany putting a possible 70 missing names onto the War Memorial. The Norwich Early Dance Group will perform from 2pm in the Market Place, on the theme of the vanished England swept away by the war, using dances mentioned in Thomas Hardy's novels. The museum will be open, with WWI displays, including Pulham airships, and members of the Norfolk Family History Society to give advice

on researching relatives in the war.

Actors from local drama groups will be in Edwardian costume to add atmosphere. There may be a flypast of wartime planes and the Tank Museum at Forncett will send one of their armoured vehicles. The Regimental Museum will also have a presence and Galloway’s Coaches will have a stall promoting their battlefield tours and educational work. There will be a recruiting tent, where prospective Tommies can have their medical and be rejected because of flat feet, or take the King’s

shilling – otherwise risking a white feather from stern Edwardian ladies.

After the dancing the focus will move to the War Memorial, where there will be a reading by Richard Gibson (the Herr Flick actor) of Arthur Machen’s story ‘The Bowmen’, the origin of the Angel of Mons legend. There will be a brief, church-led ceremony with an unveiling, followed by tea in St. Mary's Hall.

Betty Morley, MN 2797

Diss War Memorial and “Over the Top”

Broadland During the First World War

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The last meeting of 2013 occurred on Dec. 10th. We were pleased to welcome our speaker Frances Hart who has given us many memorable presentations in the past. Her talk was entitled ‘A Regency Christmas’ and Frances introduced herself as Martha Lloyd, a close friend of Jane Austen and a Christmas house guest of the Austen family during the relatively short Regency period (1811 to 1820) when the Prince Regent ruled in place of George III who was suffering from a period of temporary insanity. Apparently Jane Austen was no fan of the Prince with his creaking corsets and greedy appetite in spite of dedicating her novel ‘Emma’ to him. History reveals the truth in that as he admired her books she received an invitation to visit one of his houses and the suggestion regarding the dedication was put forward. Sensing that this was virtually a royal command Jane had no

choice but to capitulate.

Frances, wearing a lady’s costume of the period and ably assisted by the appropriately attired Tim Hall, who read excerpts from the diaries of the acerbic and critical Rev. Holland and the naturalist Gilbert White, painted a vivid picture of the celebrations of a time when the tradition of the Christmas Tree, crackers, Father Christmas and the exchange of gifts between family and friends still lay in the future. In her time, on Christmas Eve and not before, which was considered unlucky, the house was adorned with green branches, holly, ivy and mistletoe and often a kissing bough was hung, formed around a frame and decorated with apples, ribbons and mistletoe. The shops remained open until late and the bakers cooked joints of meat for those without the means. Beef was the meat of choice as surprisingly goose was cheaper and thus eaten by the less well off. Groups of people sang carols in the street to which they danced, ‘I Saw Three Ships Come

Sailing In’ being very popular at that time

In the well-to-do Austen household, Christmas Day was all jollity and frolicsome fun. Martha and Jane would join the rest of the family and guests in charades, theatrical presentations and games of “spin the plate”, “turn the trencher”, “hoodman blind”, “hunt the thimble” and sometimes bullet pudding which entailed

Group Reports

South Norfolk Group

Correspondence about individual groups and meetings should be addressed to the

following organisers:

South Norfolk: Mrs Edith Morley, ‘Thwaites’, Fersfield, Diss, Norfolk IP22 2BP

Norwich: Mr and Mrs Roger Peck, c/o Kirby Hall (see page 50)

London: Miss Mary Seeley, Flat 3, Butterfield House, 7 Allen Road, London N16 8SB Email: [email protected] (home) and [email protected] (work).

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placing a bullet, yes a real bullet, on a mound of flour whereupon the participants would have to take turns in cutting away the flour with a spoon without dislodging the bullet. The unlucky person who failed would have to bury his face in the flour to locate the bullet with his teeth. However that was perhaps more fun than the game of “Snapdragon”, which sounds dangerous to the modern mind. The brave, if not foolhardy, players would gather around a shallow plate containing raisins and brandy in a darkened room and when the brandy was ignited the players would try to pluck out the raisins from the blue flames and pop them into their mouths without getting burned. History does not record how many participants

were scarred for life.

Meanwhile the poor were not entirely forgotten, if they were lucky, because after carol singing for the Vicar and the Squire they would be given charitable gifts such as a length of red flannel. The Rev. Holland noted sourly in his diary that some of

the better off would turn up to take advantage of a free handout.

Twelfth Night marked the end of the Christmas festivities and was a night of revelry and prank-playing by the young who would maybe share in the eating of the Twelfth Night cake in which was secreted a bean or a pea. The finder of the bean would be proclaimed King for the evening and the finder of the pea the Queen. No doubt this was a forerunner to the custom of placing coins for good luck in our present day Christmas pudding. Sometimes a bean would be hidden in one of a number of small iced cakes and the finder would be crowned King of

Misrule, creating another opportunity to have fun without reprimand.

The meeting was very well attended and Frances and Tim received much applause and then joined us for the rest of the evening in a buffet organized by Betty Morley where the group had the opportunity to thank her for her hard work during 2013 in arranging the interesting talks and the London excursion to the Chelsea Hospital and British Army Museum in spite of breaking her hip earlier in the year. We ended the evening with a raffle and look forward to 2014 and the meetings to come.

Jenny Jenkins South Norfolk Group

2014 programme

Our dates at the Society of Genealogists for 2014 are 15th March and 18th October. Meetings will take place at the usual times – 2 p.m. to 4.30 p.m. with refreshments afterwards in

the SoG Common Room

2014 being the centenary of the outbreak of World War 1, the March meeting will be a Members’ Day focusing on the conflict, so please bring along stories and memorabilia relating to ancestors’ experiences of the war, both on the

battlefield and the home-front.

London Group

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 43 March 2014

The last Members’ Day of 2013 took place on 19th October. Thanks once more to regulars of the London branch, who provided a very varied programme across a

range of family history topics.

Les Crome gave 2 talks – although these did not relate directly to the Norfolk branches of his ancestry, these showed how in-depth research illuminates those

tantalising mysteries of the family tree.

The first talk followed Les’s research into the ancestors of his paternal great-grandmother, Ada Emily ELSDON. The surname first appeared in the 16 th century as ELYSYNG, deriving from the Norfolk parish, but evolved into ELSDON / ELSDEN, which confusingly for the researcher suggests origins in the Northumberland parish of this name, rather than Norfolk. Les used parish registers and legal documents to show that it was the same family name that had changed through transcription errors, oral transmission, etc. and had ended up

with the latter form ELSDON being adopted.

Les’s second talk took us to 19th century India as Michael Henry TORRINGTON enlisted in the army of the East India Company in 1850. In India, in 1851, he married Sarah MARKHAM. In 1859, Michael was discharged from the army as a pensioner, aged only 29. Sarah TORRINGTON remarried in Madras in 1865, calling herself a widow – but Les’s research showed that Michael was alive and well, and did not die until 1877. He proved that Sarah had attempted to cover her bigamous second marriage by having the name TORRINGTON formally “corrected” to LORRINGTON – unaware that the original transcript had already

been sent to the Madras Residency and then to London.

Steve Jacobs told us how he had traced the elusive histories of his paternal great-grandmother, Eliza LAWRENCE (b. 1856, in Mundham) and his grandmother, Alice Mary LAWRENCE (b.1874, in Seething). As the women came from small villages, he was able to search genealogical databases by first name and date

and place of birth.

His research showed Eliza was unmarried when Alice was born. Eliza had married an American, Richard BROWN by 1881 (at which time Alice was living with her grandparents, John and Ann LAWRENCE in Seething). By 1891, Richard was gone, and Eliza was living in Melton Mowbray with her daughter, Alice, who had taken the surname BROWN. Alice married in London in 1896, but by 1901, Eliza had remarried to a Robert H. STEWART, a seaman from Demerara and was living in Manchester. The 1911 census showed Eliza was running a lodging house in the city, but family stories suggest that Eliza’s lodging house might have been a

euphemism for another establishment that might have been popular with sailors!

Mary Grisdale gave us an over-view of the varied and characterful occupations of her ancestors as they ranged from Norfolk to London and from Yorkshire to Nova Scotia. She showed us comic actors (and serious actors!), money lenders, commercial travellers and jet-workers, cigar-makers and silversmiths, a number of soldiers and the manager of Harrogate Spa Baths, pencil-makers rubbed shoulders with potato-growers and seabird egg-collectors and members of the

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Indian Patrol … The sheer volume of varied professions in one extended family

was like flicking through the pages of a trade directory.

Colin Stevenson gave a moving recollection of the life of his Liverpool Irish father

(“the only Scouser in the Norfolk Regiment”) who lost his life in Singapore in

WW2. He also spoke of his grandfather’s experiences as a sapper in WW1.

I commented on documents I had found in the National Archives (Divorce Court records) which threw more light on the marriage and separation of my late grandparents, Herbert Henry SEELEY and Lucy (formerly FOX). They married on 28th May 1918, but the pregnant Lucy left her husband in October 1919, saying she could no longer live with him. The papers from the Archives date from 1927, when Lucy was attempting to secure maintenance payments for her son (my father) and paint a rather sad picture of two people who may have married too quickly and found each other to be incompatible in too many ways.

Mary Seeley MN 3806

November 2013

Norwich Group visit to the Norfolk Record Office.

This involved a talk on activities followed by a visit to the manuscript room upstairs. We were shown how damaged documents were preserved using sinks to wash items and the use of egg albumen as glue to paste on thin, see-through paper for repairs. We were shown one of the Aylsham Lancaster manor court rolls covering 1509-46 which is in poor condition. The NRO has received generous support from the National Manuscripts Conservation Trust and from Aylsham local historians to start an eighteenth month conservation project and digitize the document to allow members of the public access. Altogether a very interesting and enjoyable visit.

Roy Scott MN 475

The November meeting was an impromptu evening of films loaned to us by the East Anglian Film Archive. Their website is worth a look if you want to see how people lived in Norwich and Norfolk in bygone years. There are very short snippets such as advertisements (one or two minutes) or longer films (up to 35

NORWICH Group Report

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 45 March 2014

minutes). There is a browse and a search facility covering over 200 hours of film about Norwich and Norfolk. If you want a flavour of what life was like in the last

century in and around Norwich, go to www.eafa.org.uk. It is well worth a look.

The evening started with a ½ hour film about the Women’s Land Army. Based around a reunion of Land Army Girls held at Gressenhall, probably in the 1950s, Dick Joyce was the interviewer on film and interviewed several lively ladies who told what life was like to serve in the Land Army, along with demonstrations of the type of work that they had to carry out and the machinery they had to use during

the war.

This was followed by some short snippets on film showing life in Norwich from the turn of the last century up to c1970. There were some interesting snippets in this compilation, including one of several young ladies (I can’t remember seeing any young men on the film) doing the “palais glide” in Chapelfield Gardens – several members remembered this happening, and also one of the erection of prefabs c.1947, which were provided to ease the housing shortage after WW2. It was interesting to see how the prefabs arrived on the back of lorries with bathrooms

already pre-built and installed.

A very pleasant evening down memory lane.

December 2013

The last meeting of 2013 in December was a Social Evening for members of the Norwich Group. Much fun was had by all, so many thanks to Jim and Maureen Barwick, Roger and Brenda Peck.

Denagh Hacon MN 2671

VOLUNTEERS

Thank you to all those who give up so much of their time to make the

Society work, especially to those who have come on board recently.

However the more the merrier.

If you can spare anything from a couple of hours per week, or per

month, to come into Kirby Hall on a Tuesday, Wednesday or

Thursday or require further information, please email

[email protected], please include your membership number.

NB. It may be possible that some tasks could be undertaken at home

Any help you could offer would be greatly appreciated.

NFHS Trustees

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Last year saw some changes in the Kirby Hall library as a result of shortage of

shelf-space for the collections. The old bookstall was removed and the books for

sale are now displayed on a table next to the Duty Volunteers’ desk. The metal

trolleys housing the Family Trees and Manors collections were moved across to

the right-hand side giving the library a much lighter and open appearance. At the

same time some rearrangement of the shelves was made, particularly of the

Parish Register Transcripts and the Out-of-County and Overseas collections. The

exchange FHS magazines have been re-housed in the tea-room where they can

be browsed over a cuppa.

A team of volunteers (Philippa Barnes, Ellen Carr, Mavis Douglas, John Drake,

Margaret Murgatroyd and Carol Reeve) have worked hard preparing a new

catalogue of the books and leaflets. We hope this will be completed by January

2014 after which further rationalisation of the book stock and shelving will take

place.

Monumental Inscriptions (Mary Mitchell), Family Trees (Pam Bridges), printed

Parish Register and Non-Conformist transcripts (Margaret Murgatroyd, Philippa

Barnes), Pedigrees (Edmund Perry), Village Information (Judith Kilbourne) and

Wills (Ellen Carr) have been indexed and the indexes are on the website which

will be updated as new material is added. The Manorial documents are being

entered onto a spreadsheet by Liz Mann with the intention of putting an index on

the website. This is a difficult and time-consuming task as not only is there a wide

variety of documents but the hand-writing is not easy to decipher. Any original

documents that require archival storage are being transferred to the Norfolk

Record Office for safe-keeping.

Pam Bridges, Bernard Hale and Liz Mann have been preparing a spreadsheet of

the large number of BMD certificates donated by members and the first part of the

index will go on line in July. Val Parsons is sorting out the collection of Strays,

which has been neglected recently for lack of a volunteer, and will update the

present temporary index. Edmund Perry has been reorganising the Pedigree

section of the library and has managed to reduce its shelf space considerably.

Printing of the Parish Register transcripts has been greatly reduced in favour of

increasing the number of transcripts online and on the Kirby Hall computers.

Printing books of transcripts is costly not just in materials but in time and we do

not have enough volunteers to do everything.

David Catchpole has done sterling work on the tedious job of scanning original

documents for backing up onto the server. Pauline Westgate has been sorting out

and labelling the shelf-boxes of smaller books and leaflets and in doing so has

contributed to the smartening up of the shelves. Janet Hawksley has regularly

tidied the shelves for us.

Kirby Hall Library Reports

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 47 March 2014

VILLAGE BOXES

There is a wealth of information stored in the “Village Boxes” in Kirby Hall. The contents range from photographs of people, houses, and places, to personal histories, village maps, census records, newspaper cuttings, articles, church journals, books and so much more. All of which give a context to our ancestors. Finding out the types of houses they lived in, and the work they did. Labour intensive farming in the early 20th century is a world away from our modern,

machine based agriculture.

Organising the village boxes is an ongoing project that by its very nature will never be completed, mainly because there are always new snippets of information finding their way into my tray. Old sepia photographs that cover three generations, or building plans from the back of a note book, require reading and researching, so much so I often catch myself reading instead of cataloguing! The use of language is a pleasure to read and is quite intriguing, but in future I will endeavour to share some of the fascinating facts from these documents that have

kept me engrossed!

Whilst making an inventory of box A, I was struck by how much information there is on Aylsham, why might that be I wondered? Is Aylsham such a large and important town? Has or did it have a larger, more capricious population than anywhere else in Norfolk? Or is it simply that those who have lived there lead such interesting lives? Did they feel as a community compelled to share their experiences with others? Who knows, but now Aylsham has its own individual

box, at least, and has risen in the ranks above the more rural villages.

If you have any historical newspaper articles that might be about any small or larger Norfolk community, from fetes & fairs, prices of animals at market, or unrecognisable photographs of community events, and/or interesting bits of information that you think would be pertinent to other family history researchers,

please feel free to contact me.

An interest in what makes us who we are, whether our roots are from farm labourers or baronets, is a compulsive subject. Why else would so many of us

spend so long researching our own, and other’s families.

Judith Kilbourn, Village Box Organiser MN 12926

On behalf of the library users, the Trustees would like to thank the volunteers

mentioned above for their time and effort and Paul Harman for looking after the

computers and IT and sorting us out when we get in a muddle with our

spreadsheets and the army of volunteers who man the desk and welcome and

assist our visitors.

Margaret Murgatroyd MN 10400

From Great Cressingham Baptisms. 12th April 1631 Stephen BARNABY , baseborn son of a lewd and impudent widow

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 48 March 2014

FAMILY TREES added to the Library

SURNAME AREA

CHETTLEBURGH Norwich CRANE/LOCKWOOD King’s Lynn, Brooke, Seething, York DOD Norwich, East Carleton FLEGG Wortwell, Diss, Theberton (Suffolk) GOWEN Gt. Yarmouth OAKES Thorpe Abbotts, Pulham Market, Mendham STAFFORD Norwich WATTS Honing, Dereham WEBSDALE Redenhall, Mendham, Harleston, Diss WELHAM Norwich, Bintry YAXLEY Whissonsett, Tattersett, Syderstone to Tasmania

YULL/YOUNGMAN Aldeby, Blundeston

The NFHS requests FAMILY TREES (even if incomplete) to add to its large collection. These have proved very helpful to other members. Attention of Members submitting a Family Tree is drawn to Copyright Law. Full details can

be found on our website. NORFOLK SURNAMES & PEDIGREES added to Library

FLEGG – file of name instances found in Norfolk & Suffolk Parish Registers. DACK John 1756-1825 in Whitwell: bound Volumes I & II

NORFOLK PORTRAITS – files of photos/articles on Norfolk worthies.

UNWANTED BMD CERTIFICATES

May I once again thank all those who have sent in ‘unwanted’ BMD

Certificates. They are very helpful and much appreciated, so please keep them

coming. Liz Mann has been preparing a spreadsheet of the BMD certificates

donated by members and the first part of the index will go on line in July 2014.

Pam Bridge, Family Tree Co-ordinator MN3291

Kirby Hall Library Reports (continued)

Thanks to the continued efforts of many volunteer members who transcribe and submit Norfolk Parish Registers, also those who wander Norfolk’s churchyards and cemeteries recording Monumental Inscriptions from gravestones and war memorials, the number of individual records uploaded to NORS now exceeds 2.9 million. These records are available for all members worldwide to access in the comfort of their own home. Anyone having not yet used this valuable resource

should try it now, you never know what ancestors may be found!

To discover most recent additions please view the 'Listing PDFs’ which can be

found on the NORS screen, left hand side, at the top of the 'Browse Records' menu.

Tip: After performing a surname search, further information may be found by

NORS (Norfolk Online Record Search)

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 49 March 2014

clicking the small magnifying class icons to the left of resulting details.

Coming soon! – The society holds many Birth, Marriage and Death certificates that have been donated by members past and present (more always welcome). These certificates are currently being reviewed and all pertinent information extracted into a form suitable for uploading to NORS. Once this has been completed, probably June, information such as age, father’s name, maiden name, address, role in marriage, etc., etc. will be available either by searching these

records alone or automatically by a NORS surname search.

Mike Dack MN 11670 - NORS Administrator and Acting Webmaster

NFHS Website

For the benefit of many new members and a reminder for existing members who may have problems or misunderstanding with our two websites, some useful hints

are repeated here:

The ‘Library’ menus are not interactive and the displayed results are simply lists of records available to view at Kirby Hall, Norwich - It is not a menu for online

record search.

'Login/Username' for both websites comprises (membership number plus first 3 characters of surname), e.g. 12345DAC . Forgotten passwords for each website can be automatically replaced by using the 'Forgotten?' link, providing an email address registered with the society is up-to-date, just wait a few minutes after receipt of new password before logging in - remember, passwords are case

sensitive.

Login to check or change personal details, change password, review Member’s

Interests or to read previous editions of “The Norfolk Ancestor”.

The NORS website requires a separate login and can be reached using the ‘NORS Login’ menu on the NFHS website, passwords may differ! There is no

need to firstly login to NFHS website if intention is to use only NORS.

Mike Dack MN 11670 - NORS Administrator and Acting Webmaster

N O R F O L K R E S E A R C H

PARISH RECORDS CENSUS SEARCHES CERTIFICATES

£5 per hour Send SAE or IRC for details

W. Hepburn 11 Preston Avenue, Wymondham, Norfolk, NR18 9JE

Email: [email protected]

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 50 March 2014

New Parish Register Accessions, October 2013-January 2014

Attlebridge banns 1825-1971 Colney baptisms 1813-1992 burials 1814-1993 Denver baptisms 1988-2008 West Dereham baptisms 1913-2012

Ellingham banns 1955-2006

New Nonconformist Register Accessions Old Meeting Congregational Church, Norwich baptism and membership 1714-1913

burials 1751-1858

The nonconformist records have not yet been catalogued, but you can see them in

our searchroom by quoting the accession reference ACC 2013/287.

Exhibitions in the Long Gallery A poster exhibition about manorial documents continues in the Long Gallery until the end of April, showing examples of different kinds of manorial records. Many manorial documents are packed full of names and are a useful (but under-used) source for family historians, so this is a good opportunity to find out more about them, and how they may help with research. The exhibition will also feature the Aylsham Lancaster court roll, 1509-46, which is being conserved after being badly damaged by damp, mould and rodents, and the Apocalypto Project. Using cutting-edge X-ray microtomography, this project aims to ‘virtually’ read a fourteenth-century Bressingham manorial account roll, which is fused together so that it cannot be unrolled. The project is a collaboration between NRO, and experts at Queen Mary

University of London, and the University of Cardiff.

This is followed by Stories from St Benet's, which runs from 12 May until 25 July. This exhibition is organized in collaboration with volunteers from the recent conservation and repair project at the site. St Benet’s Abbey, near Ludham, is often referred to as an ‘icon of the Broads’, and various aspects of the site's history and development, and its changing use and influence will be examined through the stories and experiences of the volunteers themselves. On display will be items from the NRO, as well as artwork and archaeological finds from the Norwich Castle

Museum and Art Gallery.

Talks and other events

All are held in the Green Room at The Archive Centre, and are free of charge.

Wednesday, 5 March 1.00 p.m.-1.45 p.m., Stories from Norfolk Manors, a talk by

Frank Meeres

Norfolk Record Office Report

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 51 March 2014

Manorial workshops series Thursday, 13 March, Part one and introduction, Name spotting Thursday, 20 March, Part two, Manor court records Thursday, 27 March, Part three, Other manorial records. The workshops run from 2.00 p.m.-3.30 p.m. They are free, but please call 01603 222599 or email [email protected] to book a place.

Twenty-one third year students from the Film, Television and Media Studies department at the University of East Anglia (UEA) have taken women from the Norfolk Women in History website, www.norfolkwomeninhistory.com, as the inspiration for their Professional Video Production module, producing a 3-5 minute film which will then form part of the website. The students will showcase a rough cut of their films and present a short discussion on the afternoon of Monday, 10 March 2014 (exact time to be arranged).

Children’s Easter holiday activities These will link with the Great Big Read Norfolk Narratives. There will also be an opportunity to visit Norfolk Record Office for a behind-the-scenes tour and to see some original manuscripts. More details will follow later this year.

Changes in Opening Hours From 1 April, the Record Office will remain open until 7.00 p.m. on Thursday evenings, but will be closed on Saturday mornings.

Easter Closure The Record Office will be closed on Good Friday, 18 April, and Easter Monday, 21 April.

For further information about Norfolk Record Office news and events, see our website, www.archives.norfolk.gov.uk/events, telephone us on 01603 222599, or look out for posters at the Record Office. You can join us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/norfolkrecordoffice or follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/NorfolkRO.

Events at the Norfolk Heritage Centre, Norfolk and Norwich Millennium Library ‘Heritage Hour’ is run by the Norfolk Record Office’s Archive Specialists at the Norfolk Heritage Centre in the Norfolk and Norwich Millennium Library, Norwich. There are two Heritage Hours every week, one at 5.30 p.m. every Tuesday evening (a drop-in ‘Ask an Archive Specialist’ clinic) and one at 12.30 p.m. every Wednesday lunch-time (alternating between a research clinic and a talk/workshop).

Themes for Heritage Hour talks: 12 March Records of crime and punishment, by Liz Budd 26 March Manorial records, by Frank Meeres 9 April Norfolk Narratives, a session about local Norfolk authors as part of the Great Big Read, 2014. 23 April Robert Toppes and Dragon Hall, by Richard Matthew 7 May, Units and demographics for family and local historians 21 May Death records for family historians.

For more information and to check times and themes (which occasionally are subject to change), please contact Norfolk Heritage Centre by telephoning 01603 774740, emailing [email protected] or see the website at: http://www.norfolk.gov.uk/heritagecentre.

Jenny Watts - NRO Archivist responsible for parish records

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 52 March 2014

“William BELL, Batchelor, aged 19 Years, Son of Thomas BELL, of this Parish, (was on his journey on foot from Burnham in this County, to visit his Father, unfortunately lost in a Drift of Snow on the Eveng of Jany 4 and was found dead in the Parish of Swanton Novers on Jany 12) was buried Jany 15. (Pauper) let this be a warning to all youth, whoever they are and whatever they neglect, to be anxious to be ascertained of their Interest in Christ then Death will be welcome in any form he may appear.”

Briston Burial 15th Jan 1786

ANDREWS, John, of Reedham, died 31st May 1816 in his 104th year.

BRIGGS, Mrs. Martha, died Yarmouth, 31st October 1813 aged 103.

BROWNE, William, of Ranworth, died 25th February 1816 aged 104.

CROSS, Mrs. of Swaffham, died on15th June 1816 aged 100.

GIBBS, Mrs. Mary, died New Buckenham 31st October 1813 in her 101st year.

GRIMMER, Charles, collector of hare and rabbit-skins in Norwich died 10th April

1819 aged 101.

GOODINGS, Mr.Thomas, carpenter of Lammas died 20th February 1819 aged

100.

HAYLETT, Nehemiah of Kenninghall, died 8th March 1816 aged 101.

HELSDON, Mary, of East Rushton, widow died 1803 aged 105 years 11 months

(left 80 descendents including great-great grand-children).

HERRING, the widow, died in St. Clement's Norwich, 1813 in her 106th year.

LANEY, Mrs., of King-Street, Norwich, died 14th May 1820 in her 104th year.

LAYTON, Mrs. E., died in St.Giles, 28th April 1817 in her 100th year.

MYHILL, John, of Catfield, died in 1808 aged 100.

PETTS, Mrs., died at Denver near Downham, 25th October 1818 aged 100.

SCOTT, Mrs., of Holt, died 13th May 1819 in her 100th year.

STARLING, Mrs., Tabitha, of Brooke, died 12th November 1816 aged 103.

STOCKINGS, Mrs., of East Harling, died in October 1815 aged 101.

UTTING, Mrs. Eliz, died at Surlingham, August 1821 in her 104th year.

WARRANT, Mr. William, of Coltishall, died 2nd June 1818 aged 100.

These are entries in the 1822 “The REMEMBRANCER” (chronology of events in Norfolk & Norwich 1701 to 1821 with numerous Lists and Tables and an Index) now placed on the Library shelves.

Edmund Perry MN. 3181

Norfolk Centenarians in the early 19th Century

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 53 March 2014

CHARLES FARROW RESEARCH Genealogical, Heraldic, Historical,

Legal and Manorial Research in

NORFOLK, SUFFOLK

& CAMBRIDGESHIRE

also Bedfordshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Leicestershire

Lincolnshire, London, Middlesex & Northamptonshire

************************************************

Family Histories Compiled

Parish Registers Transcribed

************************************************

Charles W. Farrow, FInstLEx

9, Drayton Hall Lane,

Scarning, Dereham NR19 2PY

Phone: (01362) 699398

e-mail: [email protected]

Pinpoint Your Past

Family History Research in Norfolk and elsewhere

Local & House History

Document transcription & translation

Photography

Christine Hood, BA

137a Nelson Street Norwich NR2 4DS

Tel: 01603 666638 Email: [email protected]

Website: www.pinpointyourpast.co.uk

DIANA SPELMAN BA

Norfolk Research Specialist

(since 1982)

Medieval to Modern

Family & Local History

Latin translation

Document transcription

Manorial records

Photography

member

74 Park Lane

NORWICH NR2 3EF

Tel: 01603 664186 Email: [email protected]

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The Norfolk Ancestor Journal of the NFHS 54 March 2014

Who to Contact in the NFHS and how to contact them

Please state the nature of your enquiry in the email subject box and

quote your Membership Number

Title Responsibilities Name email address

Ancestor Editor Editor Peter

Steward [email protected]

Bookstall Bookstall Bookstall [email protected]

Copy Request Family trees, pedigrees and wills Judith Parks [email protected]

Fairs Fairs organiser Fairs [email protected]

Family Trees Donations of family trees, pedigrees and BMD certificates

Pam Bridge [email protected]

Look-ups Look up queries Alan Bullard [email protected]

Members Interests Members Interests

Peter Spurgeon [email protected]

Membership Secretary Membership

Jean Stangroom [email protected]

Monumental Inscriptions MI Co-ordinator

Mary Mitchell [email protected]

NORS errors & Passwords

NORS Errors and Password assistance Judith Parks [email protected]

Projects Projects Co-ordinator Paul

Harman [email protected]

Secretary Company Secretary Edmund

Perry [email protected]

Transcript Organiser

Transcript allocation and co-ordination

Margaret Murgatroyd [email protected]

Treasurer Treasurer Carole Taylor [email protected]

Village Boxes Village Boxes Judith Kilborn [email protected]

Volunteers Kirby Hall Volunteers

Co-ordinator Carol Reeve [email protected]

Webmaster Web site Webmaster [email protected]

Wills Donations and Indexing of Wills Ellen Carr [email protected]

Enquiries For topics not covered in above list Enquiries [email protected]

Or by post to the appropriate person at

Kirby Hall, 70 St. Giles Street, Norwich, NR2 1LS

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