Interesting Ancestors

I'm playing catch up this month and not only am I trying to catch up on writing posts here but I'm also trying to fnd time to read blogs that I haven't had a chance to look at recently.

One blog that particularly interested me was Della Galton's post on her family history and that there is a possibility that she is related to Emmeline Pankhurst - wow, wouldn't that be amazing if she could find out if it's true?

I've blogged before about my own interest in genealogy and that my family tree has been recorded by George Ormerod, an eminent historian in the Victorian era. My own family became landowners after helping to record information for the Doomsday book. 

The family tree links to various other landowning families in Cheshire, including the Fitton family who were the owners of Gawsworth Hall, now a National Trust property in Macclesfield.  Gawsworth Hall is reportedly haunted by two ghosts, one a court jester, and the other who was a daughter of the family, Mary Fitton.

Mary became maid of honour to Queen Elizabeth 1 in 1595, but was "led astray" by William Herbert who later became the Earl of Pembroke and became pregnant.  Pembroke was sent to Fleet Prison after admitting paternity but refusing to marry Mary and Mary was banished from court.

Mary returned to Gawsworth in disgrace and was banished from living in the family hall. Instead she went to live in the Old Rectory.  She gave birth to a baby boy, but the baby died.  It is possible that the baby died from syphilis, inherited from his father.

There is also a suggestion that Mary was the Dark Lady of Shakespeare's sonnets, although I supsect that this is only a rumour.

Mary further scandalized her family by having another affair and child out of wedlock and her mother disowned her.   

Mary lived until she was around 69 years old.  She was buried in Gawsworth but her ghost is reputed to be seen in Gawsworth churchyard, on the road leading from the local pub, and in the rectory.  Even after death she refused to be ingored!  I wonder if her spirit cannot rest in peace, or does she just enjoy the noteriety?  She's certainly an interesting woman to be related to find in the family records.

Who Do You Think You Are?

I’m really enjoying the new series of Who Do You Think You Are? The line up is just great and so far the past lives which have been revealed have had me gripped.

There’s something about family history which really fascinates me, as it does a whole lot of other people. Its amazing to find out how the decisions made by people who are long since gone, have a direct impact on our lives today, sometimes even down to the fact that we are here at all. What about if your great, great grandfather hadn’t emigrated? Would the family line have died out? Or what if he hadn’t been caught stealing a chicken because the family were starving and transported to Oz to set up a whole new bunch of descendents?

 

Of course it helps when you’re a celebrity and you have a whole heap of historians searching for you, explaining to you the information they have found and showing you what impact it would have had on your ancestors’ lives. But perhaps that takes away the fun of becoming a private detective on your own life.

I’ve always considered myself very lucky and am very proud that I have my own family tree at my fingertips. It actually goes back to the time of William the Conqueror which is no mean feat by anyone’s standards. Unfortunately, I can take no credit for this whatsoever.

The original research was complied by George Ormerod who was a historian living in Cheshire in the Victorian era. He wrote a major account of the history of Cheshire in which my ancestors happened to be prominent.

It turns out that one of my ancestors helped to collect data which went into the Doomsday book and for his efforts was awarded the township of Mere, which lies just outside Knutsford in Cheshire. The family name has changed in its spelling over the centuries but originates from this place. Sadly the family hit hard times and were forced to sell up. They continued to be prominent in the area though which is why the line was traced by Ormerod. I remember years ago going to Chester library and opening up the huge book where the family tree and his findings were contained. The book now is too fragile to be handled and has been transcribed onto a CD which I managed to buy from the records office. Now I have the information at my fingertips. It’s not quite the same though.

Later a cousin of my dad’s took up the mantle and updated the family tree from where Ormerod left off, with my younger brother being one of the last entries. It needs to be updated now to include the next generation and this is something I hope to do when I have time.

It’s really good to have this information to hand, but really I think this is just a starting point. The births marriages and deaths are vital statistics, but they don’t tell you how these people lived their lives or what they were like. And that’s the bit that fascinates me. I would really like to find out more but sometimes I feel as though I have too much information. Where would I start? The beginning or the end? It’s not a complaint more of a conundrum. And as ever a question of time. One day soon maybe, I’ll unroll the scrolls of paper and really get stuck into my own history. You never know what I might find.