Welcome to my little family research project, my  present to the family. This project started several years ago when Denise and Gail gave Mom a present. They ordered a deal from Genealogy.com where you swab the mouth, send it in and later receive notice as to what countries your ancestors came from. It also included a membership to their website. Gail was nice enough to give me the site log-in information so I could do research on our family.
     Mike, Denise and Gail may remember the project I did over 30 years ago on our family. It was only names and dates. Nice but boring. This project is different. It is not a list of names and dates. It's stories about what our ancestors lives were like, what historically important incidents and people they were included in, and in a couple cases, their despicable deeds.
      You may be thinking.. HOW did you find all this stuff and did I know what I was doing?. Well much of my adult life has involved research. In addition to the aforementioned early Genealogy research, I've researched the 120 year history of Chillicothe High School sports, Lexington Football and Basketball and MRVC football. I have learned how to avoid being led down the wrong path and how to trust or question what I find.
       For this research, Genealogy.com has some great features. The site has features that help you figure out if you have found what you want. They post how many other members have added a name to their tree. You tend to trust an entry with 1,500 adds over one with two additions. There are several other features that help you trust or distrust the entry.  More information comes from GOOGLE research. Yes, I know, we can't trust everything on line. However, a well designed website is easier to trust that one that looks like it was thrown together in an hour.
     A note on terminology: most of my research goes back centuries. So when  you see a note that says someone is a 4x Great Grand Father, it means he is my Great Great Great Great Grandfather. This is an accepted short cut in family history projects.
     I should also mention that the subjects of these stories are not just relatives, but ancestors. What is the difference? An ancestor is a direct blood line. Mom & Dad, Grandma & Grandpa are my ancestors. Karen and LeeAnn are my relatives, but not my direct ancestors. Hopefully that makes sense!
     So, how did I choose  a place to begin? I took out my old research and found that there was one hole that drove me crazy back in 1990. I was missing one of Mom's Great Great Grandfathers on her Father's side. I had the wife's information but nothing about her husband. Amasa Crocker was his name and I found nothing about his ancestors, but it encouraged me to continue working on his wife's background, Electa Hull. It was a wise decision.
     Imagine you are walking through the grocery store and you find a piece of paper on the floor. You decide to be a good Samaritan by picking up the paper to throw it away. You see it's a Powerball Ticket. You decide "what the heck, I'll scan it" and you soon realize you just won the 100-million dollar Powerball jackpot. That is sort of what I felt like when continuing my research in  this line.  Genealogists probably go their entire career never finding the amount of awesome stuff I was lucky to find.
     There are some nobility references in these stories, so here is a chart to understand the titles.
               

In the Beginning
     While many, unprofessional researchers would be happy going back 200 years in family history, well that's just not me. My earliest find goes back over 1,000 years further than that. How is that possible? Simple, Mom comes from Royalty! Churches and history didn't keep track of Joe the farmer's birth records. Royalty, well of course those were kept. I finally halted my research at Adalrich of Alsace, who lived in France from 645 to 690 AD. Our 37x Great Grandfather was the Duke of Alsace, France.  I could of gone back further thanks to the listing of his parents and grandparents which were born in 580 AD but his Grandpa was just a Mayor.

 

Grandpa Bill
     We will jump ahead through a few hundred years to meet Grandpa Bill. As you can see in the picture, he must of been a fairly important person. He was. You might of heard of him under the name he rolled with: William the Conqueror, our 18x Great Grandfather.
      William 1, sometimes known as William the bastard lived from 1028 to 9/9/1087. He was the first Norman King of England, reigning from 1066 until his death. He was the illegitimate son of Duke Robert I of Normandy and Herleve, daughter of a tanner.
     Grandpa Bill was illegitimate, but thanks to family connections, was still allowed to be recognized as the family Heir.
     He was Knighted at the age of 15 by King Henry I of France. During his reign he successfully dealt with rebellion inside  Normandy involving his kinsmen and threats from neighboring nobles.
      He earned his Conqueror name through his leadership and skill in numerous battles including against the King of Norway near York, the Battle of Senlac near Hastings and numerous other battles through out his reign.
     We are related to him in two separate ways. One is the royal bloodline (more on this later) and a second is through a son he had with one of his servants. (Naughty Grandpa Bill!!)
     Historians disagree on what "Grandpa Bill" looked like, but out of several different paintings of him, I thought the above was a good one.

Howdy Henry!     
So with William the Conqueror gone, his son, our 17x Great Grandfather Henry I, eventually became King of England. He was born in 1069 in Selby, England and lived 66 years, a ripe old age for that time in history. Mr. Beauclerc wasn't the first choice for King, but was  crowned on August 5, 1100, three days after his brother King William II was killed in a hunting accident.  Henry I wasn't the best King, but did keep hold on to the thrown.
     His two sons died by drowning, so his daughter Matilda was made successor. She was married to Geoffrey Plantagenet.

Kings, Kings Everywhere!
      Our parade of Great Grandparent Royalty continues after a short interruption from Cousin  Stephen. Matilda married Geoffrey V Plantagenet and their child became King Henry II Plantagenet. He was followed by King John I, then King Henry III, King Edward I, King Edward II and King Edward III who died in 1377. That is 300 years of Kings that were our direct kin.
      That wasn't the end of Royalty in our line, Edward III's great grandson was the 3rd Duke of York, Richard Plantagenet 1411 - 1460. His son was King Edward IV who ruled England from 3/4/1461 to 10/3/1470 and again from 4/11/1471 until his death in 1483,
Our line continues through his daughter Elizabeth Plantagenet Lumley, Queen of France who died in 1547.

Let Me Take You On A Sea Cruise
     We stop with the parade of Royalty to take a little cruise at sea. Say Hello to our 13x Great Grandfather Sir Hugh Willoughby, Born 1500 in Derbyshire, England. At the age of 18 he married Margaret Molyneux and our ancestry line runs through their daughter Dorothy.
      At the age of 53 Willoughby and 61 other sailors on his ship departed from England in an attempt to establish a Northeast Passage to trade goods in the Orient. Organizers thought this would be a great way to avoid sailing through the menace of Spanish and Portuguese ships in the southern Oceans.
      Experts convinced merchants that the shortest and safest route was via an unexplored broad waterway north of the European continent. Our 13x Great Grandfather set sail with two other ships across a cold, icy unexplored area. The third ship arrived in a Russian Harbor and found a warm welcome at the court of Ivan the Terrible at Moscow.
     The fate of our ancestor's ship and the other ship wasn't known until 1554 when Russian fishermen found the corpses of the entire company and the two ships at anchor at the mouth of a river in Lapland. Historians think the ships were iced in and everyone died from cold and starvation. Another less respected hypothesis was that they died of scurvy. Yet another theory is that the all died from Carbon Monoxide poisoning.  (The above taken from the Royal Geographical Society publication October 1985)
      In an interesting side note, Wiloughby's youngest daughter, Dorothy married John Weatleigh, whom was one of the 164 gentlemen and sailors who accompanied Sir Francis Drake on his expedition to Spanish America and round the world, home via Cape of Good Hope, arriving at Plymouth November 1580.

Hey Bro, Can We Borrow Your Boat
   Meet William Angell,1562 to 1629,  son of Sir Thomas John Angell of England. William's wife Joanne died in 1608 after the birth of their 11th child!!! Yes ELEVENTH child.
     Here is the story I found about our ancestor who was just too trusting. William went to London where he became a member of the Fishmonger's Company. He was admitted to the Livery of Fishmongers Co. Dec. 9, 1594, became a member of Fishmonger's Court of Assistants 1597 and a Warden of the Company in 1611.
     William was also appointed as Sergeant Accatery or Provisioner to The King, probably acquired for him by Sir John Povey. This post had cost William 1500 pounds.
     In 1605 William was the part owner of a ship called the Triall, with his brother in law John Halsey (married to Jane Povey), and two others. The ship was rented out to an Arthur Chambers for a trip to Virginia. William must have been suspicious about the venture as he placed his right hand man Roger Bamford on board for the trip.
     The ship never got to the Americas, instead Chambers sailed around the English and Irish coasts throwing wild parties funded by selling the ships tackle. Bamford attempted to complain but was held prisoner and it is believed that the ship was used for a spot of piracy off the coast of Spain.   Chambers finally dumped the ship in Ireland and ran off to join a "well known pirate". (Identity unknown)
   This is why I don't loan things to others.

Can I Get A Ride?
   Our third sailing entry is Thomas Eldred (1561-1564) Our 13x Great Grandfather was an English Merchant and mariner. His notable deed that landed him a spot on this page was teaming with Thomas Cavendish on the ship "Desire" on the second ever English Circumnavigation of the globe between1586 and 1588. (Can you imagine: TWO YEARS on a boat!)
     He lived at 97 Fore Street, Ipswich, England and was commemorated by a pub with his name, until it was removed in 2012. He came from a line of mariners with several ancestors serving on the seas.
    The Elder name has been traced back more than 12 centuries to the early Saxon settlers from the European mainland.  Numerous Elders are named in the Doomsday Book of William the Conqueror, compiled in 1086. <Source>
     I remember another ancestor of the Sea, who was a pirate, sailing the waters to pillage and plunder other vessels. However, alas, I can not now find the information.

Road Trip!! (errr...BOAT Trip!)
     I've saved the best sailing story for last. One branch of our family arrived on a boat you've heard of, The Mayflower! (Some information comes from MayflowerHistory.com a fantastic site that has been on line since 1994).
     Our 11x Great Grandparents John and Joan Tilley brought their 13-year-old daughter Elizabeth to the New World. Problems with a companion ship "Speedwell" hampered the beginning of the trip. The journey finally began on August 5th, but more problems with the Speedwell forced them to turn around again. Eventually the Speedwell problems turned it into a one-ship trip, finally starting on Sept 6th and arrived at Plymouth Rock on December 25th.
     Both John and Joan Tilley died in the first winter at the New World, however Elizabeth Tilley survived  and eventually married John Howland also a Mayflower passenger. They had 10 children and our bloodline runs through their third child, Hope Howland. One of Mr and Mrs Howland's blood line is former Presidents  Franklin Roosevelt and George W. Busch as well as Actors Alec Baldwin, Humphrey Bogart and Christopher Lloyd and writer and poet Ralph Waldo Emerson. It should be noted that Joan's mother Rose Mashe was the 8x Great Grandmother to future President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
     The Mayflower was not a spacious, luxury liner. The seas were rough. When you had to do your bathroom business, you hung your tush over the side of the boat and hoped you didn't fall over the side. Space was limited and passengers slept next to the gunpowder storage room.
     Here is a site with the layout of the Mayflower. <click here>

Ghost of a Chance
     Here is a spooky tale of murder in the family. The information is taken from an article called "When Ghosts Kill" by Sandy McGee.
     The events take place in Rhode Island in February 1673. At the time of the article, the land where this took place was home to a family restaurant. The first settler of the property hundreds of years ago in 1646 was our 11x Great Grandfather Thomas Cornell, wife Rebecca and son, also named Thomas.
     The story begins in February 1673 when Rebecca, whose husband had died years back, was 73-years-old, A ripe old age in those days. She lived in the house with her son, his wife and six kids. Rebecca wasn't feeling well so she skipped dinner that night and went to a bedroom on the first floor.
     A little while later Thomas and his wife heard a noise and found Rebecca in  her room, dead. It appeared she tripped and fell into the fireplace, partially burned.
     Now this was the time that was leading up to the Salem Witch Trials, a time filled with superstition. A week after the death, Rebecca's brother in Newport had a vivid dream where Rebecca appeared to him, saying she was murdered by her son Thomas. The body was exhumed, but not in the style of Ducky on NCIS.
      The ground was too cold to bury the dead, so the body was in an ice box/cold locker of sorts. In a type of autopsy, they started to cut the body, which started to bleed. In those times that was a specific sign of the supernatural.           
     Thomas was arrested and later hung after convicted of Murder based ONLY by the ghost in the dream and the bleeding.
     This story has been told in the past on The Travel Channel's Halloween specials. WAIT..Thomas' wife was pregnant at the time of his trial. She gave birth to a girl and was named Innocent Cornell as a testimony to her husband.
     Innocent Cornell would grow up and give birth to her own family. Innocent's 4x Great Granddaughter was....(wait for it)...here's a hint: Her great great great great granddaughter would take an ax and give her Mother 40 whacks. When she saw what she had done, she gave her Father 41.
    YES! Lizzie Borden apparently is our relative but not our direct ancestor.

The Merri-man of Connecticut
     Let's meet our 10x Great Grandfather Nathaniel Merriman, (1613-1694) There seems to be some confusion regarding parts of his life. I have sorted through several sites and what follows seems to be legit. (Genealogy researchers are a unique bunch).
     Nathanial was born in London, England but didn't stay there forever. In 1631 ten members, of the Plough Company received a large grant of land to begin a plantation in the "New World". They set sail, arrived safely but failed to settle their grant.  Two more ships sailed the next year and landed in Boston. That group included Nathaniel.
     The first 10 years in America is a bit of a mystery. It is known that our ancestor took part in the Pequot War between 1636 and 1638. The war was between the Pequot Tribe and an alliance of members of two colonies and allies from two other Indian Tribes.
       In the end, 700 Pequots were killed or taken captive, sold to people in Bermuda or the West Indies or dispersed to the victorious tribes.
     After the war Nathaniel received land three times from New Haven, Connecticut. His military career continued as an active officer of something they called the local "trainband' which was the militia  He progressed through the ranks to become a Lieutenant of the trainband and eventually appointed Captain of the New Haven County dragoons .
     He was a hard worker, primarily a farmer, and became an original settler of Wallingford, New Haven Colony. He became a leading citizen of the area as a Trustee and served as a Magistrate. He served nine terms as the Deputy from Wallingford to the General Court of Connecticut at Hartford.
     Some of his other accomplishments included being on several committees including one deciding the planters should be divided into three ranks, a committee to erect a mill for grinding corn, a representative of Wallingford to the session of the General Court of Connecticut, a committee to establish and maintain a Church of Christ and so on. He was definitely a leading member of the town. He was appointed Magistrate in 1678.
      Not everything in his life was happy. His son, Nathanial Jr died in what was called the "Great Swamp Fight" on December 19, 1675 against Indians in a swamp in Rhode Island.
     He lived a full life, dying in the 86th year of his life.

What's in a Name?
     One of the fun things for me during this research are the names. Some are time tested like Joseph, Mary, John, Elizabeth and so on. There are numerous examples of head scratching names. Right now I am looking at the family chart of one of our ancestors that was given the name Eltweed Pomery. 1585-1673.
    He kept the practice of bizarre names alive by giving his third child the name of Eldad, Child #6 was named Medad. Two of the popular names of the era were "Thankful" and "Experience" for a girl.
     The amazing thing about Mr Eltweed Pomery was that he lived to be 87 years old, which was remarkable for that era. His 10th and final child, Joseph was born when Eltweed was 66 years old! That's impressive to this day.

To Be, or not to Be.
     OMG! We're related to Shakespeare!!!!!! Um.. sorry, no we are not. However one of our ancestors did attempt to have business dealings with the legendry playwright.
      Give a warm hello to our 12x Great Grandfather Abraham Sturley (1550-1614) who lived in Avon, England. He graduated from Queen's College in Cambridge and then went to work as an estate manager for Sir Thomas Lucy, moving to Stratford around 1580.
      He married Ann Hill in December 1575 with their first child, Elizabeth born 1579. That is where our line continues from.. Their son William was born in 1583 followed by Katherine, Thomas, Francis, Hannah, Mary and Margaret.
      Around 1595 Abraham built a fine new home for his family at 5 & 6 Wood Street in Stratford on Avon. It was known as the Unicorn Inn and according to the notes on Ancestory.com, it still stands.
      So, where does Shakespeare cross paths with our ancestor? Here is the information posted on Ancestory.com.

There is more information here: <clickme>

The Unique Life of Thomas More
     Note: To read the full story, click here. Be warned, it's 12 pages long, it's interesting, but the original author did NOT believe in paragraphs. It's one, 12-pages long paragraph.
      Our 15x-Great Grandfather Sir Knight, Lord Chancellor, Oxford Alumni, Sir Thomas More was born Feb 7. 1478 in England and lived until 1535. During his life, More was a Statesman, Lawyer, Author, Roman Catholic Saint and one of the key figures of the English Renaissance. He served as Lord Chancellor of England under King Henry VIII but resigned because of the King's religious policies. In the end, it cost him his life.
     Grandpa More was one smart cookie, studying law and gaining admission to the bar in 1501. He Mastered Latin, Greek, mathematics, history, astronomy, wrote poetry and played several musical instruments. He won much respect as a lawyer for providing pro bono services to the poor, which led to his first election to Parliament in 1504 at the age of 25.
      At one point in Parliament, More led a group opposed to a Henry VII pet tax project. This would be the seeds to Grandpa More's demise. His group succeeded on legal grounds in reducing the amount by two-thirds. A friend told More that he escaped beheading only because he avoided mentioning the King's name in his speeches.
     More would serve as "Undersheriff of London", gaining popularity as a fair, incorruptible Judge. He was also an author and wrote "The History of Richard III", which would become part of Shakespeare's play Richard III. In 1523 Grandpa More served as Speaker of the House of Commons on condition that its Members were permitted freedom of speech, a landmark event in the history of Parliament.
     The next big step towards the end of More was in 1527, when King Henry embarked on his "great matter" - his determination to annul the King's union with Catharine of Aragon, which had failed to produce a male heir, and marry Anne Boleyn - he and More were set on a collision course that ultimately  landed him in court and found guilty by the jury after 15 minutes of deliberation.
     More was sentenced to be hanged, drawn and quartered at Tyburn, the punishment for commoners convicted of treason. Henry commuted the sentence to beheading, supposedly in gratitude for his years of loyal service; he also commanded that the prisoner "not use many words" on the scaffold. The execution took place at London's Tower Hill on July 6, 1535.
     Before the ax fell More implored the spectators to bear witness that he died "the king's good servant, and God's first". His body was unceremoniously buried beneath the floor of the nearby Chapel of Saint Peter and Vincula, to rest with other victims of Henry's wrath (soon to include Anne Boleyn).
     Grandpa More's head was displayed on a pike above London Bridge for a month before Margaret Roper clandestinely rescued it from being tossed into the Thames. When she died in 1544 the skull was buried with her at Chelsea Old Church, in the tomb More had wished to occupy.
     Anglican author Jonathan Swift called More "a person of the greatest virtue this kingdom ever produced" for sacrificing his life for his beliefs. More was beatified by Pope Leo XIII in 1886, and in 1935 canonized by Pope Pius XI, with a feast day on June 22. In 1980 the Church of England recognized More as a "Reformation martyr" and included him in its Calendar of Saints (July 6). A 1999 poll from the Law Society of Great Britain voted him "Lawyer of the Millenium" over Abraham Lincoln, Mohandas Gandhi and Nelson Mandela.
     Having already been named patron saint of attorneys, More was declared "the heavenly patron of statesmen and politics" by Pope John Paul II in 2000. His depictions in popular culture have veered wildly over the last 50 years, from the idealized hero of conscience in Robert Bolt's 1960 play "A Man for All Seasons" (and its 1966 film adaptation), to the religious fanatic in Hilary Mantel's historical novel "Wolf Hall" (2009), reflecting the trend of revisionist biographers who see him in a darker light.

Grandma the Pirate
     We are back to Pirates because, Pirates are COOL! Prepare to be amazed, there were Female Pirates!.
     Say hello to our direct ancestor Elizabeth (Trewinnard) Killigrew, born in the early 1500s. Her Husband was Sir Jon Killigrew and together they had 11 children. Our branch comes from their sixth child, Jane Killigrew.
     So, Granny and her hubby Sir John of Arwennack, Cornwall had a sweet deal going. They received and stored stolen goods at their home.
     In the 1540s Pendennis Castle was built for King Henry VIII on Sir John's land, making him the first hereditary Captain of the castle, which meant he controlled all of the shipping in the area. He used his privileged position to prey on the cargoes of the ships that came within his and his wife's reach.
     Grandma Elizabeth was described as a tough and unprincipled business woman who managed the House and oversaw the burial of treasure in her garden.
     Historians say that in 1582 Elizabeth, by that time a widow in her 60s, heard a rumor that there was treasure aboard the Hanseatic ship Marie of San Sebastian anchored in Falmouth harbor. She sent her servants to seize the ship and search the cargo. Despite rumors to the contrary, it's not likely she ever personally went on a raid; however she was arrested for having received and fenced stolen goods after the seizure of Marie of San Sebastian where a factor was murdered when the ship was boarded by her raiding party.
      Her sons, Sir John, Peter, and Thomas, her grandson John, as well as her daughter-in-law, Mary Wolverston, and her grandson's wife, Dorothy Monk, were also charged with having engaged in acts of piracy. (The family that robs together, stays together??)
      Elizabeth was brought to trial and sentenced to death, although she eventually received a pardon from Queen Elizabeth. Two of Elizabeth's sons, Sir Henry and Sir William, secured her release from prison after having paid substantial bribes.
          (
                                                           Pendennis Castle)

Thanks For Your Service, Here's A Gift
     Let's say hello to another ancestor from England, John Russell (1485 to 1555). Grandpa John is a good example why you should work hard and take pride in what you do.
      John was the first Earl of Bedford, a post created during the reign of Edward VI. He was Lord High Steward and Keeper of the Privy Seal, prior to his promotion to Earl. When the French War was renewed, he lost his right eye in battle in 1522. A year later he went to France in secret and negotiated a treaty between Henry VIII and Charles, Duke of Bourbon.
     For these and other reasons. Grandpa John Russell was given a house. A nice house called Woburn Abbey, originally created as a Cistercian abbey in 1145, 402 years later the Monks were kicked out and the estate given to John Russell as a gift from Edward VI for his service to Henry VIII.
     You might recognize the building from movies and television.
       
                                       (I wonder if ancestors can stay overnight for free)

That's a Lot of Hull!
      As I mentioned in the foreword, all of these stories boil down to my Great-Great-Great Grandmother Electa Hull. She was born on April 4th, 1797 in Tyringham, MASS. and died in 1883 in Ohio at the age of 86!.
     Here's a list of Electa's father's lineage. Her father was Josiah Hull, before him was Cornelius Hull born 1744, before him was another Cornelius Hull, 1723 from Durham, CONN. From there it goes back to yet another Cornelius Hull (1687-1756), then Joseph Hull, the first Hull to be born in the New World  on 8/10/1652 in Windsor, CONN. He was the 6th of 11 kids.
     His father was Lt. Josiah Hull, 1624 at Crewkeme, England. Before him was Sir George Hull a surveyor, Indian Trader, Magistrate and statesman born 8/27/1590, Thomas Hull born 1551, Lord Mathew Richard Hull born 1515, Houghton Hough Hull, born 1487, Sir Hough Hugh De Hull, born 1457 and 16x Great Grandfather William Sir Hull, born 1430. I don't have anything before him. That is 12 generations, or 367 years of Hull male direct ancestors, possibly more.
     George, the first to sail to America helped settle the town of Dorchester, Massachusetts. two years later he moved to Windsor, CONN. His eldest son Josiah sailed  the ship "Mary and John" with family members in 1629-30.
     Cornelius Hull (1687 - 1756) was fairly successful in his life and left a large estate to his children including three sons that received  seven tracts of land, two dwellings, a cider mill, cattle, horses, swine, grain and more.

More Royals
      .Meet Roger Lord Leigh van Rushall, born 1483 in England. He  married  Alice Ann Trafford They had a son that turned out pretty well: Sir Knight Thomas Oswald Leigh was Baron of Stoneleigh and Lord Mayor of London. He lived from 1509 to 1571.
    He was Sheriff of London in 1555 and Lord Mayor from 1558 to 1559. In 1558 Thomas led the procession leading up to the coronation of Elizabeth I after the death of Mary I.   Sir Thomas was Knighted by Queen Elizabeth I in 1559.Sir Thomas married Dame Alice Barker of Caverhall. Our line goes through their daughter Elizabeth Leigh, whose son Henry Cobb was Lord of the Manor Bishopstone, a large, stately Castle. His son Henry Jr was the first of his family to sail to the New World and lived in Barnstable, Mass
     A website called Cobb and Cobbs gives this bit of information on Sir Thomas Leigh: the son of Roger Leigh of Wellinston in Shropshire and came from an ancient family which were settled in Heigh Leigh, Cheshire. He was a justice of the Peace for Shropshire and a High Sheriff of London in 1555. He lived at Old Jewry, at North End. His memorial in the Mercers Chapel records that he was "a lover of learning and a friend of the poor." He was given a silver cup, the first cup in England to be "hall marked", which weighed 61 oz. Roland, his eldest son, was the ancestor of Baron Leigh of Stoneleigh, Warwick shire. His second son Thomas Leigh was created Baron Leigh by Charles I. Amongst his descendants is the Earl of Chatham.

Manor Bishopstone

Sir Knight Thomas Oswald Leigh

Wait! That's Not All - Before the Beginning
      The first story in this project was about the beginning, in the mid 600s AD featuring someone I had never heard of. However, I have just now (at the time of this being typed) found a line of ancestors I have heard about but never researched, until now.
       A couple years ago I was watching Chillicothe Football Practice with a friend named Donnie Murrell. He was around Mike's age and was a starter on their 1970 state championship team. He took care of the stadium and became a great friend that I had marvelous fun trading stories and conversations while watching football practice.
      One afternoon I told him about my family research project and that I was a descendant of William the Conqueror. His eyes lit up and said his wife  loved genealogy and was also a William descendent. Donnie then said his wife found out that William was a descendant of King Charlemagne.
     Thanks to a newly discovered site called Familypedia, I have found our
 (I think) 39x Great Grandfather, Charlemagne who lived 747-814. His titles included Duke of Bavaria, King of the Franks, King of the Lombards and Holy Roman Emperor. He was born April 2, 747 in Hewrstal, Belgium to Pepin the Short and Bertrada of Laon (Gotta LOVE those names). He died 1/28/814 in Westphalia, Germany He was married three times.
       Here is the line from King Charlemagne to Mom:
Charlemagne
Pepin, King of Italy 773-810
Bernard, King of Italy 797-818
Pepin, Count of Vermandois 815-?
Herbert 1, Count of Vermandois 848-907
Herbert II Count of Vermandois 884-943
Robert de Vermandois, Count of Meaux 918-968
Adele of Meaux 950-980
Ernemgarde of Anjou 967- ?
Judith of Brittany 982-1017
Robert 1st Duke of Normandy 1000-1035
William I (The Conqueror)
King Henry I (Beauclerc)1068 - 12/1/1135
Empress Maude - Matilda Queen of England
King Henry II Plantagenet 1133 - 1189
King John 1 Plantagenet 1166 - 1216
King Henry III Plantagenet 1207-1272
King Edward I Plantagenet 1239-1307
King Edward II Plantagenet 1284-1324
King Edward III Plantagenet 1312-1377
Sir Edmund Plantagenet of Langley 1341-1402
Richard Plantagenet of Conisbrough 1375-1415
Richard Plantagenet 3rd Duke of York 1411-1460
King Edward IV 1442 - 1483
Elizabeth Plantagenet Lumley Queen of France 1464-1547
William Johannes Creswell 1515 - 1571
Elizabeth Creswell 1550 - 1574
Edmund Lockwood 1574-?  first of the line to be in the New World (Died in Cambridge, MASS)
Eleanor Lockwood 1610 - 1658
Joshua Knapp 1635 - 1684
Hannah Close Knapp 1660 - 1721
Joseph Smith 1683 - 1755
Mary Smith 1712-1757
Peter Scofield 1748 - 1833
Samuel Scofield 1774 - 1868
Hannah Scofield 1837 - ?
Carrie May Crocker 1864 - 1903
Harry Wilson Perl 1897 - 1949
Mom (And I'm sure you can figure out the last couple of steps)
Yeah, I haven't heard of some of those people either, but I love details lol.
     The other aforementioned  illegitimate line went through King Henry I and one of his side-hustles. That line includes a few Sirs (Knights) of the Sapcote family, and several generations of the Root family and down to Josiah Hull, father of Electa Hull, Horace Crocker then Carrie Crocker, etc.
     Thanks for the tip, Donnie. I miss ya, bro.

So, you live around here?
     Many years ago, I asked Mom what she knew about her ancestry. One thing she said was she was told she was 1/16th Native American but knew no other details. I finally found the ancestor, which is a lot farther back than 1/16th.
     Mr. Francis Bell  left Yorkshire, England for the new world, arriving sometime in the mid 1630s. He became one of the first settlers of Stamford, Connecticut. He became a lieutenant of the Militia and a representative to the general court.
     In 1637 he married 14x Great Grandmother Rebecca, who was a member of the Montauk tribe, located across the Long Island Sound and was an Algonquian-speaking tribe. They are related to the Pequot and Narragansett tribes that lived across the New England Colonies...
     Rebecca's father was Chief Grand Sachem Wyandanch Montauk, Wise Speaker and Wuch-i-Ki-Tau-But Montauk. Rebecca lived until 1684. The two of them had six children with our line running through Captain John Bell, born in 1641.

It's Not Easy Being Royalty
     Yes another story about our upper crust royal ancestors. Meet Lady Mary Neville, born 1520 in Wales and lived to be 45. This is her in the picture. She married Englishman Sir Thomas Fiennes in 1536. His title was Third Baron Dacre of the South, with her Third Baroness Dacre of the South.
     This took a turn for the worse for Mr and Mrs Fiennes (or Fynes) during a hunting trip, as told in the website "tudorplace.com"
      On the eve of May Day, 1541, Lord Dacre was “tempted by his own folly or that of his friends to join a party to "kill deer” in Laughton Park, Sussex, which belonged to a neighbor, Sir Nicholas Pelham. Pelham’s gamekeeper, John Busbrig, objected.
      A fight broke out in which Busbrig was killed. Even though Dacre was not the one who delivered the fatal blow and was in fact in another part of the park at the time, he was held responsible, convicted of “manslaughter following deer stealing”, and hanged at Tyburn. His estates and title were forfeit, leaving Mary and her children destitute.
     Upon Lord Dacre's execution and attainder, his widow was left quite penniless, but no time was lost in obtaining an Act of Parliament in order to provide a dower for her from out of her late husband's estates. An ancient copy of this Act, which was passed in the same year as he was executed, says:

     But on July 2nd, the King ordered her to be paid £50 at once, and directed that the Sheriff of Sussex should deliver to her 'All her apparel of velvet, satin, pearls, stones or goldsmiths work pertaining as well to her head as to the rest of her body'. And during the course of the month the King, being 'moved with pity' for the destitute position of the widowed Mrs. Mantell, sister of Lord Dacre who's husband was executed with her brother, said that upon being fully informed as to her circumstances he would take order for her relief."
     She married a second time, outlived him, married a third time and had three sons and three daughters. Our family runs through her daughter by her first husband, Baroness Margaret Fiennes and her Husband, High Sheriff of Kent, Sampson Leonard. Their grandson John Leonard would be the first of that line to land in the New World in or before 1640 in Springfield, MASS.

Been There, Done That (caution: adult themes)
     While we all have many ways of passing time or staying warm, there was another way in the 16th century.
     Sir John Stanhope was born in 1560 in Shelford England and married Catherine Trentham. It was either real cold in Shelford, England or real boring. The two lovebirds combined to give birth to 15! (yes 15) kids. Our line goes through one of their daughters, Anne Stanhope Cockanaye whose granddaughter was first of the line to the New World, in Windsor, CONN prior to November 1669

The Root(s) Of The Family
     Another illustrious branch of our ancestry is the Root family, also spelled Roote. According to the book "Baker's History and Antiquities of Northampton" the Roote name comes from Norman ancestry, yet the Saxon blood has been interfused. They were Puritans after arrival in America and described as tall, lanky but strong, dark haired, temperate and long lived.
     They were large men, all weighing of 200 pounds and over six feet tall. The women were large also. They were noted for their sarcasm, generally good mathematicians and musicians.. They were men of high intelligence and education  facilities. They took a prominent part in all social movements agitated by the people, in political affairs of the communities.
     The earliest mention I have found of the name, was James Roote born 1420 in Sussex, England. Six generations later John Roote, born 2/26/1608 in Badly England, came across the ocean with his family to the new world, where he died in Farmington CONN in 1684. The family name was apparently shortened during this time when the "e" was dropped.
       Our branch of the family comes through Captain Hewitt and his Wife "Experience Pomeroy", then second child and eldest daughter Thankful Root. She married Cornelius Hull. From there the line goes to Josiah Hull, Electa Hull Crocker, Horace Crocker, Carrie May Crocker, Harry Perl and Mom.
     Capt. Hewitt Root served in the Continental Army of the Revolutionary War as a Captain from Massachusetts, according to Daughters of the American  Revolution Patriot Index Vol 1, p. 179

 Just A Chip(man) Off The Ole Family Block
     There is no doubt in my mind that our ancestors played a role in settling a part of the "New World".     
     This time the family name is Chipman. The earliest confirmed family ancestor is Johanes Chipman (Also spelled Chepman), born at Trowbridge, Wiltshire, England in1546. Not a lot has been found about Johanes except that his wife Joana Hodge was born in Dorchester, Dorset, England in 1549.
     Our linage comes through their son Thomas Chipman, born March 2nd 1567 in Dorset England. He married in 1590 and died in 1623. The first to the "New World" was Thomas' son John "Elder" Chipman, born June 3, 1621 in Briantspuddle, Dorset, England. He sailed to the Plymouth Colony at the age of 17 in May 1637 and was married in Plymouth,  MASS on Sept 13 1646 to Hope Howland.
After his first wife died, he married a girl named Ruth Sergeant. .
     John Chipman was one of three appointed by the Plymouth Colony Court to attend meetings of the Quakers "to Endeavour to reduce them from the errors of their ways." (interesting choice of words.)
     In April 1670, John  was chosen one of the Ruling Elders of the church and was solemnly invested with in the office. He was the last Ruling Elder. John "Elder" Chipman died April 7th, 1708.
     Our line continues through John and Hope Chipman's 7th child, Deacon Samuel Chipman, born April 15th 1662 at Barnstable, Mass. and  married Sara Cobb. Samuel built the "Chapman Tavern" which continued in the line until 1830.
     He was ordained a Deacon Sept 1, 1706 and was said to have been a carpenter but farming was his principle business. "He kept a public house, and was a retailer of spirituous liquors, a business not then held to be incompatible with the office of Deacon of the church. He was a man of good business habits, often employed as a town officer, and there were few in town who stood higher than he in public estimation. He was ordained a deacon of the church in Barnstable, Sept. 1, 1706."
     Our family line continues through Samuel's fifth child, Joseph Chipman, born Jan 10 1694, however that date is questioned due to the date of baptism  was March 5 1692 or 1693. Joseph's daughter Abigail was born in 1722. She marred Cornelius Hull, one of the names mentioned in the above story about the "Root" lineage.
   
        The gravestones of John Chipman and Hope Howland, two of the oldest grave markers in the area.

Lets Move to a Better Neighborhood
     You may, or may not, have noticed in these stories that some of them involved moving to the "New World" in the 1600s, notably after the landing of the Mayflower in 1620. Several of Mom's ancestors made the long trip and some accomplished great things.
      One of them was our ancestor Deacon George Graves (or Grave in some sources). Graves was born in Braintree, Essex, England in 1580. He, his wife and daughter Abigail settled where many of Mom's ancestors settled: Connecticut. He was one of 100 people that settled the town of Hartford, Conn. (Source: www.foundersofhartford.org)
     It is not known exactly when George arrived in Hartford, but he was an original proprietor, whose occupation was that of a weaver, who was of the Weavers' Company of London, England in 1615 before his emigration.
     In the Hartford land inventory of Feb 1639/40,he owned 12 pieces of land, including a home lot of 12 acres near the Little River. He was selectman in 1649 and was a representative to the General Court in 1657.
    Today Hartford has 1.2 Million residents. It is the Capital of Connecticut and home to the Mark Twain House and Museum, the Harriet Beecher Stowe Center and the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art. Our ancestor helped make that happen.

Royalty Royalty Everywhere
     You may have noticed a lot of these stories are about Royalty. We had a LOT of important people in Mom's  linage. Here it is by the numbers (by my count.)
Empress - 1
Kings - 14
Queens - 2
Dukes - 10
Duchess - 2
Count/Earl - 20
Countess - 9
Baron - 13
Baroness - 6
Knight - 67
Dame - 6
Lord - 47
Lady - 89
Sir - 114
     "Sir" may have been short for any of a number of titles such as Knight, Sheriff, Earl, Baron or other nobility titles.
      That comes to a total of just over 400 ancestors that held important positions, and they are all Mom's direct ancestors. Not bad for a small town Missouri Farm Wife!

Could You Please Decide On A Last Name
     Mom said she was told her family history was Scottish, Irish, English. This line is from the place of Kilts and Bagpipes, Scotland!
     This is a recently discovered family lineage that dates back to 1085. (WOW) I had research from earlier work dating back to 1493, but recently found more information from a great site called geni.com
     Our 34th-Great Grandfather was Wernebald Cunninghame, 1st Lord of Kilmaurs You will find various spelling versions of that last name in this line. According to the Geni.com site:

     The line continued through his son, Robert fitz Vernebald, Laird Cunynghame of Kilmaurs, 1115 - 1153, his son Robert fitz Robert of Kilmaurs (1150-1189) Sir Robert de Cunnynghame of Kilmaurs (1175-1233) Hervey de Cunyngham of Kilmaurs (1205-1264), WIlliam de Cunynghame of Kilmaurs (12/25/1223-1285), Edward de Cunynghame of Kilmaurs (1245 - 1292), Gilbert de Cunyngham, of Kilmaurs (1270 - 1292), Sir Robert de Cunynghme of Kilmaurs (1300 - 1335) Sir Robert de Cuninghame of Kilmaurs; swore fealty to Edward I (probably 1296) but later supported Robert I The Bruce who granted him as tentant-in-chief of the Crown the lands of Lambrachtoun and Grugere, in Cunningham (in 1319).
    The lineage here is debated by some, but generally accepted by researchers on the web, is the line continued through Robert Cunningham, 9th Lord Kilmaurs.
William Cunynghame of Kilmaurs, Earl of Carrick (no explanation given regarding the brief change in the spelling of the last name.) William was also Sheriff of Ayr.
     Then came Sir William Cuninghame, of Kilmaurs. This gentleman had two sons with his wife and two illegitimate sons. Next was his son Sir Robert Cunynghame, Lord of Kilmaurs, then his son Sir Alexander Cunningham, 1st Earl of Glencairn, 1st Lord Kilmaurs (b 1426-d 6/11/1488) He was killed at Sauchieburn, Scotland (no other details).
     Robert Cunningham was the 2nd Earl of Glencairn, Lord of Kilmaurs (3/1451-1490), his son Cuthbert was 3rd Earl of Glencairn,  followed by
<--William, the 4th Earl. The lineage continued through Alexander, the 5th Earl and William, the 6th Earl.
     Our line continues through Patrick Cunnynghame, 1559-1583). Apparently he was not an Earl. He was born in  Scotland and died in Ireland. His son William Cunningham, which seems to FINALLY be the agreed upon spelling of the last name, after a few hundred years. William was Lord High Chancellor of Scotland. His son John (1609-1705) continued our line with his son James Cunningham.
     From James, our line goes through Andrew Cunningham (1660 - 1726). He was the first of the line to the new world, where he was married in Groton, CONN. The all male line of ours switches genders and goes through Anna, who married Joseph Chipman. Then comes their daughter Abigail Chipman (1772 - 1805). She married Cornelius Hull and the line continues to our source, Electa Hull.
     With all the changes in that last name, why didn't someone shorten OUR last name to Show. It would of saved a lot of time when signing papers.

Closer to Our Time
     I admit to being  a history lover (just in case you didn't figure that out yet lol). Now, I shall stick  to the 20th century information.
      Mom's parents were Harry Wilson Perl (1897-1949) and Leatha Edith Daugherty (1906-1965) married 1/1/1927. Harry served in World War I and after that, was a boat captain for a construction company that built bridges across the Missouri River. I assume the company built the old Missouri River bridges at Lexington and possibly Waverly. In the mid 30s the family lived in Sharron, MO, a tiny town in  Saline County near Miami, MO where Highway 41 crosses the Missouri River.
     Harry's Parents were John Oliver Perl and Carrie May Crocker. John O. was in the logging business. It took me forever to find him, because they lived in Ohio but he worked out of state in South Carolina. His wife was Carrie May Crocker. John O. died at the age of 39 of a heart attack and Carrie died one year later of Typhoid Fever. She was a school teacher prior to marriage. The couple lived in western Ohio.
      After their deaths, their seven kids were divided into separate homes. Mom said her Dad's foster parents were mean, and he ran away from home at some point (He was 5 when his dad died and 6 when his mom died.) Apparently, according to our mom, he ran way from the foster home at some point. How me made it from western Ohio to Missouri is unknown.
     John O's parents were John, who died in 1904 and Mary Jane Freeman (1830-1873) both are buried in  Ohio. John served in the Civil War in the Ohio Infantry, 188th regiment. He enlisted on 8/24/1864 at age 34.

      Carrie May Crocker's Parents were Horace, whom fought in the civil war and Hannah Scofield.
      Horace's parents were Amasa, born in New York and Electa Hull who remarried after Amasa died at age 37. We come from her first marriage. All of the above amazing stories are from Electa's ancestry.
     Regarding Mom, her mother was Leatha Edith Daugherty, a fairly short lady as I remember.. A gentleman named Zach Daugherty has communicated with Gail and myself and is researching the Daugherty ancestry line. He is very professional and thorough in his research, and a very nice gentleman.
     Mom once told me that her Grandfather, Samuel, was a fairly scary man that she remembered as blind either in one or both eyes. He apparently was a bit of a rough guy and  wanted by the Law.
 

                                      
     I checked census records and in 1930, Grandpa and Grandmother Perl had been married for three years, had two  kids (Lois age 2, Mom under 1 year) and lived in Wellington.
     In the 1940 Census, they once again were living in  Wellington after living in Sharron, MO in the mid 1930s. The 1940 census has Harry Perl at age 43 with an income of $1,680. It didn't say if that was per year, per month or per week.
    The recently released 1950 census still has the family in Wellington, but Grandpa Harry had already died. Grandmother was 43 and had a job sewing on pockets at a Shirt Factory. I suspect that was the old Garment Factory on Fairground Ave. in Higginsville. Lois at age 22 was listed as a Proof Machine Operator at a bank and Mom at age 20 was doing clerical work in the accounting department at a telephone Company. They were all still living in Wellington.

     When she was riding with me, Mom once pointed down a road on the East end of Wellington and said they used to live down that road. Unfortunately I never went down the road to investigate.

Grandfather Harry Perl. One of only two known pictures on him. The other is a solemn portrait picture. Upon his death, his wife burned almost all of the pictures of him, according to Mom. He died at the age of 52 Grandmother Perl, She died in 1965, age 59.

 There's Gonna Be A Revolution!
     In my research, I found a few ancestors that were part of the Revolutionary War. Some of them were the "Fighting Fancers".
      Their love of fighting for the new world predated 1776. John Fancer was a part of the French and Indian War in 1758. He was one of the first settlers of Poundridge, New York that later was a part of the town later known as Stamford, Connecticut
      He was also a fireman, a Deacon and in his younger days a seafaring man. On a trip to the West Indies, the ship was stricken with Small Pox and Fancer nursed the crew and later at home was frequently called upon to nurse and attend others sick with the disease. He eventually contracted Small Pox and died from it.
     John's son, John Fancer II (7/15/1737-1/20/1808) fought in the Revolutionary war in the First Regiment of Westchester County Militia as a Lieutenant. He lived from 7/15/1737 to 1/20/1808 and took a leading part in the establishment of the Presbyterian Church. Four other members of the Fancer kin also served in the Revolutionary War and apparently all survived. But WAIT! there's MORE!
      Fancer's son-in-law Peter Scofield was a Private with the New York Militia during the Revolutionary War.
     According to the WIkitree Website:

     Our family line comes from Samuel Scofield, son of Peter Scofield and John Fancer II's daughter Hannah Fancer.

 That's a Wrap
     Being a lover of history and research, I could go on forever with family stories. You may be thinking "WOW! I have so many amazing ancestors". Well that is a numbers game. While our talented family Math Teacher could explain this better, we go to what is commonly referred to as the "penny on a chess board" theory.
      Picture a chess board, 8 x 8, for a total of 64 squares. Put a penny on the first square. Double it, for two on the next, double that for four pennies on square #3... keep doubling until Square #64 which supposedly would have a stack of pennies from the Earth to the Moon.
     Now, instead of Pennies  let us use the same principle for ancestors. Square one is me. Mom and Dad on square two, 4 grandparents, 8 great grandparents and so on.
     I think the farthest I went back was 50 generations. We have 1.125 QUADRILLION 50x Great Grandparents, and nearly double that number of direct ancestors when you include everyone from me to the 50th generation.
     This number would be parred down some, since my research began with just one of my Great-Great-Great Grandparents, but still, that's an amazing number of  people connected with us. The law of averages means some of them did great things, were great people or interacted with great people. I just got lucky by finding a great line of ancestors and stories.
      My only regret in all of this, is that I didn't get it completed before Mom passed away. When I started this project years ago, I would update Mom on what I found and she would get so excited and proud.
       I hope you enjoyed this as much as I enjoyed researching it. There is nothing more important than Family.