In Search of the Mysterious "Grandmother Soley"

Susannah Elizabeth Sowley of Jamaica (1758-1854)

(5 x Great-Grandmother of Jennifer Greet)

This is a story about how Family History can evolve from the faintest of memories and the most trivial of jottings, and how remnants of historic truth can emerge from family legends.

Through family history I was put in touch with a cousin in England, another Jenny. We are both descended from the English born Master Mariner, Captain Horatio Carter Paul (1833-1887) and his wife Gertrude Eliza Thomas, who was born in Jamaica in 1835. Jamaica seemed exotic and interesting to me, so I was keen to find out more about Gertrude's family. We both had access to hand-written family trees of the Paul family which noted Gertrude's mother as Augusta Thomas, daughter of J. Nosworthy [sic] and Susan Soley, and Susan as the daughter of “Grandmother Soley, died aged 104”. No other information. Intriguing!

As access to records and our skills as researchers improved over the years we were able to pin down the J. Nosworthy to Captain Richard Nosworthy, originally from Devon, who went to Jamaica as Paymaster of the 2^nd West India Regiment in 1808. He married Susan in Kingston in August of that year. So who was her mother, the so-called “Grandmother Soley”? And this then also begged the question, who was the significantly unmentioned “Grandfather Soley” - presumably there was one!

Through the discovery of Richard Nosworthy we were now in touch with a lovely young American descendant of his, Katrina, who incited us to greater endeavours. Several other Nosworthy “cousins” from the US and the UK joined our group and we each began adding snippets of information. At the beginning we didn't get very far, but then Jenny in England remembered a great-aunt once mentioning that “Grandmother Soley” and the name Walter Brind seemed to be connected in her memory. Who was Walter Brind? A relative?

Luckily for us, the name Walter Brind can be found on the internet, as a quite famous London silversmith of the 1750s. What connection could he have with a lady in Jamaica? Well, we decided to start from that end, and began researching the family tree of Walter Brind. Many, many names went into our notes but eventually we found a Walter Brind who married a Susan SOWLEY! Sowley/Soley – surely this had to be our connection.

We then followed the Sowley lines but it was many weeks before we able to find the right link between a William Henry Sowley, son of a merchant family in London, and his marriage to Susannah Elizabeth [Somebody] in Jamaica. This was our “Grandmother Soley”. [Just out of interest, the Walter Brind, silversmith of Foster's Lane, turned out to be the great-grandfather of the wife of my 4^th great-uncle, so it was rather a long and tortuous journey! We eventually found that it must have been his son, also Walter Brind, that Grandmother Soley mentioned - he turned out to be her brother-in-law, married to her husband's sister Susannah]

So now we had a name - Susannah Elizabeth Sowley, we think probably born in Jamaica. We have not yet been able to discover her family name, but the hunt continues! Her husband, William Henry Sowley, along with a couple of his brothers, may have been sent to Jamaica in the interests of their London family's mercantile interests. After his marriage to Susannah he appears to have held interests “in right of his wife” to a number of plantations and the slaves that went with them. He was appointed a Collector of Customs probably during the 1790s.

The following are my notes for “Grandmother Soley” (1758-1854) as I have continued to name her on my Family Tree:

We do not know the family name of Susanna Elizabeth (later Sowley). The few bits of information we have about her are very vague, almost in the realms of folk-lore! She is mentioned in some old hand-written family trees as "Grandmother Soley" [sic], famous for living to a great age ("over 100" has been mentioned). No doubt her great-grand-daughter Gertrude (Thomas) Paul, who was born in Kingston in 1835 and grew up in Jamaica, would have known her as their lives overlapped by nearly 20 years. Possibly Gertrude later spoke about “Grandmother Soley” to her own children, and she became a family legend for them.

In 1966 Fanny Paul, a daughter of Gertrude, whom I remember as my Grandmother's “Auntie Fanny”, mentioned in a letter to a nephew "My [Great] Great Grandmother lived to 104 on my Mother's side. She was in Jamaica & my Mother & family all lived out there, having gone there in their early years.". This comment is quite interesting, as Fanny herself also lived to 104 years (she died in 1978)

However, recent (2010) information about Grandmother Soley has come to light from a letter written in 1899 by her grandson Charles Poitiers Nosworthy to a great nephew in America, in which he says "Respecting our Ancestors, about two hundred years ago, my Grand Father was Collector of Customs in Jamaica, Mr Sowley. I did not know him, but my Grandmother died in Jamaica at the age of 92 and I knew her well. – She had two Daughters and a Son – the Son was never married... [One] daughter Susannah my Mother married Captain Richard Nosworthy of the 2nd West India Regiment, a native of Devonshire in England ..." Charles' idea of “about two hundred years ago” turned out to be rather an exaggeration, but luckily the mention of Mr. Sowley as Collector of Customs gave us another clue in finding the correct period for his time in Jamaica through records kept in the National Archives at Kew. These certainly placed him in the Caribbean in 1798.

The intriguing matter of Grandmother Soley's real age was (possibly) clinched in 2010 when one of her descendants, Katrina, found the record of her burial at St Andrew's Church, Kingston. "Burials in the Parish of St Andrew in the County of Surrey in the Year of our Lord 1854: Susan Sowley, 96 years, of Hagley Park, buried 29 January in the Church Yard." If correct, this would give her a birth year of 1758. [A note here – we later found many of the Nosworthy women very unreliable about their ages!!]

From the Register of Baptisms in Kingston for the year 1789 we find the following information: "Susanna Mary, the daughter of William Sowley & Susanna Elizabeth his wife, was born 8th Oct. 1788 & baptised 8th October 1789." [Susanna Mary is our ancestor, later Susan Nosworthy]

Apart from the three children mentioned by Charles Nosworthy, there was another child, Frances Sowley, who died as an infant in 1794. From the Royal Gazette, Aug 23, 1794, Kingston, Jamaica, West Indies : "DIED: Miss Frances Sowley, infant daughter of Mr. William Sowley." Notice the mothers of the babies didn't get a mention in those days.

Although we do not know Grandmother Sowley's family background, she may have come from a fairly wealthy and well established family in Jamaica, and she appears to have held land and slaves in her own name, independent of her husband. One of these properties was in the Parish of St Andrew, another in the Parish of Kingston. The details of these holdings can be found in the Slave Registers of former British Colonial Dependencies 1812-1834. Slavery was abolished in Jamaica in 1834 and there was an adjustment period of about 5 years after that before many slaves were finally freed.

For the period 1817-1822, Susan (Susan E./ Susanna/ Susanna E) Sowley was also a registered owner of land in the Parish of St Catherine, Jamaica. In 1822, she is mentioned as owning "Dowdal's Pen" of 460 acres which by 1824 had passed into the hands of Edward G Matthew. There were 6 slaves on Dowdal's in 1822. [Jamaican Almanacs].

Her husband, William Henry Sowley, Collector of Customs in Kingston, died probably 1827.

So there we have “Grandmother Soley, died aged 104” - really “Grandmother Sowley, died aged 96”. Not a huge difference but it was a long journey to find her. In the process we found hundreds of relatives for our Family Tree, many new and interesting facts of history, and new “cousins” who became new friends. Long may Grandmother Soley be remembered.

Oh My Sainted Uncle!

The Blessed Richard Whiting (1458-1539), The Last Abbot of Glastonbury

13 x great-uncle of Jennifer Greet

My grandmother had an expression – sometimes of of amazement, sometimes of dismay - “Oh my sainted aunt!” - well, this story is a case of “Oh my sainted uncle!” - literally! I came upon this man, Richard Whiting, my 13 x great-uncle, as a character in an historical novel I was reading recently, and recognizing the name from my Family History research my interest was sparked in finding out more about the real person. [For those interested in the novel – Phil Rickman; “The Bones of Avalon”]

Abbot Richard Whiting is not a direct ancestor of mine (for obvious reasons), but his brother Robert Whiting of Shepton Mallet in Somerset, England, is my 12 x great-grandfather, so this sainted man, The Blessed Richard Whiting, is a great-uncle many times removed.

Richard Whiting was born about 1458 at Wrington in Somersetshire, one of at least two sons of Thomas Whiting. The  family held Kilver Court at Shepton Mallet and other lands, and were wealthy mill owners and wool merchants, or clothiers as they were called then. The Whiting family also had strong connections with the church - remember it was the Roman Catholic Church in the 1400s - and there were a number of men (and women) of that name connected with major religious foundations.

The sons of Thomas Whiting were probably schooled at Glastonbury Abbey in the cloistral

school  run by the Benedictine monks. While Robert Whiting (our ancestor) appears to have followed his father's trade in the wool industry, his brother Richard was destined for the church.  From Glastonbury Richard went on to Cambridge to complete his education, taking his MA in 1483. After some years at Cambridge (some sources suggest about 15 years) he returned to Glastonbury where  he was made a deacon in 1500. He was ordained into the priesthood at Wells on 6 March 1501.

For the next 25 years little is known of his activities. The monastery, which had about 100 monks, was one of the richest and most influential in England. It was a place of learning for the sons of the nobility and the gentry, before they went on to University. Richard Whiting eventually held the office of Chamberlain, in charge of many of the administrative aspects of the Abbey.

In February 1525 the Abbot, Richard Beere, died after a term of more than 30 years, and a successor had to be chosen. The community were unable to agree on a suitable person, so appealed to a higher authority (in this case Cardinal Thomas Wolsey) to make a selection. Richard Whiting was chosen as the new Abbot of Glastonbury.

Contemporary accounts record that the new Abbot was held in high esteem. Cardinal Wolsey is reported to have stated that he was "an upright and religious monk, a provident and discreet man, and a priest commendable for his life, virtues and learning." As Abbot he was now able to take his place in the House of Lords. Another notable scholar of the times, John Leland, antiquary to Henry VIII, referred to Whiting as "a man truly upright and of spotless life and my sincere friend." [John Leyland is another fascinating character, also featured in Phil Rickman's novel].

For about 10 years life went on peacefully at Glastonbury under the rule of Abbot Whiting. The Abbey was well run and prosperous and the revenues of Glastonbury exceeded even those of Canterbury. However, this was the time of King Henry VIII's struggle with the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church, and as the power of Cardinal Wolsey faded, and the power of Thomas Cromwell strengthened, the Monasteries and Abbeys in England were being dissolved and their assets subsumed into the coffers of the King and his favourite courtiers. Glastonbury, so well ordered (and so far from London!) was able to survive longer than most.

In 1534 Abbot Whiting, probably against his religious training but in the interests of a peaceful existence for those in his care, signed the Act of Supremacy, recognizing Henry VIII as head of the English Church. Despite his compliance much of his traditional jurisdiction over the town of Glastonbury was suspended, although he was assured that there was no intention of dissolving the Abbey.

False promises! One by one the abbeys of the West Country fell to the royal wreckers. By 1539, Glastonbury was the only monastery left in Somerset, and the end came in September of that year. Three royal commissioners arrived without warning, and virtually arrested the Abbot, taking him back to London and the dreaded Tower to be examined by Cromwell himself. The precise charges against him remain unknown, but were given generally as “treason” - possibly there was evidence (real or concocted) of sympathy for Queen Katherine, but no evidence in any of his actions. As a member of the House of Lords, Whiting should have been called before his Peers following an Act of Parliament, but Parliament was not convened and a summary verdict was made, presumably on the secret orders of the King and Cromwell.

After six weeks in the Tower, Abbot Richard Whiting was sent back to Wells where some sort of mock trial was held at the Bishop's Palace and the charge of high treason confirmed. On Saturday 15 November 1539, this good man, 80 years old, beloved and revered by many, was taken to Glastonbury to meet his end within sight of his poor pillaged Abbey. Along with two of his monks, Dom John Thorne and Dom Roger James, he was cruelly tied to a hurdle and dragged behind a horse to the top of Glastonbury Tor, overlooking the town. Here, all three men were executed, after Abbot Whiting prayed for forgiveness for himself and for his persecutors. Not only was Abbot Whiting hanged, but his body was desecrated - drawn and quartered – his head fastened over the gate of the now deserted abbey, and his limbs exposed in four quarters of the County, at Wells, Bath, Ilchester and Bridgewater.

Such was the tragic end of our kinsman, Richard Whiting, the Last Abbot of Glastonbury. Is it any wonder that he has become the subject of so many tales. His story became enshrined in the annals of the Catholic Church and after 350 years, on 13 May 1895, he was beatified by Pope Leo XIII as “The Blessed Richard Whiting”.

Note: Glastonbury Tor is a place of great significance in the legends of King Arthur and the Holy Grail, so is interesting for that reason also. The old Celtic name for Glastonbury is Ynys-witrin, the Island of Glass (Avalon).

 Ruins of Glastonbury Abbey, Somerset, England

Pirates, Treasure, and other Good Stuff

Captain Matthew Martin (1676-1749)

7^th Great-Grandfather of Jennifer Greet

I have chosen to write this story about my ancestor Captain Matthew Martin because I know my grand-sons think he must have had a pretty adventurous life, sailing the seven seas, fighting pirates, saving treasure, and reaping rich rewards. But was it really so? Possibly...yes!

Matthew Martin was one of three sons born to Samuel Martin and his wife Mary (Parker) in Wivenhoe, Essex. The three boys were Samuel (1674), Matthew (1676) and George (1678). Samuel, the father, was a mariner, and like many in his family his career was centred around ships and ship-building. (If you look at the map of England, you will see that Wivenhoe is situated on the

River Colne, a few miles from Colchester. Since the 16th century, the town has been a ship building and fishing port.)

Samuel Martin Senior made his Will in 1689, apparently as he was about to embark on a sea voyage. He states that he is 'at present outward bound for sea, and knowing the uncertainty of this Transitory life’ he commits his body ‘to the sea or earth wherewith it shall please God to dispose of it’. Wherever or however he died, his Will was proved at Canterbury in 1694, and in it he leaves his dwelling-house to his eldest son, Samuel, another property in Wivenhoe to second son Matthew, and a house in Stratford, Essex, to youngest son George. Samuel, the eldest son, died as a young man, but both Matthew and George went on to have sea-faring careers.

Matthew Martin joined the East India Company, and eventually became a captain (Commander) in their maritime service. On 17 May 1699 he married Sarah Jones, the daughter of another East India Commander, Samuel Jones, and his wife Amy (Potts) ,who lived at Stepney in London. This wedding took place by Licence at All Saints, Edmonton.

It appears that in the early years of their marriage Matthew and Sarah maintained a home in London, so that while Matthew was at sea Sarah would be near her parents. There were to eventually be eight children in the family; Sarah (1700), Samuel (1702), Matthew (1703), Thomas (1705), Mary (1712), George (1714, who died aged 2), another George (1718) and Ann (1719, who also died as an infant). The first four children were born in London, and were all baptised on the same day, 15 February 1708, at St John of Wapping. Luckily for future family historians, the Baptismal Register gives their dates of birth also! The next son, George, was baptised at St Dunstan and All Saints Stepney on 27 May 1715, and in that Baptismal Register his parents are noted as "Capt. Mathew and Sarah Martin of Wapping" so it appears that to 1715 at least the family were still living in London.

Those years of the first two decades of the eighteenth century were probably the most adventurous and dangerous years for Captain Martin. In 1703 we know that Matthew Martin was Captain of the East India ship "Tavistock". Some time after 1708 he became Captain of the ship "Marlborough" which was a 480-ton merchant ship, one of the company’s largest ships with 96 crew and thirty-two guns He made a number of voyages between Madras, Bengal, and on one occasion at least to China.

The “Marlborough” had originally been commissioned to combat any pirates who might have attacked the Company's ships in order to take their lucrative cargo. It was reported in “The Gentleman's Magazine” in later years that Captain Martin “had fought Angria, the famous pirate, several hours and beat him off”. Now, in those days the so-called pirate Sumbhajee Angria, “Lord of the Indian Ocean and Terror of the Arabian Sea”, was at the height of his powers in India, harassing and preying on ships of the East India Company, so this report is quite possible. My grandsons love to think so – Sumbhajee Angria and Captain Jack Sparrow have several adventures together in “Pirates of the Caribbean” so this gives Captain Matthew Martin quite some glamour as an ancestor.

For Captain Matthew Martin, however, his greatest adventure occurred in 1712, when on behalf of the East India Company he sailed to India with a cargo of specie valued at 200,000 pounds sterling (presumably payment for soldiers and servants of the Company). Can you imagine the value in today's monetary terms! He had travelled round Cape Comorin up the east coast of India to Madras and Calcutta, and was sailing inshore just north of Madras when he encountered three French enemy ships of war. Then followed three days of “cat and mouse” engagement and subterfuge. Finally, the crafty Captain tricked his enemies by setting a cask adrift in the dark with a lantern at its peak. The French ships followed the cask, believing it was the “Marlborough”, giving Captain Martin and his crew a chance to escape, and bring their ship safely into Fort St George. This cunning ploy has been recreated in the modern film ‘Master and Commander’ starring Russell

Crowe!

Naturally, the East India Company were very grateful that their ship and its cargo had been saved, and rewarded Captain Martin with a prize of 1,000 pounds and a gold medal set around with 24 diamonds, supposedly worth 100 guineas at the time. Some years later Captain Martin had his portrait painted, showing his ship “Marlborough” in the background, and his precious jewell near his right hand.

 Captain Matthew Martin (1676-1749)

Following his service with the Company Captain Martin and his family retired to Wivenhoe where he had inherited the family home following the death of his mother in 1710. With his prize money and his income as a company trader he was now a wealthy man. In 1720 he purchased a large mansion house, Alresford Hall, from Benjamin Field, a goldsmith, of Lombard Street, London. In 1722 he had a patent of arms granted.

He was described as being ‘much esteemed for his affability, integrity and generosity’. Like many country gentleman of the age he entered politics and stood as a Whig MP from 1722-7, becoming Mayor of Colchester in 1726. He was also made a Director of the East India Company. As well as these, his name appears in connection with the Wivenhoe workhouse, as a governor at St Thomas’s Hospital, London from 1732-44, and as a member of Trinity House. He owned a portfolio of property holdings which are itemised in his Will made in 1727/8. In 1730, he owned a farm of about 300 acres called "The Fenne". This is recorded on a cartouche map now held by the Essex Record Office.

Of the children, Samuel, the eldest son and heir, succeeded to his father’s estates. He died without issue on 16th May, 1765, and the property descended to his brother Thomas, who had become a King's Counsel (KC) at Chelsea in London. Matthew died young, the first George died at the age of 2 years, and the second George followed his father's career as a mariner but is thought to have died about 1741 as a young man in his twenties.

The eldest daughter, Sarah (our ancestor) married Major General John Price, who died at the Battle of Breda in Holland in December 1747, The other surviving daughter, Mary, married Isaac Lemying Rebow, M.P. for Colchester, who died in 1734, leaving a son Isaac Martin Rebow. This son assumed the name of Martin, under the will of his maternal grandfather, Captain Martin. Isaac Martin Rebow married his cousin Mary, daughter and heiress of Thomas Martin, of Alresford Hall, which property thus passed to the Martin Rebows.

In 1738 Matthew Martin had a family vault constructed at St Peter's, Alresford, presumably for the burial of his wife Sarah who died in January of that year. The stone which marked the entrance to the vault is still visible today in the ruins of the old church. It bears the inscription "THIS VAULT WAS BUILT BY / MATHEW MARTIN / OF WIVENHOE IN / MDCCXXXVIII ". Sarah Martin died 6th January, 1738, and in Alresford Church there was a monument to her memory, with the following inscription: “Near this place lieth the body of Sarah Martin,wife of Matthew Martin of Wivenhoe, Esq, Lord of the Manor, a Member in Parliament, High Steward and Alderman for ye Borough of Colchester,a Governor of St. Thomas’s Hospital, and an Elder Brother of Ye Trinity House etc.,who died much lamented, as she lived much beloved and esteemed for her Conjugal, Maternal, and Social Virtues. She departed this life the VI. of Jan. Anno Domini MDXX VIII. Ætat LVI.”

Sarah's Will makes no reference to a desired place of burial. Matthew's will, however, does mention the vault: "my Soul I commit to almighty God who gave it, and my Body to the Earth to be decently buried in the Vault erected by me in the Chancel of the Parish Church of Alresford, in the said County of Essex, at the Discretion of my Executors hereinafter named..." Matthew Martin died at Wivenhoe 20^th July 1749. It is believed, however, that he was never buried in Alresford at all, but in the nearby village of Great Holland.

Dang My Buttons!

William Randall (1728-1793) of West Lulworth, Dorset, England

5^th Great-Grandfather of Jennifer Greet

Not everyone has a great-grandfather who was the inspiration for one of England's comic caricatures, but some years ago I found (with mixed emotions) that our ancestor, William Randall, “Malster and Victualler” of the Red Lion Inn in West Lulworth, is famous for being the character behind the iconic “John Barleycorn”, the quintessential genial publican and mine-host. This is his story:

William Randall was born about 1728 in  the small village of West Lulworth, the only son of Thomas and Anne Randall. Thomas Randall, in his Will made in 1769, describes himself as “Shopkeeper and Malster” of West Lulworth.  Anne Randall has been described by some decendants as “an educated woman”, the daughter of a clergyman (however, this is unconfirmed).  After William there were six daughters  born to the family: Anne (1730); Mary (1735); Jane (1738); Elizabeth (1739); Susannah (1741) and Alicia (1743). William, the son and heir, grew up learning the skills of a brewer.

In December 1755 William married Mary Dunning of the neighbouring village of Winfrith Newburg and in the space of the next 9 years, they had a family of 7 children; 5 sons (Thomas, William, John, Robert & James)  and 2 daughters (Jane and Mary). James, the youngest son, died at the age of 10 years, but all the other children survived into adulthood.

William's wife Mary died in 1765, and was buried in West Lulworth. Then, in February 1768, William married again, to Bridget Reason, at St Peter's Church in Dorchester. Bridget was not from a local family, and it is thought by some of her descendants that she may have been quite "well off" in her own right. William and Bridget Randall had two children, a daughter Elizabeth in 1769 (our ancestor), and a son Matthew in 1774.

Over the years William had established himself as a "Malster and Victualler", the Landlord of the Red Lion Inn at West Lulworth. The Dorset Alehouse Licence Records for 1769 and 1770 show that William Randall paid an annual fee of 10 pounds for permission to keep a "Victualling House" in West Lulworth. William's father Thomas died in 1770, and William then inherited the malthouse and associated farmlands. In later years, when it was no longer licenced as an Inn, the Red Lion reverted to its original name of “Churchfield House”.

William Randall was to become locally quite famous as a jovial and generous Inn-Keeper, Mine-Host of the Red Lion. It was he who became the inspiration for "John Barleycorn", one of the central characters in a play by the Irish dramatist John O'Keeffe. O'Keeffe stayed at the Red Lion during the summer of 1791, and he used the Inn as a setting in his farce "The London Hermit, or Rambles in Dorsetshire (1793)." The characters were based on the Landlord (William Randall) and his family and staff of the Inn. John Barleycorn himself is portrayed as a kindly but rather rustic host whose favourite expression of surprise or amazement is “Well, dang my buttons!”

At the time this play was produced Dorset and the countryside around Weymouth and Lulworth in particular was becoming quite famous as what we would describe today as a seaside holiday resort. The King, George III, and members of the Royal Family family spent several holidays at Lulworth Castle, hosted by the Weld family. It is reputed that the King was at times served ale from the Red Lion Inn.

Thus, when O'Keeffe's play was produced at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket, there was a capacity audience. Apparently, the King asked for a Command performance. Paul Randall, in his article “The Comical Innkeeper of Lulworth” published in the Dorset Year Book of 1995, says “The bucolic antics of the actors were much appreciated but it was only gentle fun and one cannot take offence at the lines. William was portrayed as John Barleycorn, his principal servant as Toby Thatch and his daughter as Kitty. The latter was described as a young girl educated much above her station and acted by no less a person than the celebrated Mrs. Kemble.”

The Red Lion Inn had its own farm, and of course William brewed his own ale. As a matter of interest, John O'Keeffe described his lunch in 1791 at the Red Lion Inn at West Lulworth as: "Roast loin of lamb, delicate boiled chickens, green-peas, young potatoes, a gooseberry pie, thick cream, good strong home-brewed ale, and a glass of tolerable port-wine.” No doubt the cellar of The Red Lion held many “tolerable” wines, Lulworth Cove nearby being the absolute epitome of a smuggler's cove, and the coast of France not so very far away!

We have a description of William Randall from his descendant, Paul Randall, who admits this may be slightly exaggerated:  “He was tall, thin and bony, with a long sallow face and dark staring eyes. His dress consisted usually of a short white flannel coat, a scarlet waistcoat with brass buttons, brown stockings and thick soled shoes with iron buckles. When speaking he gesticulated wildly, swinging his arms and head about and continually stammering over the many long and fine-sounding words with which he endeavoured to embellish his speech”. (Dorset Year Book - ‘The Comical Innkeeper of Lulworth’ ).

William Randall died in December 1793, and was buried in West Lulworth. His tombstone reads: "In Memory of William Randall who died Dec 20 1793 aged 65.   A faithfull friend. A husband dear, A loving father sleepeth here. Also Bridget wife of the above …"

The four surviving sons of his first marriage had all taken up farming in the area, and they were all mentioned in their father's Will. William left the bulk of his estate to his wife Bridget for her lifetime, to pass to their son Matthew, who became the next Landlord of the Red Lion. There were also generous bequests to his three daughters, Jane (wife of William Mores), Mary (wife of Henry Wickham) and Elizabeth (wife of Captain John Carter). It is from the marriage of Elizabeth Randall and John Carter that we are descended.

William's wife Bridget died in 1804, and her son Matthew Randall then inherited the Red Lion Inn. Her tombstone gives her date of death as 8 December 1804, and her age as 76. This would give her a birth year of 1728, making her about 40 years old at the time of her marriage to William Randall.

(Information from website for West Lulworth, hosted by Martin White, as part of the Dorset Online Parish Clerk network. http://www.westlulworth.org.uk/index.html)

Will of Thomas Randall (1770), Will of William Randall (1793), Will of  Bridget Randall (1804)

An Introduction to "My Mother's People"

As one of the “keepers” of Family History, and the recipient of many family stories, I have decided to take up the challenge of my daughter Elizabeth, and commit some of these stories to a wider audience via what I am loosely calling “A Calendar of Family History” - I promise one story a month for the next year!

There is no particular rhyme or reason to the choice of stories, except to say that these are ancestors I would love to have known, or family members who perhaps had no direct descendants but do not deserve to be forgotten.

Elizabeth is writing about her father's side of the family, and on my side of the family my sister-in-law Katie has compiled a history of the Francis family. I want to tell the stories of my mother's people, the ancestors and connections of the Cossins and Twelves families, many of whom I find so fascinating. (Just a reminder here – Joan (Cossins) Francis, my mother, was the daughter of Louis Robert Cossins and Violet Winifride Twelves who married in Malta in 1909).