Welcome to the June edition of our family newsletter. This month we will look at a part of the family that connects Long Crendon, Haddenham and Hambleden - three important Bucks parishes for Brangwin family members.

• A profile of Irene Cambridge
• The documents submitted as part of the adminsitration of the estate of Edmund Brangwin whose Will was featured last month
• Some more odds and ends
• Relationships - what is a fourth cousin and what does it mean to be removed?

I hope you enjoy learning more about your extended family.

Contributions to the Newsletter are most welcome. If you find something that you would like to share please send it to me so that it can be included. My email address is lwuth@hups.net

Lorraine Wuth

Editor

Until I met Lorraine though the internet a year and a half ago I had never heard of the Brangwyns.

I have been interested in "who came before me" as a dabbler, not as a serious researcher. My maternal grandmother did notebooks for each of her families and I have been aware that both families on the maternal side arrived in Canada from Ireland about 1830. In 1984 a friend suggested I visit the LDS library in Burnaby, BC. With the maiden name of Smith you can appreciate the task before me. However I did know my great grandparents were Mary and Joseph Hobbs (not everyone can claim that close a relationship with Mary and Joseph). I found their names, located the submitter (Melba Hobbs), and connected with Melba. Melba's grandfather Joseph Overton Hobbs and my great grandmother Mary (Polly) Hobbs Smith were brother and sister. Melba had a wealth of information that she so kindly shared, the research done on the Hobbs, some pictures of the Smith Family before the death of Polly's husband Stephen Smith in 1896 (I now have a picture of my Grandfather as a teenager), and the letters. The letters written to Joseph by his relatives in England including letters from Polly. We were able to share these letters with Dad before he died.

Irene Clara Margaret Smith (named for both grandmothers and mother) was born in Abbotsford, BC on December 13, 1942. I have one sister, Louise, two years younger. My connection to this family is through my father, David Smith. Dad had a sister Barbara and brother Peter. Peter is Peter Barnett Smith. There are very few family treasures, but in Peter's home hangs a portrait of Joseph Hobbs (1773 - 1847).

My grandfather was Walter Smith, with one of three brothers, one of seven sisters and mother Polly moved to Canada in the early 1900's. The Smith family fell on hard times about the time of the early death of Stephen Smith (1844-1896). The Industrial Revolution was probably a major factor creating the hard times. Stephen was an owner of the Hambleden Mill (picture is already in the web site), the mill he purchased from his sister Augusta Barnett after the death of her husband Charles Barnett.(Does a double relationship make me better connected?). Walter was a book keeper, he met and married my grandmother, Margaret Weeks in Vancouver. Her family moved to Vancouver from Hampshire, England.

I did all my schooling in Port Alberni (a small BC logging community on Vancouver Island), Dad was a teacher. My parents felt while my sister and I attended school we should stay in one city. I left school and spent year at Victoria College, and in 1962 moved to New Westminster. I met Doug and we were married on September 11, 1965. We have three really great daughters, Viki, Colleen and Suzanne. Each of the girls are married and have given us four terrific grandchildren. Number five is due in October.

I am a Community Health Worker, enabling seniors to live in their own homes with assistance. I have been doing this work for almost 17 years. I have met some really interesting elderly people. Early on I was assigned an elderly lady (88 years), she and I were talking (I am one of those people who asks "do you know so and so ", "where were you born", - I have to break the ice somehow). Mrs. G was born in New Westminster in 1897, and her nephew had been an usher at our wedding - small world! Doug is a Home Inspector - checking out homes to be purchases on behalf of a new owner. He has been doing this for almost ten years.

We enjoy our 4 year old Australian Cattle Dog X. KC's main thing in life is to keep us active. He does his job well. Our daughters gave Doug the dog for his birthday. I was asked for some input about the type of dog and I thought female, small and nonshedding sounded like a good house dog. Well, KC is a 56 lb. male, constantly sheds, has the energy of a hydrogen bomb and we love him dearly.

My hobbies include gardening, knitting, cross-stitching, We have done a little travelling and look forward to more. In 1988 did a trip - we drove to Salt Lake City and met Melba, Andy and Barbara and Merle and Jess. We enjoyed the sight seeing with Melba (she even drove on the freeway). As retirement gets closer, the urge to travel is more appealing. Doug and I have to get our wish list more together, needless to say there are some villages and cemeteries (not in Canada) on my wish list.

Doug and I live in the city of Port Moody. Port Moody was the western terminus of the Canadian Pacific Railway. The first transCanada train arrived in Port Moody July 4, 1886. The powers that be in those days decided Vancouver should be the terminus and the railway was moved on to Vancouver. Port Moody is now a bedroom community of Vancouver, population about 15,000 people. We have lived in our present house for 28 years, about a mile away from where Doug grew up. Vancouver is the gateway to Alaska, the cruise ships are starting their summer schedule. If any of you are thinking of a cruise, and Vancouver as the jump off point, Doug and I are really good city guides. We would be delighted in introduce you to our part of the world.

Colleen & Chris Parent with Chelsea & Kylie;

Viki & Barry Cunningham with Cory

Just what is our relationship one to the other? Brothers and sisters are easy as are first cousins and parent-child. But what is a fourth cousin once removed? The following article may throw some light on this issue.

For a true "relationship" to exist, there must be an ancestor who is common to both individuals. If you examine the chart below, for example, the Common Ancestor is Box 1 on the horizontal scale (HS) as well as Box 1 on the Vertical Scale (VS).

Let us suppose that you have a grandson of that common ancestor, as seen in Box 3 of the HS, and you want to know that grandson's relationship to a great-granddaughter, who would be seen in Box 4 on the VS.

If you follow Box 4 (VS) down to where it meets the vertical pathway to Box 3 on the HS, then where those paths cross, it tells you the relationship -- they are first cousins once removed.

When looking at a modern map of Oxfordshire, please do remember that until the local government reorganisation of 1974 much of modern south-west Oxfordshire was in Berkshire. The river Thames (or Isis) which runs through Oxford, defined the southern boundary of the county until 1974 (as shown in the nearby image). Prior to that date towns such as Shrivenham, Faringdon, Wantage, Abingdon, Didcot and Wallingford (to name but a few) were in Berkshire as, indeed, was a considerable piece of what is now the south-west corner of the City of Oxford.

"A county of England, 47 miles in length, and 29 in breadth; bounded by Buckinghamshire, Gloucestershire, Berkshire, Warwickshire, and Northamptonshire. It is divided into 14 hundreds, which contain 1 city, 12 market towns, 280 parishes, and 51 villages. The air is sweet, mild, pleasant, and healthy, for which reason it contains several gentlemen's seats; and the soil, though various, is fertile in corn and grass, and the hills are shaded with woods. It is also a great sporting country, there being abundance of game preserved here. It has no manufactures of any account, being chiefly agricultural. Its chief city is Oxford. Population, 161,643. It sends 9 members to parliament."

-- James Barclay's "Complete and Universal English Dictionary", 1842

The following codes are used if you are referring to things Welsh. Given that a number of Brangwin's in their various spellings ended up in Wales a few Chapman codes for the area will not go astray.

Have you seen the wonderful photos of the windows in St Mary's, Bucklebury, Berks? They are up on our MyFamily.com site. Margaret took the photos when she and David went to Bucklebury to look at a work by Frank Brangwyn and were pleasantly surprised to find four stained glass windows rather then just another mural!

Margaret, ever observant, discovered a line of Dreweatt graves in the church yard, too. Here is the text of the monumental inscriptions:

1. Illegible except for "departed."
2. Here Lieth the Body / of Lucy the Daughter / of THOMAS DRUWAT / by his Wife Lucy She Died / 16 Day of November / AD1749 Aged 24 Years / [two more lines - illegible - headstone sunk into ground]
3. In / Memory of / [rest of inscription illegible]
4. In Memory of / THOMAS DREWATT / who died 8th May 1777 / Aged 94 years
5. In Memory of / Benj. DREWEATT / who departed this life / [illeg. word] 22 1782 / [2 more lines - illegible - poss. biblical quotation]
6. In Memory of / HANNAH DREWEATT / departed April 3rd 1798 / in the 34 Year of her Age / I Know that my Redeemer liveth / Will Ye also believe in him
7. In / Memory of / JOSEPH DREWEATT / Son of BENJAMIN and / MARY DREWEATT / Late of Marlstone Farm / Who died Jan 2nd / 1821 / 72 years
8. [Illegible]

So, who are these Dreweatts and how do they relate to the ones from Welford? Good question! If I was a betting person I would put money on the Welford group having originated in Bucklebury. Before you ask, the answer is that the Bucklebury family was there before we had a Dreweatt in Welford. Bucklebury and Welford are very close. And last, but not least, the name Lucy which appears in the family in both places.

From the National Burial Index for England and Wales which has just been released by the Federation of Family history Societies, I was able to learn that there was another Lucy buried at Bucklebury on September 4, 1715. There was also an infant called John buried on April 10, 1763. The Lucy who was 24 was actually buried in 1742.

Benjamin and Mary had a son Joseph baptised on September 12, 1753 and a daughter Mary baptised on May 3, 1755 at Chieveley, Berks. Chieveley is ajacent to Bucklebury.

On August 31, 1785 a Lucy Dreweatt was baptised at Reading St Giles, Berks. She was the daughter of Thomas and Mary. This Lucy went on to marry a Mr Baster but had no children. Her father was from North Heath in the parish of Chieveley. There are more Lucy's than you can poke a stick at!

When I get further information I'll pass it on.

In the Newsletter last month there were some wonderful photos of Perrots at Long Crendon, Bucks. David made reference to the Brangwins at Long Crendon but who were they? This month we will look at this part of the family in more detail. What is known is that this part of the family is related to the Castle and Hambleden groups but the actual connection cannot be definitively stated. References in Will to ‘my kinsman … of ‘ confirm the relationship but not the exact nature. A mystery still to be solved.

When I first printed this data out it ran to 405 pages and covered a mere 10 generations. Needless to say, this is a shorter version of this part of the family. We will start with two brothers: Edmund and John. Who their parents were is unknown - we probably know them but have not made the necessary connection yet!

The following family outline only touches some of the Long Crendon family members. Next month we will explore others.

You will notice references to Long Crendon and Haddenham. Both of these parishes lie a short distance south west of Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire. Hambleden has been mentioned before and is a couple of miles east of Henley on Thames. Medmenham is another Bucks parish and lies adjacent to Hambleden.

The photo below is of St Mary the Virgin, Long Crendon, taken by Lorraine Wuth in September 1998 after a downpour!

Generation 1

Edmund Brangwin would have been born sometime before 1663. He married Elizabeth Towne on May 21, 1683 at St Mary's, Aylesbury, BKM. What happened to Edmund is unknown.

Elizabeth was the daughter of Richard Towne and Ellioner his wife. She was born about 1663 and baptised at St Mary the Virgin in Long Crendon, BKM on February 15, 1622/23. She died in May 1731 aged 68. She was buried at Haddenham on May 28, 1731.

Edmund and Elizabeth had 3 children:

1. Mary who married John Davies a plasterer of Oxford.
2. Richard who was baptised on May 11, 1684 at Haddenham and buried on June 27, 1772 at Haddenham, aged 88. He married Elizabeth Woollams on September 18, 1718 at Hinton-in-the-Hedges, NTH.
3. Edmund who was born around 1685 at Haddenham. More on him later.

John Brangwin lived at Long Crendon. He died there and was buried on July 9, 1724.

John also married a daughter of Richard and Ellinor Towne: Eliner. They were married at St Mary's, Aylesbury on October 29, 1688.

Eliner was born about 1665 at Long Crendon and baptised there on March 19, 1664/65. She died aged 78 and was buried on January 29, 1742/43 at St Mary the Virgin, Long Crendon.

John and Eliner had five children:

1. Ann baptised on June 18, 1689 at Long Crendon. She married John Baker on March 11, 1706/07 at Long Crendon.
2. Eliner baptised on May 8, 1692 at Long Crendon.
3. John baptised March 30, 1694 at Long Crendon. He died aged 66 and was buried at Long Crendon on July 11, 1760.
4. Richard baptised August 22, 1703 [more below]
5. Edmund baptised on November 3, 1705 [more below]

For the record, I have been speculating that John and Edmund were brothers. Let me explain the logic of putting Edmund and John in the same family. In 1772 Edmund Brangwin, the son of Edmund Brangwin and Elizabeth Towne, died and left a long will. In it he left property to Edmund son of his kinsman Edmund (who was the son of John Brangwin and Eliner Towne). Of course, they were cousins and the kinship connection could have been because of the relationship between Elizabeth and Eliner. The two older Edmunds were cousins via their mothers making it a female connection. It is also possible that there was a male one, too! Marriages of two brothers to two sisters was not an uncommon occurrence by any means.

Generation 2

Edmund Brangwin the son of Edmund Brangwin and Elizabeth Towne was born about 1686. He was baptised at Haddenham on January 14, 1685/86.

Edmund married Anne Bampton at Haddenham on May 14, 1722. She died at Haddenham and was buried there on December 23, 1729.

Edmund and Anne had one child, Edmund, baptised on April 27, 1729 at Haddenham. He married Martha Franklin at Dorton, BKM, on January 14, 1754. He was buried at Haddenham on January 23, 1772, Martha having predeceased him. His occupation was given as husbandman. There were no children.

Richard Brangwin was the son of John Brangwin and Eliner Towne. He was baptised at Long Crendon on August 22, 1703. He died, aged 57. The parish register at Haddenham lists his burial details with a note that he was actually buried at Long Crendon on February 2, 1780.

Richard was married to an Elizabeth. The marriage entry has not been found. She was buried at Haddenham on August 25, 1780.

Richard and Elizabeth had at least five children:

1. Richard born in 1740 [more later]
2. Edmund born in 1741. He was baptised at Long Crendon on December 27, 1741 and buried at Haddenham on September 28, 1806, aged 63.
3. Elioner baptised on January 29, 1742/43. She married John Fryer at St Mary the Virgin, Long Crendon, BKM on September 14, 1771.
4. Ann baptised May 30, 1747 at long Crendon and buried there on June 17, 1747.
5. John who married Hannah Allnutt on November 25, 1771 at Long Crendon. John has been placed in this family as, according to naming conventions which have been followed fairly religiously by the Brangwins, there should have been a John before any other male children. It is also possible that John was not baptised in the normal family church but at his mother's family church - something that appears to be common practice with first borns. As Richard was baptised on 7 April 1740, John's actual date of birth is likely to be 1738 or 1739.

   This is likely to be the John Brangwin listed in the Buckinghamshire Poll Book, 1784 under the Ashendon Hundred. Under Long Crendon:

   Freeholders Names: Brangwin John
   Place of Abode: Long Crendon
   What Freeholds consist of: Land
   Occupiers: Himself

   He would have been alive in 1804 (or the owner would also have been a John) as there is no change listed in the Poll Book at the 1804 election.

   His wife Hannah was buried at Long Crendon on July 26, 1783.

Edmund Brangwin the son of John Brangwin and Eliner Towne was born about 1705. He was baptised at Long Crendon on November 3, 1705. He moved to Hambleden and married Sarah Deane on December 22, 1756 at Hambleden, by licence. Edmund died on February 27, 1783 at Hambleden, where he was buried, aged 77. He was a farmer.

His head stone reads: Sacred / to the memory of / Edmund Brangwin / who departed this life / February 25th 1783 / aged 77 years / ... //

Foot: E B / 1783 //

Sarah Deane was the daughter of Daniel Deane and Mary Denham. She was born in Hambleden and baptised on January 31, 1728/29 and died there on January 28, 1814, aged 84. Her headstone reads: Sacred / to the memory of / Sarah Brangwin / wife of Edmund Brangwin / who departed this life / January 28, 1814 aged 84 years / ... // Foot: S B / 1814 //

Edmund and Sarah had three children:

1. Mary born 1758
2. Edmund born December 26, 1761
3. Francis born 1764

More on each of these later.

Generation 3

Mary Brangwin the daughter of Edmund Brangwin and Sarah Deane was born in Hambleden in 1758. She was baptised on April 30, 1758. She married Edward Sawyer by licence on December 31, 1783 at Hambleden. Witnesses were Martha Deane, her cousin Mary Deane who was to also become her sister-in-law and her brother Edmund Brangwin. Edward was the son of John Sawyer and Mary Cocks and he had been born in nearby Medmenham in 1757. He died at Fingest, aged 77, and was buried at Medmenham on May 17, 1834. He was a farmer.

At the time of her death in 1842, aged 93 or 94, Mary was living at Pheasants’s, Hambleden. She was buried at Hambleden on January 7, 1842.

Mary and Edward had four children:

1. John born in 1784 [more later]
2. Sarah baptised at Hambleden on August 27, 1785
3. Edmund baptised December 10, 1786 at Medmenham and buried there on March 9, 1788.
4. Daniel baptised at Medmenham on June 8, 1788

Edmund Brangwin, the son of Edmund Brangwin and Sarah Deane, was featured in the February newsletter. Worth noting is that he married his first cousin, Mary Deane, daughter of George Deane and Martha Denham.

Francis Brangwin was the son of Edmund Brangwin and Sarah Deane. He was baptised on January 6, 1765 at Hambleden. He died on July 14, 1827 and was buried at Hambleden on July 17. His monumental inscription reads: Sacred to the memory of Francis Brangwin, who departed this life July 14, 1827, aged 64 years. "In the midst of life we are in death. Of whom may we seek but of Thee O Lord". His abode at the time of his death was Calstrope, Hambleden.

Francis married Martha Hobbs on December 9, 1786, at Hambleden, by licence. The witnesses were Ann Jemmett and Elizabeth Hobbs. Both were single and from Hambleden. Martha was the daughter of Francis Hobbs and Mary Makepeace. She had been born in Hambleden and was baptised there on April 4, 1763. She was buried at Hambleden on March 23, 1841. Her monumental inscription reads: In / memory of / Martha / wife of Francis Brangwin, / of this parish; / who departed this life / Feby 25th 1841, / aged 76 / also of Sarah, / who died Jany 14th 1831, / aged 43. / Also of / Mary, / who died July 14th 1846, / aged 49. / Also of Eleanor, / who died April 4th 1850, / aged 55. / Daughters of the above. //

Francis and Martha had seven children:

1. Sarah born about 1787, died January 14, 1831 aged 43. She was buried at Hambleden on January 16, 1831.
2. Elizabeth born in 1790, baptised on May 13, 1790 at Hambleden. She was a dressmaker and continued to live in Hambleden throughout her long life. She eventually died in 1870, aged 80. She was buried at Hambleden.
3. John born in 1792 at Hambleden [more later]
4. Eleanor born 1794 at Hambleden. She was baptised there on April 6, 1794. She died aged 55 on April 4, 1850 and was buried at Hambleden on April 11, 1850.
5. Francis was born in 1795 and died the same year. His baptism took place on August 30 and he was buried at Hambleden on October 2.
6. Mary was born in Hambleden in 1796 and baptised on August 14. She died on July 13, 1846 at Hambleden of “affection of the spine”. She was listed as a gentlewoman, aged 49 at the time of her death. She was buried at Hambleden on July 18, 1846.
7. Ann was baptised on August 17, 1800. According to the 1851 census, Ann was a plain needle worker and she was living at Hambleden. She died on September 5, 1866 at Rotherfield Greys, OXF. She did not marry

Richard Brangwin the son of Richard Brangwin and Elizabeth was baptised on April 7, 1740 at Long Crendon. In 1788 he was a farmer. He died in 1805 at Haddenham where he was buried on October 4 of that year, aged 65.

This may well be the Richard Brangwin who is listed in the Buckinghamshire Poll Book of 1784. He was residing in Haddenham in the Aylesbury Hundred. He was still alive on the 14th July 1804 or had passed his property to another Richard Brangwin as alterations are noted in the Poll Book.

Richard married Ruth Jones by licence on December 3, 1778 at Cuddesdeon, OXF. She was the daughter of Charles Jones. She was buried in Haddenham on April 21, 1827, aged 81.

Richard and Ruth had four children:

1. Eleanor born March 4, 1779 and baptised at Haddenham on April 15. She died aged 20 and was buried at Haddenham on July 9, 1799.
2. Elizabeth was born on April 6, 1781. She was baptised at Haddenham on May 27, 1781 and married John Bailey, a butcher, in 1801 at Haddenham after the calling of banns. Witnesses were Mary Brangwin and Mary Eustace.
3. Richard born April 18, 1783 [more later]
4. John born on October 19, 1787 at Haddenham. He was baptised there on January 18, 1788. He died at the Lunatic Asylum, Stone, BKM, on October 19, 1864, aged 77.

Generation 4

John Sawyer was the son of Edward Sawyer and Mary Brangwin. He was born in Hambleden and baptised there on June 27, 1784. He died in Medmenham aged 52 and was buried there on March 20, 1837. He was a farmer of Bockmoor End, Medmenham at the time of his death.

John married Sarah Underwood, a Medmenham local, by banns, at Medmenham on May 15, 1804. Witnesses were Francis Brangwin, Sarah Sawyer and David Burfoot. Sarah, too, is buried at Medmanham.

A rear view of the barn at Bockmer End Farm. The photo dates from around 1959. The barn was demolished prior to 1988

John and Sarah had thirteen children:

1. Mary born May 21, 1804 at Medmenham. She did not marry. She died at Greenfields, Watlington, OXF in March 1876, aged 71, and was buried at Medmenham on March 15.
2. Wlizabeth was born on October 25, 1805 at Medmenham. She was baptised on November 17, 1805.
3. Sarah was born on February 17, 1807 at Medmenham and baptised there on March 22.
4. William was born on May 30, 1808 at Medmenham. He was baptised on August 5. He died, aged 19, and was buried at Medmenham on September 19, 1827.
5. Anne was born on August 16 and baptised on December 10, 1809 at Medmenham. She, too, died young. She was buried on July 8, 1828 at Medmenham, aged 18.
6. Henry was born on August 29, 1811. He was baptised at Medmenham on September 29 of that year. He was 30 when he died and was buried at Medmenham on April 2, 1842.
7. John was born on April 12, 1813. He was baptised on May 16, 1813 and buried at Medmenham on June 23, 1814, aged 14 months.
8. Eliza was baptised at Medmenham on June 12, 1814 having been born on April 27.
9. George was born on November 6, 1815 and baptised at Medmenham on December 17, 1815. He died aged 30 and was buried at Medmenham on December 20, 1845. The burial register gave his abode as Bradenham.
10. Edmund was born on February 16, 1817 and baptised at Medmenham on March 23.
11. John was born on September 5, 1818 and baptised at Medmenham on October 25, 1818. He died aged 52 at Turville, BKM and was buried at Medmenham on June 12, 1871.
12. Thomas was born on February 17, 1820 and baptised on March 26 at Medmenham. He died aged 35 at Bradenham, BKM, and was buried at Medmenham on March 17, 1855.
13. Owen was born on November 9, 1821 at Medmenham. He was baptised on December 30, 1821. He married Ann and they had at least four children: Sarah Jane born at Medmenham on August 22, 1848; George born at Medmenham on November 2, 1849; John Henry born on August 20, 1853 at Medmenham and Mary Anne born September 4, 1858 at Bockmer End, Medmenham.
    
    According to the Medmenham parish records, Owen was a farmer of Bockmoor End, Medmenham, as was his father before him. In 1861 he was farming at Bockmer End, Medmenham. He had 183 acres and was employing 4 men and 2 boys. At the time of the 1881 census he was living in Camberwell, Surrey. He was out of business.

The parish church of St Peter's at Medmenham. c1941

John married Jane Fenner on September 20, 1820 at Great Marlow, BKM, by licence. Witnesses were Elizabeth Brangwin, William Fenner and Wildsmith Badger.

Jane was born in Great Marlow, daughter John and Elizabeth Fenner. She was baptised on July 18, 1793. She died at the age of 43 and was buried at Hambleden on July 4, 1836. The burial register stated her abode to be Heston, Middlesex. Amongst her siblings were an Ann, William and Joseph. It is possible that this Joseph was the father of the Elizabeth Fenner who married Thomas Hobbs Brangwin. If this is the case, Thomas and Elizabeth were first cousins.

John and Jane had four children:

1. Thomas Hobbs born 1819 at Wargrave, BRK. He died on January 25, 1864 on a Railway line near Royal Mint Street, Whitechapel, MDX. He was a mere 44 years old. (See the March 2001 newsletter for the newspaper report of this fatality). He married Elizabeth Fenner with banns on June 15, 1854 at St John's Church, Paddington, MDX. Witnesses were G Brangwin; E A Brangwin [most likely Thomas's brother George and his wife Edith Amelia]. Elizabeth was born about 1822 and died in 1870. Her relationship to Jane Fenner, mother of Thomas Hobbs Brangwin, is unknown at this stage. She was 48 when she died. They had 5 children: Elizabeth born in 1855 at Camden Town, MDX and died 1904, aged 49; Ellen born 1857 at St Pancras, MDX. She married Rowland Collins Nicholls on December 10, 1881, at The Register Office, Islington, MDX; Francis born 1859 at St Pancras, MDX. He died in 1918, at Islington, MDX; Thomas was born in 1860 and died in 1861; and William was born in 1862 and died in 1863.
2. Fanny was born about 1821 at Wargrave, BRK. She married George Curnock in 1843 at Wargrave, BKM by licence. They had at least 5 children: Fanny Jane; Susannah; George; Alfred John and Thomas.
3. John was born in 1822 at Wargrave and died at Mile End, MDX in 1866, aged 43.
4. George was born on April 2, 1824 at Henley-on-Thames, OXF and died on March 21, 1872 at Bray, BRK, aged 54. His estate was valued at £1,500 - a substantial amount. He was a tea dealer and grocer. He married Emma Amelia Gray on December 24, 1843 in Kings Road Baptist Chapel, Reading, BRK, daughter of Thomas Gray. She was born about 1824 in Marlow, BKM, and died 10 March 1896 in Bray, BRK. They had 8 children: George Thomas born May 18, 1845 at 16 North Wharf Road, Paddington, MDX; Harriet Amelia born in 1846 and died in 1852; Sarah Jane born in 1848; a female born and died in 1850; a male born on June 8, 1851 at Upper Southwick Street, Paddington, MDX and died the same year; Arthur William born in 1854 and died in 1855; John Arthur born in 1856 and died in 1942; Emma Amelia born in 1857 and married Athur Plum in 1890 at Cookham, BRK.

Richard Brangwin was the son of Richard Brangwin and Ruth Jones. He was born on April 18, 1783 in Haddenham, BKM, and died May 1816 in Haddenham, BKM, aged 33. He was buried at Haddenham on May 20, 1816. He was a farmer. He married Sophia Sanders on June 30, 1809 in Haddenham, BKM, by licence. Witnesses were Roberts Sanders and Sabina Franklin. They had two children: Thomas who was born in January 1811 and buried on February 11, 1811 at Haddenham and Eliza who was born on March 14, 1812 at Haddenham and died on July 5, 1835, aged 23.

Of interest is the amount of movement undertaken by family members. They moved freely in and out of Haddenham. Moves in and out of Hambleden also appear quite common. The number of marriages featuring Long Crendon residents suggest a fairly regular contact with that area.

Next month we will look at some more Long Crendon family members (if they stay put long enough!) as well as an exciting development in our search for the missing link between various bits of the family.

The day dawned sunny and bright and as the town stirred to the chant of mooloo and the prospect of a very busy Hamilton Saturday, a group of young people prepared themselves for the ultimate work skills challenge - SkillEX.

Competing in a full days event in their skill at the Waikato Polytechnic, almost 50 competitors contested SkillEX regional honours in Turning, Information Technology, Cookery, PPG Automotive Refinishing, Autobody Repair, UNITEC Automotive Technology, and Transpower Industrial Electronics events. Results will be announced at an awards ceremony this evening at the Waikato Polytechnic, Avalon Centre at 7pm. Tonight, results will be released as competitors are awarded with first, second and third placings for the region.

With events well patronised, Waikato Polytechnic facilities were ideal for the event, and as competitors felt the pressure of competition, they got ‘stuck-in’ to the 8-hour project ahead of them. All competitors we either in training, or completed training and still under 22 years of age. All materials required for the events were donated by local business/industry or The Waikato Polytechnic.

Ken Brangwynne, Head Of Department - Mechanical and Constructional Engineering at The Waikato Polytechnic says "SkillEX went very well. I am very pleased with the way the competitors competed, and the number of employers that visited and supported their employees. I was greatly encouraged to hear that representatives of the Collision Repair Association who were at the event comment that they believe the competition is an appropriate method that they can use to promote training in their industry, and measure skill standards and training. "Carol Mills of Kevin Mills Panel and Paint was an employer who visited the competition to encourage the three competitors from their paint and panel workshop. "I am so thrilled to think that some of our guys were willing to give up their Saturday and compete - its all about the participation," says Carol. "They really showed me as an employer that they have an interest in their skill and their job. To me, they are the future leaders in our industry - and we need more of them for the development of our trade."

Formerly known as Youth Skills competitions, the events returned to Waikato to reward the regions best in each skill category, and winners of the Waikato SkillEX event may in turn be invited to attend the National Finals - SkillEX 2000 to be held later in the year. SkillEX’99 saw 4 regional competitors from Waikato return with NZ Gold medals, who were subsequently selected to represent New Zealand in Montreal at the World Skills Competition.

From time to time you will see these terms used. What are they?

The Oxford Companion to Local and Family History by David Hey and this is what it says about the term 'Yeoman" -

"The term has changed its meaning over time. In the 13th-15th centuries it was principally applied to a knight's servants or retainers, though in the royal household the minor officials under the Chamberlain were known a the Yeomen of the King's Chamber. Geoffrey Chaucer was once a yeoman in this sense. Under the Tudors the use of the term was gradually widened to include the prosperous working farmers below the rank of gentry, the class formerly known as franklins. They worked their own land, but did not necessarily have to be freeholders. Yeomen increasingly held their land by a variety of tenures: freehold, copyhold and leasehold. The term had no legal precision, but was used informally to distinguish a farmer who was more prosperous than the average husbandman. The wealth that was needed for a farmer to be judged a yeoman by his neighbours varied from region to region and over time. The term is commonly found in the wills and inventories of the early modern period, but during the 18th and 19th centuries both 'yeoman' and 'husbandman' were gradually abandoned in favour of the all-embracing 'farmer'."

Franklin - "A medieval term for a substantial freeholder below the rank of gentleman; cf. Chaucer's "The Franklin's Tale"

If nothing else this tells us the origin of the name FRANKLIN.

And 'farmer':

1. A collector of taxes, who paid the Crown an agreed sum and made a profit on the collection.
2. In its modern sense, conveying no idea of acreage farmed or social status, the word began to replace yeoman and husbandman during the 18th century. It is derived from the Latin firma, meaning a fixed money rent.

According to Hey then it was either 'yeoman' or 'husbandman' or later 'farmer'.

Many of our ancestors have been described by one or more of these terms at various times. So, if you see the term husbandman, yeoman or farmer you will be fairly safe in assuming that they were involved in farming in some way. Just what their role was very much depends on the era and the term.

From the Dorchester Reporter: April 26, 2001

Fallon Brings on New Dorchester Woman to H.R. Post

Fallon Ambulance Service, just over the bridge in Milton, recently named Deborah Brangwynne of Dorchester to the position of Human Resources Representative. Brangwynne is a Dorchester native who married her high school sweetheart and lived in the Dallas-Fort Worth area of Texas for the past 21 years. While there, she was a Human Resources representative for a large contracting company in the Dallas area. While in Texas, she and her husband served as members of their town's volunteer Fire Department. Her duties included caring for people who were waiting for the ambulance.

Her family's name is a well-known one locally. Her father-in-law was a commercial artist in Dorchester who created the illustrations for nine different United States postage stamps, including the Social Security Act stamp. Her hobbies include gardening, reading, and vacationing in New Hampshire.

She resides in Dorchester with her husband and two children.

"We're very pleased to welcome Debbie to the Fallon team," said Julie Chirillo, Director of Human Resources. She added, "Debbie's past experience in the human resources field coupled with her direct knowledge of emergency response procedures make her a natural fit for the organization."

Saturday, December 04, 1999 - Las Vegas Review-Journal

Deaths: Ronald Brangwynne

Ronald Harold Brangwynne, 61, died Nov. 20 in a Las Vegas hospital. He was born July 7, 1938, in Maine. An Army veteran, he was a cook and a 30-year resident of Las Vegas. He is survived by his wife, Mary; daughter, Maria Kemer; parents, Harold and AnneMary; brother, Charlie; sister, Faith Dionne; and one grandchild.

Firstly, thanks to Margaret for typing up Edmund's inventories - the Farm Stock inventory and the Household inventory. She left the spellings exactly as they appear. Some things are easy to understand, such as "mattrass", but what is a "rurming" tub?

Typing up the "Account of the Personal Estate of Edmund Brangwin" proved a challenge as it's an A3 printed form. It has the signatures of Abraham, Francis, William, Thomas and Noah on it, too. A bonus.

There is also a solicitor's letter concerning the settling of Edmund's estate. There appears to have been a hold up but the cause is unclear. It seems the brothers were not too quick in getting things sorted out.

The Valuation of the Live and Dead Stock and Hay and Corne of the Late Mr. Edmund Brangwin Farms at Millend and Rottonrow taken the 6 day of Augst. 1838 to Admister to by Edw. Sawyer Grt. Marlow Bucks

An Inventory and Appraisement
of all the House-hold Furniture and Effects of the [late] Edward [sic] Brangwin of Mill End in the parish of Hambleden in the County of Bucks

In back Parlour Mahy dining Table and cover Mahy Bureau, Six and two Elbow Mahy Chairs one rush seat Chair and leg rest Mahy Cupboard Sofa, Cushions and Cover piece of carpet and floor Cloth, fender, fire irons, Barometer, 3 fowling pieces, 3 Japaned trays plate warmer Coal Shute knife tray and bread basket two doz wine and beer Glasses, Rigester Stove & Cupboard

In Front Parlour Bruxells Carpet, drugget Sofa and Cushions 6 and 2 Mahy Chairs Two leaf Mahy Table, high stool and Chair, side Table and cover, pair bell pulls, brush, bier Glass, fender fire irons and Rigister Stove

In Bed Chamber No 1. Bedstead and furniture [end of page 1] Two feather Beds, two bolsters, two blankets, Coverlid Cloths Chest, stool two chairs, three leaf screen two linen aires, two Cloths baskets, pair deal steps childs Cot, three linen chests, two cloths lines two ironing blankets, five blankets two quilts and dressing Glass

In Tent Chamber No 3 Tent bedstead & furniture two feather beds bolster and 4 pillows, Mattrass two blankets and quilt, washing table, furniture for do. Chest of drawers, Glass, Cherry tree chest of drawers, two pieces Carpet and matting, dressing Table, two chairs, three Jars bason and Ewer, one doz knives and forks Carver and fork and five Jars

In double Bed room No 4. four post bedstead and buff furniture, feather bed, bolster two pillows and mattrass, Tent Bedstead & blue chk furniture Feather bed, bolster two pillows and mattrass, five blankets, two coverlid, Dressing Table Cover and Glass, dinner-tray and stand, Box, night stool knife tray plate basket, cloths chest, two pieces Carpet and matting. Sundry waring apperal

In Bed Chamber No 5. four post bedstead & Cotton furniture. Feather bed, bolster, five pillows and mattrass, two blankets, Coverlid, Mahy Chest of drawers, dressing Glass, Cloths Chest with two drawers, Easy Chair, small deal Table, double Chest of drawers, Washhand stand linen airer Three chairs, Mahy Cupboard, fire guard, lantern, water bottle, Three pieces Carpet, Night Chair & Grate.

In bed Chamber No 5. [sic] four post bedstead and white furniture, feather bed bolster and two pillows Hair Mattrass two blankets and counterpane. Mahy Chest of drawers and Cover, Mahy Table and [end of page 2] blue furniture, dressing Table and Glass, five Chairs 4 pieces Carpet and Matt, night stool Mahy pillar and Clair table & Microscope

Plate. Two Grey Spoons, four Table, two desert and 12 teaspoons, sugar tongs, 4 plated candlesticks

Landing 24 Hour Clock ~

Linen. 12 pair Sheets, one piece sheeting, 10 round Towels, two doz chamber do. 1 doz dusters, 18 pair pillow cases 1 Pair fine irish sheets. 14 Table and breakfast Cloths and one doz drawer Cloths

Kitchen. deal Table Oak two leaf do. 5 Hudson chairs 8 day Clock. Folding Cupboard, blue and white dinner service, Set of China tea service, 7 Blue dishes, 2 Corner do Sundry tea ware, two doz wines and 1 doz rummers 6 blue China Tart dishes, dresser and shelves, 11 Pewter plates, 8 do dishes and cup, dutch oven, meat Cover, Cullender, 8 pieces tin Ware, pair steps, two spits, two brass 2 iron and 3 Japan Candlesticks, 13 flat irons, two stands 3 forks lard beater, Steak tongs, 2 Snuffers and trays, fish kettle and can, and Ironing board.

Wash house, two Coppers, table and tressells, two Chopping blocks, 4 stools, plate rack, two chairs, three tubs, 3 pails 1 Iron and tin boiler Copper pot, 3 brass Skillets, 2 frying pans and saucepans, fine(?) Coffeepot tin pail skimmer & Ladle [end of page 3] Iron and Copper boiler, 5 tin cups chopper, Hammer Stylards(?), 5 tins two bowls, dog irons, bellows, Three doz white plates 10 dishes and 20 pieces brown ware

In Brew House, Brewing Copper mash Tub Working Tub colour and stand, spout, Copper pump, Ironing Stone, rurming tub, two stools three peals, quantity of nails, two saws, Tub, 3 nets Sundry Old iron. Two stump bedsteads, two meat screens and 9 flitches Bacon

Pantry. Flower Bin, dinner tray, knife tray salting Tub, salting trough, flower do, corner bin churn 4 bowls, Flower tub, stool, bread pan Tub, meat cover, verticle Jack, Coffee mill, 2 sives Coal shute, 18 pans, 20 pickel Jars, fourteen Spouted Jugs, Pair wood scales small tin pail, can two bread baskets, warming pan, Stone pestle and morter, quantity of vermin traps, tea Kettle Sundry pie dishes, three pans/milk/ , pewter dish, 3 doz wine bottles, sundry Knives and forks

Cellar. 3½ Hogsheads of Beer and Casks, 1 Barrell of do and Cask, 4 Casks, 2 ~ 9 Gall do 4 stands two ½ Hogsheads of Beer and Casks, 1 barrel do and Cask, two colours and bowl, 6 Mash tubs washing Tray, 2 pails, two oak stands, 8 Casks of Made wine 4 stands, 8 do made wines 9 Jars, Three Casks of made wines stand and 6 Jars [end of page 4]

Yard Quantity of Coals, do of fold steaks 1 Rich of faggots, Stack of spokes, quantity of Roots, one stick and but of oak, dog kennell Grindstone, Wheel barrow, quantity of Spokes in Wood House, Rabbit hutch, 18 Gall cask cinder(?) line, Maddock, Lge Lytch, Pair Sheirs, sythe, Garden set(?) two Chairs and Table

The foregoing Inventory is appraised for administration at the Sum of Five Hundred and Sixty two pounds 15/~ this 25th day of August 1830

And the letter

Reading 9th November 1832

Gentlemen

When you met at my Office on Saturday Week I suggested to you the propriety of coming to some arrangement respecting Mrs. Brangwins Dower but that not having been listened to the Meeting broke up without any thing being done. I write now to know what is your determination as the Executors of the late Mr. Brangwin that I may apprise Mr. D'Israeli's Solicitor of the state of this business. I will only repeat that which I endeavoured to impress on your minds at the meeting which was that if this purchase was suffered to go off the Estate on a resale would never realise its present price.

I understand that you have taken proceedings against Mr. Brangwin and in consequence he has made as Assignment for the benefit of his Creditors which being an Act of bankruptcy I shall issue a Commission thereon on behalf of Mr. Hunt unless this matter is brought to an immediate close the expences of which will be heavy and you will have to blame yourselves for the loss which you must necessarily sustain and the delay that will be occasioned by such proceedings.

As it was admitted on all hands that Mrs. Brangwin is entitled to Dower it is equally clear that in the event of the death of Mr. John Brangwin his Wife would become entitled to Dower also and in the present instance in order to bar that right a Fine must be levied if she will now consent thereto but which under the present circumstances I much doubt. With these difficulties before me I have thought right to address a Letter to you on this matter that you may have an opportunity of obviating them and completing the purchase or of having a Commission of Bankruptcy worked.