My genealogy research diary. What changed, where, sometimes even why.
Filter posts by selecting a keyword of interest from the Labels under each post.
Unfilter by selecting the GenBlog link again, or using the back feature of your browser.

Saturday, 4 April 2009

4th: Our ancestors didn't move around much !!!

Received a surprising email last night, from Lyall in Westport whose grandfather had land next to land called "Crebers" locally.
He was wondering what I could tell him about Harry son of John A CREBER and Adelaide DOIDGE, original owner of said land.
Given that I had him born in Victoria (1863), and his father dying in Victoria (1886) I'd simply assumed they'd stayed put in Australia. Which turns out to be far from the case.
An immigration record on the "Claud Hamilton" showed the family moving from Melbourne to Hokitika in 1866, yet his two known siblings were born in the 1870s, back in Victoria.
Mum Adelaide shows up in the 1893 electoral rolls as a Matron at Larrikins, Westland and a death of the right age is recorded in 1914.
Harry married a Mary Elizabeth KING at Westport in his mother's house in 1901.
Papers Past has turned up some delightful little snippets, including that H Creber, assumed to be Harry, was coming third in an egg laying contest (!) with his silver wyandottes in 1905 (15 eggs that week 109 year to date).
Mary Elizabeth looks like she died 1937; Harry's brother John Ambrose looks like the 1899 death of the right age; but as yet, Harry eludes us, not being obvious in either NZ or Victorian death indexes.
Also in the area, gold mining at Kanieri, is an Ambrose CREBER, who may, or may not, be Harry's uncle. This family had both a John Ambrose, and an Ambrose, in the same family, both baptised Whitchurch, Devon.

So, never believe anyone saying our ancestors never moved around very much.

Also made time to review the earliest WIGHTs. Bye bye Janet SWORD, hello Margaret HOUD.

More updates in the FAIRBAIRN DNA Project - check out the Project Diary.

Labels: , , , , , , , , ,

Friday, 3 April 2009

3rd: WIGHT updates

Given my WIGHT activity at the moment, I thought it was time to publish what I had on the supposed earliest WIGHT in my tree, James, marr. to Jennat SWORD.
However, as I say on the page, reviewing them after a number of years, I have to admit I need to recheck the links given I have them as having two sons named James, and the youngest looks rather unlikely to be the parents of James who married Issobel THOMSON.

Also published, on the WIGHT Surname DNA Project, is an abbreviated chart of their descendants in the hope a representative may be found.

Looking at the gaps in my knowledge, I started trying to find what happened to Robert the son of Robert WIGHT and Janet SCOTT. And quickly realised why I appear not to have progressed far with that line. Can't find them after 1881 in England or Scotland, and as yet, nor in USA or Canada. All I managed to advance was to finally find his marriage to Mary, despite Scotland's People having indexed Robert as WRIGHT, instead of the WIGHT his certificate states (correction lodged), and changed her from UnknownSurname into Mary BOYD.

Web pages updated to include an introductory page for The Wights.

Labels: , , , , ,