About From Little Acorns ...
Hi, just a little info here, hopefully enough to catch your interest, but not
enough to bore you silly. Here we go ...
The main research on this site is for the FREE FAMILY TREE , with my branch
starting in Cardiff, Glamorgan, going back to Horseheath in Cambridge, and so far,
originating from Hadstock, Essex.
At each generation the tree has branched out to link with the Tree of the spouse, the
RIGBY and RABBITT trees from Rainford and Warrington in Lancashire
branch out from my generation, where as the YOUNG tree from Walsall, Stafford
and JONES tree from the Rhondda in Glamorgan, as well as the CUTTER
and GILES trees, both from Monmouth and Glamorgan extend from my parents
generation. Earlier generations take you to the BUTLER tree from
Shrivenham, Berkshire, the DAVIES tree from Cardiff, Glamorgan, and the
MYNOTT tree from Horseheath in Cambridge.
My Great Great Great Grandparents, John FREE and Sarah MYNOTT, had 12
children; William, Charles, Eliza, Henry, Isaac, Judith, Marianne, Alfred, Celia,
John, George, and a second Celia. The first Celia, and George died in Horseheath in
infancy of whooping cough, their deaths being just three days apart in 1843 and Eliza
died in Doncaster in 1857 whilst employed as a domestic servant but I have managed to
follow their remaining 9 children through further generations as each one married and
had children of their own.
My Great Great Grandfather, William FREE is the only one who moved to the
CARDIFF area. There he married Mary DAVIES apparently to start a new
life after a failed first marriage.
Judith and Alfred moved to NEWARK, Judith marrying Edward LIDDELL and
Alfred marrying Mary JACKSON. Marianne and Celia moved to SHEFFIELD
where Marianne was married to Charles BATTERSBY and Celia was married to
John STEVENS. I've followed these four children as their lives became more
and more intertwined between the two places with each following generation.
The remaining four, Charles, Henry, Isaac, and John, moved to the London, an area
where I have yet to research in detail.
Use the TREE link in the toolbar above if you want to join me at the
base of my tree but if you're looking for someone who isn't in my direct
line , then it's probably easier to use the List of Last Names below to
find the person you are looking for.
Feel free to browse around. (No Pun intended)
Potted Histories
For a few of the main individuals in my tree I have arranged the information I have
gathered into accounts of how and where they lived, including some details of the
family and friends who influenced their lives. These Potted Histories can be found
in the individual's notes and at the bottom of their family view page. All of the
events written about in these accounts have been taken from documented evidence and
the sources are available for anyone who would like to see them.
The latest, and most indepth, is that of Celia Free (b.1844), my Great Great
Grandfather's youngest sister, showing how her life intertwined with that of her
older siblings and their offspring.
Genealogy Reports ...
If you're interested in a particular branch of the tree and would like to see my
information in further detail I can put it into a Genealogy Report for you.
My reports are made with the help of Family Tree Maker 2005.
People & Places ...
I've gradually found a little spare time to do some much needed legwork for my tree,
here are a few of the places I've visited and people I've met along the way.
Newark-on-Trent - July 2005, Hereford - Jan 2007, Hereford - Jan 2008,
Sheffield - Feb 2008, Noel Free - May 2008, Bill Rabbitt - Jul 2008,
Newark-on-Trent - Oct 2008, Kay Russell - June 2009,
Ann Wilson - Oct 2009.
After a trip to Kirk Merrington and the surrounding area where Ann Wilson brought up
her family, there is a possible trip to Barnburgh, near Doncaster planned for
January.
Judith Free (b.1832) was a house servant in South Parade, Doncaster in 1851, marrying
Edward Liddell (b.1826) in 1854 in Barnburgh. Judith's elder sister, Eliza Free
(b.1826) was one of the witnesses at the wedding, and died at Cleveland St. in
Doncaster in 1857.
Skeletons in the Closet ...
Every tree has it's Skeletons, things which have been swept under the
carpet, hushed up and never mentioned again, and things which have been handed
down the generations in whispered rumours.
It's often the rumours and hearsay, the thought of ancient gosip and scandal, which
turn a long list of facts and dates into a family history.
Here are just a few of the Skeletons I've found along the way
Claims to Fame ...
You will always find some sort of claim to be connected to someone famous, whether
it's being a descendent of the Prime Minister of New Zealand, or being distantly
related to Princess Diana.
Some of the more noted people I've found in my tree are a Town Mayoress in Penarth, a
Chief of Police in Newark, a Detective Superintendent of Police in Sheffield, an
Author and Bookseller from Edwinstowe, and a World Class Boxer in Tonypandy.
It's a Small World ...
Considering how many billions of people ther are in the world, it's often quite
surprising to find out just how closely related people actually are.
Armchair Archives ...
A lot of my research has been done online. Although the internet is no substitute
for finding solid facts, sometimes it just isn't possible to put in the legwork. If
a detail is found on one online database I try not to take it as read until I have
confirmed it from at least one other source.
One site I've found recently which I think is worth a mention is
BMDshare.com. I'm all for sharing certificate information and this site is
brilliant for doing just that. Follow the link to see for yourself.
Guestbook...
Once you've had a look around my site, please sign the Guestbook. You can add your e-
mail address, and give your own family tree site a plug, or simply just give me a
shout, it'd be great to hear from you.
When you sign the Guestbook please say how your're linked to the tree so anyone with
a similar interest can see if they are connected to your branch. If you leave your e-
mail address I'll drop you a line if anything new comes up that I think you might be
interested in.
Acknowledgements...
There is a large amount of my tree which simply wouldn't be here if it hadn't been
for the help and research of others and the information which was freely shared.
Although it is almost impossible to list everyone here, I'll have a good go, and
apologies before hand to anyone I miss out.
Privacy
This is always a difficult one and although I try to strike the right balance between
sharing and security, I don't always get it right. The homepage, and subsiquent
links, are eaily accessable, but the actual tree is protected by a password and even
then, any information on living relatives is sparce.
If you spot anything that has slipped through or you're not happy with then please
give me a shout and I'll change it for you.
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