Or view our Second Website for the Villa:
I have been researching my own family tree since 1978. I think we all have a particular name in our family tree that we seem to find more interesting than others - perhaps where more skeletons seem to lurk - or they just seem more interesting because you just can't find the ones you want anywhere!
I am researching many names but my more interesting lines are BUTTLE, FARROW and WESTCOTT on my mother's side and BARNARD and ADAMS on my father's.
I have yet to enter a section on the Farrow, Adams and Westcott side of the family but will do so as soon as possible .
On my husband's side we will eventually be adding any information we find about the MOORE and CLARKE lines from County Durham.
BUTTLE
My grandmother shown in the picture to your left was Keturah Louisa Ellen Buttle born in Plymouth in February 1881. She had several brothers and sisters - most of whom I have found - apart from two brothers. So, if anyone out there is related to FRANCIS WILLIAM BUTTLE born 1865 in Callington, Cornwall who possibly married a Lydia England and was a seaman in the Royal Navy PLEASE PLEASE get in touch as he is one of the ones I am missing.
He was the son of WILLIAM THOMAS KNIGHT BUTTLE (born in February 1939 in Withycombe Rawleigh, Devon) and FANNY WESTCOTT (birth place and date not yet found but thought from Census records in Dawlish, Devon to be around 1843). Although William and Fanny had several children unfortunately I haven't been able to locate their marriage anywhere. Maybe they just didn't get married after all!!
I was also missing Francis's older brother WILLIAM HENRY BUTTLE born 21st July 1862, but someone in Melbourne, Australia has just contacted me as a result of this web page and I have found my connection after 18 years. To say that I am thrilled is an understatement!!! Having said that, if you have a William Henry Buttle in your family tree from the Dawlish/Newton Abbot area of Devon please get in touch too.
As far as BUTTLE is concerned I am assisting my friend Jonathan Metcalfe, who started serious research on the Buttle family in 1966 when he was 22. He completed Volume 1 of his book entitled "Buttle Family Records" in 1988 and has now gathered sufficient information to bring out Volume 2, which we hope will be in the not too distant future. I originally came across Jonathan when I decided to do a mail shot to Buttles in the Devon area. Quite a few of them rang me up or wrote to me to mention him and he was able to help me quite a bit. It was good for him too because I came along with my section of the Buttle family tree which slotted in quite nicely with a mystery he had remaining in Volume 1 of his book.
When Jonathan started this work he was using the dreaded 1922 Smith Premier typewriter and he has only just graduated to an electronic one - so I decided that I am probably the only one likely to venture into surfing the web and hope that my effort at forming a Web Page will be of use both to him and to anyone else trying to research this particular family name. (Also derivatives such as Bouttell, Buttall, Buttell, Bowtell, Buttolph, Botolph).
If you are interested in obtaining a copy of Jonathan's book, which is principally made up of family trees and personal letters from various members of the Buttle "clan" collected by Jonathan over the last 30 years - then please contact me by email on imbrennan.@hotmail.com or if, for some reason, that address is not accessible then try jbboman@omantel.net.om. Or you could write to Jonathan direct at Buttle's Mead, North Street, Charminster, Dorset, DT2 9QZ, England. His phone number if dialling from the UK is 01305 261142 and if dialling from abroad then you should dial 0044 1305 261142.
By the way, a few years ago I submitted a detailed database covering many Buttle names taken from the Records Office in the U.K. This gives both births, deaths and marriages and also lists the towns that these events were registered in. For those of you who have Compuserve you should type "Go Roots" and you should find the file I submitted listed under Information files. (Hopefully even though I have given up my Compuserve subscription the file will still be there)! It is called "buttle.mdb" as it is an Access database file. Or if you cannot find it by searching for the name, then search for file submitted by 73064.1610 as this is the only file I have ever submitted. This is with the kind permission of the gentleman who recorded all this information over many many hours.
BARNARD
My father was Alex George Barnard of Bury St. Edmunds in Suffolk. He ran "The Rising Sun" public house for 27 years, where I spent my life until I was 21.
His father and mother (Charles William Barnard born in 1877 in Bury St. Edmunds and Mary Elizabeth Adams born in Bury St. Edmunds in 1878) and his grandfather
(Charles George Barnard born in East Harling in 1857 and his wife, Sarah Hunt of Little Saxham, also born in 1857) ran The Rising Sun before him and it is now in the capable hands of another member of the family.
I have tried to trace the Barnard family tree back and it took me to Great Ellingham in Norfolk where I found George Barnard (Tailor) born 1827 whose wife was Maria Sapey born in 1830 in East Harling. His father John Robert (possibly a Carpenter) was born in 1776 and he married Lydia Yeomans in Great Ellingham on 9th October 1810. His father was John Barnard whose wife's name was probably Sarah and unfortunately this is far as we have managed to get although other researchers think that John Barnard was the son of William and Mary Barnard.
BRENNAN
I have recently married and have persuaded my husband that he should start researching his own family tree. We haven't got very far yet - as you can imagine there are many Brennans! I've listed below the ones we are looking for at the moment and if anyone can help with these I'd love to hear from you.
My email address for any Buttle or Barnard information is: imbrennan@hotmail.com and my husband's email address for Brennan information is jbboman@omantel.net.om.
Here are the Brennans we are looking for information on:
His grandfather was Michael Brennan and according to the oldest member of the family was supposed to have been born around 1870 in Kilkenny and died in the Durham area around 1947 (that is all we know).
Michael's father was thought to have been called Peter Brennan..
We think Michael moved over to the Hamilton/ Airdrie/ Motherwell/Shotts area of Lanarkshire, Scotland when he was young, about 10 - so say 1880 - (presumably with the rest of his family) where he worked in the mines.
Michael moved from Lanarkshire, Scotland to the County Durham area and married someone called Sarah Ann McKenna at St. Cuthberts Chapel, Brooms, (District of Lanchester) in County Durham on 17th May 1911.
A James Brennan and Margaret McKenna were witnesses at the wedding.
Michael and Sarah had several children:
Joseph Andrew (born 30th November 1911) my husband's father who is now deceased.
Michael (Nothing known)
James Bernard (born 1921). The details we have on him are as follows:
James Bernard Brennan, Sergeant, Service Number 1058585, 15 Squadron, Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve who died on Friday 21st July 1944 aged 23. Son of Michael and Sarah A Brennan, of Chester-le-Street, Co. Durham.
He is buried in JONKERBOS WAR CEMETERY, Grave 24.J.8 - The cemetery is situated in the South West part of the town of Nijmegen, Holland. His
details are on the Commonwealth War Graves web site role of honour - http://www.cwgc.org
Kathleen Born 1902 (Nothing else known)
Veronica (Nothing known)
Sarah (Nothing known)
Nora (Nothing known)
Rosaline (Nothing known)
Michael and his wife lived first of all in Askew Road, Gateshead and then moved to Ouston. They lived finally in Chester le Street, Co. Durham.
Any help you could give us would be gratefully received.
