1. SUFFOLK, England (1659–1901)
by Alan Craig Download the PDF for this page (31.3 MB)
N.B. — Throughout this text, all of Robyn’s direct ancestors are marked in purple. All blue text [inside brackets] represents additional information or corrections, and did not form part of the original documents. Copies of the original birth, death, marriage and census records are held by me and stored in the Cloud, and can be made available to interested parties. When reproducing the baptismal and marriage entries below, I have kept the original archaic spellings and text, and also laid them out to reflect how they appear in the parish records.
Robyn’s paternal grandmother was May Edwards, born in Rockhampton, Queensland, in 1874, and she was descended from families that had lived in two main geographical locations in England. Her father’s side had lived in Essex, mainly in the area around city of Chelmsford. We can trace his antecedents back to the 1760s, and their story can be read here.
Her mother, however, was a descendant of families from Suffolk who, for many generations, had lived in or near the village of Barrow, about 8 km (5 miles) due west of Bury St Edmunds. We can trace these families back to the mid 1600s, and throughout 2025, Ancestry.com has been digitising records from these parishes, and we can now tell their story in a more complete way.
PART A: DRAKE & COBBIN Families
CAVENDISH, Suffolk
1649 ENGLAND BAPTISMS: St Mary, Cavendish, Suffolk 1Source: COBBIN, Thomas; 1649 England Baptisms; FL546/4/1; Cavendish, Suffolk.
The beginning of the common-
wealth, so called under Cromwell
Baptisms Anno Dom: 1649
Thomas ye sonne of John Cobbin ye 1 of Octob.1681 ENGLAND MARRIAGES: Glemsford, Suffolk 2Source: COBBIN, Thomas & CLAYDON, Abigail; 1681 England Marriages; FL575/4/1; Glemsford, Suffolk.
Nupt. | Thomas Cobbin de Cavendish
uxor: ducit Abigailem Claydon Aprialis 13th
Jemima Drake (Robyn’s 4g-grandmother) was born at Barrow, Suffolk, in 1752; however, she was a descendant of families that came from other parts of the county. Her paternal family had mostly evolved in and around the East Suffolk villages of Tostock and Rattlesdon, while her maternal line had originated in the South Suffolk villages of Cavendish and Glemsford (see these places on this map).
Jemima’s great-grandfather was Thomas Cobbin (see right), and he was born in Cavendish in 1649 (soon after Oliver Cromwell declared his Commonwealth in May of that year), and later married Abigail Claydon in 1681 at Glemsford (see right).
St Mary the Virgin, Cavendish, Suffolk
Thomas’ parents were John and Martha Cobbin, but we only get his mother’s first name from a couple of his siblings’ baptismal records. There were five children in all: Thomas (1649); John (1652); Charles (1656); Isaac (1660); and Margaret (1666).
It’s just as well we have Thomas’ marriage record (above), because Abigail’s maiden name was not recorded in any of the baptisms for her 11 children (all baptised at St Mary the Virgin in Cavendish): William (i) (1681); Abigail (1682); William (ii) (1683); William (iii) (1685); Isaac (1687); Edward (1689); John (i) (1690); John (ii) (1691); Samuel (1693); Ann (1695); and Martha (1697). Nothing else is known of this family, but we do know that Thomas died on 9 June 1732 at Cavendish — he was aged 82.
1689 ENGLAND BAPTISMS: St Mary, Cavendish, Suffolk 3Source: COBBIN, Edward; 1689 England Baptisms; FL546/4/1; Cavendish, Suffolk.
Anno Dom: 1689 Baptizati
Apr. 2 { Edward of Tho: and Abigail Cobbin
After having three Williams (two presumably died young), their fifth child, as you can see, was Edward Cobbin, and we have his baptismal record (see above) – but, as yet, we have not been able to discover a marriage record to give us his wife’s maiden name; however, from the baptisms of his 11 children we know his wife’s first name was Grace, and they would have married about 1710. The children were: Mary (1710); William (i) (1712); Ann (1713); William (ii) (1715); Abraham & Elizabeth (i) (1718); Isaac (1719); Elizabeth (ii) (1721); John (1723); Thomas (1724); and Samuel (1726).
1721 ENGLAND BAPTISMS: St Mary, Cavendish, Suffolk 4Source: COBBIN, Elizabeth (ii); 1721 England Baptisms; FL546/4/1; Cavendish, Suffolk.
Births Anno 1721
Augt. 27 Eliz. of Edw. & Grace Cobbin
Elizabeth (ii)’s baptism is shown on the left, but before we leave Cavendish, we should also report one more birth — that of John Dearsley, son of William and Elizabeth Dearsley, who was baptised there on 9 August 1750 — we only have an indexed record of his baptism (no original image yet available), but we will meet him and Elizabeth (ii) Cobbin again a little later … in Barrow.
TOSTOCK, Suffolk
As mentioned, Jemima’s paternal family had lived in and around Tostock in East Suffolk, and the earliest record we have for that branch was the indexed baptism of Dorcas Winter (Robyn’s 7g-grandmother) in 1659 (no original document found). She was baptised in Rattlesden in the Thedwestry Hundred, about 13 km (8 miles) south-east of Bury St Edmunds (a ‘hundred’ is a subdivision of a county or shire).
Dorcas was the third of six children to William Winter and his wife Mary: Deborah (1655); Sarah (1657); Dorcas (1659); Abigail (1661); Jemima (1663); and William (1667). We have no marriage record for the parents, but all the children were born in Rattlesden.
1688 ENGLAND BAPTISMS: St James, Bury St Edmunds 5Source: DRAKE, Edmund & WINTER, Dorcas ; 1688 England Marriages; FL541/4/3; Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk.
Matrimonia October 1688
10 | Edmund Drake of Tostoke [Tostock] and Dorcas
| Winter of the same singlewoman
Dorcas married Edmund Drake on 10 October 1688 at St James Church in Bury St Edmunds (see left). We have no record of Edmund’s baptism, so he is the earliest we know of in the ‘Drake’ line. However, we have records for three of their children, all born at Tostock, 6 km (4 miles) north of Rattlesden: William [1] (1689); Thomas (1690); and Charles (1695). Other than these records, nothing more is known of this family.
St James Church, Bury St Edmunds, c.1770.
Their first-born, William [1], married Mary Howlett at Woolpit (2 km S.E. of Tostock) in October 1713, eight months after the birth of their first (and therefore illegitimate) child, Mary.
In all, this couple had seven children at Tostock, including a set of twins: Mary (1713); Jemima (1715); William [2] & Thomas (1717); Susanna (1720); Richard (1723); and Margaret (1726).
1689 ENGLAND BAPTISMS: Tostock, Suffolk 6Source: DRAKE, William [1]; 1689 England Baptisms; FL642/4/1; Tostock, Suffolk.
William Son of Edmund Drake & Dorcas his wife was Baptiz’d
May ye 20th 16891690 ENGLAND BAPTISMS: Tuddenham, Suffolk 7Source: HOWLETT, Mary; 1690 England Baptisms; FL644/4/2; Tuddenham, Suffolk.
Mary ye Daughter of Frances & Mary Howlett his wife
was Baptised December ye 29. 16901713 ENGLAND MARRIAGES: Woolpit, Suffolk 8Source: DRAKE, William [1] & HOWLETT, Mary; 1713 England Marriages; FL655/4/1; Woolpit, Suffolk.
William Drake of Tostock singleman and Mary Howlett of this
parish single:woman were marryed the 1st. day of Octob: 1713
In all of these baptisms, the mother was only recorded as “Mary” and, if we had not found the her marriage record, we again would have had no female line to research. As it turned out, Mary Howlett came from further west at Tuddenham. To the left are William [1] Drake’s baptism (1689), Mary Howlett’s baptism (1690), and their marriage in 1713.
Their son William [2] Drake was eventually to move to Barrow where he met and married Elizabeth (ii) Cobbin, whose baptism at Cavendish is shown above. But first, here’s the descendant chart for our ancestors from Tostock and Cavendish
BARROW, Suffolk
In the chart above, you can see that Elizabeth (ii) Cobbin married William [2] Drake at Barrow on 6 October 1746 (see below left). However, Elizabeth was his second wife, his first being Elizabeth Sauvage (married 9 April 1741), and he already had two children, both born in Barrow, a small village to the west of Bury St Edmunds: William (1741); and Elizabeth (1744).
1741 ENGLAND MARRIAGES: Barrow, Suffolk 9Source: DRAKE, William [2] & Sauvage, Elizabeth; 1741 England Marriages; FL525/4/3/; Barrow, Suffolk.
D. S. | William [2] Drake and Elizabeth Sauvage Banns_ April 9
1746 ENGLAND MARRIAGES: Barrow, Suffolk 10Source: DRAKE, William [2] & COBBIN, Elizabeth; 1746 England Marriages; FL525/4/3; Barrow, Suffolk.
Marriages 1746 Only one
William [2] Drake Widower, & Elizabeth
Cobbin single woman, were married Oct. ye 6th
by Banns
The first wife must have died sometime after her second child. William’s second marriage brought him another three children, again, all born in Barrow: Mary (i) (1747); Jemima (1752); and Mary (ii) (1759).
Again, there seems plenty of opportunity for William and Elizabeth to have more children, but only these three have emerged from the records. William [2] Drake was buried back in Rattlesden on Christmas Day, 1779 (a family grave?); but eight years before he departed this world, his daughter Jemima married John Dearsley at Barrow on 4 November 1771 (below left).
1771 ENGLAND MARRIAGES: Barrow, Suffolk 11Source: DEARSLEY, John & DRAKE, Jemima; 1771 England Marriages; FL525/4/4; Barrow, Suffolk.
Marriages . . . . 1770 . . . 71
| 1771
D : D | John Dearsley & Jemima Drake both singlepersons
were marr:d by Banns 4th Nov.
John and Jemima Dearsley had at least four children: Elizabeth (1772); William (1775); James (1776); and Jemima (1779). We have no records of their deaths, but we do have marriages for their two daughters. Jemima married a William Evered, agricultural labourer, in 1804. They were both living in Barrow Street for the 1841 and 1851 censuses, and the widowed Jemima was still there for the 1861 count, dying in 1864, aged 84.
1772 ENGLAND BAPTISMS: Barrow, Suffolk 12Source: DEARSLEY, Elisabeth & WRIGHT, Jermain; 1772 England Baptisms; FL525/4/4; Barrow, Suffolk.
Elizabeth of John & Jemima [Drake] Dearsley – priv. Bpzd. July–12
pub. Btzd. July–19
Jermain of James & Martha [Brand] Wright – – – Bptd. Dec: 61792 ENGLAND MARRIAGES: Barrow, Suffolk 13Source: WRIGHT, Jarmin & DEARSLEY, Elizabeth; 1792 England Marriages; FL525/4/5; Barrow, Suffolk.
Jarmin Wright of [the] parish of Barrow Singleman and
Elizabeth Dearsley of [the] parish of Barrow Married in
this [church] by [Banns 124] this twenty ninth Day of May
in [1792] by me Georges Ashby [Rector]
In the Presence of Thomas Lyns; James Boggis
The older daughter, Elizabeth, married Jarmin Wright in 1792 (see right). Interestingly, the baptismal entries for both Elizabeth and Jarmin are on the same page of the Parish records, less than five months apart (see right). We’ll read more about Jarmin’s grandparents in the next section.
This couple had four children: Elizabeth (1799); Jemima (1803); Mildred (1806); and William (1812). Our story will soon enter the modern era of the decennial census, the first of which was taken on 6 June 1841, and we will generally be able to tell you much more about the lives of our ancestors … but Elizabeth died relatively young in 1818, and Jarmin in 1833 (see below).
1818 ENGLAND BURIALS: Barrow, Suffolk 14Source: WRIGHT, Elizabeth (Dearsley); 1818 England Burials; FL525/4/16, Nº 68; Barrow, Suffolk.
Name | Abode | When buried | Age | Minister
Elizabeth Wright |
wife of Jermyn | Barrow | March 24th | 45 | W. Hovenden
Wright1833 ENGLAND BURIALS: Barrow, Suffolk 15Source: WRIGHT, Jarman; 1833 England Burials; FL525/4/16, Nº255; Barrow, Suffolk.
Name | Abode | When buried | Age | Minister
Jarman Wright | Barrow | May 5 |70[60] | A, Carrigham, Rector
We will soon marry off the young Jemima Wright — but, before we do, we will have to examine two more branches of our family ancestors who also lived in Barrow. First, Jemima’s paternal grandmother was Martha Brand, and her family had been in Barrow from at least 1694.
PART B: The BRAND family of Barrow
Some genealogies suggest that Thomas Brand came from Cambridge (b. 21 April 1667, son of John Brand), but we have no way of verifying this. What we do know about Thomas, his three wives and five children, all come from the fact that we have a copy of his last will and testament, and it is worth quoting it here (with some translation, though keeping much of the archaic spellings — and note: ‘ye’ = the; ‘yt’ = that; and ‘ys’ = this):
In The Name of God Amen
I Thomas Brand of Barrow in ye County of Suffolk husbandman being Weak of Body but of a sound Disposing mind and Memory Praise be to God, do make and ordain ys my Last will & Testament in manner & Form Following; First I commend my Soul into ye hands of Almighty God my Creator; and my Body I Desire may have Decent Burial in Christian like Manner, at ye Discretion of my Executor, herein after named; and for my worldly Estate if hath pleased God to Bless me withal in ys Life, I give, Demise, and dispose of ye Same in ye Following Manner and Form;
-
-
- I give, Demise, and Bequeath unto my Son Mark Brand and his Heirs forever, all ye my [Mortgage] or Tenement situate in ye Parish of Barrow aforesaid, and now in my own Occupation, Together wth: ye garden and orchard out houses and Barn and all other yr Apparte names thereto Belonging, and as they now are in my own Occupation; he thereout paying all my Just Debts and Funeral Expenses; And I Likewise give him my best Brass Kittle, Little Skillet my kneading Trough & brown Table under ye fore window in ye hall house, and ye great press Cubbard, ye Victual Table & Joyn stool, and ye Pewter Cafe, and two pewter dishes. Marked with I Z. I.P. & I A M R L and ye Plate Cafe in ye Chamber & ye Pewter Bajou, & Brass warming pan;
- I give and bequeath unto my son John Brand, my Brewing Copper as it now stand, & 2 old Kittles, viz. ye washing Kittle and dish Kittle, 2 Pewter dishes Marked one with L + P other I E. P L, & ye Table in ye chamber;
- I give & bequeath unto my Daughter Martha ye Wife of Wm Webb of Heigham Green [Higham Green] My great Brass porridge pot, and two pewter dishes marked one with I.P other M.P. A.H. one pewter porringer, M.B and my Leather Trunk, and Long Table under ye pewter Cafe & Joyn Form ye to belonging and also my flock bed, feather bolster, & pillow, and Rug, with ye bedstead ye unto belonging;
- I give and bequeath unto Malion my Daughter, yr wife of Peter Manning of Tudinham [Tuddenham], My feather bed, bed spread and curtains as it now stands, with bolster and 2 pillows of Feathers, ye blanket & Kiverlidd [coverlette]. as also my brass porridge pot and great brass skillet, and two pewter dishes, one marked FP+H other H S G, one pewter porringer Marked + ;
- I give unto Mary, my loving Wife, ye sum of five shilling to be paid her out of my Estate by my Son Mark Brand within one month after my Death; and my will and desire is yr my Linning [linen] viz Two fine pillow=beers & four Course ones, 2 Course napkins, yr Sheets and one old Sheet, and Table Cloth, as also all my brewing Table & beer vessels XX and all my working Tooles, and whatever Else to me belong yt is not in ys my will before bequeathed, (Exclusive of whatever goods or household stuff & a belonging unto Mary my loving Wife). I give and bequeath to be Equally divided amongst my Children above mentioned Share and Share alike, and I do make Constitute & ordain my Son Mark Brand aforesaid. Sole Executor of ys my last will, and I do hereby utterly disallow, revoke and disannul all and every other former Testaments, Wills, and Legacies by me made and do make and ordain ys to be my Last Will & Testament in witness whereof I have hereto set my hand and Seal ys 29th day of September 1726
- Signed Sealed, Publish’d & Declar’d by ye said Thomas Brand To be his Last will & Testament. in ye presence }
- Thomas Brand his X Mark; of us ye Subscribers viz.Wm Deer; Sarah Deer her mark; Thomas Kannow.
-
This document gives us a great deal of information. We find out Thomas was quite religious, and had at least four surviving children. His wife at that time was a previously widowed Mary Parish, and she was Thomas’ third wife — more about her a little later.
Mark Brand, who turns out to be his youngest child, was named executor and main beneficiary. The other three children were bequeathed a variety of household goods and chattels, and his “loving” wife was given a paltry five shillings and a few other items (mostly linen).
1679 ENGLAND BAPTISMS: Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk 16Source: ALVIS, Mary ; 1679 Church of England Baptisms; FHL 541/4/3; St James, Bury St Edmunds Suffolk.
March 1679
31 | Mary Alvis of Mark and
Lettice.1714 ENGLAND BURIALS: Barrow, Suffolk 17Source: BRAND (Alvis), Mary; 1714 England Burials; FL525/4/2; Barrow, Suffolk.
B | Mary [Alvis] the wife of Thomas Brand was
Buried September 3d. 1714
We also see that his two daughters were married and living in villages a little north of Barrow with their husbands. However, by having these names, we were able to search the record indexes, and discovered that Mary must have been his third wife. His first wife was also a “Mary”, and she was the mother to all of his children, all born in Barrow: John (1695); Martha (1697); Malyon (1699); Thomas (1702); and Mark (1704).
In all these baptisms, the mother is only given as “Mary”, although other genealogies give her name as “Mary Alvis”. We have no marriage record to verify that, but we do have Mary Alvis’ baptismal entry (left), and her burial record from 1714 (also left).
1715 ENGLAND MARRIAGES: Barrow, Suffolk 18Source: BRAND, Thomas [2nd] & Mortlock, Frances; 1715 England Marriages; FHL 952207; Barrow, Suffolk.
B | Thomas Brand of Barrow Widower and
Frances Mortlock of Gazely widdow [sic] were
Married 2d. Banns June 8 17151721 ENGLAND BURIALS: Barrow, Suffolk 19Source: Brand (Mortlock), Frances; 1721 England Burials; FL525/4/2; Barrow, Suffolk.
Frances ye wife of Tho: Brand March ye 12 | 1721
Thomas Brand married his second wife, 17-year-old widow Frances Mortlock, eight months after the death of Mary (see right). No children are registered for Thomas and Frances, and she died less than six years later, aged only 23 (also see right).
1724 ENGLAND MARRIAGES: Lidgate, Suffolk 20Source: BRAND, Thomas [3rd] & Parish, Mary [2nd]; 1724 Marriages; FL603/4/2; Lidgate, Suffolk.
Thomas Brand of Barrow Widower and Mary Parish
of this Parish ^ widow were Married – – April 61724 ENGLAND MARRIAGES: Barrow, Suffolk 21Source: BRAND, Thomas [3rd] & Parish, Mary; 1724 Marriages; FHL 525/4/2; Barrow, Suffolk.
B | Thomas Brand Widower and Mary Parish
of Lidgate ^ widow were Married } Pr. Banns
Ap: 6 1724 at Lidgate ____1731 ENGLAND BURIALS: Cowlinge, Suffolk 22Source: Brand (Parish), Mary; 1731 England Burials; FL556/4/2; Cowlinge, Suffolk.
Mary Brand [Parish] widow was Buried October
24th 1731
Less than two years after the death of Frances, Thomas married his third and final wife, Mary Parish (see left). This Mary, aged about 59, was a widow like Frances. The ceremony was at Lidgate, but was also registered Barrow. Of course, this marriage would be childless, and probably lasted less than three years. We have no record for the death of Thomas Brand, but he was “weak of body” when he signed his will on 19 September 1726, so we can presume he died sometime shortly after that, probably aged around 59.
His third wife lived on for another five years (see her burial record left), presumably in the care of her step-son, Mark Brand, and she died 24 October 1731 at Cowlinge, which lies about 4 km (3 miles) south of Lidgate. She would have been about 66 years old.
The following chart shows how the Brand family connects to the Wright and the soon to be explored Shorter families.
Mark Brand & Elizabeth Jermyn (5g-grandparents)
Mark Brand & Elizabeth Jermyn (5g-grandparents)Sadly, we don’t have all the records for these families. For many years, all that was available to us were the indexed entries from the Family Search website (run by the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City, USA, and usually referred to as LDS records), but images of the original records were very rare.
1727 ENGLAND MARRIAGES: Westley, Suffolk 23Source: BRAND, Mark & JERMYN, Elizabeth; 1727 England Marriages; FL647/4/2; Westley, Suffolk.
Tit. Matrima. [Latin for “marriages”]
1727 Mark Brand Singleman & Elizabeth Jermyn Singlewoman both
of Westley were married October 1st. 1727.
However, throughout 2025, Ancestry.com began uploading images of many Church of England parish records. We knew that Mark Brand was the youngest of five children for Thomas Brand and his first wife “Mary”, but we now have two of his father’s three marriages (as shown above). Likewise, we also know from the indexes that Mark Brand was born in Barrow on 7 January, 1704,24Source: BRAND, Mark; 1704 England Baptisms; FHL Nº 952207; Barrow, Suffolk. but we now have his actual marriage entry to Elizabeth Jermyn from Westley, Suffolk (see right), and Robyn has DNA connections to this line. Westley lies 5 km (3 miles) east of Barrow.
1703 ENGLAND BAPTISMS: Hessett, Suffolk 25Source: JARMIN, Elizabeth; 1703 England Baptisms; FL584/4/1; Hessett, Suffolk.
A festo Annuntiations 1703. [Feast of the Annunciation]
Baptizati
| Elizabetha filia Thomae &
| Elizabethae Jermin decimo quinto
J | die Aptilis
Some genealogies connect Elizabeth to the wealthy ‘Jermyn’ family of Rushbrooke Hall (variously spelt as ‘Jerman’, ‘Jermin’, ‘Jarmin’, and ‘German’). Although we cannot validate this connection at present, we do have a ‘possible’ baptism for Elizabeth at Hessett, which is quite close to Rushbrooke Hall (see left). The Latin translates as: “Baptised | Elizabeth daughter of Thomas & Elizabeth Jermin the 15th day of April”.
Mark and Elizabeth had six children, all born in Barrow: Thomas (i) (1728); Martha (1731, see right); Mary (1732); Thomas (ii) (1733); John (1742); and Jermyn (1744).
1731 ENGLAND BAPTISMS: Barrow, Suffolk 26Source: BRAND, Martha; 1731 England Baptisms; FL525/4/2; Barrow, Suffolk.
Baptisms in 1731
B | Martha Daughr. of Mark & Elizabeth Brand – – – April 28
Also, we have burial entries for this couple at Barrow Parish: Elizabeth was buried 1 April 1777, and the record reads “wife of Mark Brand, aged 72”;27Source: BRAND (Jermyn), Elizabeth; 1777 England Burials; FHL 525/4/5; Barrow, Suffolk. she was actually 73. Mark Brand was interred on 8 May 1781, his entry reading only “From Workhouse”, so a sad ending for him at age 77.28Source: BRAND, Mark; 1781 England Burials; FL525/4/5; Barrow, Suffolk.
Joseph Wright & Mary Dissin (5g-grandparents)
1705 ENGLAND MARRIAGES: Barrow, Suffolk 29Source: WRIGHT, Joseph & DISSIN, Mary; 1705 England Marriages; FL525/4/2; Barrow, Suffolk.
MARRIAGES IN: 1705
W: Joseph Wright and Mary Dissin was Married —
July the 19th: 1705 – – – – –
You’ll remember near the end of Part A that I said we would get back to Jarmin Wright’s grandparents. They were Joseph Wright and Mary Dissin, and they married at Barrow in 1705 (see right). We know nothing at all about them before this, but Joseph and Mary had nine children, though three died young: Mary (i) (1706); Mary (ii) (1708); Lydia (i) (1709); Anne (1712); Lydia (ii) (1715); Joseph (i) (1716); Francis (1717); Joseph (ii) (1720); and James (1724).
1724 ENGLAND BAPTISMS: Parish, shire 30Source: WRIGHT, James; 1724 England Baptisms; FL525/4/2; Barrow, Suffolk.
Baptizings in 1724
W | James Son of Joseph and Mary [Dissin] Wright October ye 41751 ENGLAND MARRIAGES: Barrow, Suffolk 31Source: WRIGHT, James & BRAND, Martha; 1751 England Marriages; FL525/4/4; Barrow, Suffolk.
Marriages 1751
W. B. | James Wright &MaryMartha Brand – – – | June 9
Our ancestor was their last-born, James (see left). He was 26 when married a 20-year-old Martha Brand (see her baptism above) on 9 June 1751 (their marriage left). However, we only know of four children from this match (all born born in Barrow): James (1754); Elizabeth (1755); John (1764); and the previously mentioned Jarmin (1772).
It does seem likely there would be more children than these given the years in between, but perhaps Martha had more still-births than usual — however, no other children have popped up in the records. We’ll get back to Jarmin in a little while, but for now we can look at our third family branch with ‘Barrow’ connections, who, as you’ll see in the chart above, are the ‘Shorter’ family.
All Saints Church, Barrow, Suffolk. These photos were taken by us when we visited Barrow in September 2017. It was quite a thrill to stand in the church where several generations of the family had been baptised, married, and laid to rest for over 200 years!
PART C: SHORTER Family of Barrow
1738 ENGLAND MARRIAGES: Whepstead, Suffolk 32Source: SHORTING, Thomas & GOUCH, Thomasin; 1738 England Marriages; FL651/4/3; Whepstead, Suffolk.
Marriages 1738
Thomas Shorting of Hawstead and Thomasin Gouch of this
Parish were married Oct. 26
In 1738, we have a record for a marriage in Whepstead, which is in the Thingoe Hundred, just 6 km (4 miles) south of Bury, and 9 km (6 miles) south-east of Barrow. The record gives the names “Thomas Shorting” (of Hawstead) and “Thomasin Gouch” who were married on 26 October (see left), though many genealogies have mis-transcribed her name as “Gourh”.
1718 ENGLAND BAPTISMS: Whepstead, Suffolk 33Source: GOUCH, Thomasin; 1718 England Baptisms; FL651/4/3; Whepstead, Suffolk.
• 1718 • continued Xtnings
Septbr. ye 20th Thomasin Daughter of William Gouch by
Alice [Land] his wife was baptized.
When we started to look for children of this marriage, we found six baptisms in the nearby town of Hawstead, and we get a variety of spellings for the parents. “Shorting” is either “Shorten” or “Shorter” — but “Thamasm” (an unusual name), gets “Thamason”, “Thamasan” (twice), “Thammasan”, “Thamasin”, and “Thomasin”! However, we were lucky enough to find her baptism (see right), and in that she is given as Thomasin Gouch, so I have settled on that as the spelling.
1680 ENGLAND BAPTISMS: Cavendish, Suffolk 34Source: LAND, Alice; 1680 England Baptisms; FL546/4/1; Cavendish, Suffolk.
Baptizati Anno Domini 1680
Octob. { 24 Alice Daughter of Willm & Katherine Land.1703 ENGLAND MARRIAGES: Whepstead, Suffolk 35Source: GOUCH, William & LAND, Alice; 1703 England Marriages; FL651/4/2; Whepstead, Suffolk.
William Gouch poor-laborer and Alice Land
were married ye. 29th of July
We have been unable to find a baptism for Thomas Shorter, but we did find a baptism for Thomasin’s mother, Alice Land (see left). We also found a marriage for her parents, William Gouch and Alice Land (also left). William was a “poor-labourer”, defined as one without property, and usually exempt from parish fees for baptisms, marriages and burials.
The six children of Thomas and Thamasin that we have records for are: Ann (1746); William (1750); Elizabeth (1753); Stephen (1756); Simon (1758); and Mary (1760). There is also an Alice, daughter of “Thomas Shorten”, which some genealogies add to this list, but no baptismal record has come to light for her; she would have been born c.1742.
Stephen Shorter & Elizabeth Clark (4g-grandparents)
1755 ENGLAND BAPTISMS: Hawkedon, Suffolk 36Source: CLARK, Elizabeth; 1755 England Baptisms; FL579/4/1; Hawkedon, Suffolk.
Elizabeth: D. of Robt. & Frances Clark Bapd: July 20th
1755 ENGLAND BAPTISMS: Hawstead, Suffolk 37Source: SHORTER, Stephen; 1755 England Baptisms; FL580/4/3; Hawstead, Suffolk.
Stephen Son of Thomas & Thomasin [Gouch] Shorter —— | Jul. 27
1777 ENGLAND MARRIAGES: Barrow, Suffolk 38Source: SHORTER, Stephen & CLARK, Elizabeth; 1777 England Marriages; FL579/4/1; Barrow, Suffolk.
Nº 80 | Stephen Shorter of [this] parish Batchelor and
Elizabeth Clark of [the] parish of Moulton in Suffolk Spinster
Married in this [church] by [licence] this eleventh Day
of June in [1777] by me Georges Ashby BD [Rector]
In the Presence of A. Cawston; Wm. Goer
Their second son, Stephen Shorter, was the next in our line to tie the knot. He had been baptised at Hawstead, just one week after his future wife, Elizabeth Clark, was baptised 8 km (5 miles) away at Hawkedon (see right).
When they married (also see right), Elizabeth was living at Moulton, about 7 km (4.5 miles) west of Barrow, and those of you with sharp eyes will have noticed they were married by the same minister who officiated for Jarmin Wright and Elizabeth Dearsley in 1792 (see Part A). The Rev. Ashby had a long tenure at All Saints!
1779 ENGLAND BAPTISMS: Barrow, Suffolk 39Source: SHORTER, Hannah; 1779 England Baptisms; FL525/4/5; Barrow, Suffolk.
Born | Private | Public | Name | Mother | Father
1779 | 25 May | 24 Sept. | Hannah Shorter | Elizabeth | Stephen
17801806 ENGLAND BAPTISMS: Barrow, Suffolk 40Source: SHORTER, John; 1806 (1804) England Baptisms; FL525/4/5; Barrow, Suffolk.
Born | Private | Public | Name | Mother | Father
1806 | 12 Jan | 21 Septr. | John son of | Hannah Shorter | [blank]
Stephen and Elizabeth, had three children we know of: Stephen (1777); Hannah (1779); and Ann (1781. Hannah’s baptismal record shows she was born in 1779, and had both private and public baptisms (see below, top).
Hannah’s life is almost as opaque as that of her parents, and we have never found a marriage for her — but she did have one child, and no father’s name is given on his baptismal record (almost certainly ‘illegitimate’ — see left, bottom).
Hannah Shorter (Robyn’s 3g-grandmother) was buried at Barrow in 1839, and marked as 60 years old (she was actually two weeks short of that milestone), and we will now be able to connect her only child with Jemima Wright, who we mentioned at the end of ‘Part A’ — and, at last, we will be able to begin reporting something of their lives through census records.
John Shorter & Jemima Wright (2g-grandparents)
1826 ENGLAND MARRIAGES: Barrow, Suffolk 41Source: SHORTER, John & WRIGHT, Jemima; 1826 England Marriages; FL525/4/10, Nº 68; Barrow, Suffolk.
Nº 68 | John Shorter of this Parish, Single Man and
Jemima Wright of this Parish Single Woman were
Married in this Church by Banns this twenty fourth Day
of November [1826] by me Thomas West, Curate
In the Presence of David Wright; Mildrege Wright
John Shorter and Jemima Wright were married at All Saints Church, Barrow, in 1826 (see right). Between 1826 and 1846, this couple had eight children, and we can introduce those as we survey the census records between 1841 and 1881.
At the time the 1841 census was taken, this family were living at Burthorpe Green, which lies just a few hundred yards to the east of Barrow, and we can see they had five children living in the household (see below left):
1841 ENGLAND CENSUS: Burthorpe Green, Barrow, Suffolk 42Source: SHORTER, John; 1841 England Census; HO 107/1037; Barrow, Suffolk.
John Shorter; 30; Agricultural Labourer; born Suffolk
Jemima Shorter [Wright]; 35; born Suffolk
James Shorter; 15; born Suffolk [b. c.1826]
Willm. Shorter; 12; born Suffolk [b. 17 Nov 1828]
Saml. Shorter; 10; born Suffolk [b. 25 Nov 1830] 🧬
Harriet Shorter; 6; born Suffolk [b. 26 May 1833] 🧬
George Shorter; 6; born Suffolk [b. c.1835]
The enumeration district for the 1841 census reads: “All that part of the parish of Barrow, comprising Burthorpe Green, Howe Wood, Howe House, Feltons, Barrow Hill, Sorrells Grove, and all the houses on Barrow Green, and anything on the Bury Road to the corner of Barrow Shed.” Some of those places can be found on our map below.
You will notice that I’ve marked 🧬 those children who have descendants with a DNA match to Robyn.
1851 ENGLAND CENSUS: Burthorpe Green, Barrow, Suffolk 43Source: SHORTER, John; 1851 England Census; HO 107/1791; Barrow, Suffolk.
John Shorter; Head; Mar; 46; Agricultural Labourer; born Barrow, Suffolk
Jemima Shorter [Wright]; Wife; Mar; 49; born Barrow, Suffolk
William Shorter; Son; Unm.; 21; Agricultural Labourer; born Barrow, Suffolk
Harriet Shorter; Daur.; Unm.; 18; born Barrow, Suffolk 🧬
George Shorter; Son; Unm.; 15; Agricultural Labourer; born Barrow, Suffolk
Eliza Shorter; Daur.; Unm.; 7; Scholar; born Barrow, Suffolk
Susan Shorter; Daur.; 4; born Barrow, Suffolk
Elen Bridge; Lodger; 1; born Barrow, Suffolk
In the 1851 census (see right), John Shorter was still an agricultural labourer, and we have by now accounted for seven of their eight children. There had been an Elias, born in December 1837, but he was buried two weeks after his first birthday.
As you can see, James and Samuel have left the family home. We know nothing more of James — but Samuel had married Eliza Bridge just five weeks before this census, and they were living with their 1-month-old daughter Fanny at Church Green (we can follow Samuel through to his death at Barrow in 1884).
However, the most significant information from the 1851 census was that, for the first time, Robyn’s great-grandmother had made an appearance. Susanna Shorter was reputed to be born on 25 August 1846,44Source: Information from her grandson Alf Edwards, of Bankstown, Sydney. but she was baptised on 27 September that year (see left, below).
1846 ENGLAND BAPTISMS: Barrow, Suffolk 45Source: SHORTER, Susanna; 1846 England Baptisms; FL525/4/7 Nº 244; Barrow, Suffolk.
Baptised | Christian name | Parent’s names | Abode | Trade | Minister
September | Susanna | John | Shorter | Barrow | Labourer | W. Keeting
27th daughter of Jemima Rector
By 1851, Barrow had reached its peak population of about 1,100 people, and didn’t return to that level for another 150 years. However, ten years later, John and Jemima were still at Burthorpe Green — and, by then, only their youngest child was still at home:
1861 ENGLAND CENSUS: Burthorpe Green, Barrow, Suffolk 46Source: SHORTER, John; 1861 England Census; RG 9/1138; Barrow, Suffolk.
John Shorter; Head; Mar; 56; Agricultural Labourer; born Barrow, Suffolk
Jemima Shorter [Wright]; Wife; Mar; 58; born Barrow, Suffolk
Susannah Shorter; Daur.; Unm.; 14; born Barrow, Suffolk 🧬
In 1857, their son William had married his first wife, Hepzibah Hull, at Leytonstone in Essex, and we will catch up with him again as the story progresses. Samuel was working for the railways, and was living in Coalpit Lane with his wife and five children (Coalpit Lane extends north off Colethorpe Lane from Haysborder Road — see map above). Harriett had married Joseph Barton in 1856, and was also living in Coalpit Lane with two children. By the 1871 census, John and Jemima were living in a room with a lodger, but in the same building as their son Samuel and his growing family:
1871 ENGLAND CENSUS: Burthorpe Green, Barrow, Suffolk 47Source: SHORTER, John; 1871 England Census; RG10 /1725; Barrow, Suffolk.
John Shorter; Head; Mar; 68; Agricultural Labourer; born Barrow, Suffolk
Jemima Shorter [Wright]; Wife; Mar; 69; born Barrow, Suffolk
Susan Green; Lodger; Widow; 66; Recv. Parish Relief; born Horringer, Suffolk
//
Samuel Shorter; Head; Mar.; 40; Platelayer Railway; born Barrow, Suffolk 🧬
Eliza Shorter [Bridge]; Wife; Mar.; 42; born Barrow, Suffolk
Fanny Shorter; Daur.; Unm; 20; Tailoress; born Barrow, Suffolk
George Shorter; Son; Unm; 18; Agricultural Labourer; born Barrow, Suffolk 🧬
William E. Shorter; Son; 15; Agricultural Labourer; born Barrow, Suffolk
Rhoda M. Shorter; Daur.; 13; Scholar; born Barrow, Suffolk 🧬
Arthur J. Shorter; Son; 8; Scholar; born Barrow, Suffolk
Susannah T. Shorter; Daur.; 4; born Barrow, Suffolk
Their youngest child, Susanna, had left the family home and had married Thomas Edwards in 1866. In 1871, she was living at Plumstead, London, next door to her brother William and his first wife — but we will get back to her in the next story. For John and Jemima, however, their last census was to be in 1881, and at that time we find them lodging with their son Samuel’s family, next door to Samual’s son, William and his family:
1881 ENGLAND CENSUS: Burthorpe Green, Barrow, Suffolk 48Source: SHORTER, John; 1881 England Census; RG11/1838; Barrow, Suffolk.
Samuel Shorter; Head; Mar; 50; Plate Layer on Railway; born Barrow, Suffolk
Eliza Shorter [Bridge]; Wife; Mar; 50; born Barrow, Suffolk
Sarah Ann Shorter; Daur.; Unm; 15; Scholar; born Barrow, Suffolk
John Edwin Shorter; Son; 9; Scholar; born Barrow, Suffolk
//
John Shorter; Lodger; Mar.; 78; Agricultural Labourer; born Barrow, Suffolk
Jemima Shorter [Wright]; Wife of Lodger; 80; born Barrow, Suffolk
//
William E. Shorter; Head; Mar.; 26; Plate Layer on Railway; born Barrow, Suffolk
Sarah Ann Shorter [Barber]; Wife; Mar.; 24; born Barrow, Suffolk
Elias Wm. Shorter; Son; 1; born Chedburgh, Suffolk
Arthur James Shorter; Son; 3 months; born Barrow, Suffolk
The main street in Barrow was simply referred to as “The Street”, and here are four early photos of what was quite a small village. These old photos all required a degree of photo restoration, and I’ve colourised them as well. All these scenes would be easily recognised by our family who lived in Barrow in the mid to late 1800s.
Final years
Harriet Barton née Shorter (seated), and her daughter Jemima Barton.
Jemima Wright seems to have departed this world in June 1882,49Source: SHORTER (Wright), Jemima; 1882 England Deaths Index; Vol. 4a, p.331; Thingoe, Suffolk. according to English Civil Death Indexes — and John Shorter in December 1888.50Source: SHORTER, John; 1888 England Deaths Index; Vol. 4a, p.359; Thingoe, Suffolk. Unfortunately, I have been unable to find actual death certificates for them, but hope one day these will be available online. Also to depart was their son Samuel (1884) and his wife Eliza (1885). Robyn has at least two DNA matches to his descendants.
The daughter Harriett lived on around Colethorpe Lane (near All Saints Church) for the rest of her life. Her husband, Joseph Barton, died in 1898, and Harriet in 1909 — and Robyn has ten DNA matches to her descendants.
1891 ENGLAND CENSUS: Cannanore, Colethorpe Lane, Barrow, Suffolk 51Source: Barton, Harriet [Shorter]; 1891 England Census; RG12 /1448/12 p.; Barrow, Suffolk.
Joseph Barton; Head; Mar.; 65; Platelayer’s Labourer; born Barrow, Suffolk
Harriet Barton [Shorter]; Wife; Mar.; 58; born Barrow, Suffolk
Esther Barton; Daur.; Single; 12; born Barrow, Suffolk
1901 ENGLAND CENSUS: Colethorpe Lane, Barrow, Suffolk 52Source: Barton, Harriett; 1901 England Census: RG13 /1752; 12, p.15; Barrow, Suffolk.
Harriet Barton [Shorter]; Head; Widow; 68; born Barrow, Suffolk
Esther Barton; Daur.; Single; 22; Shop Assistant; born Barrow, Suffolk
Now, let’s join Susanna Shorter in Essex and explore the Edwards family ➠
See the relevant maps (maps open in new browser tabs):
References
The virus pandemic has halted my research. But I am a descendant of Mark Brand, husband of Elizabeth Jermyn. A genealogist is further exploring my Jermyn roots. If I ever discover anything in the future and remember this site, I will let you know. I’m of the Suffolk area.
Hi Bradley,
Many thanks for making contact. Mark Brand is my wife’s 5G-Grandfather, and she has proven DNA links to his son Jermyn Brand. That line could be most promising if it leads to the Jermyn family of Rushbrooke. Some genealogies make Elizabeth a descendant of Thomas Jermyn IV and Anne Spring (very exalted families to be sure), but that could not be substantiated by any research I’ve done.
Having ground to a halt myself, however, I have speculated that if Elizabeth is descended from that line, it might be through Sir Thomas Jermyn’s 9th child, John. John was by Thomas’ 2nd wife, Anne Drury, and born c.1529 at Rushbrooke; He married Mary Talmage in 1564, and is mentioned in Thomas Jermyn’s will. The line, I thought, may then go:
John Jermyn (m. Alice Eliot) > Edmund Jermyn of Glemsford (m. Anna Mower 1590) > Thomas Jermyn b.1599 at Glemsford (m. Margaret Yeldham 1628) > Thomas Jermyn b.1631 at Gelmsford (m. Elizabeth ?) > Anthony Jermyn b.1663 at Glemsford (m. Mary Parnefy 1688) > William Jermyn b.c.1675 at Glemsford (m. Jean Canham c.1704) > Elizabeth Jermyn (m. Mark Brand 1727).
However, without a birth record for Elizabeth, I cannot establish that line other than by following old genealogies.
I wish you great luck with your research, and would be delighted to hear how you go. Let me know if I can be of any assistance.
Alan
Hi Alan,
Thanks for your reply. I don’t use Ancestry.co.uk much, but I have my tree on there called – Brand: Barrow, Scott: Longcot, Pearce: Beighton Sheffield, Robinson: Soham. I grew interest in ancestry because my grandparents died before I was born, so I never knew of them. I also wanted to explore my Brand origins. Since, I had a professional genealogist looking into it but the pandemic halted his research. I am really looking forward to see if he discovers anything relating to Elizabeth Jermyn. It’s nice to discover that Mark was a land and property owner. Other things I found was a book called – Brand New Australians – which lists information about Brand descendants too. Brand is an England origin surname, also there were at least 7 alien arrivals in the 1400s which was interesting to find.
Hi Bradley,
I’ll have a look at your Ancestry tree – thanks.
Looking forward to hearing what your genealogist finds when he finally can get back to work.
:-)
Hello Alan, is this our ancestors of Elizabeth Jermyn and Mark Brand of Barrow??
“It is a story that begins amongst the wool towns of Suffolk. Although by the eighteenth century the Suffolk cloth trade, that had made the county so wealthy in the Middle Ages, had dramatically declined, there was still money to be made from combing and spinning wool for the dominant Norwich weavers. It would seem that the Brand family, most recently of Barrow in Suffolk, had established themselves in the wool-combing trade.Certainly Jermyn Brand (1744-1822) the only one of Mark Brand and Elizabeth Jermyn’s seven children born in Bacton rather than Barrow, had created a successful woolcombing business in that central Suffolk village.” – https://ia800704.us.archive.org/14/items/SilkenHandkerchiefsAndSilverHerringFirstEdition/Silken%20Handkerchiefs%20and%20Silver%20Herring%20First%20Edition.pdf
This is just a hello from the granddaughter of Helena May McCartney, who married Vincent Hooper. They had a daughter, Susan, my mother. I came across your website when looking for information on Susanna Shorter. It is fabulous!
Hi Alexandra,
Many thanks for your note, and your kind words.
Your great-grandfather, Reginald McCartney, was known to my wife’s family as “Uncle Reg”, although my wife was only 3 when he died, so she never knew him personally.
I have copies of many vital documents (BDMs) for the Shorter/McCartney family, and I’d be very happy to send you a link to the collection which I store in Dropbox.
I’ll contact you by email to help arrange that.
Best regards,
Alan