PEOPLE
& PLACES
I have gradually found a little time to do some very much needed legwork for my research. Here are a few of the people I've met and places I've visited.
Noel Free
May 2008
After chatting online since early 2006, I finally got to meet Noel and his wife, Bernice in person.
You have to go way back to William Free (b.1724) and Martha Hawes (b.1720) to find our common ancestors. Their son, Samuel Free (b.1862), was my Great x4 Grandfather and Samuel's younger brother, George Free (b.1771) was Noel's Great x3 Grandad.
People find relations on their family tree and meet up all the time but Noel and Bernice travelled a little further than most though, they travelled from Australia to England.
Noel's Great Grandfather, Addison Free (b.1840) emmigrated to Australia in 1858. Noel's son David came back to England and in May 2008, Noel and Bernice were visiting for a few weeks. Noel had been chatting to my Mum and Dad (Sylvia and Ron) online too and my house seemed to sit conveniently somewhere between David's and my parents so it was arranged to meet here.
We didn't do a lot of family tree, but for chatted for hours, it was surprising how similar our interests and families were. Eventually we posed for photos in the garden before going our separate ways.
Top photo: left to right: Noel, Sallyann, Ron & David.
Bottom photo: left to right: Noel, Jeff, Sallyann, David, Ron, Sylvia & Bernice.
Bill Rabbitt
Jul 2008
Whilst researching the Rabbitts on my tree, I connected with Bill Rabbitt on Genes Reunited. It didn't take us long to work out that he was actually a cousin of my Mother-in-law, Pat. A trip down memory lane for Pat later in the year gave us the ideal opportunity to meet up with Bill and his wife, Joan.
Pat's parents used to own a chip-shop which was still there - and still a chip-shop, although the memory of jumping a brook to collect manure for her Dad's garden from the cows in the field opposite one address is now changed slightly, with a bridge added across the brook and the field turned into a park and play area for children. Pat has a photo of her mother standing inside the gate at the front of where they used to live and one kind lady, who's parents bought the house from Pat's parents, let Pat go into the garden and have her photo taken in the exact spot her Mum had been standing in before.
Pat and Bill hadn't been in touch since the wedding of Bill's daughter in 1984, we spent a Saturday and Sunday in and out and back and fore different addresses in Warrington and arranged to meet Bill, his wife, Joan, and a few others in the bar area of a Toby Carvery on Saturday evening.
We pulled up five or six chairs around a couple of tables in a quiet corner and waited, Bill had been in touch with some other cousins for me and we didn't really know how many people to expect but figured we could pull up a few more chairs if we needed them. Imagine how pleased we were to have to find enough chairs and tables for over twenty people when cousins, nieces and nephews arrived for the evening, some of which hadn't seen each other for almost as long as Pat and Bill. We talked into the night swapped addresses and promised to keep in touch (which we have done) and, speaking for Pat as well as myself I'm sure, had a really good evening.
Photo: left to right: Joan, Bill & Pat.
Kay Russell
June 2009
I met Kay on Genes Reunited, way back in the July of 2005. We don't actually share a common ancestor but have played around for ages with the Liddell and Jackson links to our trees. Kay is descending from Edward Jackson (b.1837), brother to Mary Jackson (b.1849). It was Kay who first linked Mary Jackson to Edward Liddell (b.1826) as niece and step-uncle, where as I just had Mary married to Alfred Free (b.1836) and Edward married to Judith Free (b.1832), both siblings of my Great Great Grandfather, William Free (b.1822).
Another Hereford sports competition for Jeff gave me the opportunity to meet up with Kay and her husband and after chatting online for almost 4 years it was great to finally meet face to face.
One thing which has always fascinated me with Kay is her often remarks about her sheep. This spring she sent me a photo of their four lambs, one of which was being bottle fed, and I not only met the lambs in June, but was able to bottle feed too.
Kay picked me up first thing Saturday and we set off back to her house, it was somehow relaxing to see she was as nervous as I was but we needn't have worried, we had a great day, chatting about anything and everything, playing tree on the computer, and of course, meeting the sheep.
There is another Hereford competition in the pipeline for next June and we're planning on doing it all again.
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