RootsChat.Com

Hullo, Amanda, Amy's sister! Amy has contacted me through the Ancestry Members' Message System and will be giving me, hopefully, lots of information and photographs about your side of the family. The only information I have about your father Bernard is what I have gathered through the records available to Ancestry. (which are primarily UK) and through verbal memories from my late father. These contacts are the first I have had since September 1958, when your father's parents James and Hannah visited my grandfather Harry Blakesley (Hannah's first younger brother) and Walter (her second younger brother) here in UK.  It's been too long.  Let us reestablish contact.

          Best wishes             Ian Blakesley.

Hullo "Man of Kent". Thank you so much for your message. I am fascinated to know that your wife is a Pearson descendant. I am a member of Ancestry and I have been trying to trace the Pearsons who left Spratton for London and subsequently Canada. Is she connected to that branch, please or how are we connected?

If you could send me some names and dates, hopefully I can link them up with my existing research; I will be most grateful.

Best wishes

Ian Blakesley.

Wow, Hannah! It's like we've opened a dam; so much information is pouring out.

The cottage belonged to the Pearson family, who had been in the village of Spratton as farmers, landowners and minor squires since the 15th. century. It was part of a group of thatched cottages, which were demolished in the 1950s, probably because they were declared as "unfit" for human habitation, i.e. they had no inside toilets or specious reasons like that....typical bureaucratic  vandalism. Today they would be restored by rich commuters and command £250000 (nearly $400000) each,

Can i just add a little to your father's memories? Hannah was described in the census of 1901 as a " nurse"; not the same meaning as today. A "nurse" or nursery governess would look after the young children of the family before they went to school. Hannah's father was Edward, who had a variety of jobs over his life, which included brewing beer for local farmers and publicans.

Edward was married twice: first to Clara Masters, from Flore, near Daventry in Northamptonshire, by whom he had four children: Leonard, Matilda, Lawrence and David. Leonard died, aged only 16, as the result of a shooting incident.The two younger brothers, who were so alike they were mistaken as twins, were footmen at Goodwood House in West Sussex and later both settled in London.  Matilda's great-granddaughter Gaynor was one of the first members of Ancestry to contact me; she had been looking for other Blakesleys for 20 years!

Edward's second wife, Mary Pearson, bore him five children: Hannah, Harry and Willie(twins, but Willie died after only three days), Frank (died aged 3 years) and Walter.

Seeing all the lovely photos of you and your family( and the brilliant one of your Dad!),  I can see the family resemblances.

My father was Harry's son, christened Douglas Arthur, but always. known as Peter, for reasons even he couldn't tell me.

Early afternoons actually are ideal for me, being retired with all the time I need.I am usually checking e-mails around midday.

I must finish off now, as it is nearly 0100 GMT and I need my beauty sleep. I'd like to attach one more photo, one of my father ( who I lost in 1993).


Hannah, thanks so much for getting in contact; this is the one reason I started this whole family research: to connect with my cousins in North America. Take care all of you: we'll  keep in contact.


             Warmest regards and best wishes

                                                                       Ian Blakesley

Hullo, Hannah! I am overjoyed you have contacted me. For the last year or so I have been trying to trace my great-aunt Hannah Elizabeth (my grandfather's elder sister) and her husband James Ward, who I met only once, in 1958, when they visited my grandfather Harry Blakesley in Leicester in September of that year.

They had been staying with my great-uncle Walter (my grandfather's younger brother) and his wife Margaret at Hunton, near Maidstone, Kent, who had their address in Canada. Walter died on 22 December 1967 in Leicester. His wife noved to Wotton-under-Edge, Gloucestershire, where we visited her once,in 1970.  She died on 9 July 1979; I have not been able to trace her papers, so I have ner had Hannah and James Ward's address in Canada, though I recall my late father told me they lived in Toronto.

I am a member of Ancestry.co.uk and have built up as many family member profiles as I can with the information available through their databases. I could not trace Hannah and James Ward's family fully.

Similarly with great-uncle Walter, I was able to trace most of his life, except for his marriage. I believe it took place either in India or Ceylon sometime between 1927 and 1931, but I cannot find a record anywhere of that event. If your father can help, I would be most grateful.


Unfortunately, your e-mail address has not been shown, so possibly the best way we can communicate is either through RootsChat, or , if you have a friend who is a member of Ancestry.com, through them. If you use the latter method, please feel free to access my family tree and view the profiles of the Ward family in Canada and (I believe) in Massachusetts USA.


I really do look forward to hearing from you all.




              Best wishes

                                        IAN BLAKESLEY