Anybody still out there?
My great-great grandmother's name was Richmul Jane Fisher (1820-1896) and married a William DeHaven in the Philadelphia area of Pennsylvania. A census states that her parents were from England, unfortunately, I do not know their names.
It seems like Richmul is a variation of Richmael or Richmal, and could be a misspelling by the census taker. She appears to have used her middle name later in life, and I was wondering if perhaps her mother had the same forename. Does anyone know of any Richmul, (mal or mael), Fisher that may have emigrated probably after the Treaty of Paris and before 1820?
Yeah, I'm grasping. But it seems fairly sure that the name is peculiar to Lancashire and probably Anglo-Saxon in origin? Some DeHavens want to claim French heritage. Could the Richmul Fisher and DeHaven marriage offer a clue, coupling as the progeny of Huguenot refugees who eventually settled in North America? Sorry, sounds like a Michener novel, but does anyone know if Huguenots settled in Lancashire, possibly intermarrying yet preserving a rare forename?
http://www.prenombebe.net/prenom/richmael-au-canada,82043.html (Looks like its a male name here. hmmmm)
Her granddaughter seemed to use the name as well, but it is so garbled in the census, I can only make out the Rich part , so I wonder if it was a family forename sometimes?
Too much conjecture I guess, but it is good to know that her parents were likely from Lancashire.
Thanks
JDB