Family rumours have they turned out to be true?

[Rena]

My mother insists that we are descended from Grace Darling. However, as far as I can make out we have no-one called Darling in our tree, and I don't think that Grace Darling married or had children to be descended from.
Wotty

My Leith born grandmother more or less said the same thing, but her words were she was 'related to Grace Darling'. I recently found her grandmother had a Thomas Darling as her father. Unfortunately can't find appropriate birth and marriage records - a thing Leith was famous for.  Unless there was a sailor from the Borders involved I have found a Thos Darling in one of the local villages who did have a legitimate daughter called Grace born more or less the same time as the famous Grace Darling :-))
Rena in Lancashire.

[Koromo]

LOL! I'm meant to be related to Grace Darling too!

A Gr-gr-gr-grandfather of mine is a David Darling born in Dunbar, 1792-ish. I've never found him on any of the Grace Darling family trees I've come across:
eg.  http://freespace.virgin.net/john.elkin/darling001.htm#grace

[RLucyG]

My Dad always said that his Dad had paid to have the family tree drawn up professionally about 20 years ago. When he received the tree he read it and ripped it up, my Dad claimed it was because someone on the tree had been hanged for stealing a pig!!!!
Of course this caused much amusement and annoyance for many years. But I think I have found the real reason, or reasons for the ripping up.........Illegitimate children and a CONVICT!
One Peter Appleyard, my 4x gt grandfather, was sent to Tasmania in 1835 after being convicted with poaching four ducks, he had previously been jailed for 1 month for stealing fowls and then again fined 2 pounds for poaching.
On my Mum's side the rumours of a Saggar Makers Bottom Knocker has been substantiated, along with many other pottery related jobs. 

[MarieC]

On my Mum's side the rumours of a Saggar Makers Bottom Knocker has been substantiated, along with many other pottery related jobs. 

RLucyG,

!!!! 

Please enlighten me - what is a Saggar Makers Bottom Knocker??  The mind is boggling!!

A pity that people in previous ages were so ashamed of convicts and illegitimacy that they didn't want to know.  I love finding that sort of thing - adds a bit of colour to the tree!!!!

MarieC

[Tephra]

Don't boggle Marie, it's bad for the digestion!!

Saggar is a fireclay container usually oval or round, used to protect pottery from marking by flames and smoke during firing in a bottle oven.

The Saggarmaker is a skilled man producing the finished saggar

The Bottomknocker made the base of the saggar from a lump of fireclay which he knocked into a metal ring using a wooden mallet.

Any wiser??   Me neither       

Barbara           

[hlbradd]

Well if family rumour is to be believed:

I am apparently related to the Duke of Bedford (no idea which one though!) via a son/grandson who married beneath him (who hasn't heard that one before ).   I know my great-grandmother was in service - my great-grandfather worked for Great Eastern Railways - only connection I can find with the Duke of Bedford is the surname Russell ... although my Nan's nickname was Duchess, and she does remember as a very young child there was a 'lady in a coach' who came to visit one day.

On the Blogg family we are supposed to be related to Henry Blogg the famous lifeboatman - only trouble with that is I can't get my Blogg line out of London yet and I'm back to early 1800s.  I think any connection would have to be further back than that (although I have had a potential lead the other day that would need checking out).

Oh, and my husband is rumoured to be descended from Baronet Summers' (Somers?) daughter - although I'm having trouble finding any connection there either.

On the other hand I can prove several ag labs, silk workers, and a Huguenot !

Won't be buying the tiara any day soon

Helen

[linmey]

You lucky thing Helen. It all sounds very exciting.

Linda.

[stonechat]

Mostly True rumours

Douglases were watchmakers, who were originally Scottish.
Well there were three generations of watchmakers, don't know aobut the scottish bit.

Grandmother's aunt Mary Jane hung herself. Not found.

Grandmother's uncle went to Armidale in Australia and became mayor, his brother followed him there
True

Mother's maternal grandfather and family campaigned for the Conservatives in a pony and trap, and would pull down liberal posters if they found them.
(How do you verify that)

We are descended from Rev George Boyce of Winkfield
True, though he was only a curate- was curate of the parish for 49 years, quite a  few priests in the family.


There were some mentions of Great Uncle Seth on my mother's side, being wealthy - I have never found any Seth.

Definitley not a rumour, but hard to trace is my my mother's late uncle George
He died in ww1, leaving a pregnant fiancee.
My mother has pictures of the girl and her mother, I just can't trace them, I don't know the surname


Bob

[MarieC]

Saggar is a fireclay container usually oval or round, used to protect pottery from marking by flames and smoke during firing in a bottle oven.

The Saggarmaker is a skilled man producing the finished saggar

The Bottomknocker made the base of the saggar from a lump of fireclay which he knocked into a metal ring using a wooden mallet.

Any wiser??   Me neither       

Barbara           

Thanks Barbara!!  I'll put that in the mental trivial file - just in case I ever need to show off about my extensive knowledge of past English pursuits!!! 

MarieC