Aristocracy?

[rla10]

Hi all, I hope someone can help me on this front. I think I'm more in need of advice and opinions rather than look ups, so  please forgive the length, but please read! I need help. Here's the story:

Traced the Lake family back to 1550s where there appears to be a bit of a haze. The man concerned is William Lake who died in Theydon Garnon, Essex. His son, Richard, was not baptised or married in Theydon Garnon and the only reason I know/think William is his father is William's will left at a time that would correlate with being Richard's father. Now, I began a thread asking for a baptism of Richard on here and someone mentioned the Lake family of Great Fanton Hall in Essex. I didn't think much of it, and am still very dubious, but there were three brothers born around the time William would have been born - John, Richard and William. They also all leave wills in the 1590s suggesting they were siblings. John and Richard remained at Fanton Hall, but William is not mentioned as living there. Moreover, Richard mentions his 'brother William widow sister Green' in his will, and this would match with William's death.

What further adds to the possibility is the fact that in Williams will he appears to be a man of means. Living a house and various land in Hornchurch and Greenstead Essex. Other William Lakes in the area either have a date of death that is too early or too late, and one that is from Upminster (which makes me wonder if this could be him given the Hornchurch land) doesn't leave an awful lot, and I have never come across any of his children's names. However, there is a William Lake will in Upminster from 1557 (I haven't viewed it) and this makes me wonder if this could be my William's father. However, if the William of Upminster is his son then would he name two living siblings the same?

So I am trying to find a link between William Lake of Theydon Garnon and the Lakes of Fanton Hall (whose ancestry has been traced back to the 1300s, yet my William ( I think) is mentioned in all histories but not researched)

What do you think of this situation? Have you any advice for me? Really need help!

[rachelralph]

i cant help specificaly but i am having the same issue with my ancestors, whom i know where related to aristocracy but i cannot make the full link to add it to my tree.

what i would say is keep posting on every site available. use google a lot, and message everyone who has your man in their tree. someone some where will know the link!

if you use ancestry then search their message boards too and add your own thread.

i have been doing my line for nearly 3 years and am still recieving e mails and messages with new links all the time.

good luck x

[rla10]

Thanks, rachelraplh!

I have e-mailed quite a few people asking about this, but no replies. I'm even considering enlisting a professional genealogist as a last resort! I'll heed your advice and see what turns up.

[Billyblue]

Ria

You will need deep pockets if you enlist a professional genealogist to research way back then!

I'm lucky - my claim to blue blood is in my family name (see my RC name)!!          

Dawn M.

[rla10]

Hi Dawn,

Yes I know that's what puts me off, but as I say it will be the very last resort!  It's so frustrating that most signs seem to point towards him being the William of Fanton, yet no definitive proof 

[rachelralph]

mine is simplier in a sense, my ancestor born 1882 had the middle names savile foljambe, which when you google it is a very obvious aristorical name, i just cant find the link for my man to the savile foljambes, even though the family knew we were and the name suggests it!

[rla10]

1882 is reasonably recent. Can you not find any baptism, marriages, burials, census, tax all that sort of thing to prove it, rachelralph?

[rachelralph]

i have all the relavant information, his parents were coalminers as were his grandparents, but what we think may have happened is between 1879 when the older brother was born and 1882 when our ancestor was born a distant cousin/uncle/grandfather with the title died and left the name to the next born male, being my ancestor. i need to get hold of any wills between 1879 and 1882 with the name savile foljambe, thats my next job

[rla10]

Well good luck! I empathise