25 October 2009

6th Great-Grandparents Causier & Astmore

I don't know, but it may be time to join Facebook…! I’ve held off on joining or even exploring Facebook all this time, thinking that I already have more than enough other activities to keep me busy. Also, I haven’t really seen a substantive reason to join, but...

A few days ago, with just a few minutes to play online and for no good reason, I ran a search for ‘Causier Astmore’, the surnames of my 6th-great-grandparents Sacheverell CAUSIER and Betty ASTMORE. Only a few results came up and one was to a Facebook page.

Wow! It’s entitled Family Causierand has about 81 members as of today. The 'officer' is cousin John Causier, apparently of the UK. There’re a lot of wonderful photos, other info, and contacts with Causier cousins (only a handful with whom I’ve had previous contact). It seems to be a serious genealogy group and not just a social group. Photos include one of Charles & Catherine Causier with their children.

It has a link to the fine website Causier Family of Dunchurch, Dodderhill & Droitwich by cousin Martin. I’ve used this site before, but not for a while and this was a good reminder.

Great-great-great-great-great-great-grandparents Sacheverell Causier & Betty Astmore apparently married in 1744, possibly in Droitwich, Worcester, England. My line of descent from them is:
Sacheverell Causier = Betty Astmore
Sacheverell Causier = Elizabeth Wood
Sacheverell Causier = Sarah Hunt
William Causier = Ann Tolley
Charles Causier = Catherine Hughes
Ann Matilda Causier = John Henry Carr
Bertha Maud Carr, my grandmother

Who knows what other great things I may find if I join Facebook or otherwise contact all these new cousins?!

10 October 2009

Great-Grandparents John Carr & Annie Matilda Causier


This is one of my photos of All Saints' Church in Whitwood, Yorkshire. My great grandfather John CARR and great grandmother Ann Matilda CAUSIER were married here 129 years ago today. There is also a photo of it at the GENUKI site. (When I first found the church at this site, the page was labeled 'Whitwood' and the photo 'All Saints' Church, Whitwood. I don't know why they have changed the titles.)

This copy of their marriage certificate was among the things my dad left. I don't know where he got it, but I suspect it was from cousin Judy. As you can see, the 10 October 1880 wedding was performed by Jno. Jas. (JJ) Needham, Rector of All Saints'.


The 1881 English census was just a few months after John and Annie's wedding. It show them living in Castleford, West Yorkshire, which is about one mile from Whitwood.


The family of John's parents, William and Jane (ETHELL) CARR are nearby in Whitwood, interestingly just 4 entries away from Rector Needham. Also, the way I've cropped the census image, you can see William and Jane's son, Grice Ethell Carr who was one of the witnesses for his brother's wedding.


In September 2006, my husband and I were able to travel briefly to England and see part of Yorkshire. My research had led me to fourth cousin Val, who still lives in the area. She and her husband were wonderful tour guides and showed us places we could never have found by ourselves. While Whitwood, in general, is understandably much changed, the church is still there! What is left of the church cemetery is nearby, but very few headstones remain.
After approaching one of the Whitwood headstones, I was surprised to read that it was that of Rector Needham.


An inscription for his mother is on the left side of the large marker. He is not an ancestor of mine, but it is somehow touching that I could photograph a headstone for a stranger whose name I had seen in old records. I have not found any record that Rector Needham ever left descendants and I wonder if anyone else will ever search for him or his mother.

Great-grandparents John and Annie CARR appear to have left for America between 1887 and 1889, joining Annie's parents and siblings in the greater Milwaukee area of Wisconsin. In contrast to that of the man who married them, their burial niche in Glendale, California, is marked by a small plaque. Their youngest daughter, also named Annie, is with them.


SOURCES
Photos and marriage certificate copy: MHD collection

1881 England Census excerpt #1: England, Yorkshire, Castleford, District 17, p. 31 from ancestry.com

1881 England Census excerpt #2: England, Yorkshire, Whitwood, District 4, p. 6 from ancestry.com

Carr interment location: Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale, California;
Great Mausoleum, Dahlia Terrace, Columbarium of the Graces, #11686