A recent article from the Cape Cod Chronicle goes into detail about the sister Harwich towns of Massachusetts and Essex, and is a worthwhile read for those either side of the pond. However, it comes to the same conclusion as everywhere else - nobody is quite sure who first named the American town that. The … Continue reading Query: How Did Harwich MA Get Its Name?
Query Update: Is This Sir Anthony Deane?
Following on from my initial blog post on the subject, there have been some developments. After having contacted Art UK, I am now in what I would call stage two, so an update about the one portrait on their site may be coming soon. I also contacted Christie's, and received very useful information. The portrait … Continue reading Query Update: Is This Sir Anthony Deane?
Names In Olden Times
Naming conventions in what I like to call the "Mayflower era" - late 1500s, early 1600s - were pretty straightforward, as it was a time when parents tended to name their children after other family members, so there weren't many particularly radical names out there. In fact, forenames in England pretty much all fell into … Continue reading Names In Olden Times
The Origins of Harwich and Parkeston Football Club
The existence of football in Harwich owes much to a man named Major Francis Arthur Marindin, of the Royal Engineers. Marindin has his own Wikipedia article, so we can skip the basics and head straight to the year 1874. By 1874, Marindin had established himself as one of the leading "backs" in the association game, … Continue reading The Origins of Harwich and Parkeston Football Club
Query: Is This Sir Anthony Deane?
Some time ago I compiled extensive research on Sir Anthony Deane, culminating in multiple posts on this very blog, which can be found via the "deane" tag. During my research I found that there were two main contemporary portraits of Deane - the famous one by Godfrey Kneller in 1690, which can be seen on … Continue reading Query: Is This Sir Anthony Deane?
Making A Mountain Out Of A Wetherhill
By the time John Wetherhill, a goldsmith of the parish of St Mary Woolnoth in London, had died in 1578, he had left behind a legacy that would not only spread throughout London, but would extend eastwards to coastal Essex. Of the fifteen or so children he would father, the majority were daughters, of whom … Continue reading Making A Mountain Out Of A Wetherhill
The Linekers: Four Weddings And… Well, That’s It
An observation of a curiosity, for this post. In the Harwich St Nicholas marriage register, there are four marriages in fairly quick succession for four Lineker women: July 14 1585 - [blank] Lenicar married John Gamon December 23 1587 - Margaret Leniker married Robert Sutherwood February 12 1588 - Sara Lenicar married John Locke February … Continue reading The Linekers: Four Weddings And… Well, That’s It
1970 Mayflower Postmark
On my Internet travels I spotted a postcard dated September 1970 from Harwich, which featured this unique postmark stamped on top, clearly during Mayflower anniversary celebrations. It had other stamps and marks on it so I've cleaned it up as best I could.
Query: 21 King’s Head Street
One of my goals in the months leading up to the Mayflower 400 celebrations is to have a clearer understanding of the history of 21 King's Head Street, the house Christopher Jones was raised in, from before his family moved there, to the fate of the house after the death of his stepfather Robert Russell. … Continue reading Query: 21 King’s Head Street
The Aldens: A Mystery Within A Puzzle
It is well-known that the family and origins of John Alden, cooper of the Mayflower, have yet to be established with any certainty. The leading theory is that he was a member of the Alden family of Harwich, given the connection between the ship's master and the town, but delve a little deeper and you … Continue reading The Aldens: A Mystery Within A Puzzle
Harwicensis 