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Rob Fry
has had contact with some members of his family due in part to this website and
its genealogy pages. He has since had contact with family members in Australia
and the UK. Here is one of the messages generated.
"I
have family connections with Rob which go back to the marriages of his ancestors
and their siblings in the early 19th century - he contacted me only a month ago
having seen the article I wrote in the Kent FHS journal, in the form of a
supposed letter from my ancestor, Shadrack Purton, to his brother James who had
married Elizabeth Fry. At the end of his life (after Elizabeth's death) James
returned to East Farleigh where he lived with his wife's brother, Thomas. The
entry in the 1861 census gives the name as FERRY, but it is clearly the same
Thomas, Elizabeth and James witnessed his wedding to Ann Barrow - Dec 25, 1830,
in the West Farleigh church when he was named as Thomas FRY.
"Robert
PIRTON (traveller) and his wife Mary PITCHETT were married in Capel, Surrey in
1784, but their several children were baptized in different villages following
the Medway and the old Roman Roads through Kent. Another son William PURTON was
also a carter, in Kent and in Victoria, my grandfather was also "into
horses" and was a blacksmith and farrier and a "horse-whisperer"
long before the phrase was coined.
"I
wrote the article for the Kent FHS in the hope of locating other descendents of
Robert, so far only Bob has written of seeing the article, fortunately before he
left for his UK trip. Funnily enough I also live in Queensland, after
growing up in New Zealand, and marrying an ex-Londoner whose childhood holidays
were hop-picking in Kent - (small world)!
"My
ancestor's unusual spelling of his name was copied from his army discharge, and
may have arisen because of the elegant 'waist' on the 'h' in the copper-plate
writing of his name.
"As
you can appreciate, I am interested in several villages in the area around
Maidstone. I noted when I was in the UK in '98 that a number of Purtons live in
Yalding, but I did not have time to make an approach to any of them. Is
it possible that other village in your area of Kent have similar websites to
that of West Farleigh? Perhaps you could send me a brief note with any
suggestions."
If anyone
has any information about the Purtons or Pirtons of Yalding or indeed anywhere
please contact Barbara at Barbara Bolt.
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