Anybody working out their family tree?

What did you expect? You're a Baker.

 

My surname has loads of ways of spelling it, so it’s a name that sort of gets ‘lost in time’. We know that the last time it changed spelling, was around the 1920’s, when my great Aunt added the ‘E’ on the end.
But it’s the most commonest name with the least amount of letters, found in an English name. Sounds almost Chinese, though.

 

Can this year get any worse? I just googled my surname and there is every chance I am French or from Yorkshire.

 

My Grangfather spent much of the 1970's investigating his as his hobby after he retired. He and my grandmother toured the UK visiting graveyards and local records. We are fortunate to have generations of clergymen who did keep good records.
Thusly I know (already did know) that my fifth great grandfather taught Queen Vicoria to sing and play the piano when she was a child, that we were part of the Hawkhurst smuggling gang, owned a huge chemical works on the Isle of Dogs and several areas of Brighton and Hove. By areas I mean areas - streets and streets of houses. One branch were successful Lloyds underwriters for an amazing 50 years (Secretan - a Swiss bunch). He wrote a book about us for our own consumption. He only followed his own direct male descendant line back, probably because it was relatively easy.

 

A few of them around here but none were shandy drinkers

 

I like the contrast between teaching royalty and smuggling, made me chuckle

 

I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you!

 

Let's hope it's french...

 

Without that saving grace I wouldn't have admitted the rest. This is ma's family and had evaporated into pleb nonentity long since. Almost. We made candles once, or chemicals for candles. This is probably where things went wrong. Big business one day... I could have joined this lot if I'd wanted, my bro is high up in it but seriously there is only the Price family who still make candles to any degree.

http://www.waxchandlers.org.uk/index.php

Whatever it may have been once, I know that it's basically a charity now, investing what money they have, topping up from donations and members wills, mostly concerned with homelessness in London or was last time I checked. Our family have been members definitely since 1807.


Oops it was Rotherhithe not the Dogs. We were the Dummelow guy with the chemical works known as the Vitriol Works in this blog about someone who's family were connected via a warehouse they owned as part of this business. Hey Nick, they made paint. .

https://russiadock.blogspot.com/2013/10/the-brandrams-in-rotherhithe.html

 

There is a simple test to determine whether you are from Yorkshire or not.

It only costs a tenner.

 

Hoooowwwww muuuuccccchhhhh, see I cant do the accent

 

The good stuff with lead. Interesting read .

 

Result!!