Hello again and sorry for not spotting your replies before now! You know you're going round in circles when you think you've hit on something good and it's just Google churning up your own forum posts!
I'm still beating my head on that wall .. how about you two, spiller-daltrey and essaying_life? I'm absolutely no further on at all.
I have looked at the Dawtreys who came over in 1066. They're a fascinating family and I spent quite some time reading up about them but I can't find a link. My own feeling is that there isn't a connection (unless it's far back before then) for a couple of different reasons:
- The Dawtrey family were obviously rather prosperous in the 1600s. When James Daltrey appears in 1740, he is rather ordinary - it would be quite a leap (though not impossible) from coming from a family with land and titles.
- The family story that I've always heard is that we were decended from Huguenots who came from France. I think the story of Dawtrey connections, as they're so interesting, would have been carried down for sure if the link was there .
I also agree that the link with Yorkshire seems dodgy, though there are obviously a clump of Daltreys there at around the time we're looking at. I've also found Daltreys in Gainsborough but ruled them out as improbable.
My own hunch at the moment is to look further into these traces:
London land tax recordsWilliam Daltrey – Farringdon Without, City of London – 1692
William Daltrey – Vintry, City of London – 1725/1726/1728
I've also found my notes from last time I was looking. Please excuse the lack of sense in them but they're just thoughts as I went along. As follows:
Freeman of London records
Record 1 (which Ancestry has listed as being for 1686)
:
Willsford, son of William Dealtrie of “Brick Hill Land” and part of the Company of Dyers was made Freeman of London in 1686 - although the record is written like a sum: 1686
38
-------
1724
Possibly the correct date could be 1724? (This date is important to tie it in with a birth record for Willsford further down these notes)
Possibly, “Brick Hill Land” Could be “Brick Hill Lane”, St. Martin Vintry although I would need to verify that this lane existed at that time.
Record 2:
Thomas Dealtrey, son of Willsford Dealtrey of Nottingham (... Former deceased?) puts himself apprentice to John Bennett citizen and cutler of London.
(Though further down in my notes there is a birth record showing Willsford as being christened in Saint Martin, Vintry, London so why would it list him on the apprentice records as being from Nottingham? This record may be nothing to do with "our" Daltreys and just a co-incidence)
A hunch …
Could Willsford be James’ brother? Could William be his father?
While looking for clues of this, I’ve found traces of a family from around the same time. They were baptised/christened at St. Martin Vintry. The parents are William and Jane Doltrey. Their children are shown as being christened in 1689, 1697 and 1705 so time-wise, they would fit as siblings for James. It’s a long shot but possible … ?
William Dolltrey m. Jane Willsford 04 Apr 1689 (Saint James Dukes Place, London)
Samuell Daltrey b. 1689 (St. Lawrence Jewry and St. Mary Magdalen Milk Street, London)
Susana Doltrey b.1697 (Saint Martin – Vintry, London)
Willsford Daltrey b.1705 (Saint Martin – Vintry, London)Of course, the only problem with the above theory is that I simply can't find the birth/christening record for James! Any thoughts you have about it all would be very welcome