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England (Counties as in 1851-1901) => Sussex => England => Sussex Lookup Requests => Topic started by: Jean Mayo on Tuesday 13 March 07 14:21 GMT (UK)
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I am searching for the parents and family origins in Sussex County, England of two brothers, John and Thomas Mayo. They were cannon makers of great importance in the mid-1500's, and are thought to have originated in Sussex County. Their cannons still exist in Plymouth, MA., U.S.A.; the Guernsey Islands; and in Fort Nelson and in Woolwich, London; all made in the 1550's.
On June 26, 1555, in recognition for their previous services, they were appointed gunners in the Tower of London, as cannon makers. Thomas Mayo, gunfounder unto her Majesty, died in London Oct. 9, 1573. I am not sure if that is the date of his death, the date his will was written, or the date his will was probated in London. In his will, he mentions his wife, Elizabeth Mayo, and his brother, John Mayo, but mentions no children.
It is believed that these Mayo brothers came from Sussex, England and possibly that their families worked in metals or that the Mayo brothers were apprenticed to the great gunfounders in Sussex, England, where this trade was prevalent in the 1500's.
I am searching for any information concerning John and Thomas Mayo and their family origins in Sussex County, England. I understand that few records exist for this time period I am researching; however, I am hoping that if their family was early iron workers or silversmiths or worked with metals, there may be information concerning them going further back in time in Sussex, England.
My own Mayo family fought at the Battle of Hastings under William the Conqueror and were rewarded with lands in Cornwall, where they lived many generations until my line moved to Marston St. Lawrence in the 1550's and went on to Farthinghoe and Thorpe Mandeville in Northamptonshire; and then to Leiden, Holland; then to North Newington, Oxfordshire; and then finally to America in 1638.
Any help in getting further information concerning these Mayo brothers, cannon makers, would be very much appreciated.
Jean Mayo
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Sorry that we have not managed to reply to this one but it is a very specialised area of research and much earlier than most of us can do with ease. I looked at the A2A site and found the will for Thomas Mayo but there is no indication of which part of Sussex he came from and it is a very big county.
I hope you find something.
Andrea
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Hi Andrea,
When I made the posting, I knew it was a real long shot. Thanks for checking though. I appreciate it.
Jean.
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Hello Jean,
Have you tried contacting the Wealden Iron Research Group?
www.wealdeniron.org.uk (http://www.wealdeniron.org.uk)
Regards,
Phil
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There's an old volume of the Sussex Archaeological Collections that has an interesting article on a family of canon makers in East Sussex - Heathfield, I think (but I could be wrong). I remember there being some letters and genealogical information recorded in the article.
Sorry to be so vague, but I don't have access to the book just now - I can't remember the name of family or the book's volume number.
But I will have access in a couple of weeks. I'll post back if the family is Mayo.
Stovepipe
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Thank you everyone. I've done quite a bit of reading on the subject and there were several early families that were gunfounders and cannon makers in Sussex and Kent in the mid-1500's. If either of you find the names of John and Thomas Mayo in your travels, I would welcome any further help that you could give me. Phil, that iron research group site is fantastic. Thank you for bringing it to my attention. I googled the subject to death, and that was one site that I missed. Have a great evening, and thanks again.
Jean
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Glad I started a flurry of activity! I have looked for Mayo in the index for the Sussex Archaeological books but did not see it. I'll look again for cannon makers - I have them at work.
Andrea
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I have looked for cannon makers without success as far as Mayo is concerned. I suspect they moved from Sussex very early on. There were several references to Tower Office of Ordnance that may be worth following up. A Margaret Mayo was marrying in Henfield - the vicar William Belcher - in the late 1500s so there must have been a family around there. There is a big article on Ralph Hogges and his Ironworks accounts 1576-81 but no mention of Mayo.
Andrea
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Hi Andrea,
Thanks for keeping me in mind. I've pretty much learned about the things you mentioned in your posting. What I've spent the morning doing is e-mailing alot of links on that site ...Wealdon Iron research group. I'm hoping that one of them will be able to help me learn more about these Mayo brothers.
I'm also having a strong hunch about the area around Battel, Sussex, England, close to where the Battle of Hastings happened that was renowned for its gunfoundry, gunpowder, iron works, etc. I have no proof...just a pure gut instinct. There were Mayo's living there in the 1700's, but that is a later time period, not in the 1500's. But something tells me.....
Jean.
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Hi Jean
I've been reading this thread with interest and can I just chirp in with my bit now.
You might want to bear in mind the villages of Ashburnham, Warbleton and Brightling (all fairly close to Battle) where there were big iron foundrys and furnaces at around that time. A lot of my family come from that area and I live near by and I will bear the name Mayo in mind when doing any research.
Kerry
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Thank you, Kerry. I am sharing anything I learn with the Royal Armouries in London; with Guernsey Island; and with Pilgrim Hall Museum and Plymouth, MA. public library and historical society. All help would be very much appreciated.
Jean
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Hi Jean,
Just a thought but have you looked through the online National Archives Catalogue? Some very early stuff there. The down side is that to research further you would have to do it personally or pay one of their researchers :(
jane
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Hi Jane,
Yes, I have checked that out. I was really hoping that there might be record of the Mayo brothers also at the Guildhall Museum in London, but no luck. I just heard from that Wealden Iron Research Group, and they said that the two Mayo cannons that still exist in England were bronze and he thinks that the Mayo brothers worked with bronze; however, I don't think that the cannon in Plymouth, MA. of their's is bronze. I'll need to check that out. Them being bronze gunfounders may be an important clue. Thanks for keeping me in mind!
Jean.
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Hi All,
After researching this morning, all of the Mayo cannons in existence today were made of bronze. So these Mayo brothers were indeed makers of bronze cannons in the 1550's. Now I need to research early Bronze cannon makers in England.
Jean.
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Since my last post in this thread I've been able to check the old volume of the Sussex Archaeological Collections to which I referred.
The article was on a family of gun founders in Heathfield. Unfortunately their name was Fuller and they were active in the eighteenth century. So the wrong family and two hundred years too late. Apologies for raising false hopes.
Stovepipe
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Not a problem. Thanks for checking. I appreciate it.
Jean.
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Hi Jean - I live in Plymouth, MA, have seen the cannon, and was thrilled to see John & Thomas Mayo, and think there's a chance I am related to the cannon makers. My forebear, John Mayo, was only 3 when he arrived on the ship "William Francis", May 20, 1633 to Roxbury, MA. Wondering what you've found out about the cannon-making brothers.