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Hi all,

I'm struggling to find exactly where in the departmental archives to find the scanned parish records for La Châtaigneraie (not at all helped by my rusty French.)

I'm keen to look through them because I've recently found this document has been digitised:

https://archives-deux-sevres-vienne.fr/ark:/28387/vtac9e068e51c0cee53/daoloc/0/1?id=https%3A%2F%2Farchives-deux-sevres-vienne.fr%2Fark%3A%2F28387%2Fvtac9e068e51c0cee53%2Fcanvas%2F0%2F96

...which (courtesy of the information about Jean Mandineau on p 96) has nudged me in the direction of La Châtaigneraie for hunting down my Mandineau ancestors, having not had any luck in the records for Moncoutant, which is where I'd thought they'd hailed from.

Can anyone with better French than I have (and / or a better understanding of the local archives) point me in the direction of / share a link to the scanned parish registers for La Châtaigneraie, if such a thing is available online ?

Cheers,

Jenni

Hi there,

I've recently come into possession of this photograph which has some connection to my maternal grandmother's side of the family. My best guess so far is that it could be my great, great grandfather James Davies, who was born in Wales in 1849 and lived in the London area (very close to this photography studio) from at least 1878 to 1911.

Am I right in guessing that this photograph is potentially taken during the 1870s-1880s? Based on clothing and the particulars of the carte de visite card stock (7 sheets of paper thick, rounded corners, creamy white colour, though it has darkened with age) this was my best guess. There is a small wad of fabric in the shape of the oval that has been inserted behind the photograph itself, presumably to give some depth to the image and make it look slightly embossed.


I believe it must be post 1868 at any rate, because it appears that this is the date the Midland Railway Terminus (referenced on the reverse of the image) came into being.

Any further clarity on dates would be much appreciated.

Jenni

Hi all,

I'm wondering if anyone would be able to help me unravel a little mystery (or point me in the right direction to do so.)

I'm trying to figure out what happened to a farm called Bimmer Hill in Northumberland after around 1826, in particular to see if it (or any part of it) stayed in the hands of the Robson family.

What I have so far is this:

I know from the death record of my many-times great grandmother Eleanor Turnbull (nee Robson) that she was the daughter of Lancelot Robson, proprietor of Bimmer Hill. Statutory death records (Scotland) of her brother James (1869) and sister Margaret (1871) confirm this, though hers is the only one which states that Lancelot was the proprietor of Bimmer Hill; the others simply say "Landed Proprietor."

I've checked the poll books I can find online and find Bimmer Hill in the hands of Lancelot Robson in 1826 (this fits with his dates: he died in 1828), and prior to that in 1777 and 1747 in the hands of his father, James Robson.

What happens after 1826 is unclear, and I'd love to figure it out.

By 1838 I see references in the newspaper to an Edward Milburn living at Bimmer Hill (census records back this up: he's at Bimmer Hill in 1851 as a "Farmer of 30 Acres".)

Interestingly, Lancelot Robson was married to Mary Milburn, but I can't seem to connect this Edward to her in any way. My gut suggests he's likely to be a nephew or similar, but I can't find any evidence to confirm that hunch.

Also living at Bimmer Hill, in the adjacent census entry, is the aforementioned Margaret Robson, daughter of Lancelot. She is there until 1861, and in 1871 (the year of her death) we find her in Roxburghshire in the household of her niece Margaret Robson (James's daughter, and wife of Robert Amos.)

James himself (Lancelot's only son, and in theory our best candidate for inheriting Bimmer Hill) appears in four census records:

1841, Southdean, with his wife Janet Laughlin and (I presume) daughter Isabella. Here he is listed as an Ag Lab.

1851, Southdean, Waterside again, with his wife and his daughter Matilda. Here he's listed as a landed proprietor.

1861, Southdean, Letham (Waterside) with his daughter. Here again he is listed as a landed proprietor.

The death notice for both his daughters Margaret and Matilda list him as a landed proprietor.

But....In 1865, I found a notice in the newspaper that appears to be for the sale of Bimmer Hill by a Mr. Edward Milburn (the one who appears on the 1851 census as farming there.)

"For sale, desirable small estate of Bimmer Hill in the parish of Bellingham, and County of Northumberland, presently possessed by Mr Edward Milburn. [Does this mean he was the owner? Or the tenant?] The lands, which contain 77 acres, 3 Roods, and 35 Poles, or thereby, are susceptible of great improvement, and are well fenced. There is a suitable steading [does this mean house?]

[etc, with the solicitor's details.]"


Long story short, as far as I can tell the story of Bimmer Hill looks like this:

[Far earlier accounts linking the Robson family to Bimmer Hill here:  http://www.batie.org/surnames.html

[...]

1747: James Robson

1777: James Robson

1826: Lancelot Robson (dies 1828)

1838: Being farmed by Edward Milburn. Also home to Margaret Robson, Lancelot's daughter. James, his son, lives in Scotland by this time.

1841: Farmed by Edward Milburn. Also home to Margaret Robson.

1851: Farmed by Edward Milburn. "Farmer of 30 acres." Over in Scotland, James Robson listed in census as "Landed Proprietor." But of what land? Also home to Margaret Robson.

1859: Eleanor Turnbull (nee Robson) dies in Scotland, father listed as Lancelot Robson, proprietor of Bimmer Hill.

1861: Margaret Robson living at Bimmer Hill; no further entries census for Bimmer Hill other than hers (as far as I can tell.) Edward Milburn now appears to be a "Farmer of 1400 acres, employing one shepherd" at Hareshawhead (I think this is adjacent to Bimmer Hill, or fairly close.)

1865: Bimmer Hill is listed for sale in the newspaper as above.

1869: James Robson dies, parents listed as Lancelot Robson, labourer, and Mary Milburn.

1871: Margaret moves to Scotland to live with her niece. Edward Milburn is now a "Farmer of 2423 acres" at Hareshawhead.

1871: Margaret dies, parents listed as Lancelot Robson, landed proprietor, and Mary Milburn.

1884: Matilda Robson dies, parents listed as James Robson, landed proprietor, and Janet McLaughlin.

1897, Margaret Amos dies, parents listed as James Robson, landed proprietor, and Janet Laughlin.


To add to the mystery, and I guess the main point of all the investigations, we have this photograph labelled "The Laird of Bimmer Hill" (I previously asked about it here:)

https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=768472.0

I think this bloke must be either James Robson or Edward Milburn. Question is, who? If I can find out what happened to the ownership of Bimmer Hill, I might be able to make a better guess.

Anyway, if you're still reading, thank you! Any advice, tips, help much appreciated. I'm in NZ so am limited to online sources, but if there's anything local or in-person that anybody can tell me about / suggest, I'd love to hear about that, too.


Jenni

Hi all,

I'm trying to locate any online archived records pertaining to the birth and ancestry of Jean Mandineau (the husband of Anne L'Homme, who is discussed in this thread:

http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=769281.0).

Jean, like his wife Anne, was a Huguenot refugee, arriving in London sometime prior to his marriage to Anne in 1736.

From what our family tree records say, Jean was most likely born around 1700 - 1710. His marriage to Anne L'Homme (in London) states: Jean Mandineau, originaire de Moncoutant en Poitou.. 

The existing family tree we have states that his father was Francois Mandineau, and his mother was named Helene, and that Jean had a sister who was born five years earlier than he was. It also states that Francois married late in life. I would like to try to find primary source documentation to support these details.

I believe Jean was possibly a weaver, (the burial record of one of his children lists his occupation as such, and it appears that was also the occupation of the L'Homme family) though our family tree records state that in France, Francois and family had a multi-generational agricultural background. Subsequent generations of the Mandineau (later anglicized to Mandeno) family in London worked successfully as market gardeners.


I have been searching here (with my very limited French):

https://archinoe.fr/v2/ad79/visualiseur/etatcivil.html?id=790004307

 ...but have found no mention of any Mandineau or Mandineaux families (I have also seen it spelled Mandinot in some documentation.) Can anyone recommend any other places to look? Is there something I'm missing? I understand that these are Catholic parish records, but I presume there must be some extant documentation to support the original claim in the family tree that Jean's parents were Francois and Helene. (the original research was undertaken pre-internet, via visits to France / London, I believe.)

Any suggestions / redirections / assistance much appreciated. I am still exceptionally thankful for all the time and help of members in the aforementioned thread regarding Anne L'Homme.

Kind regards,

Jenni

Hi there,

I suspect this might be a dead end in my research, but I'm trying to track down a baptism record for Anne L'Homme, circa 1710, apparently in Echiselle, France.

She married Jean Mandineau in London in 1736 (he was from Moncoutant, Poitou-Charentes)

I can't find Echiselle anywhere - I'm wondering if it's a typo, an error, or a place that has had a name change. (The information came from family tree documents done some years ago - unfortunately there's no reference as to where this information came from. Possibly something that hasn't yet been digitised?)

Any help much appreciated - I'd love to find out more about my French ancestors, other than the fact that they were Huguenot refugees to London.

Cheers,

Jen