I have traced one branch of my family back to a Sarah Steel christened at Long Compton on 23/5/1790 the daughter of Sarah Steel ( on the IGI index). Confirmation that this is the right person is her 1851 census entry which is correct on date and place of birth. She married and lived at Broughton in Oxfordshire, but I would be interested in trying to find whether in fact the family were from Long Compton. There are Steels way back in the 1600's on IGI in Long Compton but around the time of her birth apart from her I can only find entries for Stiles. On the other side of my family tree I have another Steel mystery, I have Thomas Steel who I can only trace back to his marriage in 1806 at Byfield Northants. On the 1841 census he said not born in county, but he died before 1851 so I have not been able to trace where he came from. I wondered whether these 2 people were from the same family, or whether it is just coincidence. I also wondered whether both Long Compton and Byfield were on the routes of Drover's roads and whether the family may have in some way been connected with droving.
