Brick Walls in Rugeley - John Harvey

[ggrocott]

I have a fair bit of info on the Longdon Harveys - desparately trying to sort out all the John Harveys!

[AHG]

Thanks for this. I'm from William (b. 1805) and Hannah (b. 1810) Harvey through their daughter Susannah who moved to the States shorty after marrying Samuel Devall. 

Is their any indication that the other hatters might have been huguenots?  We have an old Devall family story that a william Devall was a French duke who escaped the Revolution and found refuge with Sir Charles Wolseley.  We've disproved that and can take the family back in England further than 1789, but wondered if the family came over earlier when huguenots fled persecution and apparently took most of the French hat making industry with them.  While I doubt that any forefather was a duke, they might have been associated with the household of one of the huguenots dukes and an earlier Sir Charles Wolseley, who was on Oliver Cromwell's inner circle and so would have known huguenots, might have helped them.

[linell]

Hi AHG, having searched the local Parish Records, the first mention of  Devall/Deavalls in this area was about 1740, I found them recorded on some old documents, nothing before that time period.  They probably were French.  But they weren't Hatters before the late 1700's, I have George born Rugeley about 1787 son of Samuel Devall and Martha Brindley, he was a Hatter, probably apprenticed by Samuel Sleigh above.  As you will see he bought the Hatting Industry to Rugeley.  Linell.

[linell]

Hi ggrocott, I checked the Baptism of John Harvey in the Parish Register, as you said it was at St Augustines 25.12.1809.  The burial on the 11th October 1810, is just that a burial, no baptism there, I double checked to make sure.  Both Parents John and Elizabeth.  I think you need to check on the IGI and see how many John and Elizabeth's there were in that area in that time frame.  Linell.

[ggrocott]

Thanks Linell.  I will keep on looking!

[SylviaB]

Hi, I am descended from Samuel Sleigh. This thread is interesting as I didn’t realise he would have had men apprenticed to him. I have a photograph of my great grandparents outside the cottage that you mention.
Sylvia