Bonnett...French?

[ThomasBonnett]

Hi
I'm not sure if anyone can help me but I seem to be hitting brick walls in my search for my Bonnett ancestors. I'm tracing my mothers side (Bonnett) Due to the rumour which my grandfather had told me which was that us Bonnett's were originally French refugees/Huguenots. He was told this by his father who was originally told it by his Grandfather (My 3x Grt Grandfather) I know you don't jump to conclusions in the ancestry game but this is bugging me to find out if it is true. So far I have got back to 1832 with my 4x Grt Grandfather John Bonnett being baptised in Ely St Mary's Church in Cambridgeshire. It says his Father was also called John and his Mother called Catherine, But this is as far as i have got so far as I'm not sure where to look and any help/Assistance would be great. And I know I am jumping the gun here but if anyone has any Huguenot records or the such could check to see if any Bonnett's are there? Because I have a feeling maybe we were Normans who came over in the conquest and then centuries later married a Huguenot girl...Anyway sorry for the long post and replies and Help would be great
Thanks
Thomas Ranieul Bonnett

[KGarrad]

Welcome to RootsChat!

I have a similar "family story" - but have my tree (Garrad line) back to 1550, and no sign of any French!

Closest I have is a G-G-Grandfather born in Jersey!

[stanmapstone]

If the Bonnett family were French Huguenots then you could contact the Huguenot Society
http://www.huguenotsociety.org.uk/family/


Stan

[garstonite]

Hiya Thomas - there is a tree stating
 born in Cambridgeshire ,England 1694
Ann Bonnett 1694
Susan Bonnett 1696
Elizabeth Bonnett 1703
the ladies name is Karen and she lives in Australia - I won`t post her e-mail address - I will PM you her details ..
from memory ( though I could be wrong ) the Huguenots came about 1700 - so maybe these are very early settlers ?

[garstonite]

Out of curiosity I looked at www.familysearch.org
Bonnett -baptisms-Cambridgeshire 1690 -1710 and found
Ann Bonnett christened 19th september 1694 - Wimpole,Cambridge her parents are given as
William Bonnet and Ann - so - William and Ann don`t sound particularly French do they ??
maybe they aren`t Hugeunots??
so if you contact Karen in Australia - you might want to let her know that info - Karen doesn`t have the parents of Ann Bonnett b 1694 in her tree

[LizzieW]

Interestingly my mother's maiden name was Cockett (sometimes only spelled with one t) and she was always told it was French,(a derivation of Cocquet) yet I've traced the family back to Worcester when my 6 x g.grandfather was born in 1679.  I know his parents' names but can't find them earlier than the baptism of their son.  So where they came from I have no idea.

[bevj]

I have come across several people called Bonnet(t) in Huntingdonshire while doing transcription work.
There could be a connection there, it may be worth your looking 'over the border'

Bevj

[ThomasBonnett]

Huntingdonshire is a good bet...My 3rd Grt Grandfather lived in Earith his name was 'Phillip Bedford Bonnett' He was born in Earith, Huntingdonshire in 1869 and Baptsed there in 1874, and In 1871 was living in Bluntisham cum Earith with His parents John and Sarah Ann Bonnett and his 3 brothers (Sarah's maiden surname was Bedford and that is where he got his middle name from)
John Bonnett (Phillip's father) seems to have been living in Earith in 1863 as his 2 sons John and Robert were baptised there but there is no Bonnett's in Earith/Bluntisham cum Earith before 1863 as I have the parish registers going back to 1538. But where John Lived beforEarith I don't know...He was Baptised in Ely St mary's like I said and I have the Cambridgeshire census 1841 CD but Because it hasn't been wrote out it is just photos of the census records so there is Dirt/Smudges/Ink Spots so In some places hard to see but I know he will should be on there somewhere and maybe his father John as well

[joboy]

Try the GOONS  .... Guild of One Name Studies ... BONNETT is registered there;
http://www.one-name.org/cgi-bin/searchrequest.cgi