Beaver and Bevir

[MattD30]

I have two Wills relating to the Assheherst/Esshehrst family which mention places with similar names and I wondered if they referred to the same place.

In 1493 "John Assherst of Ashford" left a will in which he bequeaths to his son William his "p[ri]ncipall mesuage called Bevir"

In 1514 a John Essherst of "Ashford Beaver"

Does anyone else think "Bevir" and "Beaver" refer to the same place? The second John might be the son or grandson of the first John.

Thanks

Matt

[Bookbox]

For historical place-names in the Ashford area, it might be worth your having a read of this ...
http://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-kent/vol7/pp526-545

[MattD30]

For historical place-names in the Ashford area, it might be worth your having a read of this ...
http://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-kent/vol7/pp526-545

Many thanks for that link which looks very useful. I am still unclear if "Beaver" and "Bevir" are the same though.

I did notice the following "in which yoke there is both a hamlet and a green or common, of the name of Beavor" so I guess Beavor is a hamlet in the parish of Ashford, could Bevir be the same place spelt differently? I can't see any mention of the spelling "Bevir" in this piece.

What do you think?

Matt

[Bookbox]

I think it's probably the same name.

[MattD30]

I think it's probably the same name.

So did I, thanks for confirming what I thought

[Marayong]

Beever occurs a fair bit in the Ashford manor rolls and is almost certainly the modern day Beaver, which in on the south bank of the Stour in what is now South Ashford. Remember all spelling was phonetic back then.