Exeter, Devon, England-THOMAS WALKER b. 1491/ALICE MUTTLEBURY b. 1492

[jbnorris73]

I am looking for information On the marriage of Thomas Walker and Alice Muttlebury from Exeter, Devon, Eng.
Info I would like if found:
1. Did Thomas Walker and Alice Muttlebury get married?
2. What was the date of the marriage?
3. How many children were there? Names?
 
I see other Ancestry trees stating that Alice Muttlebury married a John Smythe and named the child Thomas Walker. Sounds unbelievable to change surnames from one generation to next, but not impossible knowing the origin of the WALKER surname. I have a date of birth/death for Thomas Walker of (1491-1540) I would also like to know about any siblings if possible. I am just trying to keep my Father in Laws tree lineage from having mistakes.

Thank You
Julie

[Mowsehowse]

Hi Julie,
I would love to know what paper work exists, for ordinary people, that gives birth and death or baptism/burial dates from the 15 century?

I know there is plenty of recorded information for gentry and royalty but......

[DRH123]

As so often, the Ancestry trees range from dubious to ludicrous. None quotes any relevant sources, as far as I can see.

There is one secondary source for the pairing with John Smith. Burke's Peerage refers to them as the parents of a Nicholas Smith, died 1596. No other children, no dates.

I can see no evidence at all for a marriage with Thomas Walker,

David

[RuthPlym]

Hi Julie.

I am Ruth Muttlebury, my late husband was Edward Muttlebury and his father (Peter Muttlebury) had done a reasonable amount of research into the Muttlebury family in the 1960s. The name seems to attract a lot of interest and remnants of family links are scattered between Canada, Ireland, New Zealand and Australia as well as here in Devon.

The name has also acquired various spellings over the years so tracing through online searches can often miss vital records. Motelberie, de Motelbrie, Muttelberry etc to name a few.

The Muttlebury family did have a connection with John Smith in Exeter. There was once a handpainted Coat of Arms on the wall in Exeter Cathedral mixing the dexter and sinisters of Smith with Muttlebury. However, when I went there about five years ago it was remarkably worn away and barely legible to be of value. The Muttlebury coat of arms is an ermine shield with bend gules in red and three buckles. The crest is a hare courant.

The name Alice Muttlebury does not show up in any search on Find My Past - I system I use regularly to search my father's family line and so far - pretty reliable. However various sources pick it up in Exeter in the 1500s. Some also affix the title 'Lady' to Alice. My late husband was never convinced this was the case. The Muttlebury's were basically Yeomanry so untitled.  The first Muttlebury in England was understood to be a young Squire in the army of William the Conqueror, having served under Alan Duke of Brittany. The Muttlebury coat of Arms and its ermine shield would confirm that link absolutely. The flag of Brittany even today has an ermine quartering.

Years later, Lt Col George Muttlebury served bravely in the Battle of Waterloo. The Dutch awarded him some sort of honour post-Battle due to a muck up Prince William of Orange made in the heat of battle which George had to try and unravel quickly and against frightening odds, which allegedly made him 'Sir George Muttlebury' but the title was only recognised on the continent and not in Britain. 

I was interested to see the name Walker pop up. I have uncovered a Walker on my late father's side of the family. There weren't that many in Devon.

Best Wishes

Ruth

[jbnorris73]

Thank You RuthPlym,
Thank you for answering back and giving a little information about your husband's family. Could it be that the last name of Smith turned into Walker? Was there any indication that they were weavers of fabric, because that's where the Walker name comes from. They used to walk on the fabric and get it wet to soften it. All the Walkers that are in our tree are hand loom weavers or silk stocking weavers. 1490 seems to be the farthest back I can go with a direct lineage of my Father in Law. I have looked on Scandinavian sites and a site called Geneologyonline.com and they even only go back to 1490.

I was just wondering if the name change from older to younger generation really did happen. Seems like they would want it to stay Smith not Walker.


Julie

[RuthPlym]

Hi Julie,

Records around the 1400s are remarkably sketchy. Largely it seems as even those with clerical training may have made spelling mistakes and the calligraphy is so different. I often try to look at documents from the 1700s and it can be very hard to transcribe something.

The name Walker (in the Muttlebury family) is not known to me and I have checked my late father in law's records. He makes no mention of the name Walker either. That's not to say there wasn't a Thomas Walker - just nothing that I can see. From what I can gather Walker is mainly a Scots/Irish name?

Best Wishes

Ruth